92 AQsnsruAL report Smithsonian institution, 1950 



Stir until thoroughly mixed. Keep in refrigerator. Warm the small amount 

 needed for each feeding. Use same care in sterilizing utensils as would be used in 

 caring for a human baby. 



MAINTENANCE AND IMPROVEMENTS 



In addition to the numerous daily small repairs, substantial prog- 

 ress was made during the year in maintenance work of a more perma- 

 nent improvement character. 



The 85,000-gallon sea-lion pool that had been leaking seriously was 

 completely relined with concrete. Four-hundred linear feet of con- 

 crete coping for fence was built and 400 feet of 6-foot fencing erected 

 thereon; a parking area between the restaurant and the creek, 300 feet 

 long and 20 feet wide, was given a bituminous-stone surfacing; the 

 surface of the area behind the cages above the reptile house was im- 

 proved by 2,100 square feet of cement surfacing, 175 linear feet of 

 curb, 175 feet of concrete retaining wall 4 feet high, and 60 linear feet 

 of steps; V-gutters were installed in front of these cages. This will 

 improve the appearance of the area, check erosion, and improve 

 sanitation. Three hundred eighty-six feet of 4-inch soil pipe and 

 fittings were installed to provide for sewage disposal from the vicinity 

 of the cook house ; a high-voltage cable was laid from the basement of 

 the reptile house to the cook house to provide current for the electric 

 oven. The space in the bird house formerly occupied by eight double- 

 deck bird cages that had never been satisfactory was remodeled to 

 accommodate thi'ee large cages that are much better. Five thousand 

 square feet of parking area was surfaced with bituminous-stone mixture. 

 At odd times, particularly when outside work could not be carried on, 

 the making of cement legs for benches and cement tables was continued. 



visitors 



The number of visitors was 3,437,669, an increase of 91,619 over 

 the previous year. This was the largest attendance in the history of 

 the Zoo and was probably due in part to the continued high employ- 

 ment in the Washington area, increase in travel accompanying the 

 general economic prosperity, and the frequency with which the 

 Zoo was able to announce the addition of interesting specimens to the 

 collection. The variation in attendance on the different days of the 

 week, which was so extreme before the war, has been much less 

 noticeable. Formerly early days of the week had relatively low 

 attendance, with an increasing number of visitors the latter portion of 

 the week, and very large crowds on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays. 

 There is also a considerable increase in the earlier hours of the day. 



