Video, photo: Prague Zoo opened the Dja Reserve, a path through the Cameroonian forest
The largest pavilion in the history of Prague Zoo, Reserve Dja, opened its doors to the public on Wednesday. It is named after a specific area in Cameroon, where Prague Zoo has been involved in nature conservation for a long time and implements its Roaming Bus project.
Prague Zoo officially opened the Dja Reserve, the new gorilla pavilion.
| Video: Diary/Radek Cihla
Visitors can embark on a journey through the Cameroonian forest, where they will encounter marmots, guerez, bats and especially lowland gorillas. For the first time ever, a new pair of gorillas was introduced to the exhibits – male Kisumu and female Duni, the daughter of the famous Moja. The new pavilion was ceremoniously opened by the director of the Prague Zoo, Miroslav Bobek, in the presence of representatives of Mr. m of Prague and a number of well-known personalities and foreign guests.
“If someone had told me a few months ago that when the Reserve Dja was opened we would be watching a new breeding male here and his bonding with the daughter of the main Moja, I would not have believed it,” says Director Bobek. “And now we stand here together and the great story of the Prague gorilla family officially continues before the eyes of the visitors,” he adds, adding that now it’s up to them, the visitors, how they like the pavilion.
Image: Journey through Cameroon in the Dja Reserve. The Prague Zoo opens a new gorilla pavilion
In addition to the biggest personality, the gorilla family, a number of other representatives of the Central African fauna, especially primates, can be seen in the Dja Reserve. Some species are returning to the Prague Zoo after a very long time – for example, the brightly colored Brazza’s cat will be seen by people after a break of more than half a century.
“Prague Zoo is one of the best in the world and we want to keep it at the top. That is why we invest in its development. In addition to the most modern gorilla pavilion in the world, which opened today, we are also preparing a new Arctic pavilion. I thank director Bobek for the preparation and implementation of this project,” said the mayor before the ribbon-cutting ceremony. m Prague Zdeněk Hřib.
The former godfathers of its construction, the acting couple Zlata Adamovská and Petr Štěpánek, wished success to the pavilion and its residents. Football player Karel Poborský was also present as the patron of the Traveling Bus project in Cameroon.
The female gorilla Duni, daughter of the famous Moja, arrived in Prague from Spain
It was the Cameroonian collaborators of the Prague Zoo, who are significantly involved in educational and rescue projects in the area of the actual Dja Biosphere Reserve, who made the long journey to the Czech Republic for the opening of the Prague Dja Reserve. “It is amazing that such a well-thought-out and spectacular display of Cameroonian nature has been created in the middle of Europe. Personally, I was most impressed by the authentic African classroom,” says Manfred E. Aimé, Director of Tropical Forest and Rural Development. “For me, it is a confirmation of the commitment that the Prague Zoo has to the protection of biodiversity, as well as the diligence of its individual workers,” he adds.
The 15th pavilion of the Prague Zoo is also the largest in its history. Visitors are guided through the Cameroonian landscape: from the school and agricultural landscape on the edge of the local village to the dense rainforest full of vegetation, sounds and above all its animal inhabitants. At the same time as the pavilion, a completely new entrance to the Prague Zoo was opened, in close proximity to the Sklenářka bus stops.