Zoological director of the zoo Severin Dressen explains: Happy Birthday Masoala Rainforest

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“New guy freaked out!” My predecessor, Alex Ruebel, had to listen to these and similar statements again and again in the late 1990s. The reason for this was the Masoala Rainforest plans. An area of ​​the Masoala National Park in Madagascar, with an area of ​​11,000 square meters and a height of 35 meters, in a former shooting range next to the zoo. Huge space with thousands of plants and hundreds of animals. But without restrictions. Not for animals, not for plants – and almost not for our guests.

Criticism and objections rained down. The structure was too unusual. It was too innovative, especially for the pet industry. “Plants won’t be able to grow well in such a building”, “Keeping animals won’t work because you can’t control them”, or “Guests will be bored because they won’t see any animals” were reservations that were often heard. Opponents sued the Masoala Rainforest project in federal court and delayed the project for years. They couldn’t prevent it. Fortunately, because all the skeptics were given lies.

When next week we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Masoala Rainforest with a celebration at the zoo, we will be celebrating different aspects. Specific successes of the Masoala Rainforest:

That the plants in this “giant greenhouse”, thanks to sophisticated and optimized technology, grow so strong and well that climbers have to prune them every few weeks.

That many endangered species of animals not only live well and for a long time with us, but also breed much more often and better than in ordinary vivariums. Example: There are only 630 endangered Bernese ducks left in Madagascar. There are 260 animals living in the population of the zoo. There are more than 60 of them in our Masoala rainforest alone. A proud seven percent of the world’s population of this species of ducks live on the Zuyberg. Half of the 70 ducklings bred in all zoos around the world last year come from our Masoala rainforest.

And we are delighted that our Masoala Rainforest is a great success with our guests. That they immerse themselves in the ecosystem, feel it with all their senses and are inspired by the little Berniere brown ducks, which at first glance seem rather inconspicuous.

With the 20th anniversary of Masoala, we are also celebrating more than just specific successes. We are celebrating the departure of the zoo, which has become a conservation center. It is a window into a seriously endangered nature. Which combines its work at the zoo in the areas of education, species protection and research with a commitment to local conservation. In Madagascar and around the world.

We honor former director Alex Rübel and his team at the time who positioned the Zurich Zoo as a modern conservation organization and made it one of the leading zoos. Who came up with such an innovative idea that, 20 years later, is still the global gold standard for tropical lounges. Which did not allow all the prophecies of doom and stumbling blocks to dissuade them from realizing their goal, but showed that these crazy ideas are needed: for the global protection of nature and species, for the further development of the zooworld and for Zurich.

Source: Blick