21.03.2015
To visit Tierpark Berlin and cover 160 hectares with buildings and enclosures requires stamina, definitely – and more than one full day. I scheduled a short afternoon on Saturday and a full Sunday. Still, I know where I should start next time, the Crocodile House, because I had to skip it this time.
Saturday afternoon is for orientation and to see a few of the highlights, such as the Alfred Brehm Haus or Predator House. This decision is partly based on the objective to be as effective as possible when covering the Tierpark grounds, but also influenced by the current weather conditions, cold and rainy. While the weather tomorrow looks promising.
The first thing I notice is that the entrance is built to be functional and without any fancy and flashy design or posters. It is just a ticket booth where you can get an entrance ticket and a zoo map for only €12. Yes, German zoos are cheap compared to zoological parks in other European countries. But as sober as the entrance may be, the more interesting is the Tierpark’s grand advertisement right next to the entrance. An exhibit in the public area with American black bear on display – a sneak preview for what is hidden behind the entrance gates.
When I pass these gates the impressive large grounds with its rather ancient layout appear. With close to the Friedrichsfelde Manor House the baroque-styled rectangular gardens, which were restored according historical plans.
Bears
When going to the right after the entrance I enter the bear area, which includes the American bear on the outside, and on the inside comprises enclosures for the spectacled bear and the polar bear. The small amphitheatre of the spectacled bear has three walls constructed with natural boulders and a glass front. Due to this large viewing window area and the limited possibilities for the bear to go out of sight there is ample opportunity for the visitor to spot the animal. The enrichment features are limited as well, three dead trees and a bunch of Christmas-trees branches.
The three polar bears are housed in an environment that is even duller than those for the other bears. It consist of a small flat rock plateau surrounded by a water-filled moat and a rock face rear wall that hides their night quarters and dens. The moat is accessible for the bears, and it seems that swimming is the only natural behaviour that is stimulated. I do not see any kind of enrichment that justifies the tribune that oversees the enclosure. So feeding time seems to be the only distraction in the dull lives of the polar bears at Tierpark Berlin.
Signage and information
The information on the panels at the enclosures is not very visitor-friendly – lots of text and no visual support other than the mapped geographical origin of the species on display. In addition the information panels provide neither information on the species’ conservation status in the wild nor on its contribution to breeding programmes.
Aviaries
While taking the footpath between the children’s zoo and the edge of the premises I pass an enclosure with a Caucasian zebu, a domesticated ungulate, which can only be seen in two zoos in Europe, here and in Stralsund Zoo in Northern Germany. Next, two typical dome-shaped aviaries holding great horned owls (Bubo virginianus) and Siberian eagle owls (Bubo bubo sibiricus) are positioned next to the path. These aviaries, built in this century, provide little space for the owls to fly. But just a little further and across from the owls a large aviary with several gull and other bird species shows that they do take birds’ natural behaviour serious here in Berlin, and they did so already in 1984 – the year the gull aviary was opened.
Just before the large gull aviary there’s a path leading to a big contrast. On one side of the path there are old-school monkey enclosures, while on the other side a 600 m2 fenced off area, created in 1996, offers a more modern environment for a breeding group of pig-tailed macaques. The pathetically small outdoor cages for white-faced saki, red howler monkeys and yellow-breasted capuchins badly need an upgrade. Nonetheless the South American primates are dealing with their small compound and have procreated successfully so far.
Alfred Brehm House
Then it starts to drizzle, which confirms that I made the right decision to focus on the Alfred Brehm House this afternoon. So I walk quickly through the section with the rare domesticated species representing various European regions and briefly check out the dome-shaped aviary with inter alia Abdim’s stork, yellow-billed stork and Hadada ibis that marks the end of this section.
From there it is just a couple of steps to the historic building from 1963 with many feline species, tropical birds and flying foxes. The Alfred Brehm House is not of a beautiful design, but it is dry and warm inside, so for me it fulfils its purpose for this afternoon 
. When the building was first opened to the public it was the largest animal house in the world. It still is spectacular when you enter the building with its huge tropical hall surrounded by corridors on all sides where enclosures for feline and bird species alternate. Unfortunately the cat enclosures do not meet the modern standards for keeping small and big cats, in my opinion. To let feline species express their natural behaviour requires more than just a few high level resting posts I would say. In other words there is not a lot of enrichment and no natural vegetation whatsoever in any of the bare small indoor quarters, with their tiled floors and wall panelling. The latter seems a bit odd, because wood is not very resistant to cat urine I believe.
The collection of feline species housed in and around the Alfred Brehm House comprises representatives of all continents including Amur leopard, snow leopard, Pallas’ cat, Javan leopard, leopard cat, Sumatran tiger, Amur tiger and Indochinese tiger, Asian lion, fishing cat, clouded leopard, serval, caracal, cheetah, cougar and jaguar. Of these cats the Javan leopards (Panthera pardus melas) are the only ones that are kept in a zoo outwith Indonesia, its geographical origin. The smallest of the leopard subspecies seems to be swapping enclosures with the cougar. This is another way of providing enrichment to the cats, because it will keep them busy for some time capturing all the different odours spread by the ‘competition’. The most peculiar enrichment feature is the water tank that is placed on the floor of the fishing cat enclosure. It is not strange of course to provide a fishing cat with a water source, but the way it is done in such a bare environment is at least odd.
The main entrance of the Alfred Brehm House leads to two large corridors left and right of the tropical hall. At the end of both corridors a large indoor bar-less moated enclosures for lions or tigers is situated, something I haven’t seen anywhere before, as indoor facilities I mean. These exhibits have a water-filled moat and a rock face backdrop, while the visitors are provided with a stand. In one of these exhibits an Indochinese tiger seems to be complaining about the food that hasn’t arrived yet:
The centre of the Alfred Brehm House, the tropical hall, is an impressive construction with its 1,100 m2 ground surface and footpaths at two levels. Many tropical birds are allowed to explore the area freely and breeding groups of three large bat species, the Indian flying fox, the straw-coloured fruit bat and the Gambian epauletted fruit bat can be found as well. Nevertheless the hall does not provide the same jungle-like experience as tropical halls in many other modern zoos do. It isn’t a landscape immersion experience, because it lacks sufficient amount of vegetation, high temperatures and moisture.
Along the outer wall of the Alfred Brehm House there is a row of enclosures of similar robust steel framework design with heavy beams and wire mesh. Most of the indoor enclosures are connected with such an outdoor cage, that lack sufficient enrichment if you ask me. The big cat outdoor enclosures that seem to do a bit more justice to the requirements of its inhabitants are the cheetah paddock and the two moated exhibits for lions and tigers in the courtyard of the building. However, also these enclosures lack sufficient enrichment or shelter.
Besides the feline species several other predators are kept in this area, such as binturong, honey badger, Malay civet, banded mongoose and vultures. The vultures including bateleur and common buzzard are on display in a rather impressive aviary at the far end of the Zoo grounds built against the rear wall of the outdoor Asian lion exhibit. The aviary is large enough for the birds to fly around, but the imposing number of species and individuals could be the limiting factor for such endeavours.
To my surprise I like the indoors of the Alfred Brehm House, though the enclosures are absolutely not up to standard considering the lack of space and enrichment features. It must have something to do with the animals that are completely at ease in this artificial environment.
Just before closing time I leave the zoo, hoping for the weather to improve. Because tomorrow there’s a lot of outdoor viewing scheduled.
22.03.2015
I anticipated that I would require more than one day to fully cover the grounds of Tierpark Berlin. But what I couldn’t foresee that the weather man had his predictions right and that I made a good decision yesterday to focus on the predators at the indoors of the Alfred Brehm House. Because today there’s a blue sunny sky with temperatures just above zero. So it’s perfect weather to spend some time outdoors.
On my way to pick up where I left yesterday, the outdoor enclosures around the Alfred Brehm House, I take my time to shoot some pictures from the Tierpark’s scenery. The wisent (Bison bonasus) in their enclosure close to the entrance. The broad footpaths with benches on the side. The sambar deer (Rusa unicolor) in their large paddock which, like the other deer enclosures, seems to be a fenced off area of the original Schloss Friedrichsfelde park with its rectangular design. The dwarf goats on display in their own enclosure and not in the children’s zoo. And the enormous camel enclosure with in the background the pink dots of the flamingos in the adjacent area.
When back at the predator house I first take some pictures of cats enjoying the sunshine before I resume yesterday’s tour at the penguin enclosure right across from the cheetah exhibit. Actually there are two penguin theatres, one for Humboldt penguin and the other for black-footed penguin (Spheniscus demersus) and northern gannet. Both enclosures have a pool at the visitor’s viewing plateau, a rear wall that consists of boulders and a nesting area in between.
Pachyderm House
Next part of my tour are the pachyderms. The outdoor enclosures for both the Asian as the African elephants are large, more or less circular and surrounded by deep dry moats. Except for the large pools and little feeding enrichment these exhibits are quite dull. The elephant enclosures occupy about two-thirds of the area around the pachyderm house. The other third is used for the Indian rhinoceros enclosures which are similarly dull. The rhinos have flat ground at their disposal which is sloping towards the surrounding wall. During summer the rhinos can take a mud bath to protect them from annoying mosquitoes, but that’s about it when it concerns enrichment features.
Inside the pachyderm house the soothing warmth makes it an ideal shelter from the low temperatures outside. House sparrow found out about this too, while at the same time these freeriders have an easy job finding food. Besides the bathtubs for both the Asian and African elephants (see video) there are a few other remarkable things to notice inside the pachyderm house. The real eye-catcher is the big tank with West Indian manatees (Trichechus manatus) in the building’s centre. Manatees are not considered pachyderms but when I look at these massive ocean grazers I understand why they made the choice to house this species here. More disparate are the South American monkeys – the golden-handed tamarin, silvery marmoset and emperor tamarin – and the tamandua, the semiarboreal anteater of South America, that are housed as well in the pachyderm house.
More predators
Across from the rhino and African elephant outdoor exhibits there’s another section with predators such as East African aardwolf, bat-eared fox, dhole, striped hyena, spotted hyena, yellow-throated marten, bobcat, maned wolf and bushdog. Like all the other enclosures for mammalian predators I have seen so far this section is also not provided with very large enclosures, while their inhabitants are quite exposed. In fact, the bobcat exhibit is equipped with the necessary enrichment features for cat – scratching poles, high level platforms – but it is small and lacks a decent shelter. While the aardwolf have got a large variety of enrichment features inside the enclosure the adjacent bat-eared foxes have to do with much less. The newer and adjacent enclosures, constructed in 2007, for dhole and spotted hyena are much larger than the other ones in this section. Nevertheless also these species are very much exposed because there are hardly any places to hide or go out of sight. The best enrichment they have is the visual contact through the wire mesh fences between their enclosures. Both species get very excited when they see each other.
From here it is a short walk to what I call Lemur country, where four of in total seven lemur species that are kept here in the Tierpark can be seen. The other lemurs are on display in the monkey house, the black lemur and collared brown lemur, while the ring-tailed lemurs are housed on their own dedicated little island. In this particular lemur section there are indoor facilities including a breeding station that are off-limits for visitors, but the lemurs can be seen on two small connected islands with a few trees and in the walk-through lemur forest. The latter has been established in 2005 and comprises a plethora of deciduous trees. That means that all trees are without leaves during my visit, but it must be a dense forest with impenetrable foliage during summer. Which of the four species are allowed in the walk-through forest is unclear to me, but it seems that the black-and-white ruffed lemur and red ruffed lemur have access to the forest today. It is possible that the lemurs alternate between the two outdoor exhibits on a regular basis.
Hoofed animals
Then it is time for taking stock regarding of the hoofed animals that belong to the zoo’s collection. It seems an endless list of ungulate species from this point onwards and back to the exit. And most of them are kept in separate paddocks, which is a pity because they have so much space available to create mixed-species exhibits. Since mixing species from the same geographical origin or habitat enables species interaction it is enriching their lives. In addition it can support the educational effort, because visitors simply see which species belong together in certain habitats. Provided that the correct species are together on display of course.
The odd ornament
Just as I settled for Tierpark Berlin being a no nonsense zoo that only creates enclosures with functional designs I walk past the Barbary macaque exhibit. To my big surprise I see ornaments, in other words design with no practical purpose. These kind of ornaments normally refer to the regional culture from the species’ geographical origin. But in this case I don’t think the ornaments reflect North African culture. Anyway, this macaque enclosure is the odd one out considering enclosure design, and a one off trial as well, because I haven’t seen any buildings with cultural historical references.
If you read several other reviews of zoos I wrote you will know that I dislike most of the aviaries because they are dysfunctional. It is hard to provide birds the ‘air’ that they need, and once in a while a zoo is able to do so. Well, Tierpark Berlin is not one of those zoos, except perhaps for the walk-through gull aviary and the tropical hall of the Alfred Brehm House. Especially the raptor aviaries are very disappointing. These small circular aviaries are conveniently located near and around a courtyard just off the main footpath. As with many other taxonomic groups they have many different species in their collection here in Berlin.
Mountain landscape
In the corner of the Zoo grounds farthest from the main entrance there is a hill that represents a mountain landscape and that comprises species from mountainous regions in Asia and Europe, while a section for species from the Americas is scheduled to be added. This part, opened to the public on 25 November 2002, is a small zoo in itself that can only be accessed via a single sloping walkway. In addition there are some steep footpaths in this area, so people with reduced mobility or an unsteady gait should better avoid walking uphill. On the plateau there are various ungulate species to be found, most from mountainous regions, such as the chamois, Sichuan takin, bharal, markhor, Chinese goral (Naemorhedus griseus), Thorold’s deer, Marco Polo sheep and Afghan red sheep. Unfortunately for those species with their original habitat in the rugged mountains there is no rocky environment available on the plateau, but most enclosures I would classify as ‘decent’. Nevertheless the animals are not treated alike, because those considered least endangered – the elk and the chamois – have the largest enclosures at their disposal.
Apart from a single bearded vulture, Steller’s eagle and Ural owl, a few other predators are kept here. Like all the predator enclosures in the Tierpark they lack vegetation and good shelter, so the European wildcat, wolverine and Altai lynx (Lynx lynx wardi) are very much exposed. An additional feature of the wolverine enclosure I find most striking. In my opinion the public fence is positioned too close to the enclosure’s fence, which makes it possible for people – when they lean forward – to come dangerously close to the sharp teeth of the wolverine.
Monkey House
The Monkey House which is situated immediately on the right after my descent from the mountain landscape is another one of those nondescript buildings they love here so much. The glass-fronted indoor facilities are bare with coated concrete floors and tiled walls. Depending on the primate species a different kind of enrichment is provided, which varies from woodchips, wood shavings, some leafy branches and if the monkeys are lucky some climbing amenities as well. Although it already looks rather pathetic for the cherry-crowned mangabey, black lemur (Eulemur macaco), collared brown lemur (Eulemur collaris), patas monkey, Diana monkey and gelada baboon, it is an absolute disgrace for the white-handed gibbon to be housed that way. Its indoor enclosure is not fit-for-purpose, because it does not provide any possibility for the gibbon to show its natural talent, brachiation. The gibbon is man’s closest relative that is kept here in the Tierpark, because there are no great apes to see here. They stopped keeping them when the collaboration with Zoo Berlin materialised. The quality of the indoor facilities is an unpleasant surprise considering this building was opened in December 2000. But it seems they focussed mainly on the outdoor enclosures when being designed and built. All primates seem to have access to an outdoor area that indeed look pretty much up to standard. The gelada baboons, a ground-dwelling species, for instance have access to a fenced off area and to two connected water-moated grassy islands with a rock pile, tree trunks and shrubs, where they can freely roam around. The gibbons, however, seems to alternate with the patas monkeys in a roofed exhibit that reaches up to about 5 metres high and lacks ropes for the gibbons to swing around. But fortunately this gibbon unworthy environment is only used during the cold winter months, because more fit-for-purpose islands and night quarters are situated close to the Friedrichsfelde Manor House. Still, these islands lack substantial vegetation but artificial climbing enrichment let the gibbons express their natural behaviour.
As it is getting late I decide to skip the Crocodile House and just have a look at the Malayan sun bear enclosure near the Manor House entrance/exit. It is the last enclosure of my Tierpark Berlin visit and not the best to remember the Tierpark by. This enclosure for sun bears, or perhaps large cage is a better description, is something I have never seen being used for bears in modern zoos. Although the cage has many enrichment features, the design fails miserably in meeting other requirements such as size. The height is probably less than 3.5 metres.
Conclusion
Berlin is arguably the world’s most species-diverse city with two large zoos within its boundaries and especially the Tierpark trying to be as comprehensive as possible with its animal collection. It’s almost like in the old days when every zoo wanted to exhibit as many species as possible. Nonetheless, the Tierpark still has plenty of unused areas and together with its sheer size it gives the grounds a park-like atmosphere.
I am not in favour of fancy and expensive enclosure design, and they did nothing of the kind here, but it doesn’t seem that the money they saved on the architecture has been used to improve the enclosures from the animal’s point of view and create more natural habitats.
The bar-less principles of Hagenbeck have not been used much here at Tierpark Berlin, let alone landscape immersion. Many enclosures still have got wire mesh fences, which is not necessarily a bad thing. But I think most of the big cats do not have enclosures that are fit for purpose – the enclosures are too small, do not provide enough possibilities for the animal to move out of sight and lack adequate enrichment features for the cats to show natural behaviour. In general I doubt if most species are provided with adequate environmental enrichment, such as the polar bear exhibit, the dull paddocks for many of the ungulates, including the giraffes, and even the pachyderms (elephants and rhinos) have enclosures that do not seem to have many enticements.
They have a tendency to confuse you here at Tierpark Berlin by mixing up the species. The main principle used for grouping the animal collection is by taxa (such as ungulates, predators, pachyderms, domesticated species), but sometimes they use geographical origin or habitat similarity for the grouping. And filling in empty spaces leads sometimes to amazing results, for instance South American monkeys in the pachyderm house.
So why don’t they create a master plan in which they reshuffle their animal collection or completely rethink their layout and animal collection. Taking into account a large decrease in the number of species, the value of mixed-species exhibits, and that the big cats should be assigned with more space. That would be my suggestion, provided the money is there of course.
Dathe took a step by step approach in further developing the Tierpark. He was very influential and used scientific knowledge to build appropriate new enclosures with modern design – his own design combined with Hagenbeck’s principles using moats as natural barriers. New enclosures as well as commercial buildings were presented every year, so the enormous baroque-styled Manor House gardens could accommodate more people and animals. These gardens were restored according historical plans, while large enclosures, natural forest, and wide footpaths dominated the scene – which they still do.
The historical Friedrichsfelde Manor House, or castle if you wish, was reopened at the beginning of the 1980s. And in 1989, just before before East and West Berlin were reunited, the pachyderm house surrounded by large outdoor enclosures for elephants and rhinoceroses was opened.
