SIGHTSEEINGS
T
he original pedagogical per-
spective and interest in keep-
ing animals in a healthy recre-
ated habitat have survived until
present times under the atten-
tive care of the Princely Palace.
The number of hosted creatures in this unique
Princely menagerie has grown from two dozen
to more than three hundred. That represents
nowadays a community of over sixty different
species, including neglected, donated and ani-
mals seized by customs. Therefore, none of the
exotic birds, turtles, caimans, hippos, reptiles,
primates, farm animals and others have been
purchased. This special urban Zoological Gar-
den is attracting visitors of all ages and nation-
alities who are surprised by the extraordinary
biodiversity you can meet within easy reach
within a one-hectare site. Some rare species
like the Amazonian pygmy marmoset, a small
rainforest monkey, makes the visit even more
intriguing.
In June 2019, the Petting Zoo reopened after
about a one year shutdown mainly due to an
infestation of agave snout weevil, a black bee-
tle able to destroy the agave’s core, that neces-
sitated a complex operation of disinfection
and reforestation by a specialized acrobatic
crew. Now it has all worked out, interesting
new surprises await us all. HelloMonaco in-
terviewed Laurent Peyronel, new director of
the Jardin Animalier, to discover its wonders.
HelloMonaco: Mr Peyronel, what are the driv-
ing forces of today’s zoological garden?
Laurent Peyronel: The Jardin Animalier rep-
resents a charming exotic corner in Monaco’s
urban dimension. Its historical purpose inau-
140 / Hello Monaco Winter 2019–2020
www.hellomonaco.com
Photos: Jean Ronin
gurated by the Sovereign Prince in the 50’s to
recover animals in distress has been converted
relatively soon after into a specific commit-
ment to safeguard endangered species. The
endangered Buffon’s macaws (Central and
South American parrots), for example, stand
testimony to this effort aimed also at rein-
troducing some of them in the natural world
where little more than a thousand survive.
Among the mammals, Pollux, an iconic hip-
popotamus aged 35 dominates over the oth-
ers. Rescued from a circus in the 80’s, Pollux
plays a role as our mascot. But we are hosting
also a wide range of middle and small-size
creatures including reptiles and birds, an in-
tegral part of the Asian, African, and Southern
American fauna.
HM: Which is your preferred animal?
LP: I am close to all the species we host not-
withstanding their size. For sure, I have a rath-
er special affection for Pollux who has been
here so long and has become ‘part of our fam-
ily’.
HM: Did you introduce new features after the
zoological garden temporary closure?
LP: We took the opportunity of that closure to
make some renovations for maintenance. Fur-
thermore, we have built a new South Ameri-
can birdhouse 8-metre high, 16-metre long
and 5-metre wide with a view to host a group
of Peruvian squirrel monkeys and Armadillos
as well as special birds like the Great Green
Macaws and a new entry, the South-American
Red-legged Seriema, all rare species in perfect
cohabitation. This novel display will allow visi-
tors to admire animal species in a larger space
recreating, on a small-scale, an example of di-
versity. That sums up our main mission: to im-
prove existing animals’ conditions more than
accepting new species, and avoiding bigger-
sized species, unlike in the past.
HM: How can you check up on the welfare of
so many species?
LP: Eating properly is the very foundation of
animal health, just as with humans, so we fol-
low precisely the diet protocols, according to
the type of animal. External Zoological Gar-
den vets and myself, as internal vet assistant,
we manage all dietary programmes being
aware that healthy food represents 95 % of
the whole fauna well-being. Moreover, ensur-
ing good hygiene by cleaning the Jardin Ani-
malier every day, is our second must.
HM: What are you expecting for the future?
LP: After completing the management of our
latest project, we would like to network with
other Zoological gardens and liaise with oth-
er international projects for preservation of
the species, in order to take an active role in
conservation to benefit species both in cap-
tivity and in nature. We are already involved
in making visitors aware of the risk of loss of
biodiversity that mostly is the result of human
everyday choices. And we will continue along
these lines with new initiatives like targeted
open-days including also flora being closely
linked to fauna. Visitors seem to enjoy our ef-
forts at being in a mode of constant growth.