THE LONDON ZOO.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVII, Issue 4961, 12 April 1926, Page 1

THE LONDON ZOO.

EXHIBITS VALUED AT £25,000.

December 1 wais stocktaking day at the London Zoo, for on January 1 in every year the curators; are busy valuing thiir charges, of which they have taken a, census on the previous day. On the last day of 1925 the collection consisted of 3500 animals, and was on the following day valued at almost exactly £25,000. The latter figui e—one required for .the Zoological Society’s annual accounts —is somewhat misleading, as| it does not represent the full value of the exhibits, many of which are 'Unsaleable or irreplaceable, 0,11 d is merely an estimate of the sum the society would expect to 'receive if forced to dispose of the animals. It is by no means easy to arrive at a correct valuation of a wild animal, as, apart ’from its condition, innumerable facts connected with its) history, such as its age, average length of life in captivity and in the wild state, have to be taken into consideration. Thus the death rate amongst certain creatures that have only recently arrived in the country is comparatively heavy, and their “expectation of life” is;, therefore, very much higher alfter they have been six months in captivity, and have got ovei- the variouis: hardships incidental to their capture and transport, than it was before, whilst a very old animal is worthless;, however popular with the public. The most valuable animal in the Zoo is Indirani, the large Indian elephant, which earns for her masters over £3OO a year in riding money. She is considered to be worth £lOOO. Next comes the rhinoceros, which is priced at £9OO, closely followed by the largest hippotamus at £BOO. The giraffes are amongst the most popular inhabitants of the menagerie, but they are valued at a comparatively low figure. This is due .to the fact that when full-grown they cannot be transported owing o the length cfc their necksi, which are too tall to pass under tunnels. Therefore, in the eveiit of a forced s.alje they, would be unsaleable- Tigers; remain a,t a high figure, namelf, £l5O, but lions 'are a, drug on the market, and are considered worth only £4O. The bird of paradise <at £BO heads, the bird li.ist, the ostriches at £3o' being a poor seer ond.