There are many tourists attractions in the city of Kolkata but if you are talking about something close to nature then the Alipore Zoological Garden is the best place to interact with nature’s creations. The Alopore Zoological Garden is located at the Belvedere Road at the south of Maidan. It is really amazing to see this slice of nature almost in the middle of a crowded city. Its inception year is 1875 but it was formally inaugurated in the year 1876 by the hands of Prince of Wales, King Edward VII. Spread over an area of hundred acres this incredible zoo is a historic place too as this one is the oldest and the largest zoo in India. Housing a variety of animals, birds as well as reptiles, this zoo is really the centre of attractions for young, kids as well as old. The Zoological Garden has rich flora and fauna. For some animals nature like environment is created in order to provide them complete natural surrounding but some other animals are kept in small cages that is quite unfortunate. An area of 2700 sq. meter in open air is given to the two hippopotamus.The idea to create a zoo for animals in Kolkata came from a governor Sir Richard in 1873. Finally government gave the permission and allotted the land for establishing the zoo in 1873. The zoo also exhibits animals, birds, mammals, reptiles and few rare species. For a bird watcher it is like a paradise as it has a large collection of birds. Animals include giraffes, kangaroos, monkeys, hippos, etc. among others. A special tortoise which is older than the zoo is quite a special attraction here. it is said that it is about 250 years old. It is said that this tortoise was 120 plus years old when it was brought to this place. The giant tortoise is known as Advaita which means incomparable one. Doesn’t it seem that it belongs to the elite group of amphibians? Apart from this miracle creature the zoo is also stands first in breeding Giraffes and Tigions and Litigons. Tigions are the cross bred between a lion and a tiger while Litigion is a cross between a lion and a tigion. This zoo has saved the almost extinct Manipur Brow Antlered Deer by conserving it here. Some of the crowd puller animals and birds in zoo are as under:
- Royal Bengal Tiger
- African Lion
- Jaguar
- Hippopotamus
- Great Indian One-horned Rhinoceros
- Reticulated Giraffe
- Grant s Zebra
- Emu
- Dromedary Camel
- Indian Elephant
- The Giant Eland (open forest savannah antelope)
- Large parrots
- Macaw species
- Conures
- Lories and lorikeets
- Touracos
- Hornbills
- Cassowary
- The Golden Pheasant
- Lady Amherst s Pheasant
- Swinhoe s Pheasant
- Ostrich, etc.
It is amazing to see various beautiful migratory birds that come here during winter season. They usually seen in and around the lake which is artificially created in the zoo but due to ecological imbalance the number of migratory birds has fallen down. There is a separate structure in the zoo premises to house and exhibit the reptiles. Kids love this place and never complain about getting tired of walking as they do while on shopping. The entire zoo is very interesting and educational with its rich vegetation, animals, reptile house and children’s play park. You can imagine the popularity of this zoo by the fact that this zoo sees more than twenty lakh visitors annually. You can also visit the Agro Horticultural Garden and National library situated close to the zoo.Timings of the zooFrom 9.00 am to 5.00 pmEntrance chargesRs. 5/- per person onlyPhotography chargesNo charges for camera or video cameraAccessibilityIt is really easy to reach here as it is situated in the city. One can use buses, mini buses and taxi or cab services to reach here. Maidan is the nearest metro station.займ на карту без отказов круглосуточновзять кредит онлайн