The number of visitors to the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo has seen a steady rise in recent years.
By AVIEL YELINEKjerusalem zoo visitor chart 311(photo credit: Courtesy)
The Jerusalem Biblical Zoo was originally a tiny zoo on Rehov Harav Kook in central Jerusalem, established in 1940 by zoologist Prof. Aharon Shulov. The zoo was moved several times until 1993 when it was relocated to its current location in the Manhat (Malcha) area in southwest Jerusalem. Today, the zoo sits on 62 acres, and there are plans to expand it by another 37 acres to the west. The zoo is home to a large number of animal species. In 2009, it had271 different species: 60 fish species, 68 mammal species, 28 reptilespecies, 11 amphibian species and 104 bird species. Many new specieswere introduced only recently, as the zoo’s collection has grown from208 species in 2007; to 237 in 2008; and to 271 in 2009. The number ofanimals in the zoo in 2009 was 2,200.The number of visitors to the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo has also seen asteady rise in recent years. According to Dun & Bradstreet Israel,the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo was the most popular tourist attraction inthe country between 2005 and 2007. In 2008, the three most populartourist attractions in Israel were the Masada National Park (with720,000 visitors), the Caesarea National Park (715,000 visitors) andthe Jerusalem Biblical Zoo (687,000 visitors). In 2009, the volume ofvisitors to the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo grew even more, with the zoohosting a record 738,000 visitors.www.jiis.org
