President of Tatarstan and Mayor of Kazan will be the first patrons of the “Zambezi River”

(KZN.RU, August 10, Alsu Safina). Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, got acquainted with the construction of the new part of the zoo today. The Mayor was informed about the safety of visitors, workers and inhabitants of the “Zambezi River” (it is the name of a new part of the zoo). Construction works come to an end, and the issue of procurement of animals goes on the agenda. During the inspection it became known that Ilsur Metshin’s family decided to purchase seven zebras for the zoo.

Updated Kazan zoological and botanical garden will consist of two parts, according to the project. New site with area of ​​about 7 hectares is located on the shores of the lake Sredniy Kaban. Hammering of the first piles in this area began in June last year, and today most of the work is done. Construction works will be completed in September. The Kazan Zoo is visited by 230-235 thousand people annually. It is assumed that the number of visitors will increase to at least 500 thousand after the opening of the new site.

Fanis Nurmukhametov, the director of the Kazan zoological and botanical garden, marked that there are not such projects in Russia now; a new platform will be fully devoted to Africa. He explained that the experience of other zoos and chat with experts showed that the animals of the continent (elephants, giraffes, rhinoceroses) are of great interest to visitors.

After that, Ilsur Metshin, the director of Kazan zoological and botanical garden, designers, and builders visited the construction site, and discussed a number of working moments, in particular, irrigation system and ensuring the safety of visitors, the zoo workers and animals.

“Safety is the first, and we seriously approached this issue and discussed it with representatives of other zoos. There will be no cells. Water ditch, electroshepherd, glass enclosure, thickness of about 4 cm, will separate the animals and visitors”, said Fanis Nurmukhametov. “This is modern technology. World experience shows that the glass enclosure is a good solution, there is no feeling that the animal is behind bars”. Animals will be in conditions close to their natural habitat, and visitors will have the feeling that you can reach out a hand to the inhabitants of the zoo.

“Not everyone has the opportunity to go to Africa and take a walk on the savannah, and there will be a chance”, said the director of the Kazan zoological and botanical garden.

Gorillas, chimpanzees, elephants, giraffes and many others will be among the new inhabitants of the zoo. “At one time we had an Asian elephant. African elephants have never been in Russia, and our zoo will be the first one”, said the director of the Kazan zoological and botanical garden. He explained that the process of procurement of animals is long and difficult. So, to bring them out of Africa, it is needed to obtain permission to export and import from there to Russia, and the experts must ensure that conditions of detention conform to all the requirements. According to Fanis Nurmuhametov, negotiations with suppliers are conducted. “A certain time is required for the transport of each animal species. If we talk about African elephants, which are located in Tanzania, their delivery takes from six months to a year”, he added.

The director of Kazan zoological and botanical garden spoke about the practice, which is common in Europe. Zoos whether exchange animals with each other, or buy them. Furthermore, patronage is popular. “Patrons and friends of the zoo become, so to say, adoptive parents for animals and allocate funds for their maintenance in the future”, said Fanis Nurmukhametov.

Ilsur Metshin said that they decided to become the first “friends of the zoo” this morning during a meeting with Rustam Minnikhanov, the President of Tatarstan. “The president has not decided what animal his family will buy. And our family has decided to buy 7 zebras, the number of members in my family. The youngest approved it at breakfast today”, said the Mayor of Kazan to journalists.

“We need to create a loyalty program and the website, where the information about animals that are going to be bought according to the new zoo concept, would be located, and maybe there would be people who also want to help”, said Ilsur Metshin.

The Mayor of Kazan noted the contribution of the President of Tatarstan. "When I first came here for inspection, I asked for a decision on the reconstruction: change cells, landscaping paths, establish coverage. Our President is coming to solving problems widely, so it was decided to build a new site”, said I. Metshin. “And we see that there is everything to welcome new animals before the end of the year”.

Ilshat Gimaev, the deputy minister of Construction, Architecture and Housing of RT, Azat Nigmatzyanov, the first deputy head of the Executive Committee on urban policy, Tatiana Prokofieva, the chief architect of Kazan, Andrei Lobov, the head of Vakhitovskiy and Privolzhskiy districts administration, and others escorted the Mayor during the site inspection.