58 SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 



ELBERFELD (Director Keusch) 



The Elberfeld zoological park, opened in 1881 by a corporation, 

 is very hilly and the most beautifully gardened in all the world. The 

 present director was formerly head gardener at Potsdam under two 

 kaisers and has brought with him his flair for creating beautiful 

 landscapes. 



There are three new buildings, as follows : 



1. The monkey house, which has open pits inside as well as out. 

 A profusion of plants grow in the building, with a small palm garden 

 and pool in the center. An interesting feature was an arrangement 

 for artificial rain ; the director turned a crank and we saw a tropical 

 downpour in the building. 



2. The aquarium, reptile house and insectarium. another small 

 building exquisitely planned. Plants were l)looming in nearly all the 

 reptile cages. 



3. The elephant house, which contains a big pool at one end for 

 hippopotami. One big elephant cage occupies one side of the house, 

 and three smaller cages for tapir and rhino fill the other side. 



The outdoor panorama is especially interesting. It is in three sec- 

 tions, one for seals and sea lions, another al.ove for polar bears, and a 

 third for reindeer and ibex. A fairly comprehensive view of the 

 whole thing may be obtained from l)elow, but passages between each 

 panorama i)ermit the visitor to a])])roach more closely to the animals. 



VIENNA (Director, Dr. Otto Antonius) 



The X'^ienna zoo, at present maintained by the city, is the oldest 

 in Europe ; it was begun about 1 50 years ago by Maria Theresa as a 

 private collection. The public were admitted only on certain holidays 

 and then never inside the houses. Hence the houses are small and 

 most of the animals can only be seen outdoors in good weather. The 

 gardens, which are adjacent to the magnificent Schonbrunn Palace 

 grounds, are beautiful and well arranged. 



The collection is rich in rarities, due chiefly to the efi^orts of a 

 Viennese banker, Mr. Weidholz, who has made several collecting 

 trips to West Africa. Of the three girafifes, one came from Senegal. 

 There are three West African lions, a pair of red buffalo, and no less 

 than 18 species of African antelope including the W^est African kob 

 and the horse antelope, and two male hyena dogs. Many interesting 

 animals were born in the zoo, including an Indian elephant, a great 

 ant-eater, and Arabian and Dorcas gazelles. 



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