The giraffes of Paris
Mar 3, 2010 13:58:20 GMT
Post by Deleted on Mar 3, 2010 13:58:20 GMT
There is a herd of 15 giraffes living in Paris in the closed zoo in the Bois de Vincennes. The zoo has been completely closed for the past year or two as it was slowly emptied of its animals, which were sent to other zoos around Europe. All of the animals are gone now except for the giraffes and the lemurs, because this is their home and it is where they feel comfortable. Anyone who has seen giraffes has noticed that they don’t often seem comfortable – skittish, nervous, wary, distrustful.
But this is a well-established and close-knit herd which has existed since 1934 and has produced 140 offspring over the years, which is also quite rare for giraffes in captivity. It is also the largest giraffe herd in Europe and there was nowhere the animals could be moved without splitting them up. On top of this, several of the giraffes would have died during transport because giraffes are, well, just untransportable.
The zoo is going to be mostly demolished and rebuilt completely and won’t reopen until 2014. The keepers will be working with the matriarch of the herd to keep the others calm, especially the youngsters, during the transformations. Giraffes absolutely hate change, so care must be taken not to shock them. The matriarch of a herd leads the others and keeps them in line and nuzzles the little ones when necessary to reassure them. The keepers say that this matriarch, who is about 26 years old, is remarkable and knows exactly what to do when they need assistance to approach one of the herd for medical attention or any other reason.
The 1000 other animals will return in 2013 to settle in, except for the elephants and the bears, who will not return for reasons of animal welfare. The new zoo will be separated into six biozones such as Patagonia, Sahel-Sudan or Europe with the various groups of animals mixed together rather than in cages. The public will be able to see them much closer, and all of the animals will have much more freedom of territory and movement.
It’s always hard to decide whether zoos should exist at all, but the way things are going, they are the only safe haven for certain animals and of course the only concrete way for children to learn about the biodiversity of the world.
But this is a well-established and close-knit herd which has existed since 1934 and has produced 140 offspring over the years, which is also quite rare for giraffes in captivity. It is also the largest giraffe herd in Europe and there was nowhere the animals could be moved without splitting them up. On top of this, several of the giraffes would have died during transport because giraffes are, well, just untransportable.
The zoo is going to be mostly demolished and rebuilt completely and won’t reopen until 2014. The keepers will be working with the matriarch of the herd to keep the others calm, especially the youngsters, during the transformations. Giraffes absolutely hate change, so care must be taken not to shock them. The matriarch of a herd leads the others and keeps them in line and nuzzles the little ones when necessary to reassure them. The keepers say that this matriarch, who is about 26 years old, is remarkable and knows exactly what to do when they need assistance to approach one of the herd for medical attention or any other reason.
The 1000 other animals will return in 2013 to settle in, except for the elephants and the bears, who will not return for reasons of animal welfare. The new zoo will be separated into six biozones such as Patagonia, Sahel-Sudan or Europe with the various groups of animals mixed together rather than in cages. The public will be able to see them much closer, and all of the animals will have much more freedom of territory and movement.
It’s always hard to decide whether zoos should exist at all, but the way things are going, they are the only safe haven for certain animals and of course the only concrete way for children to learn about the biodiversity of the world.
