Old entrance of the Diergaarde in Blijdorp. |
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| Date opened | 1857 |
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| Location | Blijdorp, Rotterdam, The Netherlands |
| Memberships | NVD[1] and EAZA[2] |
| Website | www.diergaardeblijdorp.nl/?lang=EN |
Diergaarde Blijdorp (Official Dutch name: Stichting Koninklijke Rotterdamse Diergaarde, Foundation Royal Zoo of Rotterdam) is a zoo in the northwestern part of Rotterdam, one of the oldest zoos in the Netherlands. In 2007 it celebrated its 150th anniversary.
Diergaarde Blijdorp is a member of the Dutch Zoo Federation (NVD) and the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA).
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The original Rotterdam Zoo was lost in the bombing of Rotterdam in World War II, which destroyed most of the city centre. Some streetnames, such as Diergaardesingel (Zoolane), still recall the old zoo. Blijdorp was rebuilt slightly to the north, where it opened to the public in its current location on December 7, 1940. The new zoo was designed by Dutch architect Sybold van Ravesteyn, who designed the central railway station in Rotterdam, as well. In 2001, 'Blijdorp' became almost twice as large when it opened a new western part, called Oceanium, with its main attraction an aquarium. In April 2004, the whole zoo was declared a national monument.
In May 2007 the zoo appeared in the news when Bokito, Blijdorp's silverback gorilla, escaped from his enclosure and seriously injured a female visitor. Before the attack, the woman was a regular visitor of the zoo (on average 4 times per week) and claimed to have a special bond with Bokito, regularly touching the glass between her and the gorilla, making eye contact and smiling to him.[3]
In October 2010, the city of Rotterdam decided to reduce its yearly funding of Blijdorp from nearly 4.5 to about 0.8 million Euro until 2015[4]. The zoo and its supporters protested the decision, claiming it is unclear if the zoo can continue to operate with the reduced budget[5].
Diergaarde Blijdorp participates in about 70 breeding programs and studbooks, and coordinates a couple of them, including the international breeding program for Red Pandas, EEPs for Asian Elephant, Komodo Dragon, Red-crowned and Siberian Crane, Visayan Warty Pig and Egyptian Tortoise, and the ESB for the Crowned Pigeons.[6]
Blijdorp also houses a botanical garden and manages both the Dutch National Bromelia Collection and the Dutch National Primula Collection.[7]
The Oceanium is an aquarium that opened in the zoo in 2001. The Oceanium lies in the expansion area of the zoo, which includes a new entrance and parking area, and was the biggest project to date for the zoo. The area around the Oceanium is home to projects depicting the Americas.
Chinese garden
The Amur
Malayan forest edge
Asian swamp and batcave
Mongolian steppes
Takin rock
Taman Indah
Tiger Enclosure
Gorilla exhibit
Congo
Savanna
Crocodile river (Opened 2008)
Others
Prairie
Arctica
Bass Rock
North Sea
Atlantic Ocean
Caribbean
The Antilles
Falklands
Galápagos
Sea of Cortez
Californian Kelp Sea
The quarterly magazine of Blijdorp Zoo is called Blijdorp Blad. The first edition of the jubilee year 2007 included articles on the history of the zoo to celebrate its 150th anniversary.
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