(IN): Visit to the zoo (An Editorial)

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*EDITORIAL*

 

Visit to the zoo

Arup Kumar Dutta

 

 

A relatively recent and welcome trend has been to use zoos as repositories

of the earth’s genetic resources. The objective is not only to help in the

preservation and protection of endangered species through propagation within

the safety of zoos, but also to retain genetic material for possible use in

the future when the science of genetics becomes more advanced then now

 

A visit to any zoo always evokes mixed feelings in me. On one hand, it is

saddening to see wild animals confined within steel cages or fenced-in

enclosures. If you notice, most wild animals in their natural habitat are

almost always in motion when awake, if doing nothing else, at least

exploring in curiosity their immediate surroundings. A resting herd of deer

is rarely static; even ponderous animals like the rhino or elephant do not

remain totally immobile for very long.

 

Also, it has been my experience that the smaller an animal, the more agile

and lively it is, perhaps because of greater vulnerability to predators.

Watch the quick, darting movement of rodents or squirrels and you will

understand what I mean. Birds, even large and stately species like flamingos

or swans, are ever so filled with life and movement, and some seem to be in

a state of perpetual twitter and chat. Primates are my personal favourites

–in the wilderness they appear to embody the vitality of life.

 

It is the absence of this vitality that is the most disconcerting aspect of

animals-confined in zoos. I may be wrong, but there appears to be a desolate

hopelessness in the way most zoo animals behave or react. Apart from

creatures like the chimpanzee, which by its very nature cannot cease its

amusing acrobatics, most of the zoo-inmates appear to me to have the same

despondent slouch that prison-inmates have. Of course, in every sense a zoo

is a prison of innocents, whose inmates have been sentenced to serve

life-term incarceration although none of them have committed a crime.

 

This absence of movement and animal vitality is most noticeable amongst the

bigger species, particularly the carnivorous ones. Caged lions and tigers

are caricatures of themselves. The leopard, a truly sleek and beautiful

killing machine, loses its aggressive aura and assumes the stance of a tame,

domestic cat. Lesser carnivores prefer to hide within the confines of the

smaller cages; the visitor having to peer closely in order to catch a

glimpse of them in the shadows. Most pertinent, the natural distrust towards

their two-legged counterpart disappears amongst these beasts of the wild,

depriving them, so to say, their very identity!

 

It is truly pathetic to watch avian predators such as kites, hawks and

eagles, which would otherwise have been soaring majestically in the sky,

squat as immobile as statues within their limiting cages. The snakes in the

“snake-house” seem to be in a state of perpetual hibernation while other

cold-blooded reptiles like crocodiles, normally slow and ponderous, appear

to become even slower and inert inside the shadow of a zoo.

 

On the other hand, visit to a zoo, especially one in foreign climes, is

always a rewarding and enlightening experience. Nowhere else can you observe

wild animals at such close quarters and learn about them. For instance,

there are animals which can be rarely seen in the wilderness, such is their

effective camouflage. Such animals can be viewed only when sheltered within

zoos. A visit to a zoo is the best means to acquaint children with wild

animals and enhance their love for nature, a sine qua non if the earth is to

be saved. It also opens an entirely new world to the general public, many of

whom may not have the resources to go and view wild species in their natural

habitats.

 

A relatively recent and welcome trend has been to use zoos as repositories

of the earth’s genetic resources. The objective is not only to help in the

preservation and protection of endangered species through propagation within

the safety of zoos, but also to retain genetic material for possible use in

the future when the science of genetics becomes more advanced then now. As

naturalists warn us, we are losing species each year and, unless some

mechanism is set in place to preserve at least genetic samples of these

species, they would be lost to creation for ever.

 

A zoo also helps animal lovers to see species which they may not have else

been able to see in their life times. How many of us can dream of seeing

Llamas in the Peruvian heights or an anaconda in the Amazon? For instance, I

had read about the Komodo dragon, the largest species of lizard, when I was

young. I recall that this creature, with the forked yellow tongue which

flickers out every minute or so, thereby giving birth to the myth of the

fire-breathing dragon, had fired up my imagination in childhood. Yet never

could I have hoped to see one of these reptiles in the flesh, for it

survives only on a remote island in the Indonesian archipelago.

 

Even when I got an opportunity to go and stay in Indonesia for a few years,

I found that the Komodo Island was so far away as to make it impractical as

well as expensive to try and see this wondrous creature in its natural

environment. However, the Ragunan zoo in Jakarta, which housed quite a few

specimens of the Komodo dragon, was the viable alternative. Thus, almost

after five decades of having read about an animal I was able to fulfil my

desire to see one first hand thanks to a zoo.

 

Thus, despite my abhorrence of creatures being caged, I have to concede that

zoos have their uses. The solution to this necessary evil, I presume, is to

ensure that zoos treat their wards as humanely as possible and ensure that

they are provided with the space and nutrition they require to lead a

relatively healthy life.

 

This brings me to Assam’s own State Zoo at Guwahati. Nestling upon a

hillside, this is one of the best located of any zoo in the nation. I must

congratulate its administration for having kept the admission fee

affordable, fora ten rupee note will -transport you to an ambience far

different from the hustle and bustle of urban life outside. Moreover, this

zoo not only exhibits wild animals, but in itself is a veritable botanical

garden, thereby providing two amenities for the price of one!

 

However, as far as other amenities are concerned, this appears to be one of

the worst maintained of zoos in the nation. The infrastructure is aged and

crumbling; the words have long been eroded from “information” charts; an air

of neglect emanates from the stinking moats. Although I had paid my last

visit early this week, when the rainy season had not yet started, the zoo

has not had a fresh coat of paint! Also, I noticed a far lesser species of

animals, especially from fauna-rich Africa and South America.

 

Thus, as we had done with the city of Guwahati, we are unresistingly

witnessing the deterioration of what could have been the most picturesque

zoo in the country. I am sure the personnel of the concerned department are

not to blame for this deterioration. Understaffed and over-worked, they do

not have enough budgetary provision to maintain the zoo as it should be. In

these cantankerous times, a Government can squander crores of rupees in

maintaining useless beings at Dispur in regal style, but can hardly spare

much for the mute and caged creatures in the zoo.

 

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