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The Veermata Jijabai Udyan, better known as Ranichi Baugh or Byculla zoo is now home to 7 cute litlle Humboltd penguins.
What Is It?
The Byculla zoo in Mumbai is home to seven adorable Humboltd penguins – Molt, Bubble, Olive, Popeye, Flipper, Daisy and Donald. You can watch them play, swim and eat in their 1550 -square-foot enclosure. The specially constructed space has been fitted with chillers that are set at 14 degrees Celsius that are perfectly suited for these flightless birds.
Eight penguins were initially imported from Seoul, South Korea. However, one of them died due to a bacterial infection just after thee months. The other 7 have adjusted and have even shown a strange liking for Bombay Duck, How cute is that! The entire process of getting them from Seoul to India cost ₹2 crore and the enclosure cost ₹64 crore to create.
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What Else?
The Byculla zoo also has double-beaked hornbills, pelicans, egrets and Japanese storks. There’s a crocodile pool and a few sambars that you can see if you’re lucky. It’s probably not the best zoo to go and visit but we do give credit to how beautifully it has been maintained. There are over 250 varieties of tress in the zoo and is also a heritage botanical garden.It makes for a very pleasant walk in an otherwise crowded city.
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A lot has been said about how inhuman it is to keep penguins in a city like Mumbai. My point is that the same should be said about all creatures in captivity and not just the penguins. It is these same people who would rather go to the US and pay to watch dolphins perform for them. To most people in India, watching a penguin is a dream. Something that the Byculla zoo has helped realise. So haters kindly find another place to spew venom. Thanks!
Deets
Address: Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan Dr Ambedkar Road, Rani Bagh , Near Byculla East Railway Station, Byculla
Timings: 9.30am –
Cost Per Ticket: Adult (above 12 yrs) – ₹50, Child (3-12 years) – ₹25
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