-NPC chairman
Seven years after receiving funds to build an aviary the National Parks Commission (NPC) still has the money in a bank account and blames the stalling of the project on an ambitious design and a global downturn.
Mayor of Danish city Odense and Chairman of its zoo Anker Boye officially handed over US$30,000 as part of an ongoing sister-zoo relationship that it has with the Georgetown zoo. This relationship was formalized in an agreement signed with the Odense zoo in November 2001.
The funds, equivalent to G$6,000,000, should have been invested in the building of a giant aviary for the eagles at the rear of the Georgetown zoo where the old elephant cages used to be located. Last December NPC Chairman John Caesar had given the assurance that the money was still in a special savings account waiting to be used. An ambitious design and the global downturn, Caesar had said then, were among the reasons why the project had not got underway.
In a more recent statement, at a press conference on Wednesday, Caesar painted a more exotic picture of the aviary NPC hopes to construct. It was his ambition and that of a few other NPC board members to build something that would showcase Guyana, as opposed to a simple structure, Caesar said.
Initially, the aviary design was expected to include the trees in the vicinity of the proposed construction area; they were to be incorporated into the architecture in an effort to recreate the birds’ natural habitat. In Guyana, the eagle is indigenous to the Pakaraima and Kanuku Mountain ranges. Harpy Eagles have an average wing span of 6½ feet, claws as thick as a child’s wrist and need more space than they currently have.
Caesar disclosed that a canopy walkway was part of the design for the aviary. NPC, he said, hoped to do something that was only found in rich North American zoos. The canopy walkway would most likely become a tourist attraction, he explain-ed, observing that it took nearly three years to locate and settle on a design.
The walkway, Caesar continued, would generate additional income for the zoo if a fee were charged. He noted that the Belize zoo charges a BZD$35 entrance fee. Our G$200 entrance fee was equal to BZD$1, Caesar explained, and it had to be fully appreciated that the Georgetown zoo needed to generate more funds.
Adding the canopy walkway to the design had escalated the cost of the aviary. Though some interest had accrued on the money in the savings account, the NPC was still short by 45% of the amount needed for the aviary, Caesar said. It was expected to be 120 feet long, 60 feet wide and 50 feet high, which would allow the eagles to move about with greater freedom than is currently permitted by their present cages. The option of reducing the size of the aviary to cut costs enough to make the canopy walkway affordable is being considered. The original aviary was budgeted at $16.M.
Caesar had also pointed out that the resizing decision had been taken because a civil engineering input was needed. While the NPC board hoped to have something before the end of this year, it was cautious since it wanted the end product to be economically viable and zoologically good for the animals.
When concerns were first raised in November 2008 about the NPC’s failure to complete the aviary project General Manager Yolanda Vasconcellos had been the first to defend it. “There is a lack of the technical expertise that is required to put up such a structure and so we’re still formulating that,” Vasconcellos had told Stabroek News after repeated efforts to contact her about the issue.
Despite the lack of technical expertise and funds, which the NPC itself has highlighted, they are still holding out for an extravagant design. There has been no indication of what efforts are being made to locate the needed expertise and funds. At it is the Harpy Eagles may well have an extended wait for their aviary.
For the moment the eagles remain solemnly perched on the limbs provided in their small cages. Despite this, Vasconcellos contended on Wednesday that the eagles were able to fly, mate and hunt at the Zoological Park. Often – depending on the time visitors came to the zoo – large junks of meat could be seen in the eagles’ cages. They were provided with food, she said, and had no need for space to hunt at the Georgetown zoo.
One of the eagles, Vasconcellos pointed out, had had a wing amputated years ago after it was discovered with a gunshot wound along the Linden/Soesdyke High-way. This was one of the zoo’s success stories, she said. However, unless a visitor is observant the one-winged eagle will go unnoticed.
At the Belize zoo there is a Harpy Eagle named Panama. This eagle was born with a visual impairment and as a result could not be released into the wild. Here is what the Belize zoo recently said about Panama who recently celebrated his 7th birthday: “Children call him by name, and he readily responds! Chirping and opening his massive wings, Panama obviously enjoys sharing time with his many visitors.”
If one of the eagles at the Georgetown zoo turns its head in your direction then it’s a lucky day.
Anacondas and lioness
Harpy Eagles are not the only animals suffering from a lack of space at the Georgetown zoo. The Zoological Park’s lone lioness and its larger snakes like the Anacondas live in cramped conditions.
The snakes often lie in a shallow concrete pool of water provided or coiled on their cages’ concrete floor. There is not enough space for them to ever fully stretch their bodies. Questioned about this at the press conference on Wednesday NPC Chairman Caesar pointed out that the snakes in Trinidad – while not as large as our largest anaconda – have even less space that we afford our reptiles.
These reptiles were kept in these small enclosures for closer proximity to visitors and were perhaps rotated every six months to slightly larger enclosures. Caesar also reminded the media that the Georgetown zoo was in partnership with others and often had experienced personnel visit. These personnel compared our facilities to their own and by so doing provided an opportunity for improvement.
The NPC board, from their response to the question about the lack of space for the snakes, seemed to be satisfied that the animals had enough space. There was no mention of improving or extending the snakes’ cages.
As reported earlier, the lone lioness barely has enough space to pace in her concrete floored cage. Vasconcellos justified the size of that cage by pointing out that the lioness had been born with a hip-bone defect. As a result of this, she explained, the lioness would never be able to move or “naturally pounce” and experts had advised that the current space allotment was adequate.
Later – when questioned about what the zoo would do after that particular lioness dies and has to be replaced with a normal one which could move – Caesar said that the cage was supposed to be expanded to twice its current size.
He further encouraged public and private sector organizations to adopt an animal to help improve their living conditions.