The Nehru zoological park will soon exchange a number of animals with Kanpur and Mysore zoos respectively.
The exchange programme is being initiated to bring in new additions to the already existing species and also to allow breeding.
“We will send a pair of Asiatic lions, a male and two female golden pheasants (birds) to the Kanpur zoo. In return, we will receive a pair of Thamin deer, a pair of hyenas, and a rhino, which in turn, would be sent to the Vishkhapatnam zoo park,” said director of zoological parks, Zoo Authority of Andhra Pradesh, Y Mallikharjuna Rao.
He added that the exchange would be completed in the next four days.
The Nehru zoo will also send a pair of sloth bears, two pairs of purple herons, two pairs of leaf turtles, a male mouse deer, and a male marmosep (turtle) to the Mysore zoo, as a part of the exchange programme.
“In return, we will receive two wolves, a pair of eclectus parrots, a pair of black swans, a female marmosep, and a female mouse deer,” said Rao.
He added that the female marmosep was sent to Mysore because both the marmosep turtles in the Nehru zoo were males.
“That way we will have a couple, and also the female mouse deer will be exchanged to help in breeding,” Rao apprised.
Taking Zoo to Int’l-level: Mallikharjuna Rao stated that the state is negotiating with zoos of other countries like Israel, Sri Lanka, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, and Malaysia to exchange more animals this year.
“The matter is at various stages of approval. We are trying to get a wide variety of species into the zoo here,” he said.