A different nature : the paradoxical world of zoos and their uncertain future
"Humanity has had an enduring desire for close contact with exotic animals - from the Egyptian kings who kept thousands of animals, including monkeys, wild cats, hyenas, giraffes, and oryx, to the enormously popular zoological parks of today. This book, the most extensive history of zoos yet published, is a fascinating look at the origins, evolution, and - most importantly - the future of zoos." "David Hancocks, an architect and zoo director for thirty years, is passionately opposed to the poor standards that have prevailed and still exist in many zoos. He reviews the history of zoos in light of their failures and successes and points the way toward a more humane approach, one that will benefit both the animals and the humans who visit them. This book, replete with illustrations and full of moving stories about wild animals in captivity, shows that we have only just begun to realize zoos' enormous potential for good"--Publisher's description
Print Book, English, ©2001
University of California Press, Berkeley, ©2001
History
xxii, 279 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
9780520218796, 9780520236769, 0520218795, 0520236769
45276533
List of Illustrations Preface Acknowledgments 1. Collections as Status 2. The Eighteenth-Century Concept 3. The Nineteenth-Century Phenomenon 4. Romanticists and Modernists 5. Toward New Frontiers 6. Immersed in the Landscape 7. Agents of Conservation 8. Which Way the Future? Epilogue Bibliography Illustration Credits Index