About Burgers' Zoo

About Burgers' Zoo


On March 31, 1913, Faisanterie Buitenlust, the forerunner of the current modern animal park Burgers' Zoo, opens its doors to the public for the first time. Since its foundation by Johan Burgers, the first owner and the one who named the animal park in Arnhem, the park has always remained a real family business.


Already from its inception the zoo caused a sensation due to its daring new organisation, which naturally is in the way the animals' accommodations are shaped as well as in the way the experiences for the visitors are created. Burgers' Zoo has a rich history, which has shaped the zoo into the way it is today, and as you can still find it now in the wooded area just north of Arnhem.


Zoos also keep animals to breed with them. This is especially important when it concerns animal species on the brink of extinction and regretfully there are more of those all the time!

For dozens of years zoos have been working together closely to keep these animals from becoming extinct and there are even animals that exist only because of these efforts of the zoos.

Special breeding programs, under which all animal species still present in zoos are listed, must make sure that inbreeding is prevented as much as possible and that its population grows as quickly as possible. About 350 zoos in Europe are involved in this and manage their animals jointly.

For seriously endangered species there is the so-called EEP (European Endangered species Program): these are European breeding programs for which a coordinator sets rules for keeping the animals and whereby he and a number of other experts determine what happens to the animals that are born and which animals are allowed to breed with one another, foremost keeping in mind the prevention of inbreeding. Burgers' has 35 EEP species in its collection. Burgers' coordinates the EEP for Blue Duikers and King Vulture.



In addition there are also species that are less threatened, but which do deserve extra attention. For these there are international stud books, the so-called ESB (European Stud Book), with a Stud Book keeper who carefully registers all present animals and their kind, but who does not give emphatic breeding advice or arranges exchanges.

If a species does not appear to do very well the Stud Book can switch over to an EEP and immediately a stricter policy can be put in place. Burgers' Zoo participates in approximately 30 ESB's and is Stud Book keeper of Aardvarks and Hooded Pittas.




Zoos not only keep animals to give visitors a nice outing, they also want their guests to learn something. The animals do not just represent their wild brethren but also form the connection to their original habitats (biotopes) and the plants and animals that occur there.

Burgers' wants to let its visitors enjoy the sometimes amazing and always fascinating nature by presenting the animals in their natural habitat as much as possible. When visitors get that feeling of amazement an important goal of Burgers' has been reached and its second goal, actively contributing to the protection of nature and the environment, will be a step closer.

In addition, a zoo is an ideal place to further your knowledge in the biology of all those animals (and plants). The basic information for this anyone can get from the information boards at the accommodations, but there are many more possibilities. For instance, there are exhibits, tours, lectures, lessons and practical work and subscribers get a free bi-monthly magazine in which current events are listed with some interesting background information.

So education does not only take place in a classroom! The entire park is engulfed in it. The modern way the park is shaped with its realistic living environments and eco-displays, is the best possible way to get anyone acquainted with the animal and its natural habitat.


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