In 2009 it was named by the USA Travel Guide as the number one zoo in
America. The Columbus Zoo is home to over 5,000 animals representing
over 700 species and sees over 1.8 million visitors annually. Exhibits
at the zoo are divided into regions of the world. The zoo also owns an
18-hole golf course, known as Safari Golf Club, a water park called
Zoombezi Bay and a dry park called Jungle Jack’s Landing. The zoo
operates its own conservation program, donating money to outside
programs as well as participating in their own conservation efforts. It
has a close working relationship with the Wilds, a 10,000 acre animal
conservation center located in southeast Ohio.
The original Columbus Zoo was located in the north Riverview
neighborhood of Beechwold in Clintonville. It opened in May of 1905 but
for unknown reasons already closed five months later in October of 1905.
The former monkey house can still be seen on the property at 150
Beechwold Road where it is used as a barn. The present Columbus Zoo
opened in 1927 as the Columbus Zoological Gardens. Since 1970 the zoo
has been a non-profit organization owned by the Zoological Park
Association, Inc.
On December 22, 1956 Colo, a Western lowland gorilla became the world’s
first captive-born gorilla at the Columbus Zoo. She is the oldest
gorilla in captivity and in 2006 celebrated her 50th birthday. Colo’s
family is very extended with 1 child, 10 grandchildren, 4 great
grandchildren and 2 great great grandchildren still living in zoos
throughout the country. At present the Columbus Zoo houses 15 gorillas, 6
of which are related to Colo. The zoo has become a leader in breeding
gorillas with 30 gorillas born at the zoo since 1956.
In 1978 Jack Hanna became the director of the Columbus Zoo and remained
as director until 1993. Hanna turned the zoo into a model facility and
had cage enclosures removed and replace with more natural looking
habitats. His enthusiasm, along with his national television
recognition, helped attract more visitors to the zoo, with over 1.4
million visitors annually by 1992. Hanna was named director emeritus of
the zoo in 1993 and continues to be the public face for the zoo in its
marketing campaigns.
In the spring of 2000 the zoo added its restored 1914 Mangles-Illions
carousel. The carousel has 52 hand carved horses, 2 chariots and
Wurlitzer 153 band organ. This rare "grand carousel" in the Coney Island
style is one of a few manufactured by the William E. Mangals Company as
a Mangels-Illions carousel. It was ridden 42,000 times in its first
month of operation at the zoo and celebrated its one millionth rider on
July 28, 2004.
The largest and oldest region of the Columbus Zoo is the North America
region. At present it is located on the far east side of the zoo. North
America contains 13 large exhibits featuring wetlands and a 10,000 sq.
ft. migratory songbird aviary containing over 40 species. The region has
a train ride which circles it and travels past the open plains
exhibits.
The featured animals are:
Black-Tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus), a rodent found in the
Great Plains of North America from about the USA-Canada border to the
USA-Mexico border.
Timber Wolf (Canis lupus), though once abundant over much of Eurasia and
North America, the gray wolf inhabits a reduced portion of its former
range due to widespread destruction of its territory, and human
encroachment.
Mexican Wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) the smallest gray wolf about the size of a German Shepherd.
American Black Bear (Ursus americanus) the smallest and most common species of bear.
Grizzly Bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) generally lives in the uplands of western North America.
Wolverine (Gulo gulo) it is also referred to as glutton, carcajou, skunk bear, quickhatch or gulon.
North American River Otter (Lontra canadensis) is a semi-aquatic mammal
endemic to the North American continent, found in and along its
waterways and coasts.
Bobcat (Lynx rufus) it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental US.
Cougar (Puma concolor) alos known as puma, mountain lion, mountain cat,
catamount or panther it is a mammal of the family Felidae, native to the
Americas.
Moose (Alces alces) is the largest extant species in the deer family.
Pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) is a species of artiodactyl mammal endemic to interior western and central North America.
American Bison (Bison bison) also commonly known as the American buffalo.
Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator) is the largest native North American
bird and is (on average) the largest living waterfowl species on earth.
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a bird of prey. It is the national bird and symbol of the USA.
An extension of the North America region the Polar Frontier opened in
May of 2010 and features animals native to colder climates. The polar
bears habitat includes a 167,000 gallon pool and an underwater viewing
area. The center of the exhibit includes a Conservation/Education
Building and a new play area.
The featured animals are:
Arctic Fox (Alopex lagopus) also known as the White Fox, Polar Fox or
Snow Fox. It is a small fox native to the Arctic regions of the Northern
Hemisphere.
Brown Bear (Ursus arctos) is a large bear distributed across much of northern Eurasia and North America.
Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus) is a bear native largely within the Arctic
Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and
surrounding land masses.
The pachyderm region is home to Asian Elephants and Black Rhinoceroses.
It is located just west of the North American region. It features both a
large outdoor habitat and an indoor facility. The indoor facility is
the largest indoor exhibit of its kind in North America and the second
in the world, with the capacity to house 10-12 elephants and 3-4 rhinos.
The featured animals are:
Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) it is the largest living land animal in
Asia. Found primarily in Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Indochina and
parts of Nepal and Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Burma,
China, Bhutan and Sumatra.
Black Rhino (Diceros bicornis) native to the eastern and central areas
of Africa including Kenya, Tanzania, Cameroon, South Africa, Namibia,
Zimbabwe and Angola.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The government turned up the
pressure Tuesday on the head of a small Florida church who plans to burn
copies of the Quran on Sept. 11, warning him that doing so could
endanger U.S. troops and Americans everywhere.
But the Rev. Terry Jones insisted he would go ahead
with his plans, despite criticism from the top U.S. general in Afghanistan, the White House and
the State Department, as well as a host of religious leaders.
Jones, who is known for posting signs proclaiming
that Islam is the devil's religion, says the Constitution gives him the
right to publicly set fire to the book that Muslims consider the word of
God.
Gen. David Petraeus warned Tuesday in an e-mail to
The Associated Press that "images of the burning of a Quran would
undoubtedly be used by extremists in Afghanistan — and around the world —
to inflame public opinion and incite violence." It was a rare example
of a military commander taking a position on a domestic political
matter.
Jones responded that he is also concerned but is
"wondering, 'When do we stop?'" He refused to cancel the protest set for
Saturday at his Dove World Outreach Center, a church that espouses an
anti-Islam philosophy.
"How much do we back down? How many times do we back
down?" Jones told the AP. "Instead of us backing down, maybe it's to
time to stand up. Maybe it's time to send a message to radical Islam that we will not tolerate
their behavior."
Still, Jones said he will pray about his decision.
State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said the
administration hoped Americans would stand up and condemn the church's
plan.
"We think that these are provocative acts," Crowley
said. "We would like to see more Americans stand up and say that this is
inconsistent with our American values; in fact, these actions
themselves are un-American."
Meeting Tuesday with religious leaders to discuss
recent attacks on Muslims and mosques around the U.S., Attorney General
Eric Holder called the planned burning both idiotic and dangerous,
according to a Justice Department official. The official requested
anonymity because the meeting was private.
Crowley said Secretary of State Hillary Rodham
Clinton may address the controversy at a dinner Tuesday evening in
observance of Iftar, the breaking of the daily fast during the Muslim
holy month of Ramadan.
At the White House, spokesman Robert Gibbs echoed the
concerns raised by Petraeus. "Any type of activity like that that puts
our troops in harm's way would be a concern to this administration,"
Gibbs told reporters.
Jones said he has received more than 100 death
threats and has started wearing a .40-caliber pistol strapped to his
hip.
The 58-year-old minister said the death threats
started not long after he proclaimed in July that he would stage
"International Burn-a-Quran Day." Supporters have been mailing copies of
the Islamic holy text to his church to be incinerated in a bonfire.
Jones, who has about 50 followers, gained some local
notoriety last year when he posted signs in front of his small church
declaring "Islam is of the Devil." But his Quran-burning scheme
attracted wider attention. It drew rebukes from Muslim nations and an avalanche of media
interview requests just as an emotional debate was taking shape over the
proposed Islamic center near the ground zero site of the 2001 terrorist
attacks in New York.
The Quran, according to Jones, is "evil" because it
espouses something other than biblical truth and incites radical,
violent behavior among Muslims.
"It's hard for people to believe, but we actually
feel this is a message that we have been called to bring forth," he said
last week. "And because of that, we do not feel like we can back down."
Muslims consider the Quran to be the word of God and
insist it be treated with the utmost respect, along with any printed
material containing its verses or the name of Allah or the Prophet Muhammad. Any intentional damage or
show of disrespect to the Quran is deeply offensive.
Jones' Dove Outreach Center is independent of any denomination. The
church follows the Pentecostal tradition, which teaches that the Holy
Spirit can manifest itself in the modern day. Pentecostals often view
themselves as engaged in spiritual warfare against satanic forces.
At first glance, the church looks like a warehouse rather than a place
of worship. A stone facade and a large lighted cross adorn the front of
the beige steel building, which stands on 20 acres in Gainesville's
leafy northern suburbs. Jones and his wife, Sylvia, live on the property
and also use part of it to store furniture that they sell on eBay.
A broad coalition of religious leaders from evangelical, Roman Catholic,
Jewish and Muslim organizations met in Washington on Tuesday and
condemned the plan to burn the Quran as a violation of American values.
"This is not the America that we all have grown to love and care about,"
said Rabbi Steve Gutow of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs. "We
have to stand up for our Muslim brothers and sisters and say, "This is
not OK.'"
FBI agents have visited with Jones to discuss concern for his safety.
Multiple Facebook pages with thousands of members have popped up hailing
him as a hero or blasting him as a dangerous pariah.
The world's leading Sunni Muslim institution of learning, Al-Azhar
University in Egypt, accused the church of stirring up hate and
discrimination, and called on other American churches speak out against
it.
Last month, Indonesian Muslims demonstrated outside the U.S. Embassy in
Jakarta, threatening violence if Jones goes through with it.
In this progressive Florida city of 125,000 anchored by the sprawling
University of Florida campus, the lanky preacher with the bushy white
mustache is mostly seen as a fringe character who doesn't deserve
special attention.
At least two dozen Christian churches, Jewish temples and Muslim
organizations in Gainesville have mobilized to plan inclusive events —
some will read from the Quran at their own weekend services — to counter
what Jones is doing. A student group is organizing a protest across the
street from the church on Sept. 11.
Gainesville's new mayor, Craig Lowe, who during his campaign became the
target of a Jones-led protest because he is openly gay, has declared
Sept. 11 Interfaith Solidarity Day in the city.
Jones dismisses the response of the other churches as "cowardly." He
said even if they think burning Qurans is extreme, Christian ministers
should be standing with him in denouncing the principles of Islam.
All the attention has caused other problems for Jones, too. He believes
it's the reason his mortgage lender has demanded full payment of the
$140,000 still owed on the church property. He's seeking donations to
cover it, but recently listed the property for sale with plans to
eventually move the church away from Gainesville.
The fire department has denied Jones a required burn permit for Sept.
11, but he said lawyers have told him his right to burn Qurans is
protected by the First Amendment, with or without the city's permission.
The same would hold true, he said, if Muslims wanted to burn Bibles in
the front yard of a mosque.
"Of course, I would not like it," Jones said. But "I definitely would
not threaten to kill them, as we have been threatened."