The Yadanabon Zoological Gardens ( my, ရတနာပုံ တိရိစ္ဆာန် ဥယျာဉ် ) is a

zoo A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoo ...

in Mandalay,

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

. The zoo has nearly 300 animals, including tigers, leopards and elephants, and plays a major part in the conservation program for the highly threatened Burmese roofed turtle (''Batagur trivittata''). According to a March 2011 report by a Yangon-based news magazine, the zoo reportedly is under consideration for privatization.

History

The zoo is located at the foot of

Mandalay Hill Mandalay Hill ( ) is a hill that is located to the northeast of the city centre of Mandalay in Myanmar. The city took its name from the hill. Mandalay Hill is known for its abundance of pagodas and monasteries, and has been a major pilgrimage ...

and opened on 8 April 1989. In 2003, its facilities were upgraded for K500 million (approximately US$500K). Part of the upgrade program included a dedicated enclosure for the ''K. trivittata'' turtle with a larger ground pond, built with emergency funds donated by BTG Studios of Sydney and Allwetterzoo Münster of Germany.

Burmese roofed turtle

Yadanabon Zoo is notable for playing a significant part in the successful conservation program with the Turtle Survival Alliance for the Burmese roofed turtle (''Batagur trivittata''). Feared extinct until 2002, and still very rare in the wild, several hundred individuals are now kept at the zoo and a turtle conservation center in Lawkananda Park, Bagan.Turtle Survival Alliance (8 April 2011)
TSA Board Members Inspect the New Facilities in Myanmar.
Accessed 27 March 2012. Yadanabon Zoo also participate in the breeding program of the highly threatened

Burmese star tortoise The Burmese star tortoise (''Geochelone platynota'') is a critically endangered tortoise species, native to the dry, deciduous forests of Myanmar (Burma). It is close to extinction in Myanmar, as it is eaten by the native Burmese. Description ...

(''G. platynota'').

Photos

File:Yatanabon Zoo Sign.jpg, Yadanabon Zoo File:Yadanabon Zoo Entrance.jpg, Zoo Entrance

References

{{authority control Mandalay Zoos in Myanmar Buildings and structures in Mandalay Region Environment of Myanmar Zoos established in 1989 1989 establishments in Myanmar