History of Zoo Basel
Encyclopedia
The Zoo Basel
is located in Basel
, Switzerland
. Established in 1874, it is Switzerland's oldest and largest zoo (by number of animals) and a major tourist attraction with nearly 1.7 million visitors per year.
In 1870, the Ornithologiegesellschaft and the city of Basel started a project to establish a zoo where visitors could see Swiss and Europe
an animals. For this, the city provided land in the Birsig
valley, which was, back then, outside the city walls South of Basel.
List of animals at Zoo Basel.
Zoo Basel
Zoo Basel is a non-profit zoo located within the city of Basel, Switzerland. Its official name is Zoologischer Garten Basel — or in English: Basel Zoological Garden. Basel residents, however, call their zoo affectionately Zolli...
is located in Basel
Basel
Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. Established in 1874, it is Switzerland's oldest and largest zoo (by number of animals) and a major tourist attraction with nearly 1.7 million visitors per year.
In 1870, the Ornithologiegesellschaft and the city of Basel started a project to establish a zoo where visitors could see Swiss and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an animals. For this, the city provided land in the Birsig
Birsig
The Birsig is a rather small river in eastern France and northern Switzerland. Its source is in the village Biederthal, in the French Haut-Rhin department, near the Swiss border. The Birsig is about 21 kilometers long and its watershed area is about 82 square kilometers. It flows variably through...
valley, which was, back then, outside the city walls South of Basel.
| Zoo Basel directors | |
| 1875–1914 | Gottfried Hagmann |
| 1914–1944 | Adolf Wendnagel |
| 1944–1953 | Heini Hediger |
| 1953–1979 | Ernst Lang |
| 1979–1995 | Dieter Rüedi |
| 1995–2001 | Peter Studer |
| since 2001 | Oliver Pagan |
1874 - 1900
This time period was marked by the openening of Zoo Basel in 1987 and by the zoos growth during the first years. It also started the attachment of Basel's population to "its" zoo, which is evidenced by the local popularity of the Indian elephant Miss Kumbuk and several donations of animals and funds.| Year | Event | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 1874 | Opening Day | On July 3, 1874, Zoo Basel opened its doors |
| 1884 | Expansion | The zoo expanded towards Binningen and had as its new center the festival grounds, where diverse exhibits took place |
| 1886 | First Elephant | The first Indian elephant Indian Elephant The Indian Elephant is one of three recognized subspecies of the Asian elephant, and native to mainland Asia. Since 1986, Elephas maximus has been listed as endangered by IUCN as the population has declined by at least 50% over the last three generations, estimated to be 60–75 years... , Miss Kumbuk, was brought to Basel by Paul and Fritz Sarasin |
| 1890 | First Lions | The first arrived in Basel |
| 1891 | Lion Birth | On March 19, 1891 the first lion cub was born |
| 1891 | Elephant House | A new house was opened for the popular Indian elephant Miss Kumbuk and for some zebras |
| 1900 | First Apes | The female orangutan Orangutan Orangutans are the only exclusively Asian genus of extant great ape. The largest living arboreal animals, they have proportionally longer arms than the other, more terrestrial, great apes. They are among the most intelligent primates and use a variety of sophisticated tools, also making sleeping... Kitty came to Basel |
1901 - 1950
The zoo grew in size, popularity, and in number of animals. During the two world wars the zoo suffered, but was not hit by any bombs. It quickly recovered after World War II and took advantage of the opportunity to import foreign animals again.| Year | Event | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 1901 | Large Donation | Mr. Johannes Beck, a local gold smith, donated SFr. 750'000 to Zoo Basel. In his honor, the zoo celebrates every year the Johaness Beck Day. On June 24, entrance to the zoo is free of charge |
| 1904 | Carnivor House | The first carnivor house opened, which included lions and a reptile exhibit |
| 1910 | Antelope House | A new antelope Antelope Antelope is a term referring to many even-toed ungulate species indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia. Antelopes comprise a miscellaneous group within the family Bovidae, encompassing those old-world species that are neither cattle, sheep, buffalo, bison, nor goats... house opened, which is, as of April 2010, the oldest building at Zoo Basel |
| 1914 | Death of Miss Kumbuk | With great sorrow Basels population parted from "their" elephant |
| 1919 | New Elephant | After a long search, the African elephant Jenny was acquired from Circus Krone Circus Krone Circus Krone, based in Munich, is the largest circus in Europe and the only one in Western Europe to also occupy a building.-History:It was originally founded in 1905 by Carl Krone as an animal exhibition. Later the circus was run by his daughter Frieda Sembach-Krone and her husband Carl... to replace Miss Kumbuk |
| 1927 | Sealion Exhibit | Urs Eggenschwyler designed the new sea lion rock which opened in 1927 |
| 1935 | New restaurant | With a great financial effort the old tavern was replaced with a modern restaurant |
| 1937 | Worst day in history | Many animals died because of an outbreak of the Foot-and-mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease or hoof-and-mouth disease is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids... |
| 1947 | New Giraffes | Just after the second world war new giraffes were imported |
| 1949 | Okapi | The first okapi Okapi The okapi , Okapia johnstoni, is a giraffid artiodactyl mammal native to the Ituri Rainforest, located in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in Central Africa... arrived in Basel, however, it died only two months after arriving |
1951 - 2000
This time period was marked by the transformation of animal collecting cages to in- and outdoor exhibits. Zoo Basel called it "creating an animal park".| Year | Event | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Lion House | A new lion house was built that stood until the development of the Gamgoas project |
| 1961 | Main Entrance | The main entrance was moved toward the Birsig Birsig The Birsig is a rather small river in eastern France and northern Switzerland. Its source is in the village Biederthal, in the French Haut-Rhin department, near the Swiss border. The Birsig is about 21 kilometers long and its watershed area is about 82 square kilometers. It flows variably through... creek |
| 1966 | Elephant Birth | The first African Elephant, Ota, was born in Basel |
| 1969 | Monkey House | The current monkey house opened |
| 1972 | Vivarium | The aquarium, or vivarium, opened. It is home to about seventy-five percent of the animals at Zoo Basel |
| 1992 | Elephant Birth | The male African Elephant Pambo was born. He later was transferred to the Vienna zoo Tiergarten Schönbrunn Tiergarten Schönbrunn or Vienna Zoo is a zoo located on the grounds of the famous Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, Austria... |
| 1992/3 | Africa Exhibit | For the first time three different animal species shared one exhibit. The outdoor exhibit and three new houses opened |
| 1997 | Lori House | A new home for the Rainbow Lorikeet Rainbow Lorikeet The Rainbow Lorikeet, is a species of Australasian parrot found in Australia, eastern Indonesia , Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. In Australia, it is common along the eastern seaboard, from Queensland to South Australia and northwest Tasmania... s in the Sauter Garden |
| 1998 | Pelicans | The pelican Pelican A pelican, derived from the Greek word πελεκυς pelekys is a large water bird with a large throat pouch, belonging to the bird family Pelecanidae.... lake and their new house was constructed. The exhibit also includes a new bridge over a small waterfall |
| 1999 | Snow Leopard | The snow leopard Snow Leopard The snow leopard is a moderately large cat native to the mountain ranges of South Asia and Central Asia... s moved into a new exhibit in the Sauter Garden |
2001 - present
| Year | Event | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Etosha house | Etosha house and outdoor exhibits |
| 2003 | Gamgoas house | Gamgoas house with lion Lion The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger... and African wild dog African Wild Dog Lycaon pictus is a large canid found only in Africa, especially in savannas and lightly wooded areas. It is variously called the African wild dog, African hunting dog, Cape hunting dog, painted dog, painted wolf, painted hunting dog, spotted dog, or ornate wolf... outdoor exhibits |
| 2004 | Lori exhibit | With a generous donation from the Winterthur Insurrance, the Lori house received an outdoor exhibit |
| 2006 | Australis | Opening of the Australis house and outdoor exhibits |
| 2006 | Rhino House | The renovated and expanded Indian rhinoceros Indian Rhinoceros The Indian Rhinoceros is also called Greater One-horned Rhinoceros and Asian One-horned Rhinoceros and belongs to the Rhinocerotidae family... house opened |
| 2008 | Rhino Exhibit | The new rhino outdoor exhibit opened and included also Muntjacs, and Oriental Small-clawed Otter Oriental Small-clawed Otter The oriental small-clawed otter , also known as Asian small-clawed otter, is the smallest otter species in the world, weighing less than 5 kg. It lives in mangrove swamps and freshwater wetlands of Bangladesh, Burma, India, southern China, Taiwan, Laos, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines,... s |
| 2010 | Monkey Rock | The Macaques (monkeys) moved into a new exhibit in the Sauter Garden |
Former Animals
A short list of previous animals kept at Zoo Basel can be found towards the bottom of the Wikipedia article:List of animals at Zoo Basel.