62 SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 



cumbent, who is a comparatively recent arrival. The zoo is main- 

 tained as a private society, and it has some private endowment. The 

 university and the zoo cooperate, and a large zoological laboratory is 

 maintained on the upper floors of the wild cattle house. We visited 

 the laboratory and saw the university students working. It was inter- 

 esting to find zoology being studied in a zoo. 



The buildings are large and good, though old ; the collection is 

 superb. The group of wild cattle is the best that we saw. Among 

 the breeding animals are anoas, gayals, and Sumatran wild boars. 

 Among the rarities were the ai-ai, which has lived there since 1914, 

 and a Tomistoma from Borneo ; an aardvaark, which has now been 

 in the collection for three years, is so tame it will come when called 

 and enjoys being petted ; Javanese otters ; and a manatee. The 

 manatee has been in the zoo for a year, living in a large tank closed 

 above with glass. Both the water and air are kept at a temperature of 

 80 degrees. The animal is fed lettuce, and according to the director, 

 costs 3075 guilders a year to maintain. 



A new open air lion pit, now under construction, will have a 

 cement background planted on top with greenery. The aquarium is 

 unusually good. We noticed a school of herring, which are not com- 

 mon in aquaria because, it is said, at night they bump into the rocks 

 and kill themselves. These have been provided with a night lamp 

 and as a result are the only successful school of herring in any 

 aquarium. A pair of sterlets (Acipciiscr nilJicints) have been there 

 for 47 years. 



ROTTERD.^M (Director, K. Kuiper) 



This zoo was established in 1857 ^^y three amateur zoologists. The 

 park itself is flat, but splendidly laid out with gardens and good 

 buildings. European l)lue herons nest here annually, many trees 

 in the park having a dozen or more nests in each. The great flight 

 cage for outdoor birds was one of the most attractive that we saw in 

 Europe, and the splendid sea-lion pool, built at a cost of $40,000, had 

 a water fall at one end. 



The collection contains upward of 2.600 animals, many of them 

 gifts to the society. Among the notable exhibits were three speci- 

 mens of Fclis uiimita, the littk tiger cat from the East Indies, and a 

 cage of Australian bush turkeys. 



