The Bronx Zoo: Endangered Species and Dora The Explorer

The Bronx Zoo’s presence can be felt the moment you step off the subway at the East Tremont Ave, West Farm Square station.  Pictured road signs with cartoon animals, street vendors selling every color cotton candy and wide-eyed giddy children lining up to buy balloons line the three-block-walk from the subway. Bold yellow writing against a jungle themed backdrop welcomes visitors inside the Asia Entrance.

                       

Once inside, visitors are surrounded by both the wild and the corporate.  Coca-Cola trucks are plotted throughout the grounds next to tribal sculptures and polar bears pens. And there’s more to do than just see the animals. The Total Experience ticket grants you access to Dora and Diego’s 4D adventure and the Bug Carousel.  The Zoo Store sells t-shirts, pencils, mugs and magnets amongst an enormity of merchandise.

               Despite its somewhat corporate feel, the zoo is actually part of the Wildlife Conservation Society and home to the organization’s headquarters.

According to its website, the WCS mission is to “save wildlife and wild places across the globe.”

   Since its foundation in 1895, the WCS has been worked to protect many species including the gorillas in Congo, tigers in India and wolves in the Yellowstone Rockies.   

The zoo is one of five New York City parks that are part of the Wildlife Conservation Society.  The others four are New York Aquarium, Central Park Zoo, Queens Zoo and Prospect Zoo.

Admission prices mirror the zoos double image as a moneymaking amusement park and a conservation society. General admission is $16 for adults and $12 for kids.  Rides and attractions cost up to $5 extra.  Wednesdays, however, are donation day.

Unlike other destinations around the city, there is no pressure applied to the visitors about their donation price.

               “Would you like to make a donation?” is all the woman asks at the ticket booth.

              

               The zoo is home to approximately 4,000 animals in including, lions, tigers, grizzly bears, monkeys and a herd of bison.

               The bison tell a special story of the Bronx Zoo, as the species were part of the WCS first success stories.  In 1907 they brought fifteen Bronx Zoo bison to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Preserve in Oklahoma to try and restore the herds to the Western Plains.

              

               “Ugly Buffalo” a young girl shouts as she stands by the cage.

The zoo is part of Bronx community district 6.  It is one of three major landmarks in the area with Fordham University and New York Botanical gardens located close by.  Fordham originally owned the land that is now the zoo and the botanical gardens but sold it for $1000 to the city of New York on the condition that it would be used as a zoo and gardens.

In 2,000 the population of district 6 was around 75,000 with almost two thirds of these on income support.   The area is made of 61% Hispanic and 26 African American.

This dynamic is well reflected in the staff at the zoo.  The two women in the admissions booth, the man handing out park maps and the man at the cash register at the store are Hispanic.

The 5 New York City Parks attract 4 million visitors each year and, according to the WCS, “help the city to educate millions of schoolchildren I conservation issues.”

Of the thousands of visitors at the zoo on Wednesday, February 22nd, the majority are children, excited and curios, but still with some lessons to learn about the animal kingdom. 

“Look daddy!” one girl shouts, pointing to a baboon leaning over a pile of rocks.  “The mommy baboon is sitting on her eggs!”