Orissa zoo launches special summer menu for animals

May 16th, 2011 - 1:24 pm ICT by IANS  

Bhubaneswar, May 16 (IANS) Authorities in Orissa’s Nandankanan Zoo have introduced a special summer menu to protect animals from the heat wave with the mercury crossing 45 degrees Celsius in the state, officials said.

The menu includes green mango, watermelon, papaya, coconut water and sugarcane juice, zoo deputy director S.N. Mohapatra told IANS.

Besides, the zoo has put straw thatching over the roofs of about 50 enclosures that house birds, primates, lions, tigers, zebra, chimpanzee, orangutans and the reticulated python, he said.

“We are sprinkling water from time to time on the straw thatch roof of these enclosures to keep the animals cool,” he said.

Mohapatra said a group of officials is conducting health checkups of the animals several times during the day and providing necessary treatment if they find any of the animals sick.

Nandankanan, which literally means ‘garden of gods’, was established in 1960 on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar. It is home to more than 1,580 animals, including 634 mammals, 812 birds and 134 reptiles.

Many cities and towns have already recorded temperatures of over 45 degrees Celsius in the past few days, and weather officials say the mercury will only go up further.

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