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The Honolulu Zoo:
A walk on the wild side
by Larry LeDoux, faculty editor
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The wildest night spot in Waikiki – daytime,
too – is the Honolulu Zoo, the only major city zoo for 2,300
miles! The Zoo received its name in 1947, but its beginning
is much older – nearly 125 years. Its original collection of
exotic birds was part of an 1876 grant of royal lands dedicated
in 1877 as a public park by King David Kalakaua in honor of
his wife, Queen Kapiolani.
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The City and County of Honolulu assumed administration of
Kapiolani Park, and thus of the Zoo, in 1913, and in the next
year began construction of exhibits to house its first mammals
– a monkey, a honey bear, and some lion cubs. In 1916, these
were joined by a friendly African elephant named Daisy. From
these humble beginnings, the Honolulu Zoo has grown and prospered
until today it encompasses 42 acres and attracts more than
750,000 visitors a year. And there is talk of moving it to
larger quarters in Kapolei.
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The original purpose of the Zoo – to enrich
the lives of the residents of the islands, by showing them something
of life in other parts of the world, and to conserve wildlife
– is unchanged. It defines its current mission as the fostering
of “an appreciation of the living world, with emphasis on tropical
ecosystems, by serving as a center for environmental education,
biological study, recreation, and conservation.”
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Visitors to the Honolulu Zoo can experience 1,250 different
animals in some 300 different species – including birds, amphibians,
reptiles, and mammals – in habitats that duplicate the ecosystems
of African savannas, and American and Asian tropical forests.
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| African Savanna
The Honolulu Zoo’s African Savanna has been called “one of the
best in the world.” An oasis of grassland, it is designed to make
visitors feel as if they were on an actual African safari and
built so that visitors are made to feel there are no boundaries
separating the animals from the humans. It includes a walk-through
aviary, giraffes, zebra, hippopotamus, rhinoceros, ostriches,
and more. |
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American Tropical Forest Reproducing the ecosystem
of South and Central American Tropical Forests, this exhibit
is home to some of the Zoo’s most exotic birds – king vultures,
toco toucan, and spoonbills. It also includes the Zoo’s reptile
house.
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| Asian Tropical Forest Construction
on this exhibit began in fall 2000. It will provide habitats for
the Zoo’s elephants, clouded leopards, sun bears, reptiles, and
amphibians, including gharials (also called gavials), which look
like slender-snouted crocodiles, and gibbons. One of these, the
Siamang Gibbon, is the largest, darkest, and noisiest species
of gibbon. Their hooting can be heard up to two miles away in
the dense rainforest which is their natural habitat. |
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The Asian Tropical Forest will also feature a walk-through
aviary of a vast array of birds, including macaws, parrots,
toucans, and cockatoos. The Zoo’s Bird of Paradise pair from
New Guinea is the only pair breeding in captivity. They recently
hatched a 54th chick.
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The Honolulu Zoo includes a children’s zoo, a farm-style exhibit
with animals for petting, including llama, goats, and piglets.
New additions in June 2000 include two loveable pygmy goats
born on site. An elephant encounter pen allows visitors to feed
and pet elephants daily at 11 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. Special family
programs include Moonlight Tours, exciting nighttime safaris
that allow visitors to observe animals that normally sleep during
the day.
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A similar program, for children, is “Snooze in the Zoo,” which
lets kids camp out in the wildest place in town. Keiki and junior
Zookeeper programs take children behind the scenes to meet the
animals and their keepers and help prepare animal meals. Junior
Birthday Parties and Vacation Adventures are also offered.
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| Some unusual animals The Honolulu
Zoo collection features a special Komodo dragon exhibit, a sophisticated
habitat that allows visitors to experience these giant lizards
in their native environment. In fact, the habitat is so successful
that, with the hatching of two eggs this past fall, the female
became the first of her species to reproduce in captivity. |
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The Zoo’s Monitor Lizards, a gift to the children of Hawai‘i
from the children of Guam, have shiny yellow and green skin
and are the only lizards that, like snakes, can increase the
size of their mouths to swallow large prey.
The Blue Duikers (pronounced dye-kerz) are small, shy, diurnal
forest antelopes. Duikers means “divers” in Afrikaans, and refers
to the animals’ tendency to “dive” for cover when frightened.
Although Blue Duikers are monogamous and mate for life, the
female is responsible for most of the care giving – as staff
at the Zoo discovered recently when a baby duiker was born.
Meerkats are active and highly sociable. Unlike most small
carnivores, they live in groups and thus can successfully discourage
predators. They also cooperate in caring for their young, but
they do not hunt cooperatively. Meerkats are members of the
mongoose family and, should they escape, would be capable of
establishing themselves and damaging Hawai‘i’s native wildlife.
As a safety measure, therefore, all of the Meerkats at the Honolulu
Zoo are males.
The Radiated Tortoises have yellow and black shells, and are
considered the “stars” of the Tortoise family. These are native
to the southern portion of the island of Madagascar, located
off the east coast of Africa.
Golden Lion Tamarins are small (500 – 600 grams) monkeys native
to South America. They live in the heavily populated coastal
region of Brazil, where less than two percent of the forest
remains. There are about 400 in the wild and about 500 in more
than 100 zoos worldwide.
The Nene, Hawai‘i’s state bird, became nearly extinct in the
wild. In the 1950s, a captive breeding program was begun. Nene
have been released on Maui and Hawai‘i. Today they live on both
islands at high altitudes far from bodies of water. But the
flocks are not increasing in size. For several years escaped
birds on Kauai have reproduced on their own, flourishing in
coastal areas.
After encountering all of these interesting animals, and more,
at the zoo, visitors can relax and enjoy “The Wildest Show In
Town” on Wednesday evenings in the summer months, a free program
of singing, dancing, and entertainment.
On weekends, a Zoo Fence Art Mart on Monsarrat Avenue, on the
Diamond Head side of the zoo fence, allows local artists and
crafts persons to display affordable souvenirs and objects.
The Zoo entrance faces Kalakaua Avenue at the corner of Kapahulu
Avenue. It is within walking distance of most hotels and is
accessible by the Waikiki Trolley or TheBus. There is metered
parking along Kalakaua and Kapahulu.
The Honolulu Zoo is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. Admission
is $6, $4 with local I.D. Call for more information, 808–971-7171,
or experience your own virtual safari at www.honoluluzoo.org.
Robert Kaspo contributed to this article.
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