NOTES ON THE ZOOLOGICAL COLLECTIONS OF AMSTERDAM, ROTTERDAM, AND ANTWERP.
By Graham Renshaw.
Having recently had the opportunity of visiting these magnificent collections, perhaps the following notes which I have made may be of interest to readers of 'The Zoologist.'
The entrance to the Amsterdam Gardens, the property of the Society "Natura Artis Magistra," is in the Kerk Laan. The visitor, on entering, is provided with a guide-plan of the Gardens, and photographs of the various animals, including the rare Mountain Zebra (Equus zebra), may also be purchased. The series of animals in the Monkey-house included a full-grown Chimpanzee (Anthropopithecus niger), the largest I have ever seen, in the best of health and spirits, protected from draughts by glass. In the same house was an Echidna (Echidna aculeata) buried under a heap of straw. The keeper obligingly removed the straw for me, but all efforts to move the Echidna, even by leverage with a stout pole, were quite ineffectual. The Lion-house was roomy and well lighted, but presented no special features. The small Cats'-house contained two Geoffroy's Cats (Felis guigna),[1] and a pair of the now rare Tasmanian Devil (Sarcophilus ursinus). The series of Bears included an interesting albino of the Himalayan Black Bear (Ursus torquatus), kept in the same cage with a normal specimen. Amongst the Ungulates, the most interesting animal was a European Bison (Bos bonassus), placed in a pen adjoining that of the American Bisons (B. americanus), so that the two species could be readily compared. The Anoa (Bos depressicornis), which unites the Oxen to the Antelopes, was also represented. The Antelopes included a fine Waterbuck (Cobus ellipsiprymnus), and a brindled Gnu (Connochætes taurina). The coat of the Gnu was of a beautiful and distinct blue-grey colour. A specimen of the Mountain Zebra (Equus zebra) was placed next to the Burchell's Zebra (E. burchelli); the Burchell's Zebra belonged to the typical form with very thick dark stripes on the body and none whatever on the legs. By the kind help of the keepers I was enabled to photograph the animal as it stood in its yard. In the same building with the Zebras was an extensive ornithological museum.
There were several aviaries in the Gardens, and the Bird Gallery was
- ↑ Geoffroy's cats can be meant, but perhaps kodkods (Wikisource ed. 2019-02-10).
