Thiruvananthapuram Zoo

The Thiruvananthapuram Zoo spreads over 55 acres of woodland, lakes and lawns in Kerala's capital and is among the oldest zoos in India. Its roots lie with Swathi Thirunal, ruler of Travancore from 1830 to 1846, who kept tigers, panthers, cheetahs, bears and a lioness in a menagerie at his stables. His brother Uthram Thirunal and the British Resident, General Cullen, later set up the Napier Museum, opened in 1857; when it failed to draw enough visitors on its own, a zoo and park were added in 1859.

First built with iron-barred cages for entertainment, the zoo has since turned towards conservation, and from 1995 the old cages have been steadily replaced by roomier naturalistic enclosures with Central Zoo Authority support. Among its 82 species are the Asiatic lion, Bengal and white tigers, leopard, Indian rhinoceros, gaur, lion-tailed macaque and Nilgiri langur, with hippos and zebras from Africa. The Reptile House holds king cobras, pythons and green anacondas.