The Thiruvananthapuram Zoo (also known as Trivandrum Zoo) is located in the city of Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of Kerala, India. It occupies of woodland, lakes, and lawns.

History

Thiruvananthapuram Zoo is one of the oldest zoos in India. Similarly the Museum and Botanical Gardens are also one of the oldest of their kind in the country.

Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma ( ml, സ്വാതി തിരുനാള്‍ രാമവർമ്മ) (16 April 1813 – 26 December 1846) was the Maharaja of the Kingdom of Travancore. He is also considered as a brilliant music composer and is credited with over 40 ...

(1816–1846), the ruler of Travancore during 1830–1846, was the visionary behind the establishment of the Thiruvananthapuram Museum and Zoo. He had a broad variety of animals, including elephants in his horse breeding centre. In the Trivandrum, stables he incorporated a menagerie and kept tigers, panthers cheetahs, deer, bears and a lioness there. It was however left to his brother Uthram Thirunal Marthanda Varma and the then British Resident General Cullen which resulted in the establishment of Napier Museum and Zoo in Thiruvananthapuram. A committee was formed in 1855 with the Maharaja of Travancore as Patron, General Cullen as president, The Elaya Raja as vice president and Mr. Allen Brown as Secretary of the Committee and the Director of Museum. The Museum was thrown open to the Public in September 1857. But the Museum by itself could not attract the people much, and therefore a Zoo and a park were started in 1859. The zoo was originally built with the typical iron-barred cages prevalent at the time, and was designed for recreational purposes, but with increased loss of forest and wildlife due to human development, the goal of the Zoo has changed from recreation to conservation. Asiatic lion in Thiruvananthapuram Zoo

A modernization project started in 1995, aims to gradually replace the old enclosures with spacious naturalistic enclosures. The state government of Kerala is undertaking this renovation with financial and technical help from the Central Zoo Authority. Black bear in Thiruvananthapuram Zoo

Mammals

The Thiruvananthapuram Zoo is home to 82 species from around the world. Indigenous species at the zoo include

lion-tailed macaque The lion-tailed macaque (''Macaca silenus''), also known as the wanderoo, is an Old World monkey endemic to the Western Ghats of South India. Characteristics Lion-tailed macaques are covered in black fur, and have a striking gray or silver ...

, Nilgiri langur, Indian rhinoceros, Asiatic lion, royal Bengal tiger, white tiger and

leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...

, as well as nine Asian elephants (as of 31 March 2009). in 2020, animals from Africa include

giraffe The giraffe is a large African hoofed mammal belonging to the genus ''Giraffa''. It is the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on Earth. Traditionally, giraffes were thought to be one species, ''Giraffa camelopardalis ...

s, hippos, zebras, and Cape buffalos. The zoo also includes a snake farm called 'The Reptile House', which exhibits both poisonous and non-poisonous snakes. It also houses 7 Anacondas too. Deers in TVM zoo

Birds

* Ostrich * Scarlet macaw * Green-winged macaw * Indian peafowl * White spoonbill * Greater flamingo * Cassowary * Sulfur-crested cockatoo * Common crane * White-necked crane * Black-necked crane *Grey heron * White ibis * Blossom headed parakeet * Rose-ringed parakeet * Alexandrine parakeet * Mustached parakeet * Gray pelican * Rosy pelican * Silver pheasant * Ring-necked pheasant * Rock dove * Adjutant stork * Painted stork * White stork * White necked stork * Black-necked stork * Cinereous vulture * King vulture * White Backed vulture * Turkey vulture * Pariah kite * Brahminy kite * Emu

Reptiles

* Anaconda * Reticulated Python * Gharial * Mugger crocodile * Spectacled caiman * Monitor lizard * Bamboo pit viper * Indian cobra * Indian rock python * Rat snake * Russell's viper * Checkered keelback * King cobra * Red sandboa * Green tree snake * Indian flapshell turtle * Indian black turtle * Crowned river turtle * Travancore tortoise

Gallery

File:Trivandrum Zoo 33.jpg, Thiruvananthapuram Zoo Campus File:Napier Museum Thiruvananthapuran DSW New.jpg, Napier Museum Thiruvananthapuram File:Zeebra in Trivandrum Zoo.JPG, Zebra in Thiruvananthapuram Zoo File:Hippopotamus in Thiruvananthapuram Zoo.JPG, alt=Hippopotamus in Thiruvananthapuram Zoo, Hippopotamus in Thiruvananthapuram Zoo File:Rhinoceros at Trivandrum Zoo DSW.jpg, Rhinoceros at Thiruvananthapuram Zoo File:Barking Deer at Trivandrum Zoo DSW.JPG, Barking deer at Thiruvananthapuram Zoo File:Leopard inside cage at Trivandrum Zoo DSW.jpg,

Leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...

inside cage at Thiruvananthapuram Zoo File:Brahminy Kite In Zoo.jpg, Brahminy Kite found in Thiruvananthapuram Zoo File:Indian Bison in Zoo, TVM.jpg, Indian Bison in Thiruvananthapuram zoo File:Deers in Zoo, TVM.jpg, Deers in Thiruvananthapuram zoo File:Hippos in Zoo, TVM.jpg, Hippopotamus in Thiruvananthapuram zoo File:Herd of Indian Bisons.jpg, Herd of Indian Bisons in Thiruvananthapuram Zoo File:Herd of Deer and Sambar.jpg, Herd of Deer including sambar in Thiruvananthapuram Zoo File:Feeding deers in zoo.jpg, Feeding the deers File:Walking Tiger in Zoo.webm, Waking Tiger in TVM zoo

References

External links

Official Web Site

Thiruvananthapuram Zoo Photographs, 2011

Salman the fat

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus '' Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the th ...

{{Tourism in Kerala, state=collapsed Zoos in Kerala Tourist attractions in Thiruvananthapuram 1857 establishments in India Zoos established in 1857