Miskolc Zoo is 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, ...

Miskolc Miskolc ( , ; ; Czech language, Czech and ; ; ; ) is a city in northeastern Hungary, known for its heavy industry. With a population of 161,265 as of 1 January 2014, Miskolc is the List of cities and towns in Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, ...

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. Although its official name is ''Miskolc Városi Vadaspark'' – "Wildlife Park of Miskolc" – it is actually a zoo because the animals are kept in cages. Its first predecessor was the royal game park founded by King Louis I in 1355. Today's zoo was opened on 20 August 1983. It can be found in the

Csanyik The Csanyik Valley, or simply ''Csanyik'', is a valley in Miskolc, near Lillafüred, Hungary. With an area of 105.801 m2 it is the second largest green area of the city after ''Tapolca-Hejőliget.'' The valley got its name after the mediaeval vi ...

, a large park in the outskirts of Miskolc, right next to the

Bükk National Park Bükk National Park () is a national park in the Bükk Mountains of Northern Hungary, near Miskolc. It was founded in 1977 as the third national park in the country. It contains 431.3 km2 (of which 37.74 km2 is under increased protecti ...

, in an area of 212,000 square metres. The zoo was built within 100 days by voluntary service. Originally, it was a wildlife park showing the wild animals of the surrounding

Bükk The Bükk Mountains () are a section of the North Hungarian Mountains of the Inner Western Carpathians. Much of the area is included in the Bükk National Park. Geography Although Kékes, the highest point in Hungary, is not here but in t ...

mountains. Today not only local wild animals can be seen here, but also exotic animals like

camels A camel (from and () from Ancient Semitic: ''gāmāl'') is an even-toed ungulate in the genus ''Camelus'' that bears distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps" on its back. Camels have long been domesticated and, as livestock, they provide ...

monkeys Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes. Thus monkeys, in that sense, co ...

parrots Parrots (Psittaciformes), also known as psittacines (), are birds with a strong curved beak, upright stance, and clawed feet. They are classified in four families that contain roughly 410 species in 101 genus (biology), genera, found mostly in ...

tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is tradition ...

, and

leopards The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant cat species in the genus ''Panthera''. It has a pale yellowish to dark golden fur with dark spots grouped in rosettes. Its body is slender and muscular reaching a length of with a ...

. The zoo has about 700 animals of 130 different species. One of the unique features is the statue park where lifelike statues of extinct animals are exhibited. Its main purpose is to call people's attention to the importance of preserving wildlife. Statues of famous

naturalist Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

s can also be seen here, among them the first

Gerald Durrell Gerald Malcolm Durrell Order of the British Empire, OBE (7 January 1925 – 30 January 1995) was a British naturalist, writer, zookeeper, conservation movement, conservationist, and television presenter. He was born in Jamshedpur in British Ind ...

statue of the world.

External links

Official site
Buildings and structures in Miskolc Zoos in Hungary Tourist attractions in Miskolc Zoos established in 1983 1983 establishments in Hungary {{zoo-stub