Sakkarbaug Zoological Garden — Zoo in Junagadh district

Sakkarbaug Zoological Garden and its collection

Sakkarbaug Zoological Garden, opened in 1863, is a zoo in Junagadh, Kanpur division.

The zoo is described as the oldest in India and the fourth largest. Wild Asiatic lions survive only in the nearby Gir Forest.

History

The zoo was established in 1863 by Mohabat Khanji Babi II of the princely state. A natural history museum opened in a hall of the veterinary hospital in 2003. Its opening displays were the skeletons of two Asiatic lions together with panther, deer, wild boar, antelope, blackbuck, nilgai and spotted deer.

Animals and collection

In 2008 the zoo held 525 mammals, 597 birds and 111 reptiles in 100 enclosures. Thirty per cent of the mammals and ten per cent of the birds were listed under Schedule I.

Conservation and approach

The zoo co-manages the Asiatic lion breeding programme, which the national zoo authority widened to ten further zoos in 1998, and as its largest breeding centre had bred close to 150 lions by 2008. It supplies purebred Asiatic lions to Indian and international breeding programmes and takes part in white-backed vulture breeding.

What the venue says

• taking the Wildlife Safari Bus
• children's playground areas
• An onsite cafe is available within the park grounds
• Parking choices include free street parking, a paid parking lot, and paid street options.
• The park features a wheelchair-accessible entrance and a wheelchair-accessible parking lot.