Dusit Zoo () or popularly known as Khao Din Wana (เขาดินวนา) and Khao Din (เขาดิน) was a

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

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. Located at Khao Din Park in Bangkok's Dusit District next to the old parliament house and

Dusit Palace Dusit Palace (, RTGS: ''Phra Ratcha Wang Dusit'') is a compound of royal residences in Bangkok, Thailand. Constructed over a large area north of Rattanakosin Island between 1897 and 1901 by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V). The palace, originally cal ...

, it was the oldest zoo in Thailand.

History

Dusit Zoo was originally built by King

Chulalongkorn Chulalongkorn (20 September 1853 – 23 October 1910), posthumously honoured as King Chulalongkorn the Great, was the fifth king of Siam from the Chakri dynasty, titled Rama V. Chulalongkorn's reign from 1868 until his death in 1910 was cha ...

(Rama V) as his private garden adjacent to the royal palace. After the king's death, the garden was left unattended for years. In 1938, the constitutional government asked King

Rama VIII Ananda Mahidol (20 September 19259 June 1946) was the eighth king of Siam (later Thailand) from the Chakri dynasty, titled Rama VIII. At the time he was recognised as king by the National Assembly in March 1935, he went to Switzerland when ...

's regency council to give the park to the Bangkok City Municipality to be opened as a public zoo. The King donated deer and a number of other animals from the palace for public exhibition. The City of Bangkok operated the zoo until 1954. Since then it has been transferred to the state Zoological Park Organization, which also operates Khao Kheow Open Zoo, Chiang Mai Zoo, Songkhla Zoo and Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo. Dusit Zoo, or "Khao Din", spanned a total area of 188,800 square meters, and was regarded as the most popular zoo in Thailand, attracting approximately 2.5 million visitors annually. In August 2018, the Zoological Park Organization announced that the zoo would close and relocate to a new site in

Thanyaburi District Thanyaburi (, ) is a district (''amphoe'') in Pathum Thani province. History ''Mueang'' Thanyaburi was built by order of King Rama V in 1901. The city name translates to 'rice city'. At the same time, King Rama V ordered Min Buri (, 'fish city') ...

Pathum Thani Province Pathum Thani (, ) is one of the central provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise): Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Saraburi, Nakhon Nayok, Chachoengsao, Bangkok, and Nonthaburi. The province is north of ...

. After the announcement, the zoo extended its opening hours until 30 September 2018.

Number of animals

Dusit Zoo was located in the heart of Bangkok, with over 1600 species of domestic and international animals, including: *331 mammals *170 reptiles *849 birds

Highlights

Dusit Zoo was home to a variety of animals, ranging from American alligators,

Humboldt penguin The Humboldt penguin (''Spheniscus humboldti'') is a medium-sized penguin. It resides in South America, along the Pacific coast of Peru and Chile. Its nearest relatives are the African penguin, the Magellanic penguin and the Galápagos penguin. ...

red pandas The red panda (''Ailurus fulgens''), also known as the lesser panda, is a small mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. It has dense reddish-brown fur with a black belly and legs, white-lined ears, a mostly white muzz ...

, and

hippopotamus The hippopotamus (''Hippopotamus amphibius;'' ; : hippopotamuses), often shortened to hippo (: hippos), further qualified as the common hippopotamus, Nile hippopotamus and river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Sahar ...

es, to

brow-antlered deer Eld's deer (''Rucervus eldii'' or ''Panolia eldii''Pitraa, Fickela, Meijaard, Groves (2004). ''Evolution and phylogeny of old world deer.'' Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 33: 880–895.), also known as the thamin or brow-antlered deer, i ...

Asian elephant The Asian elephant (''Elephas maximus''), also known as the Asiatic elephant, is the only living ''Elephas'' species. It is the largest living land animal in Asia and the second largest living Elephantidae, elephantid in the world. It is char ...

Red-shanked douc The red-shanked douc (''Pygathrix nemaeus'') is an arboreal and diurnal Old World monkey belonging to the Colobinae subfamily. They are endemic to Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. They are known for their bright colors and exhibit sexual dimorphism ...

s, and

Malayan tapir The Malayan tapir (''Tapirus indicus''), also called Asian tapir, Asiatic tapir, oriental tapir, Indian tapir, piebald tapir, or black-and-white tapir, is the only living tapir species outside of the Americas. It is native to Southeast Asia from ...

s. The Albino

Indian muntjac The Northern red muntjac (''Muntiacus vaginalis'') is a species of muntjac. It is found in numerous countries of south-central and southeast Asia. The northern red muntjac inhabits various forest types, from tropical rainforests to deciduous an ...

and

white tiger The white tiger (ashy tiger) is a leucistic morph of the tiger, typically the Bengal tiger. It is occasionally reported in the Indian wilderness. It has the typical black stripes of a tiger, but its coat is otherwise white or near-white, and ...

s were also rare highlights at the zoo. Play Land offered rides and amusement facilities to entertain children throughout the day, while boat peddling and the sightseeing train provided different modes of exploration. Dusit Zoo also contained an animal hospital, zoo museum, and educational center.สถานที่เที่ยวในวันวาน รำลึกอดีต สวนสัตว์ดุสิต เขาดินวนา (เขาดินเก่า)
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Admission

Dusit Zoo operated from 8am to 6pm. Zoo entry fee: Local People * 100 Baht for adults * 50 Baht for teachers, university students, government officers in uniform * 20 Baht for children * Free of charge for elderly (60 years of age or above), handicapped, monks Foreigners * 150 Baht for adults * 70 Baht for children

References

{{authority control Zoos in Thailand Buildings and structures in Bangkok Dusit district Former zoos 1938 establishments in Siam 2018 disestablishments in Thailand Educational organizations established in 1938 Zoos established in the 1930s Zoos disestablished in the 2010s Educational organizations disestablished in 2018

History

Number of animals

Highlights

Admission

See also

References