Happy Birthday U.S.A.'s first zoo. Does anybody know what species were displayed when the zoo first opened?
From New Worlds New Animals (edited by Hoage and Deiss, 1996 Smithsonian Institute), page 116. A book I am currently reading on the development of zoos in the 19th century. "On July 1, 1874, the zoo opened to the public with 212 animals on exhibit, including antelope, lions, zebras, kangaroos, an elephant, a rhinoceros, a tiger, and 50 monkeys. There were also some 674 birds and 8 reptiles." The author makes the common mistake of using the word animal to mean mammal.
happy bday Philadelphia Zoo! I visited Philly a while ago, but I didn't get the chance to go to the zoo, but I hope to go some day.
