THE "ZOO" AS IT IS NOW

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1216, 26 August 1911, Page 6

THE "ZOO" AS IT IS NOW

AND AS IT MIGHT BE, SOME OF THE RECENT ARRIVALS, AND SOME NEEDS, [By tho President of tho Wellington Zoological Society.] I know several cities and,many towns, and I have read about a great many other towns and cities, some ancient, somo modern, some medieval; but I think that in two tilings Wellington surpasses any of them: (1) The salubrity of its climate; (2) the greatness of tho proportion of the number of its inhabitants who have maligned the character of their city and belittled its public institutions. I am pleased just now, however, to notice that while tho Zoo in Newtown Park is yield- ' iug a gratifying demonstration ot ihe soundness of my opinion on tho first point; the proportion on my'second point is in regard to the Zoo diminishing encouragingly. 1 therefore respectfully ask you to allow me, as ono pledged to improve tho Zoo and promote it, to give to many inquirers in New. Zealand and elsewhere a view of what the Zoo really is as seen from my standpoint. More than 500 Animals. This, then, is what it really is. It is a well-selected collection, of more than 500 animals, most of which should, to all persons having ordinary intellect and apdtude to appreciate tne beauties and wonders of Nature, bo highly interesting, instructive and educational. Tho 50d individuals are classified in three classes: (1)-Mammalia (animals which sucklo their young); (2) Aves (birds); (3) Keptilia (reptiles). These classes aro subdivided into about twenty-four orders and groups —(juadrumana, Lemures, Insectivora, Carnivora, Ungniata, Marsnpalia, Rodentia, Struthioncs, Rheae, Megisrancs, Apterygts, Spheuisciformes, Psittaci, Striges, Accipitres, Grallatores, Ansercs, Columba, Gallina, Fulicaria. Larida, ltalliformes, Passeres, Sauria. The arrangement of the orders may be changed, and there is considerable difference of opinion as to tho groups or orders in which the rhea, the emu, the ostrich, the kiwi, and one or two other animals, should bo placed; but these must be left to tho student or teacher, who must, within certain limits, decide for himself on points on which professors disagree. The twenty-four orders and groups may bo subdivided into about 130 varieties. In these varieties we have all the 500 animals named and numbered, livery Zoo is formed piecemeal, and nioro or iess at haphazard, for a largo proportion of the collection of animals are received as presents; and others which are acquired by purchase, or by capture, are taken when they are available, and not always when they are wanted to fill an order or complete a series.

Things of Beauty are Joys Forever. In such a senso our Zoo is being enlarge piecemeal, and in some parts haphazard, but it is watched by men wno havo well-defined plans, and who seo that it is being adapted to tho purposes for which such a Zoo should be promoted. In it the Order Psittaci in Class Aves is represented by a collection of which aiiy city might be proud. Tho quality of'the representatives in the Order Gallina is very good; but here some of our citizens should place somo Reeves and some Amherst pheasants. . We have a lot of beautiful liirds in the Order Ansercs; but some generous citizens should place, somo black-necked swans and somo American wood-ducks on the pond. Tho City Council has made a magnificent enclosure for this order. Now the citizens should- riso to tho occasion, and make the collection of birds worthy of tho greatly improved accommodation. If "a thing of beauty'" is a-joy forever, then springs of joy to all hearts that aro not dead or shrivelled abound in the-"Anseresi-division..of- the Zoo at Newtown'""l" may say.' however, that perhaps I am not a good judge of Muscovy ■ ducks, for to my. mind more than, half of. those on the poud should be relegated to more obscure positions, as they do not seem to be worthy of tho splendid company they are in. Shift those Muscovies and we might proudly invite their Majesties the King and Queen of England to seo the beauties on the pond. We badly want a Mandarin duck and a Paradise drake. We ought to get also twd pairs of- American woodducks. . .

Next we notice that in the sub-class Neornithes of Class Aves we haye some pood birds. Thero are the ostriches, representative of the only two-toed birds in the whole world, and growing plumes which I don't know how : many ladies are already coveting. On one side of, them are two fine emus, one of which was placed there last week. On the other side is a female rhea. She layed several eggs last year. But her mate died just when he had brought tho chicken in them to _ the hatching 6tage. Ho and their chickens which were taken from the eggs just after ho died are in tho Newtown Museum;- Surely some persons will give a male rhea that this depart-' ment may bo . kept • well furnished. The Monkeys arid the Mighty Ones. Next wo remark that in the Order Passeres we have some very beautiful varieties, and many very interesting ones. This is'a very largo Urdcr, and to my mind tho collection of birds of this Order in our Zoo should bo highly appreciated. Mr. LangTidge has just added some beautiful finches iu this department. We have a considerable number of representatives of several varieties in the Order Ungulatn,. of Clais Mammalia. • Some of these seem to me to occupy more ground than they are worth, but from an educational point of view our collection is not a chaotic one, and thoro are in it somo fino animals. •We havo representatives of several varieties in. the Order Quadruraana. Wo havo enough of tho Macaquo and the lthesus monkeys, and the whiteeared marmosets. Wo have a representative of tho Vcrvet, Some citizen should present a male Vervet. There are on exhibition representatives of tho whitenecked Sajou, but these, though in the Zoo, aronot of it. We want a pair of rJutcllus. and some representatives of the American monkeys. Aono of the varieties represented in our Zoo use tho prehensile tail generally, although (ho Sajous arc nearly related to somo that do. We have but lew representatives, of the Order Carnivorn, but tho two lions wo havo are a very fine pair. I havo seen a good many lions— larger than our "King Dick : ' —but tho head of Dick is the most magnificent lion's head, that I have seen. We ought to havo in this Order, I think, a male Siamese cat ay a mate for our female; a female Persian cat as a .mate for our female; and an exchange of a female dingo for ono of our males. There is not'in the Zoo a variety ot any kind that should not be represented there, but for the purposes which I think such a Zoo as ours should answer several of the varieties should be strengthened, and some new varieties should be added in somo of tho orders. The Find at Lyall Bay, On Sunday a very valuable animal for the purposo of exhibition came into Lyall Dav, and gavo herself up to the city. Our thanks are due to this noblo animal for coming to strengthen ono of tho orders which is not strongly represented in our Zoo. Wo now have an opportunity to see living side by sido a sea-lion and si sealeopard, which, though not in excellent condition, may be saved. . Our Zoo not large, but it has at present in it a considerable number of very interesting creatures.

AVo want a rhea, a pair of reeves, and a pair of Amherst pheasants, a male brush turkey, a male rufous-necked wallaby, a mnlo bridle wallaby, a mandarin duck, a Paradise drake, a fcranio peacock, a representative collection of kiwis (a pair of North Island .immediately), a male Vervot monkey, a pair of Entellus monkeys, some prehensile tailed monkeys, a pair of lion marmosets, two eats, and a pair of black-necked swans. I say wo want—l mean that their is accommodation for them in tho city Zoo, and T am suro that tho council would accept all or any of them. The City Council is greatly improving Newtown Park, and Mr. J.angridgo and his stalT deserve great credit for tho condition in which all the animals in the Zoo havo been kept through a very trying winter. Tho rearing of the two young marmosets, which wero Itorn in tho very cold weather, and aro now strongly running and jumping about in their open race, =peaks volumes tor the salubrity of Wellington climate and the kind attention which has been given to the animals.