62 NEW YORK ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY 



one rival, which is to be found in the celebrated Zoological Gar- 

 den at Melbourne, Australia, under the direction of the distin- 

 guished naturalist, Mr. W. H. D. LeSouef. That kangaroo col- 

 lection is, according to all records, a zoological eciuivalent of 

 our own. 



The reptile collection has suffered somewhat in unreplacable 

 losses of all world species ; but at the same time it has gained in 

 species from South America and Australasia. Fortunately our 

 rarest species still are with us, and our giant tortoises seem to 

 be indifferent to the flight of time. 



During the early summer of 1917, in order to make a test 

 of the rationing system of the large mammals, the Director or- 

 dered a horizontal reduction in the daily rations of the elephants, 

 rhinoceroses, bears, lions, tigers and leopards. This reduction 

 varied from 10 to 30 per cent, and it was hoped that the result 

 might lead to a considerable permanent saving. 



The result was a complete failure. All the animals affected 

 by it so quickly lost flesh and went out of condition that after 

 four months the experiment had to be abandoned. The bears 

 suffered most severely. They became emaciated, their coats be- 

 came dull and lustreless, and they were in a constant state of 

 irritability from unsatisfied hunger. 



We found that our rationing could not be appreciably re- 

 duced ; and it required three months to bring our animals back 

 to their normal good condition. 



EUROPEAN ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS. 



It is a satisfaction to be able to state that in Great Britain, 

 France, Holland, Denmark and Spain, the zoological gardens 

 have been firmly held together, and thus far have survived the 

 strain of war remarkably well. Marvellous to relate, the Ant- 

 werp Garden still is a "going concern," but its scanty mainte- 

 nance is derived from its amusement features rather than from 

 the exhibtion of animals. Regarding the gardens of Germany 

 and Austria there is no news ; but in view of the awful scarcity 

 of meat and forage, their condition easily can be imagined. 



At the close of the war it will be the bounden duty of all 

 American zoological parks to do their utmost toward the re- 

 stocking of the institutions of Belgium, France and England, 



