Dusit Zoo, Bangkok

Dusit Zoo has been an old institution in the Bangkok city-life. It has been in existence for 80 years

Hippopotamus

but it will soon close down at the end of the month. It is not only a place for animals, but a recreation park for children and adults. Yet, a royal decree has assigned the zoo to be closed and be relocated in the northern suburb of Rangsit.

I do not truly enjoy the atmosphere of a zoo, as I prefer animals to live in their natural environment. But on the other end, zoos serve as an educational center and enable people to observe animals they may never see otherwise. 

Iguana

I had postponed going to Dusit Zoo until now, but when I heard the park would soon close down, it prompted me to get there.

As it was on a Sunday, the place was full of people. It showed how popular the zoo was. What I was most interested in was the fact that a particular attention was reserved to the region wildlife and more specifically in the following areas:

-the East Asian crocodile family,

-the different species of gibbons,

-the various kinds of hornbills that can be found,

-the main families of wild cats endemic to the region,

-and the tremendous variety of snakes collected by the zoo, not only in the area but in other places as well.

Of course, this zoo offers to see many other animals like penguins, koalas, the Malaysian honey bear, penguins, turtles & tortoises, elephants, giraffes, all kinds of monkeys and birds, hippos, and a score of other animal species like foxes, cassowaries, lemurs or sloths.

Hopefully, the new zoo location will offer a better environment to all these animals and will look a bit like the S'Pore Zoo.

Bangkok Post: Dusit Zoo begins its long goodbye 

The Siamese crocodile is a smaller variety from the larger African or Australian species.

All sorts of Hornbills

The Tiger family

There are also many different types of tigers in Southeast Asia

All the different wild cats found in Thailand