Korea Central Zoo

Coordinates: 39°04′30″N 125°48′54″E / 39.07500°N 125.81500°E / 39.07500; 125.81500
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Korea Central Zoo
Ragwŏn
Korean name
Chosŏn'gŭl
조선중앙동물원
Hancha
朝鮮中央動物園
Revised RomanizationJoseon Jungang Dongmurwon
McCune–ReischauerChosŏn Chungang Tongmurwŏn

The Korea Central Zoo, also referred to as the Pyongyang Central Zoo, is the national

Taesŏngsan mountain in downtown Pyongyang. The zoo has over 5,000 wild animals, comprising a total of 650 species, and covers an area of roughly one square kilometre. It was reportedly established in April 1959 at the instruction of Kim Il Sung.[1][2]

Attractions

Asiatic black bears, African ponies, and Siberian weasels, were first quarantined by South Korea before being shipped to their destinations.[6]

The Central Zoo also has

Kim Dae-jung to Kim Jong Il at their 2000 summit were also kept at the zoo; they produced a litter of five puppies in September 2001.[8]

The zoo also stars a cigarette-smoking

doves that are part of a figure skating routine, and a dog who is trained to manipulate an abacus.[9]

In 2010, the zoo, along with several others in North Korea, was restocked with wildlife from Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe. Conservationists in the country condemned the deal, fearing the animals would not survive the long trip or the conditions in North Korea's zoos. Zimbabwean authorities sent veterinary experts to the zoo and were satisfied with the conditions there.[10]

Criticisms

The Central Zoo has been criticised by Lonely Planet and Asia Times. The Lonely Planet travel guide for Korea described it as a "depressing and uninspiring place, best avoided".[11] A 2006 report in the Asia Times described a North Korean movie entitled Fighting Animals, purporting to be a nature documentary, showing caged animals, often of different species, fighting each other to the death. The report noted that many of the animal species portrayed, which included endangered species, were only kept at the Central Zoo and nowhere else in North Korea; on this basis, they accused zookeepers there of being complicit in the production of the film, including placing animals of different species into the same cage and goading them to attack each other.[12]

References

  1. ^ "Central Zoo, Center for Cultural and Emotional Life". Korean Central News Agency. 2 August 2006. Archived from the original on 26 September 2007. Retrieved 18 July 2007.
  2. ^ 선물동물-흰범. Korean Central News Agency (in Korean). 22 June 2004. Archived from the original on 8 October 2007. Retrieved 18 July 2007.
  3. ^ a b "Gift animals". Korean Central News Agency. 20 July 2001. Archived from the original on 10 October 2007. Retrieved 18 July 2007.
  4. ^ "Animal Museum of Central Zoo in DPRK". Korean Central News Agency. 25 September 2006. Archived from the original on 8 October 2007. Retrieved 18 July 2007.
  5. ^ Kershaw, Andy (20 March 2003). "North Korea: The paranoid state". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 18 July 2007.
  6. ^ Brooke, James (15 May 2005). "A quarantine: Definitions differ in Seoul and the U.S." International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 18 July 2007.
  7. ^ Kang, Chol-hwan (5 November 2000). "Dogs Are Hard to Find in Pyongyang". The Chosun Ilbo. Archived from the original on 26 June 2006. Retrieved 18 July 2007.
  8. ^ "Exchanged Dogs Pup '2nd Generation' in Pyongyang and Seoul". The People's Korea (169). 3 November 2001. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 18 July 2007.
  9. ^ Simon, Johnny (19 October 2016). "The star of the Pyongyang zoo is a chain-smoking chimp". Quartz. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
  10. ^ "'Noah's Ark' deal row rages on". TimesLIVE. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  11. ISBN 1-74059-449-5
    .
  12. ^ Card, James (28 January 2006). "North Korea: Red in tooth and claw". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 6 February 2006. Retrieved 18 July 2007.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pyongyang Zoo.
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