National Zoological Park (New Delhi, India)

After seeing a Bengal tiger and other animals live in the wild at Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, visiting any zoo was bound to be somewhat of a let down.  But since I had a few hours before my flight back to Japan, I asked my guide to take me to the National Zoological Park (NZP) in New Delhi.  I met my first disappointment at the gate.  Backpacks and large bags are not allowed into the zoo, and visitors are told to check their bags at the entrance.  (I was told that the zoo doesn’t want people carrying in food or objects to throw at the animals.)  Without thinking, I left my backpack and my larger telephoto lens outside, and thus ended up unable to get any close-up images of the animals in this zoo.    

Large and Spread Out

NZP is very large and spread out.  According to the zoo brochure, the park grounds cover 176 acres (71 hectares).  There is a battery operated trolley that circuits the park, but it seemed that most people choose to walk.  Looking at the wide open grass lawns, one might think that it would be a nice place to have a picnic – except you can’t bring in any backpacks or large bags to carry in any food.

Very Large Exhibits

The exhibits for the various species of deer were extremely large.  The photos below show a good example.  The exhibit was so large that at first I did not see the 40 or 50 deer that were crowded in one corner of the exhibit feeding on grasses scattered by the zookeepers. I was amazed at the amount of animals in the exhibit, the amount of space in the exhibit, and most of all, by the fact that this large expanse didn’t seem to have a single blade of living grass. Undoubtedly, this large herd of deer must devour whatever growing vegetation they find.  

The exhibit for the Great One-horned Rhinoceros was also very large.  (The Rhinoceros can barely be seen bathing in the pond in the second photo below.)  This animal was so far from the exhibit boundary that a visitor would need a pair of binoculars to get a good look at the animal.

Other Animal Exhibits

My second disappointment at this zoo was that I wasn’t able to see the Bengal tigers (the normal orange ones).  After seeing a tiger in Bandhavgarh, and considering how culturally important tigers are to India, I wanted to see how this royal creature was exhibited in this national park. But since there was maintenance work being done on the tiger exhibit, the tigers were kept in their night quarters in the back.  I was able to see a white tiger in a separate exhibit, but that becomes a disappointment of a different sort.  Because of the negative aspects and health risks associated with intentionally inbreeding animals to achieve rare color-morphs like white tigers, many AZA (Association of Zoos and Aquariums) and BIAZA (British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums) member zoos do not keep white tigers.  Those zoos believe that the highly inbred animals are useless for the conservation of the species, and they take up valuable space and resources that could be used to house normal tigers.  For the home country of the Bengal tiger to display white tigers so prominently somehow seemed to be sending the wrong message about conservation.

Anyway, the white tiger exhibit was really spacious.

The white tiger is at the center of this photo.

The black object on the left side of this photo is a sleeping Sloth Bear.  Overall, the exhibit looked like it could use some landscape maintenance.

Jaguar Exhibit

You look through the vines…

…and you can see the Jaguar.

Gharial Exhibit

The Lion-tailed Macaque exhibit was extremely overgrown with vegetation.  If not for the fact that the two macaques were hanging from the most visible tree, they would have been impossible to spot.

Jackal Exhibit

Signage

The explanation signs were simple and bilingual.

 The sign below explains that, according to the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 and its amendments of 1991, it is unlawful for visitors to “tease, molest, injure or feed any animal or cause any disturbance to any animal by noise or otherwise”.  I think that it would be nice if this kind of anti-teasing law were adopted in Japan.  Here in Japan, I have often seen overexcited Japanese schoolchildren scream “Konnichiwa” to the large animals.  Even worse, most of the time, they are being encouraged to do so by their teachers or parents.

Under Development

On the day that I visited NZP, it seemed that a lot of construction was in progress.  Besides the tiger exhibit maintenance that I mentioned earlier, there were a number of unfilled potholes. 

There were piles of soil around some of the trees.

Some areas needed some gardening work.

Food and Souvenirs

There were a few food vending stands located throughout the park that sold soft drinks and snacks.  With respect to souvenirs, this was my last disappointment of the day. The only souvenir stand I could locate was a small wooden stall immediately next to the exit.  The items for sale were of the generic animal toy-type that you would expect to find at any corner toy store, and I didn’t see any items imprinted with the name of the zoo.  As a result, my only souvenirs of this zoo were the photos I took and the brochure guide I received when I entered.

Getting There

According to the zoo brochure, National Zoological Park is 6 kilometers from the New Delhi Railway Station and 10 kilometers from the Delhi Railway Station.  For that reason, foreign visitors might find it easiest to get to this zoo by taxi or arranged tour. Admission for foreign visitors (adults or children) was 100 rupees.  Admission for Indian Nationals was 20 rupees for adults and 10 rupees for children 5 to 12 years old.

(Note: All photos taken in this post were taken during a visit on March 12, 2013.  The comments in this post are based on observations made on that day.  Conditions may have since changed.  Please check it out for yourself!)