Abstract: GPS tracking technology for studying the movements of zoo visitors can provide useful information to improve exhibit design and target educational information to most effectively reach visitors. Despite the increasing prevalence of GPS technology, visitor tracking remains an understudied field, especially in larger zoos located in the United States. Since Zoo Miami is a large U.S. zoo with multiple exhibit areas (Asia, Africa, Amazon, Australia, Everglades) to choose from, conducting GPS visitor tracking research provides a better understanding of how people make choices and spend their time within zoos. By tracking visitor movement, incorporating spatiotemporal analysis, and using demographic information, we can understand where people go in the zoo, when they go there, and who visits different areas. To achieve these goals, we distributed GPS tracking units randomly at the Zoo Miami entrance, along with an entrance survey on demographic information and prior experiences with zoos. When visitors returned the GPS units, we conducted an exit survey to determine more specific information about their visit. We analyzed GPS tracks using ArcMap and ArcGIS Pro software to create heat maps showing the most visited areas of the zoo. In total, 64 surveys were distributed, resulting in 47 working GPS tracks with an average visit length of 3 hours, 33 minutes, an average distance of 6.27 km, and an average speed of 1.87 km/h. We found that 76.6% of visitors did not visit the entire zoo, and that visitors coming from outside Miami-Dade County were 2.4 times more likely to visit the entire zoo than local residents. Asia was the most visited area within the zoo, while the Everglades received the fewest visitors. The Everglades exhibit contains messaging about how to conserve and protect South Florida’s unique ecosystems, but the lack of visitation means that this information may not be reaching visitors, making this research relevant to Zoo Miami’s conservation education mission.
