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Our
State/April 1999/1,560 words
For
The Day, Asheboro
Where
The Wild Things Are
Asheboro's
Attractions Start With The Zoo
By
Ralph Grizzle
In
1701, explorer John Lawson crossed the Uwharrie River into a Keyauwee
Indian village. "Nature hath so fortify'd the Town with Mountains,
that were it a Great Seat of War, it might easily be made impregnable,
having large cornfields joining to their cabins, and a Savanna
near the Town, at the foot of these Mountains, that is capable
of keeping some hundreds of heads of Cattle," Lawson wrote
in "A New Voyage to Carolina," published in 1709.
The
intrepid explorer mentions a cave that "100 Men sit very
conveniently to dine in," and of "high cliffs with no
grass on them, and very few trees," and of the Keyauwee making
use "of red ore to paint their Faces withal, which they get
in the Neighboring Mountains."
The
Keyauwee are long gone. Their cornfields and cabins exist only
on the printed pages of John Lawson's diary. But the mountains
and rolling hills where the Keyauwee made their home remain and
are now the domain of a species more ancient than man, a species
whose denizens make up "kingdom Animalia."
Monkey
See, Monkey Do
Six
miles southeast of Asheboro, the North Carolina Zoological Park
sits on 1,450 acres skirting the eastern edge of the Uwharries.
Where Native Americans once walked, exotic animals now roam. And
they roam more freely here than in most other zoos in the world.
That's because Randolph County's rolling hills make for ideal
natural habitats, where animals move about unrestricted by fences
and steel bars.
Back
when the Zoo was being established, the concept of natural habitats
was just beginning to catch on. A study at Great Britain's Jersey
Zoo had tested visitor reaction to two monkey exhibits, an old-style
barred cage and a large natural habitat, where the monkeys were
allowed to roam freely.
Asked
which they preferred, visitors chose the old-style cage, because
the monkeys were much easier to see. But when asked which type
of exhibit the zoo should build, they chose the natural habitat,
because they saw it as being better for the animals.
In
the early planning stages of the Asheboro site, planners set out
to build the world's first zoo to be designed from its inception
as a natural habitat That's why North Carolina Zoo's flora and
fauna exist much as they would be found in the wild. "The
basic idea is to match the needs of the animals with the needs
of visitors," says Randy Fulk, curator of research at the
North Carolina Zoological Park. "The goal is to make the
visitor feel a part of the animal's natural habitat without intimidating
the animal. That is a tricky balance."
Zoo
designers employed many techniques to put animals within view
of visitors. By placing feeding pads in front of the overlooks
at the Zoo's North America Prairie, designers ensured that the
Bison and Elk would linger near visitors, Fulk says. At the Zoo's
Forest Glade, gorillas are drawn closer to winter visitors by
heating units placed directly above the viewing windows.
And
when it is completed in the fall of 2000, the newly renovated
chimpanzee exhibit will include tall climbing structures to encourage
activity within view of visitors. To provide Zoo guests with an
up-close and personal look, the exhibit will also feature a new
viewing window in which a hill just inside the glass will lift
the chimps slightly above visitors.
From
this superior position, Fulk says, the chimps will feel more secure,
which will encourage them to stay by the glass. "Elevating
the chimps should also benefit Zoo education," he says, "since
looking up to see an animal has been shown to increase the respect
people feel toward that animal."
New
At The Zoo
This
year, the North Carolina Zoological Park celebrates its 25th
anniversary. On opening day, August 2, 1974, the so-called "Interim
Zoo" comprised only 40 acres. Today, it spans 500 of the
Zoo's total 1,450 acres.
The
Zoo's African habitats stretch over 300 acres and feature nine
large outdoor exhibits for animals such as lions, zebras, ostriches,
baboons, chimpanzees, rhinos and elephants. All the exhibits are
landscaped to resemble Africa's savannas, rocky plateaus, forest
edges and jungle clearings.
The
scene is so realistic that one seven-year-old Zoo visitor asked,
"Where do you get all those big rocks?" The answer was
that Zoo staff artists build most. They begin by forming the rock
from steel bars, wire mesh and concrete, then carve the concrete
and mold it by hand. After their design hardens, the artists spray
paint or brush the rocks to resemble lichens and other patterns.
The
Zoo's North American habitat occupies the remaining 200 acres.
Alligators bask in the Cypress Swamp exhibit; Polar bears swim
the waters of the Rocky Coast; Bison roam the grassy expanse of
the Prairie. There's even an indoor Sonora Desert with saguaro
cactus, roadrunners, rattlesnakes and tarantulas.
With
more than 1,100 animals and 60,000 plants, the sheer size of the
Zoo prompted one curious nine-year-old to ask: What do you do
with the manure? It's composted, of course, to the tune of 2,130,000
pounds last year.
Questions
like these are welcomed at the Zoo. The thrust today, as was the
case when the Zoo opened, is to immerse visitors into the environment
of plants and animals so that they leave with a deeper understanding
and appreciation of the diversity of life on the planet.
To
keep the learning experience fresh, the Zoo is almost always renovating
old exhibits and adding new ones.
Spring
visitors to the Zoo's Elephant Exhibit, for example, will find
an improved overlook. What they may not notice is that the containment
area has been strengthened to keep the elephants from harassing
the rhinos. It may not seem like a big deal, but it's all designed
to make a visit to the Zoo pleasant.
Among
the major renovations, the R.J. Reynolds Forest Aviary will reopen
summer of 2000, when the mournful call of the Sun Bittern and
the flashy plumage of the Scarlet Ibis will once again greet visitors.
The Aviary is getting a new heating and air conditioning system,
and new drainage, but there will also be some improvements in
the indoor forest itself. The forest gets new topsoil and some
new plants.
The
Zoo's horticulture staff spent months preparing to move existing
plants to two newly built "polyhouses" or protecting
those plants that had to stay. "We didn't want to lose the
canopy that had grown for 16 years," says Virginia Wall,
curator of horticulture. So the trees that make up the canopy
stayed.
Despite
the staff's best efforts to save the canopy, two of the nine large
fig trees were lost to construction. They will be replaced by
such exotic tropical hardwoods as West Indian Mahogany; African
Mahogany; Lignum Vitae, a rare South American hardwood; and South
American Sapodilla, the source of chicle, which was used in manufacturing
chewing gum.
In
addition to new plants, the Zoo is acquiring new animals. Newcomers
include
two
young gorillas, transferred to the Park as part of a national
breeding program for endangered species. Curtis, age 4, and Charlie,
2, hail from the Buffalo Zoo. The young males are being gradually
introduced to two adult female gorillas already living at the
Zoo.
Another
newcomer is a cougar cub, rescued from by the Michigan Humane
Society. The young male was found living in a crate in an unoccupied
building in downtown Detroit. The cub joins a one-year-old male
cougar, which coincidentally was rescued by the Michigan Anticruelty
Society from an animal auction there.
And
this year, the Zoo invites a $1 million touring display called,
Big Bugs! It features six-foot to 12-foot state-of-the-art robotic
insects in equally oversized settings, interactive educational
modules and a collection of more than 500 insect specimens from
around the world. The exhibit runs April 1 through September 30.
Outside
The Zoo
While
a visit to the Zoo can take the better part of the day, you will
want to find time to visit the other sites in Asheboro. They include
the American Classic Motorcycle museum, featuring more than six
decades of motorcycle history. The exhibit includes Harley Davidson
bikes representing each era from 1936 to the present, both in
original and restored condition.
For
classic aircraft enthusiasts and World War II buffs, the Peddicord
Air Museum features 11 full-sized aircraft flown by American pilots
during wars of this century. The collection also contains about
100 model airplanes used in wars. World War II military cars,
uniforms and guns round out the collection.
Finally,
if you just want to get away from it all, there's the Uwharrie
National Forest. You're not likely to run up on any of the Keyauwee
that John Lawson encountered, but all that mesmerized him is still
there, and almost as pristine as it was when he first laid eyes
on it. END
BOX:
If You're Going
American
Classic Motorcycle Museum
Located
on US 64 West of Asheboro.
For more information, call (336) 629-9564
Peddicord
Air Museum
Housed in a hangar at the Asheboro Municipal Airport.
For
more information, call (336) 625-0170
North
Carolina Zoological Park
Six
miles southeast of Asheboro on N.C. 159
For more information, call 800-488-0444 or visit www.nczoo.org
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