Nandankana zoological park project graduation students
Nandankanan Zoological Park
Nandankanan Zoological Park is located 20 kms
ahead of the capital city Bhubaneswar in Orissa. By sprawling across dense and tranquil forests of
Chandaka, Nandankanan serves the first captive
gharial breeding center of India. The name that literally means the
"Garden of Pleasure" is the most picturesque park to bring an
opportunity to discover unique flora and
fauna flourishing in their most natural habitat.
The Nandankanan Zoological Park is also known as Nandankanan
National Park where arrays of enthralling facility like boating, white tiger
and lion safaris (safari in a sense to encounter these royal animals) reptile
park, aerial ropeway and cable car at the zoological park which is a nocturnal
animal house established for the wildlife lovers to get a penchant for
wildlife.
History
Established in 1960, the Nandankanan National park has an
interesting history to tell the readers and the wildlife enthusiasts. Once a
white female tiger passed by the area of Nandankanan and found a great
enclosure with a local tiger and further stayed here only. This was one of the
rarest scenes of the zoo area since no wild animals in the area was willing to
stay in captivity. So, an idea of converting this zoo into a sophisticated
tiger reserve was proposed by the National Geographical Magazine. The park thus
came into existence and houses over 34 white tigers at present. Another
beautiful feather was added to the plume of the park in 1980 when three white
tiger cubs were born from normal colored parents.
Today this reserve area is being stretched
across the area of 4.37 sq km where the protected area is of 3.62 sq km. Due to
its rare offerings and serene setting, the park has been now emerged as a much
sought after picnic destination for both locals as well as tourists. A joy ride
in the toy train to observe the wildlife closely is an all time favorite
activity for the tourists and especially the children visiting this park.
Wildlife
The Sunder Kanan Wild Sanctuary is actually a bastion of white
tigers. Apart from Bandhavgarh National Park, the Sunder Kanan is the second
home in India for the white magnificent creatures; although in Bandhavgarh
today, there are only lesser counts are left. Today, Nandankanan Zoological
Park has more than 34 white tigers in its vicinity. Besides, the park is also
the home to 67 varieties of mammals, 18 varieties of reptiles and 81 species of
birds. The animals that are frequently seen in the park are Asiatic lion, lion-tailed
macaque, Indian crocodiles, nilgiri langur, Indian pangolin, Himalayan black
bear, mouse deer, rhesus macaque, black buck and more. By spreading over a
sprawling area of 4.4 Sq kms, the park also noticed as the first breeding place
for black panthers.
Nandankanan Zoological Park boasts of a fascinating lake and
wonderful lush green environs, which is a virtual paradise for birds inviting
native as well as migratory birds. According to forest department, the park has
around 75 bird species including some very rare species of birds. Some of the
popular birds that can be seen here are white peacock, blue & yellow macaw,
open billed stork, green winged macaw etc.
Flora
Nandankanan which is situated in the Chandaka forests, bears the
lush green zoological park being spread in about 4 sq km of area, while the
wildlife sanctuary is spread in around 5 sq km is also a home to various
flourishing varieties of flora. The splendid environs of Chandaka forests and
rippling waters of Kanjia Lake forms flora here. The area is densely greened
with trees like Bija, Sal, Asana and Anala.
SPECIAL
ATTRACTIONS
Boating
Boating on paddle or row boats in the
blue water of Kanjia lake is an exhilarating experience. The multi The sylvan
setup of the Park provides many special features which attracts the visitors in
large numbers. -storey Boat Ghat is renovated to give new looks providing
enough space for the visitors to relax and enjoy the picturesque fresh water
spreading over an area of more than 66 ha. lake. The boating service is
outsourced for better management and satisfaction of the visitors. The lake is
also known for its rich floral and faunal diversity and is declared as a
Wetland of National Importance by Govt. of India.
White tiger
safari
A unique white tiger safari established
on 1st October, 1991 over an area of 12 ha in natural surroundings. It provides
exposes you to unique situation where the visitors are confined in a vehicle
and the animals roam in the open jungle. Nandankanan is the first zoo in India
with a white tiger safari.
Lion safari
A twenty-minute drive through the
meandering roads crisscrossing the natural forest in a specially protected
vehicle takes the visitors straight into pride of lions in the lion safari over
an area of 20 ha established in the year 1984.
Herbivore safari
Herbivore safari was established in the year
2011 extending over an area of 21 ha. with a road network of 2 Km. length. The
safari houses Barking Deer, Spotted Deer, Sambars, Four horned antelope, wild
boar, jungle fowls, peafowls etc.
Bear safari
Nocturnal Animal House
Many animals that only move freely at
night but are almost immobile and hide in the thicket or in their burrows
during the day are housed here. The twilight condition is created in these
enclosures to provide an opportunity to the visitors to know what these animals
secretively do in the darkness of the night.
Reptile Park
A reptile park, with a life size Tyrannosaurus at its entrance with an interpretation centre houses 26 species of reptiles including crocodiles, lizards, turtles and snakes. One would encounter crocodiles, king cobras and a huge Reticulated Python inside the reptile park.
Reptile Interpretation Centre
An Interpretation Centre depicting the
evolution and biology of reptiles has been established in the entrance of
Reptile Park displaying models of prehistoric animals.
Toy Train
The toy train has been a great
attraction for the children. Its starts from the toy train station which goes
round a circular track of 1.58 Km. along the lake and thickly vegetated hillock
area with free ranging herbivores. The entire facility is now under renovation.
Aquarium
Aquarium is an integral component of a
modern zoo. Adequate steps were taken to include well researched education
materials on the various aquatic ecosystems both marine and fresh water
indicating their uniqueness and conservation needs. The aquarium was dedicated
to the visitors on 4th February, 2008 by the Honourable Chief Minister, Odisha.
Library
Interpretation Centre
The Interpretation Centre has been established
near the entrance gate. The Centre has display boards, models and audiovisual
aids depicting the importance of Zoological Park and other important wildlife
areas of Odisha. It also displays the activities behind the scenes for creating
awareness amongst the visitors. A film on Nandankanan is also screened in the
mini-auditorium inside the Centre.
The zoo museum established in Nandankanan to
preserve, display and interpret the animal specimens of zoological importance
for public viewing and nature education. The museum displays taxidermy
specimens, formalin preserved specimens of early developmental stages of
animals and eggs of flightless birds. This facility will be of great interest
to the visitors in general and school children in particular. 
Amphibian enclosure
An amphibian enclosure has been established
with viewers gallery over a plinth area of 56 m2 . Necessary behavioural
enrichments like flowing water, saw dust, live plants, water pool etc. have
been provided within the enclosure. The enclosure is designed to house and
display amphibian species. Nandankanan is the first premier large zoo to
exhibit amphibians. At present there are 21 numbers of amphibians belonging to
six species.
Walkthrough
aviary
The walkthrough aviary for exotic birds
is a unique exhibit of its kind in the country. The aviary has a
cascading waterfall and a meandering water channel of 58 m length connecting
two pools having two arched cross over bridge along the 216 m laterite stone
paved walking path with separate entry and exit points. In addition to the
existing large and small trees, hundreds of selective plants have been planted
to provide perches and hiding places for the birds housed. There are enough
feeding points and nest boxes for use of the birds selectively. The inmates of
the aviary are mixture of arboreal, terrestrial and aquatic birds. It is a
visitor’s delight to view the free flying birds over head.
White tigers
Three
white tigers were born in the Nandankanan Zoo in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India in 1980. Their parents were an
orange father–daughter pair called Deepak and Ganga, who were not related to
Mohan or any other captive white tiger. One of their wild-caught ancestors
would have carried the recessive white gene, and it showed up when Deepak was
mated to his daughter. Deepak's sister also turned out to be a white gene
carrier. These white tigers are therefore referred to as the Odisha strain, as
opposed to the Rewa strain, of white tigers founded by Mohan.
When the
surprise birth of three white cubs occurred there was a white tigress already
living at the zoo, named Diana, from the Delhi Zoo. One of the three was later bred to
her creating another blend of two unrelated strains of white tigers. This
lineage resulted in several white tigers in Nandankanan Zoo. Today the
Nandankanan Zoo has the largest collection of white tigers in India. The
Cincinnati Zoo acquired two female white tigers from the Nandankanan Zoo, in
the hopes of establishing a line of pure-Bengal white tigers in America, but
they never got a male, and didn't receive authorization from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA)'s Species
Survival Plan (SSP)
to breed them. The Zoo Outreach Organisation used to publish studbooks for
white tigers, which were compiled by A.K. Roychoudhury of the Bose Institute in Calcutta, and subsidized by
the Humane Society of India. The Columbus Zoo had also hoped to breed
pure-Bengal white tigers, but were unable to obtain a white registered Bengal
mate for Rewati from India.
There were
also surprise births of white tigers in the Asian Circus, in India, to parents
not known to have been white gene carriers, or heterozygotes, and not known to
have any relationship to any other white tiger strains. There was a female
white cub born at Mysore Zoo in 1984, from orange parents,
descended from Deepak's sister. The white cub's grandmother, Thara, came from
the Nandankanan Zoo in 1972. Mysore Zoo had a second female white tiger cub
from New Delhi Zoo in 1984. On 29 August 1979, a white tigress named Seema was
dispatched to Kanpur Zoo to be bred to Badal, a tiger
who was a fourth generation descendant of Mohan and Begum. The pair did not
breed so it was decided to pair Seema with one of two wild-caught, notorious
man-eaters, either Sheru or Titu, from the Jim
Corbett National Park.
Seema and Sheru produced a white cub, and for a while, it was thought there
might be white genes in Corbett's population of tigers, but the cub didn't stay
white.
There have
been other cases of white tiger, white lion, and white panther cubs being born, and then
changing to normal colour. White tigers which were a mixture of the Rewa and
Odisha strains, born at the Nandankanan Zoo, were non-inbred. A white tiger
from out of the Odisha strain found its way to the Western
Plains Zoo in Australia. Australia's Dreamworld, on the Gold
Coast, wanted to
breed this tiger to one of their white tigers from the United States.
Crocodilians
Captive breeding units of all the three crocodilian species have been established at Nandankanan Zoo. In 1980, the gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) was bred in captivity for the first time at the Nandankanan Biological Park in Odisha. This successful effort involved the collaboration and coordination between international and national zoological parks. The male came from the Frankfurt zoo and the females were from the Nandankanan and Trivandrum zoos. A large part of the credit for this first time ex-situ breeding in captivity goes to the meticulous planning and designing of the breeding enclosure at the Nandankanan Zoo by Dr. H. R. Bustard, which simulates the gharial's natural habitat of a deep flowing river with adequate high-rise sandbanks. The breeding enclosure, together with a judicious mix of adult size classes to form a social group, minimal disturbance and provision of natural food culminated in that success story, which continues to the present date. The Nandankanan Biological park has since provided many zoos around the world with captive-bred gharials for display and education.
Adopt an animal programme
To help involve the general public in animal conservation and
raise money, the zoo started the Adopt-an-Animal programme in 2008 for all of
its animals.Adopters receive a customized adoption certificate and one free
entry ticket for each animal adopted. In addition, the adopter's name is
displayed on a special board and a special mention made in the annual report of
the zoo.Adopters can pay from 500 for a small bird to 100,000 for a
tiger for a year. The zoo authorities have made available two of the most
attractive sites for adoption which are the Lion Safari and Tiger Safari for
which the adoption cost is 1,000,000 and 500,000 respectively.
Although other zoos also have adoption programs, Nandankanan was the first zoo
to get a tax exemption under section 80G of the Income Tax Act. Funds received
under the program are used to support the zoo's care and services for all its
inhabitants by providing quality food to meet their nutritional requirements,
medical care, equipment, enclosure upgrades, and biodiversity enrichment. The
parents of two students Sristi and Prakriti from Cuttack were the first to
adopt, paying 4,000 to adopt a blue and yellow macaw. The State Bank of India donated 500,000 to
adopt six endangered animals including a one-horned rhinoceros, white
Bengal tiger, chimpanzee, and
an orangutan.The Confidence Factory, near Bhubaneswar,
adopted a Royal Bengal Tigress Rebati in 2012.
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