The Montpellier Zoological Park (formally Parc Zoologique de Lunaret) is a French

zoological park A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zool ...

located in the region

Occitanie Occitanie may refer to: *Occitania, a region in southern France called ''Occitanie'' in French *Occitania (administrative region) Occitania ( ; french: Occitanie ; oc, Occitània ; ca, Occitània ) is the southernmost administrative region of ...

, in the north of the city of

Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...

. The greenhouse opened in 2007 as part of the Montpellier Zoo with a footprint of about 2,600 m². It represents 7 climatic zones and habitats, with a large

aviary An aviary is a large enclosure for confining birds, although bats may also be considered for display. Unlike birdcages, aviaries allow birds a larger living space where they can fly; hence, aviaries are also sometimes known as flight cages. Av ...

, and with an artificial rainstorm every two hours to simulate the

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

environment. The greenhouse now contains more than 500 animals and 8,000 plants representing 300

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

. Its animal collection includes

anaconda Anacondas or water boas are a group of large snakes of the genus ''Eunectes''. They are found in tropical South America. Four species are currently recognized. Description Although the name applies to a group of snakes, it is often used to re ...

ant Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22 ...

anteater Anteater is a common name for the four extant mammal species of the suborder Vermilingua (meaning "worm tongue") commonly known for eating ants and termites. The individual species have other names in English and other languages. Together with ...

armadillo Armadillos (meaning "little armored ones" in Spanish) are New World placental mammals in the order Cingulata. The Chlamyphoridae and Dasypodidae are the only surviving families in the order, which is part of the superorder Xenarthra, along wi ...

bat Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...

boa Kwon Bo-ah (; born November 5, 1986), known professionally as BoA, is a South Korean singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer and actress. One of the most successful and influential Korean entertainers, she has been dubbed the " Queen of K- ...

caymans The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territory—the largest by population in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located to the s ...

ibis The ibises () (collective plural ibis; classical plurals ibides and ibes) are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, that inhabit wetlands, forests and plains. "Ibis" derives from the Latin and Ancient Greek word f ...

es,

ocelot The ocelot (''Leopardus pardalis'') is a medium-sized spotted wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized. It is native to the southwes ...

piranha A piranha or piraña (, , or ; or , ) is one of a number of freshwater fish in the family Serrasalmidae, or the subfamily Serrasalminae within the tetra family, Characidae in order Characiformes. These fish inhabit South American rivers, ...

tamarin The tamarins are squirrel-sized New World monkeys from the family Callitrichidae in the genus ''Saguinus''. They are the first offshoot in the Callitrichidae tree, and therefore are the sister group of a clade formed by the lion tamarins, Goel ...

s, and

tarantula Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , 1,040 species have been identified, with 156 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although ...

s. The plant collections include 34 species of palm trees, 15 species of tree ferns, and 95 types of trees, with plants of interest including '' Acrosticum aureum'', '' Anthurium ferrierense'', ''

Canna indica ''Canna indica'', commonly known as Indian shot, African arrowroot, edible canna, purple arrowroot, Sierra Leone arrowroot, is a plant species in the family Cannaceae. It is native to much of South America, Central America, the West Indies, and ...

'', '' Cattleya bicolor'', ''

Cattleya mossiae ''Cattleya mossiae'' (literally 'Moss' Cattleya'), commonly known as the Easter orchid, is a species of labiate ''Cattleya'' orchid. The white-flowered form is sometimes known as ''Cattleya wagneri''. The diploid chromosome number of ''C. ...

'', '' Cephaelis poeppigiana'', '' Costus cuspidatus'', ''

Heliconia angusta ''Heliconia angusta'' Vell. ( syn.: ''Heliconia agustifolia'' Hook., ''Heliconia bicolor'' Benth., ''Heliconia brasiliensis'' Hook.), of family Heliconiaceae is an erect herb typically growing 0.70 m tall, native to Brazil (South America). Gene ...

'', ''

Hibiscus elatus ''Talipariti elatum'', the blue mahoe, is a species of Flowering plant, flowering tree in the Malva, mallow family, Malvaceae. Distribution ''Talipariti elatum'' is native to the islands of Cuba, Jamaica the US. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. ...

'', '' Philodendron elegans'', '' Philodendron panduriforme'', ''

Polypodium polypodioides ''Pleopeltis polypodioides'' (syn. ''Polypodium polypodioides''), also known as the resurrection fern, is a species of creeping, coarse-textured fern native to the Americas and Africa. Description The evergreen fronds of this fern are 25 c ...

'', '' Tillandsia cyanea'', '' Vriesea carinata'', and ''

Xanthosoma violaceum ''Xanthosoma sagittifolium'', the arrowleaf elephant ear, arrowleaf elephant's ear, malanga or American taro, is a species of tropical flowering plant in the genus ''Xanthosoma'', which produces an edible, starchy corm. Cultivars with purple stem ...

''.

References

Zoo Montpellier description

Office de Tourisme de Montpellier entry (French)

Tela Botanica Tela Botanica is a collaborative network of francophone botanists (about 47 000 enrolled in 110 countries at the beginning of 2020). It served as a model for the network of entomologists Tela Insecta, which is developing in partnership with Te ...

announcement (in French) Amazonienne, Serre Amazonienne, Serre Tourist attractions in Montpellier Greenhouses in France Zoos in France Zoos established in 1964 Organizations based in Montpellier {{France-garden-stub

See also

References