- Title: Paris 222-year-old zoo calls for help to restore historic building
- Date: 2nd December 2016
- Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (NOVEMBER 30, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF FLAMINGOS IN ZOO VISITORS LOOKING AT ANIMALS SPOTTED PANTHER IN ENCLOSURE EXTERIOR OF ENCLOSURES THE ZOO'S OLDEST ORANGUTAN VARIOUS OF ASIAN TAPIR RED PANDA WALKING INSIDE ENCLOSURE VARIOUS OF RED PANDAS INSIDE THEIR ENCLOSURE VARIOUS OF THE ZOO'S THREE MONGOLIAN PRZEWALSKI'S HORSES INSIDE THEIR ENCLOSURE BUILDING DATING FROM NAPOLEON III ERA WHICH NEEDS RENOVATING (SOUNDBITE) (French) PRESIDENT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, BRUNO DAVID, SAYING: "This building is one of the originals in the zoo of the Jardin des Plantes (garden of plants). There are lots of original buildings constructed in the time of Napoleon I, between 1805 and 1815. And this one here is a little more recent, dating from 1890." ROOF OF BUILDING DATING FROM THE NAPOLEON III ERA WHICH NEEDS RENOVATING HOLE IN THATCHED ROOF (SOUNDBITE) (French) PRESIDENT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, BRUNO DAVID, SAYING: "So what's special with a building like this is the quality of its construction. You can see clearly, there's a thatched roof, brushwood, cob between the brushwood. So it's a very original, pretty building but at the same time it's very fragile." DAMAGED CEILING OF BUILDING BUILDINGS IN ZOO PRZEWALSKI'S HORSES IN ENCLOSURE SIGN NEXT TO HORSES' ENCLOSURE READING (French): "Save the Przewalski's horses' home" CHIEF OF ANIMAL CARE AT ZOO, GERARD DOUSSEAU, FEEDING CARROTS TO THE HORSES (SOUNDBITE) (French) CHIEF OF ANIMAL CARE AT ZOO, GERARD DOUSSEAU, SAYING: "In light of the success of their (horses') reintroduction in Mongolia as a result of this programme, we are really proud at the zoo, and myself in particular, to have participated a little bit in this success. So the Przewalski horse - we've participated, in a small way, in saving it in its free state in Mongolia, and today we need to save the building which houses them. I think it's a great programme." VARIOUS OF PRZEWALSKI'S HORSES
- Embargoed: 17th December 2016 12:00
- Keywords: Paris zoo menagerie animals horses history restore
- Location: PARIS, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Reuters ID: LVA0015B6YLVN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:In the heart of Paris, one of the world's oldest zoos, "La Menagerie", is calling for help to restore one of its historic buildings, which is home to endangered Przewalski's horses.
Opened in 1794, the 222-year-old zoo is located in the city's Jardin des Plantes (Garden of Plants) and houses over 1,000 animals and 180 different species including the flamingo, spotted panther, Asian tapir as well as the Przewalski's horses, a species facing the threat of extinction.
Several of the zoo's buildings were classified as historic monuments in 1993, with the home of the Przewalski's horses constructed under Napoleon III.
"This building is one of the originals in the zoo of the Jardin des Plantes (garden of plants). There are lots of original buildings constructed in the time of Napoleon I, between 1805 and 1815. And this one here is a little more recent, dating from 1890," said Bruno David, the President of National Museum of Natural History, to which the zoo belongs.
But the thatched roof of the horses' home is leaking, and the interior gutter system is damaging the building, David said.
"So what's special with a building like this is the quality of its construction. You can see clearly, there's a thatched roof, brushwood, cob between the brushwood. So it's a very original, pretty building but at the same time it's very fragile," he said.
To restore the building, the Fondation du Patrimoine (Heritage Foundation) and the Musee National d'Histoire Naturelle (National Museum of Natural History), which support the zoo, launched an online fund to collect financial aid.
Przewalski's horses, characterised by a stocky built and an erect mane, were previously listed as extinct in the wild, according to the IUCN red list.
The Menagerie zoo has been involved in transporting them to Mongolia as part of efforts to reintroduce the endangered species into its native environment.
"In light of the success of their (horses') reintroduction in Mongolia as a result of this programme, we are really proud at the zoo, and myself in particular, to have participated a little bit in this success. So the Przewalski horse - we've participated, in a small way, in saving it in its free state in Mongolia, and today we need to save the building which houses them. I think it's a great programme," Chief of animal care at the zoo Gerard Dousseau said.
The refurbishment costs have been estimated at around 88,000 euros, the Heritage Foundation said, but the online site had only collected 480 euros so far. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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