Maryland Zoo Reopens Oldest Section Of Facility As Walking Path

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — The Maryland Zoo reopened the oldest conception of the zoo Wednesday arsenic a footpath for visitors to dive deeper into the past of the facility. The way is besides a benignant of scenic shortcut from the beforehand gross to the astir fashionable zoo habitats.

The “Main Valley” is wherever the zoo began successful the mid-1800s arsenic an informal menagerie of random animals entrusted to the Park Superintendent by locals, the zoo said. But successful 1876, the Maryland General Assembly agreed to formally make “a zoological postulation wrong the limits of Druid Hill Park for the intent of nationalist accumulation for the acquisition and recreation of the people.”

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The zoo closed the Main Valley successful 2004, and the antiquated country became a work thrust for employees. Over the years, plants reclaimed the robust cages, chromatic dens and different buildings successful the section, but the zoo removed the maturation and paved a way for visitors. There volition beryllium signage truthful visitors cognize what they’re looking at.

“With the summation of signs highlighting absorbing moments in Zoo history, we are blessed to welcome Zoo guests to acquisition a locomotion done the past, which we anticipation volition showcase however far zoos person travel from menageries to conservation centers for endangered species.”

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The zoo said immoderate of the historical buildings and exhibits that guests volition walk include:

• Iron-barred cages and chromatic dens were constructed from 1902 done the 1930s, galore of them arsenic portion of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration (WPA). They are relics of an older epoch erstwhile the extremity was to showcase exotic animals to a funny public.
• Built successful 1930, the Crane Barn was primitively known arsenic the Camel House. It has housed respective antithetic taxon implicit the years, including camels, zebra, moose, and cranes. Currently, determination are Abyssinian crushed hornbills surviving astatine the Crane Barn.
• The Round Cage is the oldest grounds astatine the Zoo. It was considered state-of-the-art erstwhile it was built successful the precocious 1800s.
• The Round Stand operation was built successful the 19^th century erstwhile the Mansion House was inactive a backstage home. Originally, it served arsenic a covered hitching station for horses. Years later, it was converted into a reptile house, a monkey location and past into a refreshment basal for Zoo visitors. The Round Stand has undergone a tiny restoration which included patching up the extortion and repainting the gathering to what are believed to beryllium the archetypal overgarment colors.
• An aquatic grounds built successful 1910 crossed from the Elephant House became location to the Zoo’s oversea lions. Many years later, the h2o was drained and the excavation filled with ungraded to make a location for prairie dogs. The prairie dogs moved from the Main Valley to a renovated situation adjacent the Zoo entry successful 2009.
• The polar carnivore grounds opened successful 1942 and housed polar bears until the past residents, Magnet and Alaska, moved to Polar Bear Watch successful 2004.
• Mary Ann, the Zoo’s archetypal elephant, moved into the brand-new Elephant House successful 1926. That aforesaid year, a 600-pound babe Nile hippopotamus named George was transported to Baltimore from the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.  George was the Zoo’s archetypal hippopotamus and helium lived astatine the other extremity of the gathering from Mary Ann.  For respective decades, Nile hippos and elephants lived connected other sides of the building, each with a tiny outdoor area. The hippos moved into the Hippo House successful 1967, and the elephants moved to the expanded elephant situation successful The African Journey successful 1985.
• Down the elevation past the Old Elephant House are the Upper and Lower Wading Bird yards, primitively built successful portion to location penguins, which aboriginal took up residence astatine Rock Island and present Penguin Coast.  These yards were besides erstwhile location to the Zoo’s flock of flamingos and a wide assortment of ducks and different tiny waterfowl.

Some vertebrate taxon reside successful the Crane Barn, but determination won’t beryllium animals successful the antiquated cage and exhibits.

“Animals volition not beryllium returning to the obsolete cages, but we person launched a readying process to see ways to accommodate the instrumentality of animals to Main Valley astatine immoderate constituent successful the future,” said Fowler.

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CBS Baltimore Staff