Vienna– The residents of Vienna, like those of any other capital, like to relax on a weekend. For example, a family may visit the local zoo several times a year. There is a particular rush of visitors during the warm seasons, when all the exotic beasts are free to roam around their own spacious enclosures, watching one another, and wondering and scoffing at stupid human inquisitiveness. The zoo’s guests can not only meet with strange wildlife face to face but also, to quote the prominent Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke, “look at the world through the eyes of a panther and feel his soul.”
Yet the locals advise visitors not to begin with the zoo itself but with the Schoenbrunn park, a part of which was allocated 250 years ago for open-air cages, elephant enclosures, aquariums, etc. Walking around it, you can come across the remnants of mysterious Roman structures, feast your eyes on ancient trees, or synchronize your watch with a flowerbed sundial. Fauna buffs will not regret dropping by the Palm House, especially to warm themselves in a frosty winter: it is a 30-meter-tall old (built in the 19th century), yet surprisingly light, glass structure studded with big rivets — there was no welding at the time. What strikes you in the Palm House is the incredible variety of exotic plants from all the nooks and crannies of the world. But, naturally, Schoenbrunn’s greatest wonder is the zoo itself, which Austrians consider to be the oldest in the world. It may be so.
The Vienna zoo was officially founded by the Austrian Emperor Franz I in 1752, while the first attempts to establish a menagerie in Vienna date back to 1452. It is situated in the downtown area of Stadtgraben. Incidentally, the Viennese first saw a live elephant not in this menagerie but, 10 years later, in the courtyard of the suburban castle Ebersdorf. In the early 20th century, when the huge Austro-Hungarian Empire broke up into several states after losing World War I, Schoenbrunn not only stayed intact but, with its 3,500 animals of 717 species, maintained its reputation as the world’s largest and finest zoo. Schoenbrunn, and Vienna in general, were bombed in 1945 during Word War II. The zoo was totally ruined and thousands of animals died. But, as time went by, the city and Schoenbrunn were rebuilt.
The Vienna zoo, also known as the Tiergarten, as is its counterpart in Berlin, is today famous not only for the up-to-date animal-care conditions, but also for its historically acclaimed architecture, playgrounds and horse/pony riding for children. A “natural adventure trail” was opened here for children and grownups last spring. Almost every year the zoo gains not only new inhabitants, but also new structures which, however, do not dispel the spirit of olden times.
As visitors go through the entrance, they can see the Imperial Breakfast Pavilion that now serves as a coffee house. Sipping coffee on its peaceful terrace, elderly people can watch the daily routines of giraffes, zebras, and leopards, as well as their grandchildren. One of the elephant enclosure’s walls is made of thick glass. Elephants come close to this wall, which makes it possible to scrutinize these giants in every detail. In the rhinoceros enclosure, the animals can, if they want to, closely approach the overhead viewing gallery. It is also important that all open-air cages provide animals with enough room to feel almost like in a natural habitat.
Psychologists say that children more often than not drag their grandmas and grandpas to cages with bats and jungle inhabitants, aquariums and terrariums, and that they, like many grownups, are riveted by the panda and koala enclosures. Incidentally, in 2007 a giant panda gave birth, without any assistance from modern zoological medicine, to a cub named Fu Long following a public Internet vote. The birth of Fu Long was the first event of this kind in Europe over the past 25 years. A hundred years before, in 1906, the Vienna zoo had an African elephant calf born in captivity for the first time. In 2008 the Vienna zoo was officially rated Europe’s best, and, as if to prove this, another panda cub saw the light of day here in August 2010.
Austria traditionally displays very high standards in breeding endangered species in specialized centers and reintroducing them in their natural habitats. Experts from Prague, Berlin, and Paris come here to acquire experience. The Schoenbrunn zoo is administered by a very efficient team that loves its job. For example, specialists exert very strict control over the feeding of animals. A local joke has it that this control is in no way worse than that of the food in Vienna’s best restaurants. If a zoo employee were caught displaying cruelly to animals, he or she would be immediately dismissed or even prosecuted. Love for animals and professionalism is the main admission requirement at Schonbrunn. At the same time, the zoo director Ms. Schratter would never adhere to the motto “Profit at any cost.” Even in the hardest times, the Austrians supported Schoenbrunn out of both pragmatic and patriotic considerations: “The better our animals live, the better we do.” The Schoenbrunn zoo attracts foreign guests like a magnet (they account for 25 percent of all visitors) and is a major source of income for the city’s hotels, restaurants, and public transport.
Another detail: many Austrian families, and sometimes children themselves, assume the role of the “custodian” of a certain animal, providing money for its upkeep. Christmas and New Year celebrations are coming up. There is already a 30-meter-tall Christmas tree in downtown Vienna, in front of the City Hall. The tree is decked with lights and there are a lot of fairytale beasts and birds on festive kiosks around lampions, crackers and balloons. But once the celebrations are over, the tree will be sent, as it always is, to the city zoo. To be more exact, the strongest part of the huge tree’s trunk will be sawn off to make nests which will be hung near city schools, while the rest will go straight to Schoenbrunn – it will be used as a toy for elephants and rhinoceroses, the zoo’s largest inhabitants.
The Day met Dr. Dagmar SCHRATTER, director of the Vienna zoo, to know more about the way this complex institution functions.
Dr. Schratter, first of all, on behalf of the Ukrainian newspaper Den/The Day, I would like to thank you for finding time to tell Ukrainian readers about your zoo.
“You are welcome. It pleases me and my colleagues that the Ukrainian Den/The Day shows interest in our zoo. Unfortunately, I do not know Ukrainian but, in my view, some part of your materials comes out online in English… Today, the readers of your Den/The Day are my guests.”
Thank you. And how many guests, I mean ordinary visitors, does your zoo receive annually?
“The current year is still ongoing. But December 31 is just a moment away, and we hope we will have sold more than two million entry tickets, with 25 percent of them being bought by foreign visitors. For example, 2008 was a ‘bumper year,’ with 2,600,000 visitors. This is in terms of quantity. And in terms of quality, in 2008 we were rated ‘the world’s best zoo.’ This title is awarded once every two years, and we expect to be the best in 2010, too.”
Your zoo is one of the best in Europe. There must be certain criteria for this kind of comparison.
“You are quite right. There are 25 of them: the extent to which the animals feel free, their care, medicine, food, hygiene, employees’ safety, etc., plus conveniences for zoo visitors – from children’s playgrounds to such things as toilets. Incidentally, we are not ranked first in any of these criteria, but, overall, we are so good that we won and I hope will win again.”
Who are your main competitors in Europe?
“The ‘silver’ went to Leipzig, Germany, which is, if I am not mistaken, Kyiv’s twin city, and ‘bronze’ went to Zurich in Switzerland.”
Unfortunately, all the Kyiv zoo can do is envy this trio.
“I know the Kyiv zoo is not exactly prospering now. But ‘white,’ not ‘black,’ envy may be a good motor. After the socialist camp collapsed many East European zoos found themselves in dire straits but still managed to regain strength. This may apply to the beautiful zoos of Leipzig and Prague. Incidentally, if Leipzig and Kyiv really are twin cities, I think Kyivites could turn for help and advice not only to the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums (EAZA) but also to their German counterparts. It is never shameful to borrow experience. As far as I remember, the Kyiv zoo was expelled from the association three years ago for the violation of ethical standards. As far as I know, the treatment and the living conditions of the animals were far from humane there.”
And what is to be done now?
“I think they know what to do. The Vienna zoo was also on the verge of closing in the late 1970s-early 1980s. My predecessor Helmut Pechlaner, a fanatic and enthusiast, put the zoo first on its head and then on its two very firm feet. He launched a business, a limited liability company, at the zoo. In plain words, I work by the principle of a triangle. One angle comprises matters and problems related to the animals’ life quality, which we must constantly improve. From this perspective, we always welcome sober and non-aggressive criticism from the Green Party and other animal protectors. This urges us to work better. The first place in Europe is also the merit of our critics. The second angle is the interests of visitors. It is important that it should be convenient and comfortable for them to watch the animals. And the third angle is a good climate among the staff and, what is more, the safety of our employees. Unfortunately, an employee died a tragic death in 2002, when a jaguar attacked her. That was a shock to us all. The zoo director and his or her subordinates should have a goal, a dream, a prospect, a vision if you like. The road to this goal is not easy and consists of many steps up the ladder. You can’t possibly take a second step unless you have made the first one. It is not enough to want to change something. If I, for example, want to fly a plane, I must know how, not only wish, to do so. It is not enough for me to wish to save someone who got into an accident: this requires a good surgeon, not me. So the zoo, too, needs highly-skilled specialists — from laborers to research associates.”
And money, too.
“Undoubtedly. The zoo covers almost 90 percent of our usual expenses — employees’ salaries, animal feed, veterinary control, equipment — from the profits derived from entry ticket sales as well as from the cafes and restaurants on our territory. The rest — research, projects, cooperation with the People’s Republic of China, from where we receive pandas, or with Romania, where we hold seminars, or with Latin America — is subsidized by Austria’s Federal Ministry of Economy.”
Does the city of Vienna help you?
“Practically not. The city helped us put up a few structures, but, as we are subordinated to the ministry of economy and are a ‘firm’ of sorts, this cooperation with municipal authorities received no further impetus. We must be the only zoo in Europe which is not subsidized by the city budget. Conversely, the authorities of, say, Nuremberg, Berlin, and Paris care about their zoos as if they were their own children and provide them with money from the municipal treasury. But we in fact do not need this, although, we would not, of course, mind having more municipal funds. Yet we also have rich sponsors and patrons, such as Oesterreichische Lotterien, the Austrian Research Support Foundation, the Austrian National Bank, the Federal Ministry for Science and Research, and the energy company OMV.”
I wonder if there is such thing as “solidarity” among zoos — a desire to help one another?
“I can see what you driving at…” (Laughing)Incidentally, Kyiv is just a little more than a two-hour flight away.
“If the Kyiv zoo management does not mind, I could fly to Kyiv for a few days, say, with our chief zoologist and marketing expert, to discuss the current situation with our Ukrainian counterparts.”
I hope you will visit Kyiv very soon.
“So do I. And, in conclusion, I would like to present your newspaper with the illustrated album Vienna Zoo. I wrote on one of the pages: ‘To the Ukrainian newspaper Den — a few pictures and impressions of the world’s oldest and perhaps most beautiful zoo’.”
