| Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes | |
|---|---|
 The Rotonde, today a home for giant tortoises | |
 Interactive map of Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes | |
| 48°50′41″N2°21′35″E / 48.84472°N 2.35972°E /48.84472; 2.35972 | |
| Date opened | December 11, 1794[1] |
| Location | Paris,France |
| Land area | 5.5 ha (14 acres)[1] |
| No. of animals | 1,000[1] |
| Annual visitors | 500,000[1] |
| Memberships | EAZA[2] |
| Website | www |
TheMénagerie du Jardin des Plantes (French pronunciation:[menaʒʁidyʒaʁdɛ̃deplɑ̃t]) is azoo inParis,France, belonging to the botanical gardenJardin des Plantes. Founded in 1794, largely with animals brought from the royal zoo of thePalace of Versailles, abandoned because of the French Revolution, it is the second oldest zoological garden in the world (afterTiergarten Schönbrunn). Today, the zoo contains many rare smaller and medium-sized mammals, and a variety of birds and reptiles.
The zoo is located directly by theSeine in the centre of Paris. It takes up about one third of the Jardin des Plantes.
In the beginning Jardin des Plantes referred only to abotanical garden of 58 acres (230,000 m2), created and built by the royalphysiciansJean Herouard andGuy de La Brosse. It therefore became known as the Royal Herb Garden. Created in 1626 and opened for the public in 1635, it is the oldest part of the national research and educational institute for science, theMuséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, which was founded in 1793.
In the course of theFrench Revolution the menagerie was formally established in 1794. According to a decision of theNational Assembly in 1793,exotic animals in private hands were to be donated to the Menagerie inVersailles or killed, stuffed and donated to the natural scientists of theJardin des Plantes. However, the scientists let the animals (the exact number of which is unknown) live. The Royal Menagerie (Ménagerie Royale) in Versailles was dissolved and these animals were also transferred to the Jardin des Plantes.[3]Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre (1737–1814) is considered to be the founder of the menagerie. He was committed to the principles of keeping exotic animals in their natural environment, having regard to their needs, placing them under scientific supervision, and allowing public access in the interest of public education.
The Jardin was free for all visitors and tourists right from its inception. While the menagerie at first was just provisional it grew in the first three decades of the 19th century to be the largest exotic animal collection in Europe. The Zoo was under the scientific leadership of the former head of the zoological department at the museum,Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire (1772–1844). From 1805 onwards the menagerie was under the leadership ofFrédéric Cuvier, who was replaced in 1836 by Geoffroy's sonIsidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire.
The institutional incorporation of the menagerie within the National Research Institute of the National Natural History Museum facilitated the academic study of the animals by doctors andzoologists. Studies related tosystematics,morphology andanatomy were all carried out, notably byGeorges Cuvier.Étienne Geoffroy,Frédéric Cuvier (the brother of Georges Cuvier) performed research in the area ofbehavioral observation.Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire andFrédéric Cuvier published their results in the quarterly workHistoire des Mammifières. It was first published in 1826 and became one of the foundational books concerning the biology of exotic animals. Furthermore, F. Cuvier's plans regarding the breeding of new domestic animal species were formulated.
The expanding range of species was chiefly the result of French travelling researchers, colonial officials and donations from private people, which accounts for the fact that the animals in the Jardine were not limited to local French species.
The so-called Rotonde was added to the basic enclosures in 1804, and from 1808 was used to harbour large animals such aselephants. In 1805 thebear ditch followed and in 1821, a so-called Fauverie orpredator enclosure. The Volieren enclosure (voleries,birdhouses) fordiurnalbirds of prey was added in 1825, and two years later a birdhouse specifically forpheasants. A monkey house was set up for the first time in 1837, whilereptiles had to wait until 1870 for their enclosure. Most animals were kept in functional,classicist, gallery-like buildings.
In another part was the Vallée Suisse which had been built as a romantic garden. Here were several small enclosures which held exotic animals such asantelopes. Some buildings from this period still exist today - the semicircular birdhouse for pheasants (1827), the reptile house and the new pheasants enclosure (1881). At the beginning of the 20th century ahibernation enclosure (1905), a small monkey house (1928), avivarium (1929), another monkey house (1934) and a reptile house (1932) had been built. A half century passed after this improvement without any further innovations except the restoration of the bear pit and some technical corrections.
A new enclosure for diurnal birds of prey was built in 1983. A variety of renovations were carried out in the 1980s. At the beginning of the 21st century the pheasants enclosure from 1881 was renovated. However, as all of the structures are listed buildings, it is almost impossible to create new structures here. However the Jardin des Plantes still exists today and is the second oldest civil zoo in the world.
.jpg)
Media related toMénagerie du Jardin des Plantes at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
