Plans to relocate Dubai Zoo to take two years

10 July 2006

Dubai: Some of the animals pace up and down, panting and pawing at the ground.

The bears look weary, but relieved when the large blocks of ice are thrown into their cage.

Click here for relocation map (pdf)

It is the height of summer again at Dubai Zoo, which has been housed on the same premises since the late 1960's.

But, according to Dubai Municipality officials, the animals will have to spend at least two more summers there, before the planned move to Dubailand.

"We decided to relocate the zoo to Dubailand, where there has been approximately 80 hectares allocated," said Dr Abdul Hadi Pasha, Head of the Design Unit, at Dubai Municipality's General Projects Department.

"The area that we have at the moment is very small, but the new location will provide a much better environment and habitat for the animals."

Pasha said that this latest attempt to move the zoo was expected to be completed by the end of 2008, with Dubai Municipality in the process of appointing a consultant to oversee the project.

This could not come soon enough for Dubai Zoo, home to over 800 animals, living in an area of only five acres, or 1.7 hectares.

"Although the animals seem to be coping alright this year, we had one pygmy hippopotamus die last year, from what we think was the heat," said Dr Reza Khan, Head of Dubai Zoo.

The zoo, which has between 300,000 to 400,000 visitors annually, has faced criticism over the way in which the animals are kept.

However, Khan says that he and his over thirty members of staff are "more than ready" to move to provide better conditions for the animals.

"We have many local breeds including the Arabian Wolf, the Arabian Wildcat and the Caracal. These animals are generally fine during the summer months, but the ones that suffer the most are the bears, gorillas, chimpanzees and most reptiles.

Khan said that the zoo uses approximately 30,000 gallons of water every day to keep the animals as cool as possible.

"We have such a diverse group of animals, that it is difficult to follow a particular method. We are doing the best we can with what we have," Khan told Gulf News.

"Of course it would be much better if we had a larger premises," he added.

Current plan is the fourth in five years

In 1986, the zoo was redesigned, and has remained largely unchanged since.

In recent years, the zoo has courted controversy for the way in which the animals are kept, resulting in a series of moves to change the location.

The current plan to move to Dubailand is the fourth in the last five years.