Central Park Zoo, New York City

History

Background

Apart from imitation of European zoos, American zoos were also products of the movement to create public parks and careful planning. The detrimental effects of the city on both health and morality should be avoided by establishment of large country parks, according late-nineteenth-century ideas. This led to public parks on the outskirts of many American cities, like Philadelphia, Cincinnati and Chicago. The Central Park has been designed in the 1850s by Frederick Law Olmsted, probably the best known of nineteenth-century park planners, and the founder of the profession of landscape architecture. He believed that meditating on nature in the surroundings of a large country park would offer psychic restoration to tired city workers. Olmsted himself liked zoos, but was opposed to too many large animal houses, consuming precious green space. A display of deer could enhance the rural scenery, but a zoo like the one in Regent's Park in London distracted from the regenerative power of the natural landscape.

The Central Park Zoo history does not follow the American way of careful planning of zoo establishment in a public park. It is not the best example of how Americans thought how a zoo should look like, as in this new city park the animal collection accumulated unbidden, to the dismay of Olmsted. The menagerie was “ill-arranged, ill equiped, not adapted to economical maintenance”. And when the working-class people crowded the free exhibits on Sundays, which violated bourgeois decorum, it came close to commercial entertainment. But, although careful planning was the ultimate goal of American zoo development, many zoos in the Untited States had beginnings like the one in Central Park.

Central Park Zoo

Since the 1860s, the southeast corner of Central Park has been the home of three different zoos: the menagerie, the zoo of 1934, and what is today known as the Central Park Zoo, which kicked off in 1988.

The Central Park Zoo is both the oldest NYC zoo and one of the newest. It had an uncertain beginning about 1861/1862 when the first animal donations, mostly unwanted pets, were made to Central Park employees. Early animals of the menagerie, as it was called, consisted of a black bear, a pair of cows, deer, monkeys, raccoons, foxes, opossums, ducks, swans, pelicans, eagles and parrots. First, they housed the animals in the basement of the Arsenal building and in small cages in the park. The same Arsenal building still exists and is located at 64^th Street and 5^th Avenue. In the first known formal report of 1873, a much larger collection was reported with exotic species, such as African elephant, giraffe, Cape buffalo, eland, zebra, Malayan tapir, kangaroo, hyena and sloth bear. Some of these were temporarily housed for P.T. Barnum and other circus owners. In 1864, an enclosed space was set aside near the Arsenal to give the animals that were donated a permanent home. All in all, the menagerie was home to many exotic animals, housed next to each other in small cages, and therefore nicknamed a “postage stamp collection”.

In the 1930s, the menagerie needed repairs and New York City Parks Commissioner Robert Moses, perhaps the most influential man in the city's planning history, felt the City needed a zoo of its own. Therefore, he formally built the Central Park Zoo on the same site. The Zoo reopened on 2 December, 1934. It was state-of-the-art and attracted lots of visitors. The Zoo contained a comfort station and a restaurant overlooking the sea lion pool. It would contain many wild animals, including three types of bears,elephants, gorillas, tigers, birds, monkeys and hoofed animals.

But the world of zoos and zookeeping progressed and to enable to keep up with this progress the City of New York, still owner of the Central Park Zoo, asked the New York Zoological Society to take over the Zoo's management and operate it according to the best practices. First action of the NYZS (now called the Wildlife Conservation Society) was to renew the Zoo according latest views on zookeeping. Naturalistic habitats were developed and many animals had to leave. When the Zoo reopened in 1988, sterile cages with bars had been removed as were most of the large animals except for sea lions and polar bears.

The Zoo is organised into three climatic zones - tropical, temperate, and polar. Although many historic sites were removed, a few connections to the past remain, in the form of original brick friezes, paving stones and statues. And even two buildings from the zoo of the 1930s remain. The former monkey house is now the Hecksher Zoo School and the former bird house is now the Central Park Zootique gift shop. Inevitable, a children's zoo has been added to the real zoo in 1998, with a walk-through aviary and domestic animals in the petting zoo. The sea lion pool has always been located at the centre of the Zoo. Of the species on display nowadays, the sea lions and the polar bears are two species that have always been at the Central Park Zoo. The latest addition, in 2009, has been the snow Leopard exhibit, which holds two females and a male snow leopard.

The Zoo is part of the Species Survival Plan Programme (SSP) of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums that guides American zoos in their breeding programmes.

(Source: Zoo and Aquarium History, edited by Vernon N. Kisling, Jr., 2001; Animal Attractions by Elizabeth Hanson, 2002; New York City Zoos and Aquarium by Joan Scheier, 2005)

Visit(s)

13.04.2010

The Californian sea lions and their enclosures seem to be a central theme in the zoos of the Wildlife Conservation Society. Especially, in Central Park Zoo and Prospect Park Zoo they receive a lot of attention, because these exhibits are the first people see when entering the zoological parks. The sign at the sea lions enclosure in Central Park Zoo says: “The more the merrier. Sea lions are social animals, often sunning themselves together in large groups ….”. Nevertheless, this social aspect, as an enrichment factor, is not being fulfilled here. Only two animals are there to socialise. But they receive their enrichment, three times daily, like everywhere else when they are feeded.

The Zoo is rather small, but the Zoo management restrict themselves nowadays to just a few species, which pays off very well. The Zoo is really worth paying a visit, not only to get away from the stress of the Big Apple, but also to enjoy the agreeable setting. Most of the animals are provided with interesting and more often than not state-of-the-art enclosures.

The Polar circle exhibit consists of an indoor colony of birds and an outdoor exihibit with polar bears. Indoors, several species of penguins, the King penguin, Gentoo penguin and Chinstrap penguin, are kept together in an enclosure that doesn't look very naturalistic, and lacks nesting sites. Which does not mean that they are not breeding, because it could be that the nesting sites are removed as soon as the chicks have left the nest. This is common practice in Edinburgh Zoo if I remember correctly. The other inside enclosure is a mixed species exhibit too. It is a 4 meter-high bluff and a pond of 3 meter deep with buffleheads (Bucephala albeola), spectacled eiders and tufted puffins. Nextdoor the single harbour seal shares his enclosure with several ducks. The seal has been found in the wild, malnourished and about 1 week old. Its vision is impaired, for which reason it cannot be returned to the wild.

When making your way from the harbour seal to the polar bear exhibit you pass a small cage with two specimens of Kea, the New Zealand parrot species which always show such an explorative and entertaining behaviour. Although the cage is small, they are provided full enrichment to satisfy their curiosity. Nevertheless, I am surprised to see those birds there, because they are neither related to the climate zone, nor to the geographical zone.

Gu s and Ida, the polar bears, are both born in captivity in 1985, in Buffalo New York, and inhabit since 1988, a beautiful enclosure with lots of water, a waterfall, toys, rocky bedding at a variety of levels and an air-conditioned den, which is no luxury in New York's summers, I suppose. Apart from the toys the animal enrichment consists of feed, like fish and fruit, given to Gus and Ida in ice cubes. The exhibit provides lots of opportunity for the public to see the bears, including two where you can see them underwater. But, where the public gain sighting possibilities, the bears lose privacy and places to hide. Gus became famous when he was diagnosed to be bored and depressed by a animal behaviourist in 1994.

The Zoo's newest exhibit, opening day 11 June 2009, is the Allison Maher Stern Snow Leopard Exhibit, which holds two females and a male snow leopard. The animals were shipped down from Bronx Zoo. The enclosure provides heated rocks (which seems overkill to me, because the NYC winter will never be as bad as in the barren environment from the animal's original habitat, the Himalyas), cool caves, waterfall and evergreens. It is not a large enclosure but the endangered felines can hide and The beautiful trio appear to be nose-to-nose with visitors behind two lookouts, one of glass and one of steel wire. They are under a high tent of steel, a woven mesh that looks light although it must be very strong. One of the enrichment features used is sometimes when the snow leopards are off exhibit, they put prey species in, long enough for them to leave behind exciting new scents for the cats.

The red panda, I have seen only one specimen (but WCS has got others in two other zoos), has got some logs and bushes in its rather large and green enclosure. Unfortunately, this does not allow for climbing and hiding, because a real tree is lacking. In the last outside enclosure before getting to the tropical zone, the snow monkeys or Japanese macaque (Macaca fuscata) can be found. They are famous for their habit of enjoying hot springs in winter time. Their enclosure in Central Park Zoo gives a good impression of their natural environment in mountainous areas of Honshū, Japan.

The Rainforest, a climatised indoor enclosure, is home to many birds and mammals that live in rainforests in different continents. The birds and Rodrigues flying foxes fly freely through the aviary, with the birds often perching on railings as visitors go by. Bird feeding stations that contain nectar, fruit, and bird seed are to be found throughout the rainforest so that visitors can view them close up. Next to the birds and flying foxes, two-toed sloths can be found and Malayan mouse deers. It is an interesting exhibit that facilitates close encounters. The primates can be found in the same building but housed separately in glass enclosures that give visitors a clear view. The black & white lemurs (7 specimens) have a nice enclosure with lots of climbing materials. But there is not a possibility they can forage high above the ground, because there are just a few slings and some bare tree trunks. In another exhibit three specimens of silvery marmosets (Calithrix argentata) are on display, and though they suppose to have golden-headed tamarins, I could only see marmosets in that exhibit. But, the WCS do transfer and swap animals between their zoos sometimes, I understood. So, that could be the case here.

Keepers interact several times a day with the mammals and birds to do enrichment and training. Other exhibits include bats, leaf cutting ants, snakes and frogs of different species. All can be seen through clear glass.

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Harbour seals

Harbour Seals return to Central Park Zoo

Two young harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) have made their public debut at WCS's Central Park Zoo. It is the first time since 2011 that the species has been exhibited at the zoo.

The two male seals, Adam and Anson, were born at WCS's New York Aquarium. They are still juveniles (7 and 19 months) and not yet fully grown. As adults they could reach up to 250 pounds each. They are the first harbour seals born at the aquarium in more than 15 years.

The two seals at Central Park Zoo are in the pool adjacent to the Polar Circle penguin and puffin exhibits. The harbour seals are immediately distinguishable from their cousins in the sea lion pool. Both seals and sea lions are members of the pinniped family, but they look and move differently.

Harbour seals lack the external ear flaps found on sea lions. Harbour seals also have more tubular bodies with spotted coats that can range in colour from silver to dark brown or black. Sea lions are more agile on land since they can support their weight with, and walk on, their front flippers. Harbour seals cannot, and their locomotion resembles a caterpillar. In the water, both are excellent swimmers but sea lions propel themselves with strong front flippers while harbour seals use powerful hind flippers.

Though not endangered, harbour seals are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. They are abundant off the coast of New York City and Long Island.

WCS's expansive Global Marine Program conducts conservation work and activities locally and in 23 countries and all five oceans to help save marine life. WCS works to protect harbour seals through the New York Seascape, a conservation programme designed to restore healthy populations of local marine species in New York City waters.

(Source: WCS press release, 16.12.2014)

Grizzly bears

Central Park Zoo has opened an exhibit for rescued grizzly bears in January 2015

The exhibit will open as the new home for two adult female grizzlies, Betty and Veronica, who were rescued in 1995 and brought to the Bronx Zoo. Betty originally came to New York from Montana and Veronica from Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. Both had become too accustomed to humans, and local authorities considered them a danger to people.

The bears are living in a remodelled habitat formerly occupied by polar bears. Significant portions of the exhibit renovation were made possible thanks to the generous support of Sandra de Roulet. Her generosity also helps support the care of all the bears in WCS's zoos. The upper level viewing area of the Central Park Zoo exhibit has been “Treena's Overlook,” a play on a nickname de Roulet had as a child. At this overlook, visitors will learn how people can better coexist with bears in the wild.

“This new exhibit and these grizzly bears are great additions to the Central Park Zoo,” said Craig Piper, Director of WCS City Zoos. “This exhibit will provide us an opportunity to help people better understand how to safely coexist with bears when visiting or living in bear country.”

WCS's Central Park and Bronx Zoos are currently home to nine rescued brown bears: two that came to New York in 1995; four that arrived in 2009; and three that were rescued in late 2013. While all the bears that came to WCS did so under different circumstances, they share a common story: their situation resulted from of a series of negative interactions with people.

In late 2013, three female cubs were rescued by wildlife officials in Montana and WCS agreed to provide homes for them in New York where they have been living at the Bronx Zoo. Two are siblings whose mother was illegally shot, and the third is an unrelated cub whose mother was euthanized by wildlife officials after repeatedly entering residential areas to forage for food. In recognition of her support in helping these cubs, Ms. de Roulet named them Amber, Luna, and Treena.

The bear cubs rescued in 2010, Kootz, Denali, Sitka, and Glacier came to the Bronx Zoo under similar circumstances; they were orphaned when too young to survive on their own.

Said Jim Breheny, WCS Executive Vice President/General Director of Zoos and Aquarium and Bronx Zoo Director: “Each of these bears has an important lesson to teach about how humans must learn to coexist with wildlife. Human-wildlife interactions are inevitable as we continue to expand our presence into wild places. WCS works around the world to help develop ways to reduce the impact of these interactions for both people and the animals.”

The new grizzly bear exhibit at Central Park Zoo is open to the public as of 8 January 2015.

(Source: WCS press release, 08.01.2015)

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