Giza Zoo
Encyclopedia
The Giza Zoo is a zoological garden
in Giza, Egypt
. It is one of the few green areas in the city, and includes Giza's largest park. The zoo covers about 80 acres (32.4 ha) , and is home to many endangered species
, as well as a selection of endemic fauna.
Rare species have been successfully bred in the zoo - including the first Californian sea lion to be born in the Middle East
in 2002.
(21 hectares (51.9 acre)) that was once part of the harem gardens. Ismail imported many plants from India, Africa, and South America, of which a banyan tree planted about 1871 can still be seen. The original 180 birds and 78 other animals in the zoos collection were taken from Ismail's private menagerie.
In the late 1870s the state took over the zoo as partial payment of the Ismail's debts. In January 1890, the harem building was opened as a natural history museum, and was used in this manner until a new museum was opened in Tahrir square in 1902. The portion of the gardens facing the Nile were sold to the public for large homes, but the harem gardens were kept intact.
When the zoo was built, the exhibits with semi-natural habitats were considered spacious by European standards. The animal collection emphasized Egyptian species, and at one time claimed 20,000 individuals representing 400 species, though many of these may have been migratory birds. By the mid twentieth century, the zoo was considered one of the best zoos in the world, but it has had trouble adapting to the pressures of growth in the latter half of the century as human populations in Cairo have increased.
By the end of World War II
the zoo claimed 4,700 exhibits, with a total of 700 mammals and 500 reptiles. Attendance levels of 43,567 in 1889 rose to 223,525 by 1906. In 2007, the zoo hosted almost 3.4 million visitors.
In 2004, the zoo lost its membership with the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums
(WAZA). The zoo did not pay membership fees, and then ignored the recommendations of WAZA inspectors. As of 2010, it is a member of the African Association of Zoos and Aquaria (PAAZAB), and is working towards getting re-accredited by WAZA.
The zoo also includes a suspension bridge designed by Gustave Eiffel
that lets visitors view the animals from above. This bridge may have been the first elevated viewing area at any zoo in the world.
There is a reptile house and taxidermist's building on site.
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
in Giza, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. It is one of the few green areas in the city, and includes Giza's largest park. The zoo covers about 80 acres (32.4 ha) , and is home to many endangered species
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
, as well as a selection of endemic fauna.
Rare species have been successfully bred in the zoo - including the first Californian sea lion to be born in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
in 2002.
History
The zoo was built by Khedive Ismail and opened on 1 March 1891. It was built on about 50 feddanFeddan
A feddan is a unit of area. It is used in Egypt, Sudan, and Syria. The feddan is not an SI unit and in Arabic, the word means 'a yoke of oxen': implying the area of ground that could be tilled by them in a certain time. In Egypt the feddan is the only non-metric unit which remained in use...
(21 hectares (51.9 acre)) that was once part of the harem gardens. Ismail imported many plants from India, Africa, and South America, of which a banyan tree planted about 1871 can still be seen. The original 180 birds and 78 other animals in the zoos collection were taken from Ismail's private menagerie.
In the late 1870s the state took over the zoo as partial payment of the Ismail's debts. In January 1890, the harem building was opened as a natural history museum, and was used in this manner until a new museum was opened in Tahrir square in 1902. The portion of the gardens facing the Nile were sold to the public for large homes, but the harem gardens were kept intact.
When the zoo was built, the exhibits with semi-natural habitats were considered spacious by European standards. The animal collection emphasized Egyptian species, and at one time claimed 20,000 individuals representing 400 species, though many of these may have been migratory birds. By the mid twentieth century, the zoo was considered one of the best zoos in the world, but it has had trouble adapting to the pressures of growth in the latter half of the century as human populations in Cairo have increased.
By the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the zoo claimed 4,700 exhibits, with a total of 700 mammals and 500 reptiles. Attendance levels of 43,567 in 1889 rose to 223,525 by 1906. In 2007, the zoo hosted almost 3.4 million visitors.
In 2004, the zoo lost its membership with the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums
World Association of Zoos and Aquariums
The World Association of Zoos and Aquariums is the "umbrella" organisation for the world zoo and aquarium community. Its mission is to provide leadership and support for zoos, aquariums, and partner organizations of the world in animal care and welfare, conservation of biodiversity, environmental...
(WAZA). The zoo did not pay membership fees, and then ignored the recommendations of WAZA inspectors. As of 2010, it is a member of the African Association of Zoos and Aquaria (PAAZAB), and is working towards getting re-accredited by WAZA.
Facilities
The gardens include roads paved with black stone flags from Trieste, footpaths decorated with plebbles laid out like mosaics, and a pond with a marble island that is now the zoo's Tea Island.The zoo also includes a suspension bridge designed by Gustave Eiffel
Gustave Eiffel
Alexandre Gustave Eiffel was a French structural engineer from the École Centrale Paris, an architect, an entrepreneur and a specialist of metallic structures...
that lets visitors view the animals from above. This bridge may have been the first elevated viewing area at any zoo in the world.
There is a reptile house and taxidermist's building on site.