The management of Mysuru zoo is now done with its task of having water sprayers installed in almost all enclosures on the sprawling campus to help animals and birds beat the heat as the mercury levels soar.
The self-operated sprayers are among the works taken up as part of summer management plan by the zoo authorities.
Zoo Executive Director Ajit Kulkarni said, “ We have completed the task of installing water jets in almost all enclosures in the last three years. This was done for the animals to beat the heat as water is sprayed on the animals, particularly the larger ones, and surroundings. There is no dearth of water in the zoo as we have multiple water resources”
With the summer heat picking up in the last several days, slush ponds have also been built in some enclosures where animals get themselves drenched in slush as a “cooling method”. “We create such ponds whenever summer approaches. The slush on the skin protects animals from the heat,” he said.
Seasonal fruits like watermelon, musk melon and grapes, tender coconut, soya bean milk and cucumbers are keeping chimpanzees cool and energised. The zoo needs to focus on the health of chimps, orangutans as they get stressed from heat because their body is covered by thick hairs and therefore their diet needs to be altered for keeping them fit and agile. Tender coconuts are given to chimps four to five times daily besides fruits.
Mr. Kulkarni said frozen fruits are fed to Himalayan black bears which find the weather tough to put up with. Water is sprayed on them inside their holding rooms even as ice blocks are dipped in their pools for making chilled water. Elephants also get special “summer treatment” for keeping them cool. The keepers bathe the jumbos.
Mr. Kulkarni said all necessary precautions are taken to keep the animals cool and fit, and help them beat the heat as summer heat appears to be more this year.
Besides sourcing water from borewells, the zoo harvests nearly 80 crore litres of rainwater annually which includes rainwater that goes into Karanji Lake. There are three mammoth underground storages on the zoo campus that collect harvested rainwater. The zoo has five borewells and none of them have failed so far. The recharged groundwater helps the zoo draw as much water it needs from the borewells without depending much on supply from the Mysuru City Corporation.
The large canopy of greenery and water availability iare key. The zoo is much cooler because of its greenery. The Karanji lake is also full now and there is no dearth of water for animals, Mr. Kulkarni said.
