The pamphlet map handed out to guests at Magifaunia, the zoo founded by Dust Bunny a little while after her first meeting with Kinyume and the rest of my nextgen cast.
 
Originally I was going to draw an actual to-scale map of the place. But I quickly realised that in order to fit the size some of the larger enclosures it would need to be so zoomed out many things wouldn’t be visible. So I instead decided to draw it in the less accurate style used in actual maps of zoos and amusement parks and such. So the smaller enclosures and buildings are blown up in size while the larger ones are shrunk. I’ve been working on this on and off for some months now, and I’m very happy with how it turned out :D It’s really fun to plan out where everything can be placed in realistic way and which animals go where and need what. This wasn’t very complex, the map is very limited in scope, but it was still just a bit of a puzzle. Fun!
 
 
For the future, I plan on giving some of the animals and staff their own devoted pieces and have this act as a sort of hub linking to each one –I will be adding sections and links to this as I create and post them. So please write if you have any questions or suggestions, and I’ll see what I’ll answer directly or will have include in the different parts! :)
 

 
Background:  
Magifaunia Animal Rescue was originally founded under the name Magical Animal Resue by Dust Bunny in the year 15XX. It was situated in what used to be a factory right outside of Canterlot’s western gate, and focused mainly on rehabilitating magical creatures for release into the wild, into permanent homes as pets or to various sanctuaries throughout the country.
 
Once the operation became larger, it was clear that many of the existing sanctuaries could not keep up with the animals which needed permanent residence; too few had the resources or knowledge to care for magicial creatures. So Kinyume joined the operation as co-owner, and the Magifauna Sanctuary of Magical Creatures, at the time named Magical Animal Sanctuary, was created. It was backed by several high-profile ponies, including the author of the famous Daring Do-books, Atlas Kalos Yearling, the Canterlot artist Thundercloud Rainbowstorm, Princess Twilight Sparkle and a few others. The attention afforded to it by these people gave the new sanctuary a significant boost in interest, and it quickly grew in size and scope. It started to offer tours to groups for educational puposes, and had visits to schools, libraries and such with a few of the smaller tame animals.
 
It was at this point, when the public’s interest in the sanctuary and its creatures was at its peak, that a part of the sanctuary was rebuilt and opened to the public, and the Magifaunia Canterlot Zoo of Magical Creatures was created. The Zoo and Sanctuary still worked very closely together, and share many facilities such at the on-site veterinary clinic. The sanctuary is about twice as large as the Zoo, and is positioned to the north of the zoo mapped out above. This was also when the rescue and sanctuary were given their current names.
 
The goal of the zoo is to spread awareness of and foster interest in these magical creatures; it was found during the sanctuary’s work that most ordinary people have next to no knowledge about issues such as the destruction of eco-systems or the illegal pet trade, both of which are very prevalent in Equestria.
 
The zoo also participates in several breeding and reintroduction programs to help endangered species return to the wild, as well as perform new and important research into the behaviours and needs of these animals. They’ve carved their motto into the entrance to the zoo: Education for Conservation, Knowledge to inspire Action.