Korkeasaari
Encyclopedia
Korkeasaari is an island
in Helsinki
, Finland
where the country's biggest zoo
is situated. The English name of the zoo is Helsinki Zoo.
The zoo
is located on a 22 hectares (54.4 acre) rocky island. It's connected to mainland via a bridge to Mustikkamaa, where there is access to the zoo all year round. A ferry and water buses take visitors to the island summertime from Kauppatori
and Hakaniemi
.
Korkeasaari is one of the most popular places among visitors in Helsinki. The animals on display are divided geographically to Amazonia, Africasia and Borealia. Animal species number about two hundred, and plant species about a thousand.
people long before the zoo was founded, since 1569. It was first used as pasture and for fishing. In 19th century, it was used for storing timber. During the Crimean war
, the island was a military area. Helsinki city gained access to it again in 1864 and then the recreational use really started: steam boat traffic was established, and a restaurant together with facilities for dancing, bowling, and picnics were provided.
The zoo was started 1889.
s and bird
s, but even reptile
s, fish
and invertebrate
s are on display. (The Amazonia building has an aquarium department.) No big mammals (elephant
s, giraffe
s, hippopotamus
) are on display, as all warm climate animals must be indoors for wintertime. There is a large collection of big cat
s, and the snow leopard
s born in Korkeasaari are famous.
Two or three times a year the zoo organizes night walks, when visitors can see the big cat
s and other nocturnal animals in their natural waking hours.
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
in Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
where the country's biggest zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
is situated. The English name of the zoo is Helsinki Zoo.
The zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
is located on a 22 hectares (54.4 acre) rocky island. It's connected to mainland via a bridge to Mustikkamaa, where there is access to the zoo all year round. A ferry and water buses take visitors to the island summertime from Kauppatori
Market Square, Helsinki
The Market Square is a central square in Helsinki, Finland, and one of the most famous market places and tourist attractions in the city....
and Hakaniemi
Hakaniemi
Hakaniemi is an unofficial district of Helsinki, the Finnish capital. It is considered a part of the Helsinki city center. Historically, it was often associated with the working class and worker's associations. However, the cost of living has risen considerably in recent years and is now on par...
.
Korkeasaari is one of the most popular places among visitors in Helsinki. The animals on display are divided geographically to Amazonia, Africasia and Borealia. Animal species number about two hundred, and plant species about a thousand.
History
Korkeasaari has been a recreational park for HelsinkiHelsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
people long before the zoo was founded, since 1569. It was first used as pasture and for fishing. In 19th century, it was used for storing timber. During the Crimean war
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
, the island was a military area. Helsinki city gained access to it again in 1864 and then the recreational use really started: steam boat traffic was established, and a restaurant together with facilities for dancing, bowling, and picnics were provided.
The zoo was started 1889.
Collection
The main collection comprises mammalMammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
s and bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s, but even reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
s, fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
and invertebrate
Invertebrate
An invertebrate is an animal without a backbone. The group includes 97% of all animal species – all animals except those in the chordate subphylum Vertebrata .Invertebrates form a paraphyletic group...
s are on display. (The Amazonia building has an aquarium department.) No big mammals (elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
s, giraffe
Giraffe
The giraffe is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest of all extant land-living animal species, and the largest ruminant...
s, hippopotamus
Hippopotamus
The hippopotamus , or hippo, from the ancient Greek for "river horse" , is a large, mostly herbivorous mammal in sub-Saharan Africa, and one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae After the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third largest land mammal and the heaviest...
) are on display, as all warm climate animals must be indoors for wintertime. There is a large collection of big cat
Big cat
The term big cat – which is not a biological classification – is used informally to distinguish the larger felid species from smaller ones. One definition of "big cat" includes the four members of the genus Panthera: the tiger, lion, jaguar, and leopard. Members of this genus are the only cats able...
s, and the snow leopard
Snow Leopard
The snow leopard is a moderately large cat native to the mountain ranges of South Asia and Central Asia...
s born in Korkeasaari are famous.
Two or three times a year the zoo organizes night walks, when visitors can see the big cat
Big cat
The term big cat – which is not a biological classification – is used informally to distinguish the larger felid species from smaller ones. One definition of "big cat" includes the four members of the genus Panthera: the tiger, lion, jaguar, and leopard. Members of this genus are the only cats able...
s and other nocturnal animals in their natural waking hours.