Parc des Félins is a zoological park in France dedicated to the breeding and conservation of wild members of the cat family. It is located in the commune of Lumigny-Nesles-Ormeaux in Seine-et-Marne, about southeast of Paris. The park covers an area of . Of the 41 recognized species of felines in the world, the park has 30 different species and subspecies, with a total of 140 cats. The park opened to the public on October 14, 2006. Originally, the majority of the animals came from the Parc d'Aulneau, which was deemed too small to house this many animals.

History

*1998: The Parc d'Aulneau opens. *2005: The Parc d'Aulneau becomes too small and a new place is sought. *2006: The location of the park is chosen at the height of Fortelle at Nesles in Seine-et-Marne. *2007: The park accommodates a wildcat, two leopard cats, two sand cats, a Siberian tiger, two margays, two oncillas and two

rusty-spotted cat The rusty-spotted cat (''Prionailurus rubiginosus'') is one of the cat family's smallest members, of which historical records are known only from India and Sri Lanka. In 2012, it was also recorded in the western Terai of Nepal. Since 2016, the gl ...

Visiting the park

The park's philosophy is to provide for the well-being of the animals, and to provide an environment conducive to their reproduction. The enclosures were studied in depth to ensure the optimal environmental conditions of each animal. The park is divided into four geographic areas. Each animal's area is accompanied by an illustrated board with the name and description of the animal, the specifics of the animal's enclosure, and the dangers to the animal in its natural environment.

European circuit

The European circuit begins at the enclosure of the cheetahs. There are only two enclosures in this circuit, located in the woods, and they are occupied by wildcats (''Felis silvestris silvestris'') and Eurasian lynx (''Lynx lynx lynx'').

African circuit

At the start of the visit one begins with the Southern African cheetahs (''Acinonyx jubatus jubatus'') which have an enclosure roomy enough for them to run. At the end of the cheetah enclosure, the European circuit begins to the left. By going straight on the African circuit and travel along the enclosure of the

African lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus '' Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adult ...

s (''Panthera leo melanochaita''). At the end of the enclosure one can either turn and start the Asian circuit to the right or start the American circuit to the left. The African circuit continues to the left and the first enclosure is occupied by servals (''Leptailurus serval''). On both sides of the way we first see the sand cats (''Felis margarita''), then the African wildcats (''Felis lybica gordoni'') and the

Persian leopard ''Panthera pardus tulliana'' is a leopard subspecies native to the Iranian Plateau and surrounding areas encompassing Turkey, the Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, Iraq, Iran, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and possibly Pakistan. Since 2016, i ...

s (''Panthera pardus tulliana''), and finally the caracals (''Caracal caracal''). The circuit concludes with the white lions (''Panthera leo melanochaita''), a rarity in zoos, followed by the

black panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been d ...

s (''Panthera pardus'') and finally the

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...

(''Panthera leo''). Soon the park will have black-footed cats (''Felis nigripes'') - their enclosures are currently ready and are holding the fishing cats.

American circuit

The American circuit starts at the end of the Katanga lion enclosure. The first habitat of this circuit holds the

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 ...

s (''Leopardus pardalis''), and next to it is the

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus '' Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the th ...

(''Panthera onca'') enclosure. The path continues past the enclosures of the margays (''Leopardus wiedi''), Geoffroy's cats (''Oncifelis geoffroyi''), the oncillas (''Leopardus tigrinus''), and the pumas (''Puma concolor''). Finally one arrives at a dead end, to admire the

jaguarundi The jaguarundi (''Herpailurus yagouaroundi'') is a wild cat native to the Americas. Its range extends from central Argentina in the south to northern Mexico, through Central and South America east of the Andes. The jaguarundi is a medium-sized ...

s (''Herpailurus yaguarondi'') which are very rare in European zoos. The path ends with the enclosures of the

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUC ...

s (''Lynx rufus'') and the

Asian circuit

The Asian circuit starts at the other end of the Katanga lion enclosure. The first felines on this path are the

Sumatran tiger The Sumatran tiger is a population of ''Panthera tigris sondaica'' on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. It is the only surviving tiger population in the Sunda Islands, where the Bali and Javan tigers are extinct. Sequences from complete mitochon ...

s (''Panthera tigris sumatrae''), followed by the enclosure of the

s. Further on is the rare

Sri Lanka leopard The Sri Lankan leopard (''Panthera pardus kotiya'') is a leopard subspecies native to Sri Lanka. It was first described in 1956 by Sri Lankan zoologist Paules Edward Pieris Deraniyagala. Since 2020, the Sri Lankan leopard has been listed as ...

(''Panthera pardus kotiya''), the

Asian golden cat The Asian golden cat (''Catopuma temminckii'') is a medium-sized wild cat native to the northeastern Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and China. It has been listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List since 2008, and is threatened by poach ...

s (''Catopuma temmincki''), the Asian leopard cats (''Prionailurus bengalensis bengalensis''), the jungle cats (''Felis chaus''), and the fishing cats (''Prionailurus viverrinus''). The path continues with large enclosures containing tigers (''Panthera tigris'', particularly Siberian tigers), Amur leopards (''Panthera pardus orientalis'') and Eurasian lynx (''Lynx lynx wrangeli''). The path ends with the eastern Siberian and Mongolian leopard cats (''Prionailurus bengalensis euptilura''),

clouded leopard The clouded leopard (''Neofelis nebulosa''), also called the mainland clouded leopard, is a wild cat inhabiting dense forests from the foothills of the Himalayas through mainland Southeast Asia into South China. In the early 19th century, a cl ...

s (''Neofelis nebulosa''), snow leopards (''Panthera uncia'') and Pallas's cats (''Otocolobus manul'').

Lemurs

In addition to the felids, there is a large lemur population in the park. Many lemur species are represented, including the

ring-tailed lemur The ring-tailed lemur (''Lemur catta'') is a large strepsirrhine primate and the most recognized lemur due to its long, black and white ringed tail. It belongs to Lemuridae, one of five lemur families, and is the only member of the ''Lemur'' ge ...

(''Lemur catta''), the

red ruffed lemur The red ruffed lemur (''Varecia rubra'') is one of two species in the genus ''Varecia'', the ruffed lemurs; the other is the black-and-white ruffed lemur (''Varecia variegata''). Like all lemurs, it is native to Madagascar. It occurs only in the ...

(''Varecia rubra''), the crowned lemur (''Eulemur coronatus''), and the red-bellied lemur (''Eulemur rubriventer''). Many of the lemurs roam freely about the park, and occasionally interact with visitors.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Parc des Felins Zoos in France Buildings and structures in Seine-et-Marne Organizations based in Île-de-France Tourist attractions in Seine-et-Marne Zoos established in 2006