Warsaw Zoo a Roaring Success With Ingenuity

By GUY DINMORE, Reuters| October 05, 1986

Los Angeles Times

WARSAW — Monkeys have not seen a banana in years, completion of the new bear pit is late because of a lack of concrete, the tigers’ enclosure is crumbling and llamas will be swapped for cheetahs because Warsaw Zoo has no foreign exchange.

But despite a host of problems that would prompt many Western zoo directors to resign in despair, the zoo is flourishing and successfully breeding rare and endangered species.

The difficulties facing Zoo Director Maciej Rembiszewski reflect the crisis in the Polish economy as a whole and illustrate the ingenuity of managers who try to overcome them.