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WEDNESDAY, JULY 10, 1968A-51vEditor's NoteThis is the last ofthree articles by William Hines, Washington editor, World Book Science Service, on the biological and sociological importance of zoos.By WILLIAM HINES (c) World Book Science ServiceWASHINGTON -^ — « • Mm * 0 j 1%-a. t ^ AY % M i# M M •. .|A» v M* AIM A» I * IA rSthink . . . which, of course, is exactly the idea.Of the 96 general-purpose zoos in the U.S., about 20 attracted 1,000,000 or more visitors in 1986, the last year for which attendance figures are available.American zoos. Lincoln ParkWhen Prof. Heini ChicagoHediger, director of the famed zoo at suburban Brookfield zoo) and Washing-Zurich, Switzerland, said that a zoo could not be justified solely as a place of entertainment, he was not ruling out that function in the cultural life of acity.James Fisher of the London Zoo puts it aptly thus in his book, “Zoos of theWorld: ”‘Man began to study animals whileton's National Zoological Park led the list with estimated attendances of about4 million each. Part of the explanation for these huge turnouts may be the size of Chicago's population and the status of Washington as a tourist Mecca.Certainly, another factor is that admission to both zoos is free. This probably explains the popularity of San Fran-he was still living in caves, and he is cisco (2.1 million visitors), New York’slikely to go on doing so as long as he Central Park (2 million), and Busch Gar-remains man. The essential purpose of a dens in Tampa, Fla. (1.6 million). Butzoo is to provide special opportunities for there are others where some other ex-this study that could not well be pro- planation must be sought, notably Sanvided by any other means. This is com- Diego’s, where admission is charged andmonly considered so important that, once 2.6 million persons attended in a metro-a civilization has passed a certain thres- politan area of 1 million,hold of wealth, there is usually some The explanation, in San Diego’s case,government or ruler, some rich man or is simply stated: excellence. A naturalinstitution ready to bear all or part of the cost. To give pleasure and entertainment to the public is an important but secondary aim of zoos. But the factsetting of great beauty and a climate hard to duplicate created a favorable environment for a great zoo. On this foundation was built an edifice com-that people flock to zoos in such vast pounded of scholarship and showman-numbers is clear proof that this aim is remembered and achieved.”The line between entertainment and education is frequently a thin one, and in the hands of a clever teacher is constantly, deliberately blurred. So at Chicago's Brookfield Zoo an educational ex-ship. The result is a quasi-natural resource that brings millions of tourist dollars each year to a city otherwise overshadowed by the great drawing cards to the north, Los Angeles andSan Francisco.When the National Zoological Park inhibit is set up, one feature of which is Washington was established in 1890, Samuel Pierpont Langley, secretary of theSmithsonian Institution, described ~it as intended to be “a haven and refuge for vanishing species.” It was set in a quarter-square-mile tract of what was then suburban countryside overlookingRock Creek/ Since then the city has grown up around it and the zoo has become a haven and refuge for harassedurban man/ ~ ~ ~ ~a case bearing the legend:“The most dangerous creature on earth. Why? Because it not only destroys itself, it has caused the extinction of over 100 species of mammals and as many birds and reptiles since the time of Christ.”The case contains one small window. Inside the window is a mirror. It’senough to make a person stop andLike everything else scientific in this troubled tijrie, the Washington Zoo (and others as well) must assert its priorities against those of competing projects. Theodore H. Reed, director of the National Zoological Park, has in one respect a harder row to hoe than most zoo-keepers, for he makes his pitch for money to thl hard-eyed U. S. Congress.“I need a pathologist,” Reed says, “and D. C. General Hospital needs a pathologist, too. What can I say?”Like any clever administrator, Reed cuts the suit to fit the cloth. He is fortunate, as are his colleagues at Chicago, San Diego, Bronx end a few others, to have scientists nearby who are interested in pursuing animal-research projects that are closely allied to urgent human needs, such as the fight against cancer.Reed and his chief scientist, Prof. John Eisenberg of the University of Maryland, believe that small zoos can do more than they are doing today to enhance man’s knowledge of animal species (including homo sapiens). The zoo at Oklahoma City, a park of modest size by American standards, runs an “internship” program under which fledgling scientists learn while doing. Philadelphia’s zoo is formally constituted as a laboratory of the University of Pennsylvania medical school.While the zoo is, in Eisenberg’s words, a “halfway house” and a living lab, it can never be a full substitute for the wild, and this is a fact of which zoo-keepers must continually remind themselves. “A giraffe in a zoo,” says Eisenberg, “may be a funny looking animal with stilt legs and a long neck. But a giraffe in Africa is something different he’s beautiful; he’s graceful; he’s in context.”Understanding the proper context of animals and man in the total environment they must share is an important reason for the existence of zoos.)HumanProblemsZoo directors like Dr. Theodore Reed of Washington's National Zoological Park (holding gorika) must compete for the services of scientists in conducting research. Fortunately much animal research is closely allied to human problems so there are occasional volunteers. The most dangerous creature on earth is man, who destroys himself and has caused the extinction of more than 100 species of animals. A mirrormakes the po!nt at Chicago's Brookfield Zoo.Catcli Campaign MusicThe LyricsIIMAY CDAkllfCiClUlflOCtV-ir. Whit** than it Hnpc frnm thp
Newspaper Details
Decatur Daily
Decatur, Alabama, US
Wed, Jul 10, 1968
Page 5
Full Page
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WI, USA 20 Apr 2022
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