Franklin Park Zoo

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Franklin Park Zoo
Date opened 1913
Location Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Land area 72 acres (0.29 km²)
Number of Species 220
Accreditations/
Memberships		 AZA
Website

The Franklin Park Zoo, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is one of the oldest zoos in the U.S. It is operated by Zoo New England, which also operates the Stone Zoo in Stoneham, Massachusetts.

The 72-acre (290,000 m²) zoo is located in the northeast portion of Franklin Park, Boston's largest park and the last component of the city's Emerald Necklace.

[edit] History

The zoo was founded in 1913. In 1920, when the zoo was free to all, an estimated 2 million people visited the zoo. It was managed by the city until the MDC took control in 1958. The MDC started charging admission to the zoo and got rid of problem areas, such as the bear exhibit.

In 1983, the three-acre (12,000 m²) Children's Zoo was rebuilt, which was the most popular exhibit during that time. The new Tropical Forest Pavilion was completed in 1989 at a cost of $23.5 million. The zoo was finally accredited by the AZA in 1990. After being accredited, the zoo's attendance jumped to 200,000 and was the only zoo to be run by a state government(besides the Stone Zoo).

Franklin Park Zoo's management was handed over to the Commonwealth Zoological Corporation (whose name changed to Zoo New England in 1997) in 1991. In the late 1990s the zoo faced many problems, including multiple budget cuts and dwindling attendance. The zoo is now doing well financially and continues to grow due to the kindness of many supporters.

The zoo hopes to one day become a regional zoo, which means it must get 1 million visitors a year. Studies show they would need 400 animal species to reach this goal.

[edit] Exhibits

The zoo contains more than 220 species of animals divided into 10 main exhibit areas. These are:

  1. The Tropical Rain Forest Pavilion, a three-acre (12,000 m²) exhibit housed mainly in a huge tensile structure. The building mimics the animals natural environment with streams, moats, Faux Rock structures, hidden fences and barriers, and free flight birds. The exhibit includes bats, mandrill, crocodiles, cabybara, gorillas, pottos, hedgehog, tapirs, vulture, and warthogs.
  2. Serengeti Crossing, a four-acre (16,000 m²) grassland exhibit with ostriches, zebras, ibex, and wildebeest.
  3. Kalahari Kingdom, a large Africa themed area housing lions. Visitors can view these lions through a mock land rover crashed into the exhibit, glass, or from over a moat.
  4. Outback Trail, where visitors can view kangaroos, cockatoos, emus, and tree kangaroos.
  5. Giraffe Savannah, a large area containing two Masai Giraffes. A herd of rare Grevy's Zebra can be found coexisting with them.
  6. Bird's World, a large building with an Orient-themed exterior containing dozens of bird species in many different environments.
  7. Butterfly Landing, a seasonal exhibit containing over 1000 butterflies in free flight. This large outdoor "tent" also has streams and a waterfall surrounded by numerous plant species.
  8. The Children's Zoo includes ducks, prairie dogs, and two rare Amur Leopards along with a petting zoo.
  9. Tiger Tales, which contains two rescued tigers, one orange and one white. It opened in June 2006.

There is also an African Wild Dog exhibit that is not part of any major area.

[edit] External links

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Zoos of Massachusetts
Buttonwood Park Zoo  · Capron Park Zoo  · Franklin Park Zoo  · Lupa Zoo  · Southwick's Zoo  · Stone Zoo
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Zoos, aquaria and aviaries