Sad, sad, sad. I wonder if cloning of extinct species ever really happens if they might cavort across the South African savanna again? That is a day worth imagining.
Tim - is the Mainz museum worth a visit (other than for quaggas)? I'll be in the area soon, and am currently planing trips of one sort or another - so, to rephrase the question, is it worth sacrificing a trip to, say, Karlsruhe Zoo to see the museum here? Thanks! John
The Naturhistorisches Museum in Mainz is a relatively small museum in a converted church; it is, of course, justly famous for its quagga group. (A mounted Javan rhinoceros is another noteworthy specimen.) For somebody (like me) especially interested in quaggas a visit is essential; I now invariably visit if I am in that part of Germany. Unless you’re really anxious to see the quaggas, though, it is probably not worth sacrificing a trip to Karlsruhe Zoo to just see this museum. Obviously it depends on exactly where you’re staying, but the train journey between Mainz and Frankfurt takes less than an hour, the museum is small, so it would be perfectly possible to have a quick visit to the museum to see the quaggas and then spend the rest of the day zoo visiting. Enjoy your trip "Sooty" there's lots of zoos to see in that area of Germany.