Every time I tell my kids that we’re going to the zoo this coming weekend (or the next one), I am faced with such a wave of genuine delight that the little curious boy inside me awakens, anticipating passing through the wide gates decorated with images of animals and finding myself in this magical world of wild nature right in the middle of the city...
Even now, when I read a lot of books and posts, watch lots of videos about the daily life of animals in zoos and the people who care for them, I am always interested in similar threads with zookeepers unveiling new secrets and sharing incredible stories about their work. If you share my beliefs, then welcome to this list!
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Image credits: Barbarella_ella
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Image credits: TheWalkingMeg
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Image credits: DeathMonkey6969
It is believed that the first prototypes of zoos appeared as early as 3500 B.C. in ancient Egypt, where there was always some nosy pharaoh who was interested in observing animals not only in their natural habitat. And closer to the first century B.C., zoos in the courts of ancient monarchs began to acquire a scientific function - after all, scientists realized that it was a much more convenient way to observe the life of animals. It’s not surprising that, for example, zoos in Ancient China were called “Gardens of Knowledge.”
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Image credits: masterslut
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Image credits: Blondebitchtits
However, zoos began to carry out a full-fledged educational function closer to our time, starting from the end of the 18th century, and by the middle of the last century they finally went through the path of transformation from entertainment establishments for a bored public into serious scientific institutions. Animals began to move from cramped cages into spacious enclosures imitating their natural habitat, their diets became more balanced, and zoos themselves, in particular, began to work on preserving species on the verge of extinction.
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Image credits: SunflowerPrincesy
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Image credits: Civilized_Primate
In fact, there are many biological species of animals that either no longer exist in the natural environment or cannot adapt to changed living conditions. Changed, however, as a result of human activity - so that scientists in zoos, in fact, are trying to correct the mistakes that our ancestors made.
And along this path, zoos are achieving certain successes - for example, last year, the staff of the Prague Zoo managed to achieve, for the first time in Europe, the birth of the very rare Chinese pangolin, named 'Little Cone.' And when the process of restoring the population inside the zoo is already gaining momentum, biologists carefully return animals to their natural habitat. This process is called ‘reintroduction’, and it is damn complicated, but in fact, it plays a very big role in preserving the biodiversity of our planet.
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Image credits: Cody6781
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Image credits: _EbenezerSplooge_
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Image credits: Snoobs-Magoo
Returning to my children's zoo experiences, I had, and still have, one strict rule. A proper zoo in my book should have an elephant. An elephant is definitely a must. Well, in this collection of stories you will find narratives, funny and sad, not only about elephants, but also about many wonderful animals that actually live right next door to us. You just need to buy a ticket and come to the zoo one wonderful Sunday morning, like when you were a kid - to see them and enjoy.
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Image credits: ilikemagnets33
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Image credits: iloveschnauzers
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Image credits: bucketsofpoo
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Image credits: Key_Corgi_7435
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Image credits: Unable_Strawberry_69
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Image credits: GhostLuu
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Image credits: Dull-Mix-870
