The final chapter is a sorry tale for Split?
More than a year and a half has passed since the announcement that the Split Zoo on Marjan will be closed, and that will finally happen by the end of this month, when the institution will close its doors after 89 years in existence. The final decision was made after a meeting of members of the Commission for the Relocation of Animals, which last week reported to the city authorities that they have found new, better homes for the majority of animals, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on October 18, 2015.
“We have been informed that the conditions for the transfer of animals have been fulfilled, and that new homes have been found. The transfer process could start by the end of this month, which would mean that the Zoo would close its doors to visitors, in order to prepare for the transfer process”, said the Split deputy mayor Goran Kovačević, adding that the priority for relocation have those animals for which Marjan is not their natural habitat. “During the forthcoming period, we will announce a call for suggestions how to use the space on Marjan. Of course, we expect ideas in accordance with the principle of the protection of nature, which would probably mean some educational programs suitable for all citizens”, added Kovačević.
The decision was explained by Nediljko Ževrnja, director of the Natural History Museum and the Split Zoo. “The wild animals will be accommodated in Croatia and abroad. For example, some of the animals will go to the Osijek Zoo, some to a sanctuary near Slavonski Brod, while the wolf will most likely go to the Kuterevo sanctuary on the northern slopes of Velebit. For now, we will keep domestic animals, donkeys, sheep and goats, but we hope that we will successfully transfer them as well”, said Ževrnja who stressed that the City Council will decide what will replace the zoo on Marjan.
Green Dalmatia and Friends of Animals associations are happy with the decision to close the zoo, but not with the selection of other zoos as destinations for relocation. “We are not satisfied with the fact that new destinations for the animals are other zoos. We would prefer sanctuaries, with ethical principles and quality treatment of animals. We have offered several solutions to the commission”, said Lovro Rumora, a member of the Relocation Commission.
Since the decision was made to close the zoo, which the well-known website Trip Advisor had once described as a torture centre for animals, there are discussions what do to with its location. Some groups support the idea that the jurisdiction of the Public Institution for Management of Marjan should be extended to include the current location of the zoo, and that the city authorities should then make a decision to establish a new institution which would take care of the area, according to advice from an expert commission.
