The Animal World in Moscow: The Zoo

Photo: mos.ru

Wildlife is fascinating, so it is no wonder that people want to lift the curtain of secrecy and get a glimpse into the world of wild animals. Moscow offers a lot of opportunities to do so, but there is no doubt that the ideal place to watch wild animals is the zoo.

The Moscow Zoo celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2014. It was founded by the Imperial Society for Animal Protection and is situated in the centre of the capital. The zoo has outgrown its old historic territory and now occupies an area of 22 hectares, including new pavilions opened in 2022. The zoo provides a home for more than 10,000 animals representing over 1,200 species from around the world. These animals can be seen in various ponds and houses and are divided into expositions and pavilions, including 'Primates', 'The Elephant House', 'Arachne Land', 'The Night World', 'The Animal World of Russia', 'The Cliff of Wild Birds', 'Flipper-Footed Mammals', and many others.

Photo: mos.ru

Bolshaya Gruzinskaya street divides Moscow Zoo into two parts, which are connected by a beautiful pedestrian bridge. The old part is famous for its Big Pond inhabited by different waterbirds. The Big Pond is the first thing visitors have seen upon entering the zoo since its opening in 1864, so you won't miss it. Equipped with powerful compressors, the pond does not freeze in winter, so the birds—which include geese, swans, ducks, and more—never fly away. The old territory also contains 'The Bird House', which is home to parrots, ravens, cranes, ostriches, penguins. and many others. In the old part, visitors can also see elephants (both African and Asian), as well as 'The Tropical Cat House' with its lynxes, pumas, snow leopards and tigers. The cat houses are not far from the zoo museum, which occupies a two-storey house built in the 19th century. Its expositions cover not only the zoo’s history, but also global nature strategies. Left of the main entrance are the night houses of South American animals, including an alpaca, a lama, and a vicuna. The camels share their house with a friendly capybara, the biggest rodent in the world. 'The Animal World of Russia' pavilion is also in the old part of the zoo, and there are plenty of other zoo inhabitants to see here.

Moscow Zoo was recently updated with modern pavilions, including the impressive 'Flipper-footed Mammals'. It is three times larger than the old one it replaced. Equipped with an automatic water temperature regulation system, this three-level building with a complex of pools was created to provide the most comfortable environment for the animals, which include walruses, bearded seals, sea lions, and more. The 6000 square-metre space houses as many as 36 animals, which visitors can observe from above or watch through a glass wall in the side of the enclosure.

Among the most popular attractions in the new part of the zoo are the polar bears, who have new open-air enclosures surrounded by glass and which allow visitors to see the animals swimming in the water. 'The Primate House' (also in the new part of the zoo) has more than 30 different species of monkeys. Visitors to 'The Terrarium' can see pythons, crocodiles, turtles, iguanas and various kinds of snakes, while 'The Exotarium' is home to exotic fish. The new part also has enclosures with spiral-horned antelopes, giraffes, zebras, camels, lions, tigers and many other wonderful animals.

Moscow Zoo offers various activities for visitors, such as strolling around the zoo and watching the animals, taking informative excursions, and participating in numerous activities and programmes ranging from feeding animals to volunteering. The zoo also helps to preserve endangered species and operates a reproductive centre—one of the lifelong ambitions of legendary zoo director Vladimir Spitsin.

Address: 1 Bolshaya Gruzinskaya Ulitsa (Krasnopresnenskaya metro station)

Tickets: 1000 rub

Opening hours: 9 am–8 pm (last entry at 7 pm), Mon–Sun.

Text by Olga Nozdrina, first-year master’s student of ‘Contemporary History Studies in History Instruction at Secondary Schools’, intern at the HSE University English website team