Zodiac Zoos (officially ) is a Dutch corporation that owns and operates Aqua Zoo Friesland, Zoo Wissel,

Zoo Labyrinth Boekelo Zodiac Zoos (officially ) is a Dutch corporation that owns and operates Aqua Zoo Friesland, Zoo Wissel, Zoo Labyrinth Boekelo, Zoo Park Overloon, and Castle Arcen. The Zodiac Animals Foundation manages the animal collection of the Zodiac Zoos, whi ...

, Zoo Park Overloon, and Castle Arcen. The Zodiac Animals Foundation manages the animal collection of the Zodiac Zoos, which includes agile mangabeys, pygmy hippopotamuses, ruffed lemurs, cheetahs, ring-tailed lemurs, Parma wallaby, Kirk’s dik-dik, binturong, Von der Decken’s hornbill, cotton-top tamarins, white-cheeked gibbons, lion-tailed macaques, and Humboldt penguins. Zodiac Zoos, together with the Van Hall Institute of the College Zoo in Leeuwarden have created an internship program in which animal management students can intern at one of the Zodiac zoos.

History

Zodiac Zoos owned BestZoo, a small zoo in

Best Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporation ...

, between 2007 and July 2010, when it was sold to Jos Nooren.

Conservation

Together the zoos participate in more than 25

European Endangered Species Programme The EAZA Ex-situ Programme (EEP) is a population management and conservation programme by European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) for wild animals living in European zoos. The programme was formerly known as the European Endangered Species ...

s (EEP) and 20 European

Studbook A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry and the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders ...

s (ESB). European Studbooks maintained by Zodiac Zoos include the black crowned crane (''Balearica pavonina'') and the black-eared marmoset (''Callithrix penicillata'').

The zoos

Aqua Zoo Friesland opened in 2003, and is located in Leeuwarden. It specializes in aquatic animals, and is a member of the

European Association of Zoos and Aquaria The European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA), is an organisation for the European zoo and aquarium community that links over 340 member organisations in 41 countries. EAZA membership is open to all zoos and aquaria across Europe that compl ...

(EAZA) and

Dutch Zoo Federation The Dutch Zoo Federation (''Nederlandse Vereniging van Dierentuinen'' - NVD) is an association of 15 large zoos in the Netherlands. NVD was founded in 1966. All of its member zoos are members of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA). ...

(NVD). Animals at the zoo include

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...

penguin Penguins (order (biology), order List of Sphenisciformes by population, Sphenisciformes , family (biology), family Spheniscidae ) are a group of Water bird, aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: on ...

wallabies A wallaby () is a small or middle-sized macropod native to Australia and New Guinea, with introduced populations in New Zealand, Hawaii, the United Kingdom and other countries. They belong to the same taxonomic family as kangaroos and so ...

flamingo Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of Wader, wading bird in the Family (biology), family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas ...

s, dwarf otters,

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 ...

beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers ar ...

s, and

pelican Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...

s. Castle Arcen () is a historic castle with gardens and a zoo. Animals in the zoo include squirrel monkeys, cockatiels, diamond dove, Japanese quail, helmet guinea fowl, black swans, crested screamer, flamingos, European storks, koi, carp, salmon trout, beluga sturgeon, European eagle owl, green macaw, blue yellow macaw, demoiselle crane, marabou, and Von der Decken's tok. Zoo Labyrinth Boekelo was opened in 2005, and is located near

Enschede Enschede (; known as in the local Twents dialect) is a municipality and city in the eastern Netherlands in the province of Overijssel and in the Twente region. The eastern parts of the urban area reaches the border of the German city of Gronau ...

in the province of

Overijssel Overijssel (, ; nds, Oaveriessel ; german: Oberyssel) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the eastern part of the country. The province's name translates to "across the IJssel", from the perspective of the ...

, the Netherlands. This facility includes a series of labyrinths and mazes that test the senses and help teach about nature. It also includes a butterfly garden. closed in 2012 Zoo Park Overloon is a park in Overloon, in the province of

North Brabant North Brabant ( nl, Noord-Brabant ; Brabantian: ; ), also unofficially called Brabant, is a province in the south of the Netherlands. It borders the provinces of South Holland and Gelderland to the north, Limburg to the east, Zeeland to the we ...

, Netherlands. The zoo is a member of the

(EAZA) and

(NVD). Animals at the zoo include

cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...

tapir Tapirs ( ) are large, herbivorous mammals belonging to the family Tapiridae. They are similar in shape to a pig, with a short, prehensile nose trunk. Tapirs inhabit jungle and forest regions of South and Central America, with one species inhabit ...

gibbon Gibbons () are apes in the family Hylobatidae (). The family historically contained one genus, but now is split into four extant genera and 20 species. Gibbons live in subtropical and tropical rainforest from eastern Bangladesh to Northeast India ...

giant anteater The giant anteater (''Myrmecophaga tridactyla'') is an insectivorous mammal native to Central and South America. It is one of four living species of anteaters, of which it is the largest member. The only extant member of the genus ''Myrmecopha ...

red panda The red panda (''Ailurus fulgens''), also known as the lesser panda, is a small mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. It has dense reddish-brown fur with a black belly and legs, white-lined ears, a mostly white muzzle ...

reindeer Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 subspe ...

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...

marten A marten is a weasel-like mammal in the genus ''Martes'' within the subfamily Guloninae, in the family Mustelidae. They have bushy tails and large paws with partially retractile claws. The fur varies from yellowish to dark brown, depending on t ...

, straw-necked ibis,

lemur Lemurs ( ) (from Latin ''lemures'' – ghosts or spirits) are Strepsirrhini, wet-nosed primates of the Superfamily (biology), superfamily Lemuroidea (), divided into 8 Family (biology), families and consisting of 15 genera and around 100 exist ...

s, Indian antelope, and

kangaroo Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...

s. Zoo Wissel is a small Dutch zoo in Wissel, near Epe in the province of

Gelderland Gelderland (), also known as Guelders () in English, is a province of the Netherlands, occupying the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Netherlands by land area, and second by ...

, Netherlands. It specializes in small animals, and is a member of the

(EAZA) and

(NVD). Animals at the zoo include marabou, pygmy hippos, flamingos, cranes, dik-diks, white-faced saki, red pandas, squirrel monkeys, bear, marten, and ringtail lemurs. Plans are in place to move the zoo to a new location and rename it "Pangea Parc".

Notes

References

Zodiac Journaal, nieuwtjes uit de parkenDierinformatie voor spreekbeurten

External links

*
Dierenpark WisselZoo Parc OverloonAqua Zoo FrieslandCastle Arcen
{{authority control Companies based in Gelderland Zoos in the Netherlands