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Low Season Saturdays and Sundays only from 10 A.M-6 P.M.
As Merida's most visited tourist attraction, it is certainly worth at least a half-day, or more, especially if you are a zoo buff. There is a nice fast food restaurant and picnic area with tables if you choose to bring your own prepared food. The setting is natural, thick with
shade trees, and local vegetation. The site is at the foot of a large mountain
ravine complete with a beautiful natural waterfall, which becomes the Rio
Milla as it cascades and meanders thru the zoo's nearly 15 acres. Founded
in 1953-54 it is part of Cormetur, the government tourist agency. The zoo
is in partnership with a "sister zoo": The Cleveland Metropolitan Zoo,
of Cleveland, Ohio. Quarterly, people from the Cleveland Zoo meet with
the personnel here in Merida to exchange ideas and offer assistance. The
partnership began in
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days
per week 8 A.M-6 P.M. 
In
the N.E. section of Merida, at the end of Avenida Chorros de Milla is the
Parque Zoologico "Chorros de Milla". The Zoo is a State Park. Annually,
the zoo attracts more than 300,000 visitors, making it Venezuela's most
popular Zoo. 
December
1997 and together they are developing two main projects: The first is named:
Oso Frontino and its goal is to build a habitat for this famous
species of this South American Bear (oso). The second project consists
of the design and construction of a large facility for the huge Andean
Condor-complete with visitors seating. Here, the zookeepers will
display and tell about this magnificantly huge bird of prey which is only
found in the Andes Mountains. The overall plan of the Zoo is to display
only those species, both plant and animal, that are native to the region,
and present this in a "rain forest" setting. With the lush natural habitat
that already exists, this should not be difficult.
The
Zoo's Supervisor is Hernando Gordils, a bi-lingual (Spanish/English) professional
who is very serious about his responsibilities to both his "residents"
and visitors. The workers and zookeepers maintain the attraction in tip-top
condition-very clean and attractive. There are 23 employees and many are
"long timers" such as zookeeper: Catalino Dugarte (shown below) who has
worked at the zoo for 11 years. The zookeepers each have their particular
species of responsibility and over time develop trusting relationships
with their animal friends.
