Animals are always part of any tourist attractions. This is very true in Dublin, Ireland. Dublin Zoo has been through a colourful history before it became the zoo we all love now. Proof to its popularity is the number of visitors it receives in a day. The highest so far is 20,000, the day it was held an open day in relation to Queen Victoria’s coronation.

The Zoological Society of Dublin was established in 1830. The animals were provided by London Zoo. Many of the animals were species that are new to Dubliners and tourists. There are species that people aren’t familiar about, but they exist. This is actually the wonder of zoos. When you visit a zoo, you don’t just enjoy, you learn as well.

Dublin Zoo was built for the purpose of displaying various kinds of animal species. It serves as the home to different types of unfamiliar animals. In 1838, in celebration of Queen Victoria’s coronation, Dublin Zoo held an open day. This marks the zoo’s history until now. That day, the zoo had a whooping 20,000 visitors. Until now, it is still considered as the highest figure in the zoo visits.

Dublin Zoo Animals

The 20,000 site visitors weren’t able to see the giraffe yet since it was delivered to the zoo in 1844. After a number of years, the zoo animals welcome their new housemates, a pair of lion. The lions were brought to Dublin Zoo in 1855. In 1876, they all say hello to reptiles.

But it wasn’t always good times in Dublin Zoo. It came to a point wherein others have to sacrifice their lives for others to live. The Easter Rising of 1916 has become the hardest period in the zoo. It was hard to get out of the Phoenix Park and worst, people are running out of meat.

The zoo administrators wanted the lions and tigers to survive so what they do is kill other animals to feed them. And during World War II, they have to cut down some trees for wood and coal. But Dublin Zoo remained alive.

Dublin Zoo Now

Today, Dublin Zoo has become more than just a place to display animals but a place of conservation, education and study as well. The rise of modern times is also the birth of animal extinctions. Thus, Dublin Zoo takes part in breeding endangered species. It also supports field researches to protect and conserve animal habitats. Dublin Zoo carries on the desire to promote, care and preserve the natural world.

This entry was posted on Monday, May 28th, 2007 at 2:35 pm and is filed under Dublin Attractions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.