Where animals roam in eco-friendly habitats

by Carol Aloysius

(Continued from last week)

It is a damp misty morning overcast with heavy rain clouds. The gloomy weather notwithstanding, we are in high spirits as we have a tryst with the world's largest chimpanzee species - the orangutans, in whose company we shall soon be enjoying a delightful breakfast.

We descend from our hired van at the entrance to the Singapore Zoo and climb into a VIP buggy reserved for invitees to this special breakfast for which my son had booked tickets online. It is an informative journey. Our youthful Chinese female tour guide does not waste time as she provides us with some enlightening insights into the zoo.

She points to the wide open spaces which we pass and tells us, "If you look carefully, you will see they are not a haphazard collection of spaces put together. Each space is not just eco-friendly, but an exact replica of the natural environment of the animals species which inhabits them - from the Himalayan foot hills to the South Asian forests.

We spot several animals zebras, giraffes, water buffaloes and listen to the shrill cries of birds, the chattering of monkeys on tree tops. Many of the bigger animals watch us keenly from behind protective barriers, but some edge close enough for us to feed them poking their heads at touching distance from our buggy.

We now arrive at our destination, the Ah Meng Restaurant.

The open spacious hall with a green plastic roof and high ceiling encircled by forest is filled with the aroma of different foods - local and international and the spicy scents titillate our appetites.

We stand in fast moving queues hurriedly filling our plates and rush to take our place in the front where our seats have been reserved with a special birthday cake to follow our breakfast, ordered as a birthday gift for my grandson who shares a birthday with me - 61 years apart.

We are barely into our breakfast, when a young Chinese guide steps forward with a mike. She warns us our wait for the much looked forward to guests may take time. "They will come only if they want to. So keep your fingers crossed".

As we wait she proceeds to fill us in with details of their physical and other characterists. "Take note of the unusual colour of their shaggy hair which could be dark to brown to pale reddish and orange. They are also short. But don't be fooled by their size as they are said to be seven times stronger than the average human.! Dramatic appearance

The crowd is now beginning to get restless. "Where are the orangutans?" is the impatient question that hangs on all of our lips.

Sensing this, a zoo keeper steps forward, and leaning against the vine fence that separates the jungle from us, he looks towards the tallest tree he can see and makes a strange noise.

All of a sudden we hear movement. The jungle stirs with life and we gasp with delight when a whole family of orangutans of mixed colours, come bounding out of their treetop home, their long limbs shaking the branches of the trees as they proceed to swing from branch to branch.

They show no signs of fear or modesty as they pluck nuts and berries from the vines, feeding each other with barks of leaves and insects picked from the red earth below.

As they edge close to us, my grandchildren offer them their bananas and peanuts which they luck from their hands and proceed to peel with their fingers and much them slowly.

As we watch their uninhibited play we could not help marvelling at the human characteristics they displayed. Was there any truth in Darwin's theory of evolution? I wondered.

As we turn to leave, we hear a slithering sound coming from the jungle. We stop in fright to see a huge python with its distinctive stripes slipping down the huge tree near the very tree the chimps were seated. And disappearing into the jungle growth.

Landscaped

We now ride a tram to see more of this beautifully landscaped zoo. What strikes us is its cleanliness. At every corner you find cleaners picking up garbage, while waste bins strew the garden with prominent signs. "Don't throw your garbage on the ground. Help keep our zoo environmentally friendly". Nor are there cafes and restaurants for people to eat except in designated places. 'No Smoking' and 'No alcohol' signs abound.

The Mandai Zoo spreads across 28 hectares (69 acres) on the margins of the Upper Reservoir in Singapore's heavily forested central catchment areas. "There are nearly 4,000 animals, birds, fish and amphibians inhabiting this massive cone shaped bio-dome". Apart from the open spaces, we pass several glass-fronted large enclosures where we visit the big cats, names of all colours and rare animals, which are wide and spacious and very clean.

The Zoo offers something for everyone - young and old alike. For the children there is a special Animal Play Corner where they can cuddle and play with domestic animals.

There are also special shows which you can see at a price, like the Polar Bear show.

The main attraction at this show is the silver white polar bear Inuka which is the Zoo's first polar bear to be born in his mother's den and the first in the tropics, our guide tells us.

For Inuka's 26th birthday which is four days the Zoo has planned a huge birthday bash with the bear's favourite foods - a big kachang cake made with salmon, blueberries, water melon and strawberries topped with whipped cream.

Inuka makes a dramatic and spectacular entry as she splashes down into the climatically controlled frozen tundra which has been her home for quarter of a century.

Spurred on by our cheers she proceeds to do some amazing somersaults kicking her feet and diving down to the white sand and corals below where she munches on tiny fish and live weeds. She then takes a dip in the large pool playing with a yellow balls her keepers throw to her.

Interaction

Every show we visited gave us an opportunity to interact with the keepers, and the animals or birds - whether tame tigers, leopards, deer, monkeys or even snakes.

Travelling around is easy as there are strollers, wheel chairs, prams, buggy carts, ponies, bikes, motor bikes walking sticks and even boats for those who want to cruise along the swamps and rivers on hire. The small open trams give us a chance to hop on and off wherever we please.

Yes, it is easy to see why this zoo with its remarkable diversity of foliage, animal, bird and marine life is rated as one of the world's finest if not finest well planned zoos.

Unfortunately the same cannot be said of our own Zoological Gardens at Dehiwela, which was once our greatest pride.

Today due to poor management, drastic reduction of animals and general uncleanliness and neglect of both the cages and the grounds, the animals which are our star attraction languish in narrow cramped cages while construction and repair work is carried on in their vicinity.

"Animals that kept in such cages become mentally and physically traumatised", a vet told this writer recently, adding that any exchange of animals between zoos should be made only after the authorities have ensured the new environments for these new arrivals are hundred percent conducive to them.

With the current tourist boom and an anticipated spike in visits to the zoo, authorities would do well to take a leaf from the Singapore Zoo whose construction incidentally was supervised by a former Director of the Dehiwela zoo.

Authorities must make a concerted effort to clean up their act and bring the zoo back to its former glory.