Hamilton Zoo
Zoo logo
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| Date opened | 1969 |
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| Location | Hamilton, New Zealand |
| Coordinates | 37°46′28″S 175°12′53″E / 37.7745°S 175.2148°ECoordinates: 37°46′28″S 175°12′53″E / 37.7745°S 175.2148°E |
| Land area | 25 ha (62 acres) |
| No. of animals | 400+ |
| No. of species | 93+ |
| Memberships | ZAA |
| Major exhibits | Chimpanzee, Sumatran tiger, white rhino, painted hunting dog, small cats, small primates, Free Flight Sanctuary |
| Website | www |
Hamilton Zoo is the main zoological garden of Hamilton, New Zealand. Covering 25 hectares (62 acres), it is situated on Brymer Road in the Hamilton suburb of Rotokauri, on the outskirts of the metropolitan area towards the northwest. It is owned by the Hamilton City Council with the Department of Recreation and Welfare handling the day-to-day running of the site.
Hamilton Zoo is the first zoo in New Zealand to become fully accredited by the Zoo and Aquarium Association.
The park was founded in 1969 as a game farm, the Hilldale Game Farm. It was originally owned by a Mr and Mrs Powell. They mainly raised game birds but there was also a small collection of exotic mammals and birds.
The zoo become unprofitable and was facing closure in 1976 before the Hamilton City Council stepped in and brought the site, buildings, and stock. In 1984, the zoo again faced closure but due to public pressure the Council resolved to keep it open. Day-to-day running of the zoo was transferred to the Department of Recreation and Welfare.
A concept plan was drawn up to give the zoo a clear direction, this resulted in the Zoo Education Centre opening in 1987. The plan also called for upgraded and new exhibits, plantings, boardwalks, and paths.
The position of Zoo Director was created in 1989.
Hamilton Zoo received its first red panda, Mungojerre, in November 1999. He was joined by his father, Mario, in February 2000 and another male Laotzy in December 2001. Mario died in April 2002. In July 2006, Laotzy was sent to the National Zoo in Canberra and Mungojerre to Brooklands Zoo. The following month, brothers Chito and Badal arrived from Auckland Zoo. Badal escaped soon after arriving and died four days later after being hit by a car. A female red panda, Tayla, arrived in October 2010 from the National Zoo. She was the daughter of Laotzy. In December 2011, Tayla gave birth to a son. He was named Ketu, meaning 'comet' in Tibetan. Tayla gave birth to male triplets in 2012. They received names from the Nepalese language: Nima (sun), Karma (star) and Dawa (moon). Ketu was sent to Kansas Zoo in August 2013. Tayla's third litter, twin females, were born in January 2014. This brings the number of red pandas at Hamilton Zoo to seven.
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Wikipedia