Ragunan Zoo may get new name

JAKARTA: The management of Ragunan Zoo in South Jakarta is considering changing the zoo's name to the National Animal Park, the director of the Schmutzer Primate Center, Willie Smith, told the city's Beritajakarta.com news portal on Monday.

He said the change in name was based on the fact that the 140- hectare zoo had more visitors, at 3.3 million per year, than the world's largest zoos in Berlin, Germany, and Idaho, the U.S.

Moreover, he added, the zoo, which was founded on Sept. 19, 1864, was among the oldest in the world.

He said the zoo management would set aside special enclosures for the three oldest animals in the facility: a 56-year-old crocodile named Panjang, 59-year-old chimpanzee named Koni and a 47-year-old grizzly bear from Poland. -- JP