Marghazar Zoo awaits new arrivals

By Imran Naeem Ahmad

ISLAMABAD: Encouraged by the successful arrival and settling down of a pair of Himalayan brown bears and two pairs of crocodiles, the authorities at Marghazar Zoo are now looking to bring in more animals.

Raja Muhammad Javed, the Capital Development Authority’s director zoo and wildlife management, told Daily Times on Wednesday that negotiations were on to procure a pair of ibex. “We are keen on getting the animals from Sindh which is likely to be through donation,” said Javed, adding that obtaining giraffes from Africa was also a possibility.

An ibex is an individual of several species of wild mountain goats distinguished by the male’s large recurved horns which are transversely ridged in front.

Ranging in height from 27 to 43 inches and weighing 200 to 270 pounds (90 to 120 kg), the ibex can live 20 years.

Male ibex are commonly larger and heavier than females, and their most noticeable difference is the large size of their horns. Females grow a pair of smaller, thinner horns which develop considerably more slowly than the males.

Javed thought that the arrival of the ibex would be a great addition to the zoo and would draw in more people as had been seen following the induction of bears and crocodiles.

The zoo officials added the brown bears in October while the corcodiles were brought in at the start of December. “They are all doing fine and have adjusted well to the new conditions,” Javed said.

As the zoo undergoes massive up-gradation as part of CDA’s plan to make it a truly modern facility, the number of animals that have been added in the past three years is impressive.

The facility did not previously even have zebras, vervet monkeys and ostriches that were included to add spice to life at the zoo. Imported turtles were obtained through donation besides the freshwater turtles and land tortoise. Grey African parrots and white cockatoos too form part of the zoo family and are attractions that no visitor can afford to miss. There have also been a number of births on the premises that observers point out is mainly because the animals are well looked after and the facility immaculately maintained.

Some of the visitors Daily Times spoke to on Wednesday said that improvements continue to be made regularly which was a good sign. “Each time I come here with my kids, something new has been added or improved,” said Nadeem Ahmad.

Ali Pasha, another visitor, said that the zoo located at the foothills of the Margallas was a sight for sore eyes. “It is nice to see cleanliness and all the greenery, things that are often ignored in facilities elsewhere,” he said.

Currently the zoo is getting a new deer enclosure ready following which work would begin on the construction of leapord, lion and yak enclosures as well as water animals.

Following the idea conceived by its director, the CDA embarked on expanding the zoo from its current 25 acres to about 80 in September.

The authorities now hope to have the entire facility completely re-done over three years in a phased manner as per the standards laid down by World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA).

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