Manila Zoo revisited

When I first set foot on Manila Zoo as a kid, I did not want to go home. My grade school classmates felt the same. For hours, we wandered around and wished we could spend more time at the zoo. In the eyes of a little girl, I saw the zoo for what it was: a re-creation of the Garden of Eden with an amazing array of flora and fauna, and where animals provide amazement and education.

The first animal I remembered seeing back then was the gray, flaky-skinned elephant. My classmates and I were so amazed when the zookeeper fed it with fruits. We were cheering when it deftly got the food with its trunk. From then on, I grew very fond of elephants. I was fascinated with these adorable animals and regularly watched a lot of shows about them from Babar to Dumbo to documentaries on Discovery channel.

Other animals I remembered seeing during that grade school field trip were the rhinoceros, giraffe, kangaroo and the Black Panther. A horrible thought came to mind when I was looking at the lion’s lair: I’d die a quick death if I fell into that pit. Since it would be too late for anyone to save me, I’d be fresh meat to be feasted upon. I shuddered at the thought.

I have wondered for years whether there were new animals added to the zoo and if some of the old ones died already. I heard that the zoo has undergone a series of renovations, and that Mayor Lito Atienza recently initiated a rehabilitation project. A few days ago, I got the chance to find out and revisit everyone’s childhood paradise.

The zoo charges P40 per person (P20 pesos for Manila residents). As I entered the premises, I looked at the first animal that caught my attention. I was so surprised to see that same old elephant in the exact spot I remembered seeing in my grade school field trip.

Maali is the 27-year-old Sri Lankan Elephant. She looked quite lonely. She walked around in circles when the zookeeper was there. Maali seemed quite aware of her surroundings. I suddenly felt bad for inheriting my grandmother’s elephant-skinned bag from Africa. Never again will I use it.

The Reptile Area features a lizard, a tortoise, and a couple of snakes in an aquarium-like display. The Monitor Lizard was thrice the size of an iguana and was being fed with dead fish and shredded vegetables. Beside the aquarium enclosures were the crocodile ponds. We all know that crocodiles are endangered species, so it’s so sad that fashionistas are willing to pay a large amount of money just to own designer croc-skinned bags, belts, wallets and shoes just to look hip. It’s also depressing that in the zoo pond, you could see a lot of junk food wrappers floating on the water. What shocked me more was a shiny 25-centavo coin lying on the crocodile’s back.

Zoo Stories

Manila Zoo, the so-called paradise of my youth has changed so much over the years. I was glad to see that the zoo still has abundant foliage. But seeing uninhabited cages and depressed animals made me realize that something’s not right. Daktari, the star tiger born in captivity, was hiding in his cave. Tigers should not be separated from other tigers and should be free to roam around bigger and open enclosures.

I talked to a vendor who has been selling peanuts at the Manila Zoo since ’58. Julio Sumagio said that the entrance fee before was only P6 for adults and P4 for children. He also noted the animals that died through the years – the rhinoceros, the Black Panther, the camel, as well as the buffalo, which reportedly had five legs.

Visitors are responsible for much of the deaths in the zoo. A giraffe named Molly died three years ago because a visitor fed her with a plastic straw. She choked to death. According to Beng Alviar from the administration office, "Sally, the other giraffe, died a year after Molly."

One guy even tried to give a cigarette to Cici the orangutan. Others throw rocks at the animals to get their attention or tease the snakes to get them to move.

Sad.

Kinder Zoo – ‘Kinder,’ Hopefully

Apart from the main zoo area, visitors can see the first phase of the P20-million rehabilitation project – the Kinder Zoo, which opened four years ago. There is a separate entrance fee of P40 for the 3,000 square meter attraction. According to Kinder Zoo’s Neneng Lubrico, there are lots of things for kids to see and do.

"The Indian Python and baby crocodile are safe to touch," she shared. "They won’t bite, and the chattering lories sing so well. You can also put the cockatoo on your head and shoulders"

Two snow-white Moluccan Cockatoos were stationed in front of the butterfly house. The security guard said I could touch them, but I was hesitant until he told me that they were friendly. I had a bad experience with a cockatoo when I was a child. My grandfather had one named Sluggo. I fed him with kamias and he bit my finger with his beak and bore a hole on my finger. Ouch!

One of the prettiest birds at the Kinder Zoo is the pink flamingo. Sadly, there was only one. It looked so delicate. Its legs were so scrawny, but the color of the feathers was the sweetest bubblegum pink I have ever seen.

I noticed a duck in the pond. His right eye was swollen. I recognized the disease right away – an infection common in birds called Coryza. One eye gets swollen and can transfer to the healthier eye. From there, the bird will go blind and become weak if it cannot find its food and water. In our organic chicken farm in Bacolod, my dad gave me a crash course on chicken health. In order to cure this disease, you can either treat the bird with antibiotics or rub a red chili pepper on the affected eye, the more natural remedy.

The guides at the Kinder Zoo were very friendly. They asked me if I wanted to hold the baby crocodile. I felt sad for the little croc because they put adhesive tape around its mouth to prevent it from biting anyone. There were also rabbits as big as cats, peacocks and guinea pigs in the enclosures. I even saw two sick Sasso Chickens in the pigpens. I honestly did not know what they were doing in there.

Zoos can be unfair to animals. We must realize that animals are complex organism with diverse behaviors involving territoriality, dominance, courtship and nesting.

However, we can console ourselves with the fact that these creatures are perhaps even better off in zoos. In the wild, especially in our country, they could have long been shot, poached, cooked and eaten – or sold for a song by heartless and hungry men. They could have been preyed upon by animals stronger than they are. They could have lost their habitats due to forest fires, the changing clime, or the advance of civilization. The best thing we animal lovers can do is lobby for a zoo that simulates the animals’ respective natural habitats. Maybe the zoo’s thrust should be preservation and not merely exhibition. There is a lot of work to be done.

For many species, it seems too late to let them roam the wild again. It’s like releasing domesticated dogs in the wild, hoping they would behave like foxes in search of sick bison. At the current rate of habitat destruction, the animals’ only hope is the zoos of the world. Zoos will never be a perfect replacement, but at least, they can serve as temporary Noah’s arks. That is, until we put a stop to the crazy flood of human destruction.

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The Manila Zoological and Botanical Garden is located on Adriatico Street, corner President Quirino Avenue in Manila. It is open everyday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. For inquiries, call 400-1885 and 522-6179 for the Kiddie Zoo.