Minsk Zoo

Minsk Zoo is located in a southeast part of Minsk near Svislach River.

Minsk Zoo is situated in the south-east part of Minsk in floodplain of the river Svisloch. According to the order of Minsk City Council of 2 March 2001, the territory with total area 42 hectares in frameworks of the streets Uborevicha, Tashkentskaya, Golodeda and Mashinostroiteley was allocated for the Minsk Zoo. From the southern part this area is bordered with large urban district Chyzhouka, from the north this territory is limited by industrial zone of Minsk Automobile Plant, in western direction – by Chizhovskoye water reservoir with recreation zone for the inhabitants of Chyzhouka. Minsk Zoo has good transport connections with other parts of Minsk. Metro station Avtozavodskaya is located at distance of 1.5 km from the entrance. In nearest future another underground station will be built in the district Chyzhouka at distance of 1 km from the entrance. There are 5 bus routes and 3 trolley-bus routes connecting Minsk Zoo with other districts of Minsk.

17.5 ha with perimeter boundaries of which 6 ha serve to animal exhibits (so-called “Old Zoo” built during 1980-s by Minsk Automobile Plant, and “New Zoo”, built in 2001-2002) and total area 42 ha is allocated for further development of Minsk Zoo.

The Minsk Zoo was established in 1984 by nature amateurs from the Minsk Automobile Plant. Its founder and the first manager was Fedor Revsin, an engineer and a designer of the Minsk Automobile Plant, also the chairman of the Nature Amateurs Club of the plant. The first foster-children of the new Zoo were wild animals, which had found themselves in miserable condition (an injured white stork, swans, polluted with black oil in an industrial precipitation pond, young roes, small foxes and others). Owing to the support, rendered by the management of the plant and to enthusiasm of its employees, small Zoo with enclosures for animals was built in floodplain of the Svislach river, at the bank of a picturesque oxbow lake (former river-bed), not far from the plant. Even at that time, our animal collection counted in about 50 species, including those of non-local fauna, presented by other zoos from Grodno, Moscow, Leningrad, Mena etc.

The Zoo first opened to visitors, who were mostly Minsk inhabitants, on August 9, 1984. This day is considered to be the day of the Minsk Zoo foundation. Then it had a name of a Zoological Garden by the Minsk Automobile Plant. Before the year of 1989, entrance to the Zoo used to be free. The Minsk Automobile Plant had provided financing of the Zoo. In 1987 the director of the Zoo, Fedor Revsin had agreed on a development project of the zoological garden on the area of 17 hectares. His major development concept was the development of water- and shorebird enclosures, as well as enclosures for animals of moderate latitudes.

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Wikipedia