The growing awareness for nature and wildlife conservation has made zoo a popular place to visit. “Central Zoo”, only one zoo of Nepal, was established by late Prime Minister Juddha Shamsher Jung Bahadhur Rana on the occasion of Bhote Jatra in 1932 as his personal collection of wild animals, reptiles and birds. In 1951, the jurisdiction of the zoo came under the Government after the fall of the Rana regime. But the zoo was opened for the general public only on 1956. The management of the Central Zoo was given to the government under the power conferred by the Development Committee Act, 1956 until 2008. The zoo is located in the south-western part of Patan, just north of Jawalakhel. It includes a reasonably extensive collection of Nepali wildlife including rhinos, tigers, leopards, monkeys, birds, chimpanzees, etc. It has collection of more than 800 animals in small and big cages including open cages having about 121 species. The record shows that among these, there are 32 mammals, 9 reptiles, 21 fishes and 59 bird species. Zoos have a great potential to educate people and all modern zoos in the world are contributing to save this planet through conservation and environmental education.

For most people, their first visit to the zoo marks their first encounter with animals. Tigers, lions and those only seen in the wild become accessible to human. But for some animal welfare groups, the zoo is a cruel place for animals. Even in their own habitat, animals are threatened by human activities that disturb their existence. Last week we visited ‘Central Zoo’ especially for photography. Here are some collection of chosen photographs. Enjoy!

Source: RealNepal.com.np