Arignar Anna Zoological Park also known as the Vandalur Zoo, is a zoological garden in Chennai, India. It is located at Vandalur in the south western part of the city, about from the city center. It is spread over an area of and is amongst the largest zoos in South Asia. The park is open for public viewing.
It was established by Edward Balfour in 1855 as Madras Zoo in the Madras Government Museum premises and was amongst the earliest zoos in the country. As the zoo expanded, it was shifted to People's Park in Park Town in 1863. For the want of space for expansion, the Government of Tamil Nadu intended to move the zoo to the Vandalur reserve forest in 1979. The zoo was opened to public on 24 July 1985, and is named after earlier chief minister Annadurai.
It is affiliated with the Central Zoo Authority of India, and is managed by the Tamil Nadu Zoo Authority. The park exhibits various animals that are segregated based on the taxonomic classification. The animals are usually displayed in open enclosures with concrete walls and moats separating them from viewing areas. , the park housed 2,389 animals across 178 species. The park has a specialised display area for nocturnal animals, a serpentarium, an aquarium, an amphibian house, a pre-historic park, a butterfly park, a primate house, and a walk-through aviary. There is a wildlife safari which operates within the park.
The park run its own veterinary hospital, which is involved in disease screening, treatment and vaccination. The zoo runs various educational and outreach programmes. It also engages in research activities, aimed at conservation and understanding animal behaviour. The zoo serves as a captive breeding center and a coordinating zoo for the breeding programmes for endangered species as per the National Zoo Policy enacted by the government. There is a rescue and rehabilitation centre spread over an area of which houses abandoned and rescued animals.
History
Edward Balfour established the Madras Government Museum in 1851. He established a menagerie in the natural history section of the museum with a live leopard and tiger. As the number of visitors to the museum increased during the live exhibition, Balfour started a small zoological park in the museum premises in 1855. He persuaded then Nawab of the Carnatic to donate his entire animal collection to the museum. This became the Madras zoo and was one of the first zoos to be established in the country. It housed a collection of nearly 300 species of animals and birds by the next year. As the zoo expanded, it was shifted to People's Park in Park Town in 1863. In 1876, the zoo was spread over an area of and was open to the public for free viewing. The zoo exhibits included an orangutan, two-horned rhinoceros, Malayan tapir, and black headed gull.
By the late 1970s, the zoo was surrounded by the city and had limited space for expansion. In 1973, the Government of Tamil Nadu constituted a team to plan for the relocation of the zoo to a new location within the next five years. With the handing over of a part of the land occupied by the zoo to the Indian Railways for the expansion of Chennai Central, the zoo was planned to be shifted to Guindy temporarily in 1978. In 1979, the Tamil Nadu Forest Department set aside in the Vandalur Reserve Forest on the outskirts of the city to build a new premises for the zoo. The state government planned for the construction of a new zoo at a cost of . The land consisting of shrubs and eucalyptus trees was re-planted.
In 1980, the state government approved the layout for the zoo and issued additional order to expand the park to by . In 1981, designs were made for the animal enclosures, with the first enclosures completed in 1982. The first animals were moved to the new premises in the same year. The construction of footpaths, roads, staff quarters, and a veterinary hospital were completed in 1983. In 1984, water was diverted from the Palar to augment the water supply. The zoo was opened to public on 24 July 1985, and was named after earlier chief minister Annadurai. The park was expanded in 2000 by to with the addition of a rescue center and school. In 2011, the park underwent a major renovation costing with the expansion of animal enclosures. It also involved the addition of a new entrance, lawns, interactive displays, souvnier shop, ticketing and visitor centers. The Otteri lake in the premises was also cleaned, and improved. , the park spans and is amongst the largest zoos in South Asia.
Organisation and objectives The main objectives of the park are ex-situ conservation of endangered species, wildlife education, and research for wildlife conservation and management. The zoo aims to maintain a viable and healthy population of animals in naturalistic enclosures while facilitating public visitation. It is affiliated with the Central Zoo Authority, and is a member of World Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
The Tamil Nadu Zoo Authority was established with the chief minister as the chairperson in 2004 for the management of the zoo. The overall management of the zoo is headed by a director, who is assisted by deputy and assistant directors. The director is answerable to the governing board. The deputy director is responsible for infrastructure, animal breeding and exchange, training, and research. The assistant director oversees horticulture, electricity, water supply and public utilities, visitor facilities, and upkeep of animal enclosures. A team of five forest rangers are responsible for the maintenance and safety of various designated areas of the park. Three biologists are responsible for research and exchange, training, and record keeping. The zoo has a team of veterinarians, and animal keepers, apart from other administrative and support staff.
Geography
The zoological park is located along the eastern side of the Grand Southern Trunk Road at Vandalur in the south-western part of the Chennai Metropolitan Area, about from the city center. It is spread across of rocky terrain with alluvial soil. The park has a small hillock towards the center which gently slopes in an east–west direction. The altitude ranges between with an average elevation of . The park experiences a tropical climate with average temperatures on and high humidity due to its location close to the coast. The summers are hot and humid with the highest temperatures recorded in May–June with an average maximum of . The temperatures are lowest in December with an average minimum of . The park receives most of its rainfall from the northeast monsoon during October–November. The average annual rainfall is about .
The park is located within the Vandalur reserve forest. The original landscape consisted of sparse scrub forests consisting of Carissa, Gmelina, Eugenia, Acacia, and Intsia with intermittent dry evergreen vegetation. The vegetation included a few cashew and eucalyptus trees. Much of the original vegetation was preserved apart from necessary deforestation for the construction of various facilities and roads. The original vegetation was augmented by newly planted dry evergreen trees. About 138 plant species have been recorded in the park. The park experiences a micro climate, different from the surrounding areas due to its dense vegetation. The Otteri lake is situated on the north-western side within the park and acts as a roosting ground for aquatic migratory birds. The lake attracts more than 10,000 migratory birds every year. The lake consists of planted Barringtonia trees, which serve as roost for the birds.
Layout and exhibits
The main entrance of the park is located towards the south west along the Grand Southern Trunk Road. The entire campus is enclosed by a compound wall. Close to the entrance, there is a children's park on one side and lawns on the other side. The enclosure of water fowl is located close to the children's park next to the primate section, followed by the terrestrial birds. A circular pathway takes the visitors to the interior of the park around the hillock. The enclosures for the carnivores are situated on the top of the hill with the herbivore exhibits along the slopes. Lower down the road are two smaller loop sections with one consisting of the bear enclosures and the other accommodating the walk-through aviary. The bear section leads to the lion safari at the north east corner of the zoo.
Back on the main circular road, the reptile section is situated next to the road leading to the pre-historic animal park. It is followed by the enclosures for large mammals such as elephants, hippopotamus, and rhinoceros. The nocturnal animal enclosure is situated further down the road, followed by enclosures for ostrich, giraffe, zebra, and kangaroo. The circular road ends at the aquarium which leads the towards the exit. Recreational facilities for the visitors are spread across the park. The kitchen, animal quarantine and breeding facilities, veterinary hospital and stores are situated away from the visitor areas on the southern side of the park.
The animals are segregated and placed based on the taxonomic classification and geographic distribution except for specialized requirements such as water dwellers and nocturnal species. The enclosure dimensions and designs are customised basis the requirement of various species. The enclosures consist of various vegetation as favored by the species exhibited. Separate feeding areas and night shelters have been constructed along the enclosures. The animal viewing areas are open with concrete walls and moats separating them from the animal enclosures. The various animal enclosures also separated by adequate space and vegetation. Vegetation is also used to camouflage concrete structures for aesthetic appeal. , the park housed 2,389 animals across 178 species.
+Animal stockClassSpeciesCountMammalia45504Birds941,473Reptiles39412Total1782,389
Mammals Asian elephant Asiatic lion Asian palm civet Barasingha Bengal tiger Barking deer Blackbuck Black giant squirrel Bonnet macaque Chimpanzee Chital Dhole Eurasian otter Gaur Giraffe Grant's zebra Gray slender loris Golden jackal Hanuman langur Himalayan black bear Hippopotamus Indian crested porcupine Indian fox Indian giant flying squirrel Indian giant squirrel Indian grey mongoose Indian hare Indian hog deer Indian leopard Indian muntjac Indian rhinoceros Indian wild ass Indian wolf Jaguar Jungle cat Lion-tailed macaque Mouse deer Nilgai Nilgiri langur Red-handed tamarin Rhesus macaque Sambar deer Sloth bear Small Indian civet Striped hyena Tufted capuchin Tufted gray langur Wild boar Yellow baboon
Birds Adjutant stork African grey parrot Bar headed goose Barn owl Black kite Black swan Black-headed gull Black-headed munia Blossom-headed parakeet Blue-and-yellow macaw Blue rock pigeon Brahminy kite Budgerigar Cassowary Cattle egret Cockatiel Common myna Crested serpent eagle Demoiselle crane Diamond dove Dusky parrot Eastern rosella Eastern white stork Eclectus parrot Fischer's lovebird Forest owlet Glossy ibis Golden pheasant Great white pelican Greater coucal Greater flamingo Green cheek conure Grey cockatiel Grey heron Grey partridge Grey pelican Greylag goose Harlequin macaw Indian eagle owl Indian peafowl Indian vulture Java sparrow Jenday conure Koel Lady Amherst's pheasant Lesser whistling duck Little cormorant Little egret Maroon-bellied parakeet Moluccan cockatoo Monk parakeet Night heron Openbill stork Orange-winged amazon Oriental darter Ostrich Paddyfield pipit Painted stork Palm cockatoo Parakeet Peach-faced lovebird Pearly conure Pond heron Rainbow lorikeet Red jungle fowl Red-collared dove Red-bellied macaw Red-vented bulbul Red-whiskered bulbul Rhea Rock dove Rose-ringed parakeet Rüppell's parrot Sarus crane Scarlet macaw Severe macaw Shikra Silver pheasant Spot-billed duck Spotted dove