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It’s Happening at the Zoo

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A boy tries to pet the goats at the children’s petting zoo.
A boy tries to pet the goats at the children’s petting zoo.
Jerusalem’s Biblical Zoo is the second most-visited tourist site in Israel (second only to Masada).

Aside from the world’s largest collection of animals mentioned in the Bible, the zoo boasts thousands of creatures in natural habitats surrounded by an ecologically balanced environment that serves as a popular meeting place for all the diverse populations of Jerusalem and beyond.

“The whole idea was to bring people closer to nature, to ecology and to the bible,” says Director of Marketing Sigalit Dvir-Herz. “And we have the biggest collection of animals that were here at the time of the bible.”

In The Beginning…

The zoo opened in September 1940 as a small “animal corner” on Rabbi Kook Street in central Jerusalem. It was founded by Aharon Shulov, a professor of zoology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus. Among Shulov’s goals were to provide a research facility for his students; to gather animals, reptiles and birds mentioned in the Bible; and, as he wrote in 1951, to break down the “invisible wall” between the intellectuals on Mount Scopus and the general public.

A goal that’s been well accomplished as the animal sanctuary is acknowledged today as a central meeting location for all of Jerusalem’s population, with over 750,000 visitors a year.

Wildlife Conservation

Its primary goal is the conservation of endangered species. These include animals mentioned in the Bible that are now extinct in Israel, such as the Asian lion, the Syrian Brown Bear, the cheetah, the Nile crocodile, and the Persian fallow deer. It also includes endangered species worldwide, such as the Asian elephant, rare species of macaw, the cockatiel, the ibis, and the Golden Lion Tamarin.

Toward that end, the zoo undertakes to breed animals in captivity and, in some cases, reintroduce them to the wild. Through this program, the zoo has successfully increased the number of Persian fallow deer in Israel. This species was thought to be extinct in the 20th century until a small number of deer were located in Iran in 1956. According to legend, in 1978, four of these deer were brought to Israel and have since increased to several hundred, with a major breeding colony at the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo.

“The last Israeli airplane left Iran containing the four fellow deers. So this was the beginning of a very big herd here at the zoo out of which we go on reintroducing them back to nature,” Sigalit says.

Public Education

Public education is another prime focus of the zoo. According to Shai Doron, director-general of the zoo since 1993, “Our moral right to exist comes from educating and raising the awareness of our visitors.”

Many Israelis, both Jewish and Arab, are not familiar with zoos and get “overexcited” at seeing the animals on display. Dozens of zoo personnel man the displays during peak holiday times to stop visitors from throwing food and other items at the animals. The animals do have a preference for Bamba, the popular Israeli children’s peanut-and-corn snack (though it gives the monkeys diarrhea); other common projectiles include bottles, plastic bags, and children’s shoes. In 1997 a toco toucan was found dead in its cage next to pieces of avocado, a known bird toxin. In 2006 a hippopotamus died after swallowing a tennis ball tossed into its enclosure. Over the past decade and a half, the zoo staff claims that public awareness has improved.

Through visiting school groups, after-school groups, special-education groups and summer camps, children learn about and interact with the animals. Educational activities for children, including the zoo’s own youth movement, promote interracial encounters between Arab and Jewish youth. The zoo also mounts a traveling workshop called the Zoomobile, which brings small animals in cages and a sound system carrying the sounds of larger animals to schools, hospitals, and other locations.

Special Events

The zoo, which is open every day of the year except Yom Kippur, Yom HaShoah, and Yom Hazikaron, schedules special activities on selected dates. Tree-planting activities are an annual Tu Bishvat tradition. On both days of Purim there is a parade, a family costume competition, and a tug of war between the entire Hapoel Jerusalem Basketball Team and one of the elephants (the elephant always wins). On Israel’s Election Day, zoo goers are encouraged to vote for their favorite animal. During the summer, the zoo conducts tours of nocturnal animals in the wee hours of the night. It also schedules jazz concerts, juggling, and workshops during school vacations.

For more information about the Jerusalem Zoo and its animals, visit http://www.jerusalemzoo.org.il/len/

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