Opel Zoo

The Opel Zoo (German: von Opel Hessische Zoostiftung) is a zoo in Königstein im Taunus, Hesse in Germany.

Opel-Zoo
Africa-Savanna at the entrance
Date opened1956
LocationKönigsteiner Straße 35
61476 Kronberg im Taunus, Germany
Coordinates50°11′0″N 8°29′11″E
Land area27 hectares (66.7 acres)
No. of animals1631 [1] (2015)
No. of species223[1] (2015)
Annual visitors748.990[1] (2014)
MembershipsEAZA,[2] WAZA[3]
Ownervon Opel Hessische Zoostiftung
DirectorThomas Kauffels
Websitewww.opel-zoo.de
Opel Zoo elephants

The Zoo was founded in 1956 by Georg von Opel, and covers 27 hectares (66.7 acres).

1,600 animals from 200 species live in the Zoo, including african elephants.[4]

Elephants

Opel Zoo is the only Zoo in Hesse which keeps elephants. The first import of African elephants was in 1955. They were two males, Vauka and Conti, and one female, Opeline. Vauka sired two calves with Opeline: Afrika born 1965, and the bull Afrikano 1968. Like all bull elephants, Conti and Vauka became more and more aggressive, and they were euthanized in 1971 and 1977, respectively. The female Aruba, born in 1979 in Zimbabwe, was bought in 1981.

Afrikano died in 1981 due to wounds he got from spike nails in his stable, and Afrika died in 1982, the same year as the female Toto was bought from Munich Zoo. Toto was euthanised in 1992, and Opeline died during the nineties. Since then new elephants were bought, but they have not bred so far.[4]

The new elephant house with a new enclosure was built in 2013,[5]

See also

References
  1. Datenblatt zum Opel-Zoo Kronberg auf der Homepage des Verbands der Zoologischen Gärten, abgerufen am 3. Oktober 2015.
  2. "EAZA Member Zoos & Aquariums". eaza.net. European Association of Zoos and Aquaria. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  3. "Zoos and Aquariums of the World". waza.org. WAZA. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  4. Elephant Database: All elephants at Kronberg Zoo in Germany
  5. Opel-Zoo Elefanten: Ein neues Heim für Elefanten
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