Egyptian Temple
FULL TITLE: Zoo Antwerpen (Flemish); Zoo Anvers (French)
This is a remarkable zoo, set in a compact site adjacent to (indeed, overlooked by) the city's magnificent railway station. It boasts some of the most grandiose zoo achitecture I've ever seen, and the animal collection is diverse and well-presented. The Zoo is highly multilingual, with guides in English and other languages, inluding the two official languages of Belgium, Flemish (a dialect of Netherlandic) and French. The Zoo is, however, firmly in the Flemish sector of Belgium, so this is the zoo's first language.
MAJOR ANIMAL ATTRACTIONS:
VRIESLAND - A relatively new attraction, comprised of a large indoor penguin exhibit housing King, Rockhopper and Macaroni Penguins, and an outdoor enclosure for Alaskan Sea Otters. The penguin enclosure is good, but nothing can compete witht he delightful Sea Otters.
CATTLE HOUSES - Next door to Vriesland are the cattle enclosures. Here are to be found both American and European Bison, two subspecies of African Buffalo (Cape and the smaller Congo/Forest Buffalo) and Banteng, as well as the not strictly cattle but always fascinating Mishmi Takin (a personal favourite of mine). The enclosures may be a little unimaginative, being little more than rows of pens with stabling at the rear, but the animals displayed are fantastic.
American Bison
SWINE HOUSE AND PEAFOWL - A curious combination, but housed in actuality on opposite side of a building with no public access, so are fairly separate anyway. Antwerp is well known in the zoo world as the zoo responsible for establishing the only African pheasant, the Congo Peafowl, in captivity, and the species has been displyed here ever since. They are accompanied by the stunning Javanese Green Peafowl. The Swine House is home to Warthogs and the unusual White Lipped Peccary, much less frequently encountered than it's Collared relative (aka the Javelina).
BIRD HOUSE - There are some interesting species to be found here, including the White Collared Kingfisher and the Fairy Pitta, but the Bird House at Antwerp is most notable for its innovative technique for confining some birds - the use of light alone. The visitors walk along a darkened corridor past small, brightly-lit enclosures holding small birds, with no physical barrier to their escape. It should be mentioned that these enclosures hold nothing that couldn't be purchased from a good specialist pet shop (weavers, waxbills, finches) - so perhaps the zoo isn't entirely confident of the logic of this. I just wonder what happens at night.....
CARNIVORE ENCLOSURES - Leading from entrance along the side of the zoo adjacent to the railway are the carnivore enclosures, home to bears and big cats. There are Siberian (Amur) Tigers and African Lions on small islands, where the only barrier is a wide water moat and a low stone wall. Leopards and Jaguars are to be found nearby. Bears are represented by the Polar and Kamchatka Brown species, the two largest.
BIRDS OF PREY - The Zoo has a large collection of birds of prey, particularly strong on eagles. There are Fish Eagles, Bald Eagles, Golden Eagles, Martial Eagles, Wedge Tailed Eagles, Harpy Eagles... the list goes on. Look out too for the magnificent Lammergeier or Bearded Vulture.
Lammergeier
DOMESTIC ANIMAL PADDOCK - This is a lrge paddock, with viewing from several angles and altitudes due to the meandering path system around it. It is attractive, well landscaped and stimulating. That said, it is perhaps a shame that it's given over to domestic species (including Bactrian Camels, Llamas and Yak), when there are other species in the collection that would look so good there (the Takin, for example). All round, though, well worth a look.
MOORISH TEMPLE - This dramatic building was originally constructed to house Ostriches, but nowadays is home to that attractive relative of the Giraffe, the Okapi. This is another of Antwerp's specialties, and they look well here.
EGYPTIAN TEMPLE (HATHI MAHAL) - A large building near the centre of the zoo, this fantastically over the top building is home to Asian Elephants, Nubian Giraffes and Arabian Oryx. The building is just as enthralling as its occupants, with hieroglyphs supposedly represneting the story of the zoo up to the date of construction. The elephant paddock was recently expanded, and the Nubian Giraffe is a beautiful rarity.
RHINO HOUSE - Antwerp is a city that always seems to be short on space. Thus the cathedral is surrounded to within 20 feet by fast food chains and the central station all but overhangs the zoo's tiger enclosure. The Rhino house is another, rather surreal, example. It is a protrusion from the zoo perimeter, viewed from one side only, squeezed between two ordinary townhouses. It looks for all the world as if the zoo bought a house and garden and made it part of the zoo. The paddock is occupied by White Rhino.
HIPPO HOUSE - This is home to both species of hippo (Common and Pygmy), as well as Brazilian Tapirs, and, somewhat bizarrely, Humboldt's Penguins.
FLEMISH GARDENS AND MONKEYS - The attractive Flemish Gardens, tucked away in a corner of the zoo, are home to a variety of small mammals, including Blue Duikers (a tiny antelope), Binturong, Matschie's Tree Kangaroos, Fennec Foxes and Babirusa. The nearby Monkey House is home to Mandrills, Baboons, L'Hoest's Guenons, Javan Langurs, Ring Tailed Lemurs, and various tamarins.
ANTHROPOID APE HOUSE - Here are to be found the great apes; Bornean Orang Utans, Chimpanzees and, more unusually, EASTERN Lowland (Grauer's) Gorillas. The Eastern Lowland belongs to the same species as the Mountain Gorilla, and is much less common in captivity than the familiar Western Gorilla. It does, however, look almost identical to the Western species.
CHILDREN'S ZOO - Home to a variety of small mammals, with Meerkats, Wallabies and Red Pandas among them.
NOCTURAMA - A fantastic nocturnal house, full to the brim with rare and exotic animals. Blue Duiker, Mountain Paca, Cacomistle, Large Spotted Genet, Brush Tailed Bettong, even the bizarre-looking Aardvark, are all to be found here. It's worth spending some time her. You will not be disappointed. It;s also home to some formerly common zoo species which can now be hard to find, particularly in Britain, such as the American Raccoon and the Indian Palm Civet.
Blue Duiker
AQUAFORUM - An indoor exhibit in which Californian Sealions put on shows daily.
AQUARIUM - A good, solid aquarium with a large fish collection, including some small sharks. Among the other species here is the prehistoric-looking Japanese Giant Salamander, over a metre in length.
REPTILE HOUSE - Again, nothing too special, but rather a good diverse reptile and amphibian display. There are Nile Crocodiles near the exit, which are treated to a tropical thunderstorm every hour on the hour.
OTHER ANIMAL ATTRACTIONS:
There are several other hofoed animal species in the zoo, including Damara Plains Zebras, Fallow Deer, Himalayan Tahr (a beautiful goat) and Bongo.
Aquatic mammals include the South African Fur Seal and the Common Seal, both in large numbers, and the Coypu.
There are bird enclosure with flamingos and the rare Burmeister's Seriema. On the lake are Great Cormorants and Dalmatian Pelicans, as well as Ruffed Lemurs on a special island.
Aviaries hold birds such as the American White and Straw Necked Ibis, and the American Roadrunner.
SPECIES TO WATCH FOR:
Himalayan Tahr
Mishmi Takin
Cape Buffalo
Banteng
Blue Duiker
Nubian Giraffe
White Lipped Peccary
Kamchatka Brown Bear
Alaskan Sea Otter
Cacomistle
Aardvark
Matschie's Tree Kangaroo
Mountain Paca
Burmeister's Seriema
Greater Roadrunner
Congo Peafowl
Lammergeier
Bald Eagle
Harpy Eagle
Japanese Giant Salamander
FACILITIES:
The zoo has a large shop near the entrance, and several small cafes and kiosks.
On the same site are a planetarium and a Winter Gardens greenhouse.
The Official Antwerp Zoo Website
© 2000 bpgilb10221@aol.com