Harpij 1 2007
Festivities in Rotterdam: Rotterdam Zoo celebrates its 150th anniversary with construction and a large exposition
Robert
van Herk
In
1857 some harbour magnates took over a simple little zoo started by two railroad
workers. This “Rotterdamsche Diergaarde” (Rotterdam Animal garden)
became an exclusive, society-run zoo only open to the general public a few
special days each year. Wealthy people invested in the zoo and used it as a
meeting point during the 1800s, but its popularity
waned considerably in the beginning of 1900s. The zoo was in a precarious
financial state by the 1930s, and as it was situated in the heart of the city,
it impeded traffic. The city council requested that the zoo move to another
location. The sale of the valuable land paid for part of the relocation, and the
“Foundation for People Power” financed the rest, with the stipulation that
it would be a zoo for all the people. The site selected was the still empty
polder “Blijdorp”, hence the zoo’s name
“Diergaarde Blijdorp”. In the meantime much of the old zoo was
destroyed during the bombing of Rotterdam by the German army in 1940.
The
second phase of the zoo began on its new location the same year. The Rotterdam
Zoo is one of the few zoos designed by a single architect, in this case Sybold
van Ravensteyn. The baroque design was a great hit with the public although the
architecture overshadowed the animals. For the next thirty years the Rotterdam
Zoo enjoyed great popularity, but was overtaken in the 1970s and 1980 by more
innovative contenders such as Emmen Zoo and Burgers’ Zoo. A new approach was
needed, and despite constraints because the entire zoo was named a monument,
Rotterdam Zoo entered its third phase: it became a biotope zoo. The opening of
the Asian building “Taman India” in 1995 and the Oceanium in 2000 were
milestones in this transformation. Today annual visitation hovers around 1.5
million, considerably up from the approximately 80,000 in the 1980s.
The
year 2007 will be one in which the Rotterdam Zoo makes considerable moves forward in new construction while at the
same time looking back in an extensive exposition that reviews its history.
While nothing of the once impressive buildings at the old site remain, there are
many photographs of the old zoo in its glory days and after the bombing to view,
as well as some preserved animal specimens. “Collective Memories” features
photos and anecdotes from four generations of visitors. Five time machines show
films taken during the past and present, among other elements in the exposition.
New
in 2007 will be the large South American aviary featuring scarlet ibises and
crested screamers, with a group of blue and yellow macaws housed in an adjacent
flight area. An enclosure for pudus
and wild guinea pigs will be found on the other side of the path. A Free-flying
bird show will open, and a new
outside enclosure will be built for the Chinese alligators. Two new savannah
enclosures for Colobus monkeys and servals will be finished. The migration of birds from the Netherlands to Africa will be
represented by exhibits housing birds
in a Dutch pasture aviary, in a southern European
wetland aviary, and in an African savannah building. Many other animals, e.g.
crocodiles, klipspringers, porcupines, turtles and locusts will also inhabit the
savannah house. The giraffes will also move for the third time since 1940 to a
new exhibit. Finally, polar bears will return to the Rotterdam Zoo when the
new spring-tundra enclosure is completed.
A
European Premier is a lot of work- cheetah “Fareed”, unique in many ways
Peggy van den Broek
Five
subspecies of cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) are recognized. Only one
subspecies, the southern A.j. jubatus, was held in captivity in any
number until seven years ago. Then three facilities in the United Arab Emirates
received specimens of the northern A.
j. soemmeringii originating
from Somalia, Ethiopia Chad and Sudan that had been confiscated. These
facilities were quite successful in breeding the cheetahs and the EEP
Coordinator, Sean McKeown (H.H. Sheik Butti Maktoum’s Wildlife Centre, Dubai)
decided to send some of the animals to Safaripark
Beekse Bergen in the Netherlands, as Beekse Bergen had considerable
experience working with the southern subspecies.
Two
F2 males born at the Wadi al Safa Wildlife Centre and two females, F1 sisters
born at Breeding Centre for Endangered Arabian Wildlife in Sharjah arrived on 11
May 2005. The sexes were held separately, as it is well established that
cheetahs that are too familiar with each other do not breed together.
Furthermore it needs to click between the animals, and males often need to be
persistent in their attentions in order to mate with the female.
It
was clear on 8 January 2006 that the female “Gwen” was ready to be mated,
and was introduced to the males. Two copulations proceeded quite quickly, and
she was again separated. Gwen proved to be more nervous during her pregnancy
than what had been experienced with A. j. jubatus females, and
particularly towards the end of her pregnancy became quite intolerant of her
sister. Two cubs were born after a
91 day pregnancy, and Gwen became considerably calmer. Although Gwen appeared to
be a good mother one of the cubs died almost immediately. Suckling by one cub
was not sufficient to stimulate much milk production, and by 11 days of age the
cub “Fareed” (meaning unique in Arabian) was noticeably weaker.
With much advice from various experienced colleagues, it was decided to give Fareed supplemental feedings while leaving him with his mother, requiring that he be separated several times a day, also late at night and early in the morning. This worked quite well until Fareed became ill a week later. |He received medication and tube feeding for eight days as he could not swallow well. Bottle feeding resumed when he became better, and he began to eat some solid foods and follow his mother around more as well. Gwen was relaxed, playful and caring of Fareed when they were indoors but when they went outdoors she appeared nervous. She seemed to forget that Fareed was her young, and handled him quite roughly. They were separated after she knocked him unconscious, but they still played through the wire meshing separating them in the indoor area. A reintroduction was attempted a few months later, but Gwen was still too aggressive. Fareed will soon be moved to another enclosure, and it is hoped that Gwen will soon be a mother again, and that this time she will have a larger litter and care for it better.