 The zoo was founded by Aharon Shulov, a professor of zoology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus.Among Shulov's goals were to provide a research facility for his students; to gather animals, reptiles and birds mentioned in the Bible; and, as he wrote in 1951, to break down the "invisible wall" between the intellectuals on Mount Scopus and the general public.Early on, the zoo ran into several difficulties in its decision to focus on animals mentioned in the Bible.