With over 16,000 animals representing almost 500 species and encompassing
over 700 acres, the Toronto Zoo has been open for over 30 years. Set in the
beautiful Rouge Valley, the Toronto Zoo is one of the largest zoos in the world.
With animals exhibited geographically, you can walk the trails to your favourite region,
whether it be the African Savannah or the Canadian Domain. Being Canada's premier zoo,
the Toronto Zoo is known for its interactive education and conservation based activities.
The Toronto Zoo has seen numerous milestones throughout the years. In 1996 naked mole
rats went on exhibit. 2001 saw the opening of the award winning exhibit "Gorilla Rainforest",
as well as the rescue of two female polar bear cubs, Aurora and Nikita. Two years later the
Zoo rescued a male polar bear cub, Inukshuk. Also that year the Zoo celebrated the first hatching
of Komodo dragons in Canada, as well as the first birth of three Sumatran tiger cubs in Canada.
Conservation programs are also another integral part of the Toronto Zoo. One of their
programs involves the Vancouver Island marmots, and with captive breeding many of
these endangered animals have been released back into the wild. In 1979 the black-footed
ferret was thought to be extinct in Canada, and the last eighteen were brought into
captivity in 1987. Since 1992, Toronto Zoo's breeding program has produced hundreds
of kits, the majority of which have been released back into the wild.
The 2008 year has also seen some exciting changes and exhibits. The Stingray Bay which
has been at the Zoo all summer and lasts until October 13, 2008 is truly an engaging
experience. The Australasian Pavilion was reopened after renovations, and an amazing
new addition, the Great Barrier Reef exhibit was opened in May.
~ excerpt from News from the Underground - October Issue (Stephanie Mayo) ~
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Kangaroos, the Zoo Tours Crew, Phil has his ticket to pet the stingrays, Phil and huge toad, |
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The world-renowned zoo which began in 1888 as the small Riverdale Zoo developed into the largest in Canada
and opened to the public under the auspices of the Toronto Metropolitan Zoo on August 15 1974.
The Metro Toronto Zoo is a member of both the American Association of Zoos and
Aquariums (AZA) and the Canadian Association of Zoos and Aquariums (CAZA) and is the leader
in breeding and re-introduction projects involving the Black-Footed Ferret and the Puerto Rican Cane Toad.
This particular zoo receives over 1.4 million visitors annually while only closing on Christmas day.
Like Wen Wang's Park of Intelligence (formed around 1000 BC); Metro Toronto Zoo prides itself
on its continued devotion to education and development of scientific studies.
Europe was developing modern zoological parks by the 1700's and The Hague was
opened in 1862. With the help of the Philadelphia zoological society, North America entered
the zoo business in 1874 by opening the Philadelphia Zoo.
The early style of the Toronto Zoo modeled itself after the Victorian era postage stamp
type of enclosure. More recently, it has invested millions of dollars into cutting-edge
and highly specialized pavilions devoted to duplicating its animals specific natural
requirements. It is currently building a huge 4 million dollar coral reef exhibit designed to
showcase numerous oceanic inhabitants and the far-reaching effects our daily
actions have on an area which covers 70% of the Earth's surface.
Aside from allowing its visitors the unique chance to observe up close rare and unusual
animals from around the world, they have been involved in the maintenance and research
of Canada's more common everyday species. They are the studbook holders for several
species and co-ordinate the international effort required to maintain multiple species viability.
