1.
Bird
–
Birds, a subgroup of Reptiles, are the last living examples of Dinosaurs. Birds live worldwide and range in size from the 5 cm bee hummingbird to the 2.75 m ostrich. They rank as the class of tetrapods with the most living species, at ten thousand. Birds are the closest living relatives of crocodilians, the fossil record indicates that birds evolved from feathered ancestors within the theropod group of saurischian dinosaurs. True birds first appeared during the Cretaceous period, around 100 million years ago, Birds, especially those in the southern continents, survived this event and then migrated to other parts of the world while diversifying during periods of global cooling. Primitive bird-like dinosaurs that lie outside class Aves proper, in the broader group Avialae, have been found dating back to the mid-Jurassic period, around 170 million years ago. Birds have wings which are more or less developed depending on the species, the digestive and respiratory systems of birds are also uniquely adapted for flight. Some bird species of aquatic environments, particularly seabirds and some waterbirds, have evolved for swimming. Many species annually migrate great distances, Birds are social, communicating with visual signals, calls, and bird songs, and participating in such social behaviours as cooperative breeding and hunting, flocking, and mobbing of predators. The vast majority of species are socially monogamous, usually for one breeding season at a time, sometimes for years. Other species have breeding systems that are polygynous or, rarely, Birds produce offspring by laying eggs which are fertilised through sexual reproduction. They are usually laid in a nest and incubated by the parents, most birds have an extended period of parental care after hatching. Some birds, such as hens, lay eggs even when not fertilised, songbirds, parrots, and other species are popular as pets. Guano is harvested for use as a fertiliser, Birds prominently figure throughout human culture. About 120–130 species have become extinct due to human activity since the 17th century, human activity threatens about 1,200 bird species with extinction, though efforts are underway to protect them. Recreational birdwatching is an important part of the ecotourism industry, the first classification of birds was developed by Francis Willughby and John Ray in their 1676 volume Ornithologiae. Carl Linnaeus modified that work in 1758 to devise the taxonomic classification system currently in use, Birds are categorised as the biological class Aves in Linnaean taxonomy. Phylogenetic taxonomy places Aves in the dinosaur clade Theropoda, Aves and a sister group, the clade Crocodilia, contain the only living representatives of the reptile clade Archosauria
2.
Birdcage
–
A birdcage is a cage designed to house birds as pets. Good quality cages designed for pet birds are more suitable, in general, the larger and the more active the bird, the larger the cage one should use. The amount of time the bird will spend in the each day is also a factor. A bird that is caged most of the time far more space than a bird caged only at night. Amazons and cockatiels prefer horizontal bars, as they like to climb, messy eaters should have a seed skirt to catch food. Breeding birds may require a nest or breeding box and a larger size cage, smart birds, like parrots and crows, need secure latching mechanisms to prevent them from figuring them out, and often require toys and/or play-stands to keep them entertained. Parrots in general tend to gnaw on cages, with larger macaws known to tear bars from flimsy cages, zinc coated cages or chicken wire could cause toxicity to parrots over a number of years. Most parrot cages are made of iron and painted with a non-toxic paint referred to as powder-coating. A newer trend is cages made of stainless steel. Large parrot cages made of steel are costly but will outlast a powder-coated cage by 5 to 6 times. The materials used to build the cages greatly affect the price, while small cages are relatively cheap, large parrot-sized cages are expensive. A cage for a pet bird which is allowed out daily should be large enough to allow it to easily extend its wings fully without hitting cage sides or toys or objects within the cage. In some countries, it is illegal to house a pet bird in a cage that does not permit it to spread its wings. Wingspans of common pet birds range from approximately 30 cm for a budgie and 41 cm for a cockatiel up to as much as 91–122 cm for the larger macaws, rectangular cages have replaced rounded cages due to the damaged wings caused by non bird friendly round cages. Untamed birds which are not allowed out of their cages regularly, such as most finches and canaries, the bars should be spaced so that curious birds cannot stick their heads out of the cage and become stuck. The cage should also have non-toxic paint, because birds tend to gnaw at the cage, cages should also be equipped with appropriate perches. There should be several diameters of perches available, but the diameter should be enough so that the birds toes are unable to overlap or completely wrap around the perch. Flight cages and aviaries should be equipped with perches at each end with space in the middle for flight
3.
Zoo
–
A zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also breed. The term zoological garden refers to zoology, the study of animals, the abbreviation zoo was first used of the London Zoological Gardens, which was opened for scientific study in 1828 and to the public in 1857. The number of animal collections open to the public around the world now exceeds to 1,000. In the United States of America alone, zoos are visited by over 180 million people annually, London Zoo, which opened in 1826, first called itself a menagerie or zoological forest, which is short for Gardens and Menagerie of the Zoological Society of London. The term zoological park was used for more facilities in Washington, D. C. and the Bronx in New York. Relatively new terms for zoos coined in the late 20th century are conservation park or biopark, adopting a new name is a strategy used by some zoo professionals to distance their institutions from the stereotypical and nowadays criticized zoo concept of the 19th century. The term biopark was first coined and developed by the National Zoo in Washington D. C. in the late 1980s, in 1993, the New York Zoological Society changed its name to the Wildlife Conservation Society and rebranded the zoos under its jurisdiction as wildlife conservation parks. The predecessor of the garden is the menagerie, which has a long history from the ancient world to modern times. The oldest known collection was revealed during excavations at Hierakonpolis, Egypt in 2009. The exotic animals included hippopotami, hartebeest, elephants, baboons, King Ashur-bel-kala of the Middle Assyrian Empire created zoological and botanical gardens in the 11th century BCE. In the 2nd century BCE, the Chinese Empress Tanki had a house of deer built, other well-known collectors of animals included King Solomon of the Kingdom of Israel and Judah, queen Semiramis and King Ashurbanipal of Assyria, and King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia. By the 4th century BCE, zoos existed in most of the Greek city states, the Roman emperors kept private collections of animals for study or for use in the arena, the latter faring notoriously poorly. The 19th-century historian W. E. H. Lecky wrote of the Roman games, first held in 366 BCE, At one time, a bear, four hundred bears were killed in a single day under Caligula. Under Nero, four hundred tigers fought with bulls and elephants, in a single day, at the dedication of the Colosseum by Titus, five thousand animals perished. Lions, tigers, elephants, rhinoceroses, hippopotami, giraffes, bulls, stags, even crocodiles, henry I of England kept a collection of animals at his palace in Woodstock, which reportedly included lions, leopards, and camels. The most prominent collection in medieval England was in the Tower of London and it was opened to the public during the reign of Elizabeth I in the 16th century. During the 18th century, the price of admission was three half-pence, or the supply of a cat or dog for feeding to the lions, the animals were moved to the London Zoo when it opened. The oldest zoo in the still in existence is the Tiergarten Schönbrunn in Vienna
4.
London Zoo
–
London Zoo is the worlds oldest scientific zoo. It was opened in London on April 27,1828, and was intended to be used as a collection for scientific study. In 1832 the animals of the Tower of London menagerie were transferred to the zoos collection and it was eventually opened to the public in 1847. Today it houses a collection of 698 species of animals, with 20,166 individuals, the zoo is sometimes called Regents Zoo. The Society also has a spacious site at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire to which the larger animals such as elephants. As well as being the first scientific zoo, ZSL London Zoo also opened the first Reptile house, first public Aquarium, first insect house, ZSL receives no state funding and relies on Fellows and Friends memberships, entrance fees and sponsorship to generate income. After his death the third Marquis of Lansdowne took over the project, the zoo opened in April 1828 to fellows of the Society, providing access to species such as Arabian oryx, greater kudus, orangutan and the now extinct quagga and thylacine. The Society was granted a Royal Charter in 1829 by King George IV and he set about a major reorganisation of the buildings and enclosures of the zoo, bringing many of the animals out into the open, where many thrived. This was an inspired by Hamburg Zoo, and led to newer designs to many of the buildings. Mitchell also envisaged a new 600-acre park to the north of London, in 1931 Whipsnade Wild Animal Park opened, becoming the worlds first open zoological park. The first woman to be a curator at the London Zoo was Evelyn Cheesman, in 1962, Caroline, an Arabian oryx, was lent to Phoenix Zoo, Arizona in the worlds first international co-operative breeding programme. Today the zoo participates in breeding programmes for over 130 species, at the beginning of the 1990s, the zoo had almost 7,000 animals, the nearest any other collection came to in Britain was Chester Zoo, with just under 3,500 animals. Many of the species in London Zoo could not be anywhere else in the country, such as the wombat. Although this vast collection was part of the appeal, it may also have been one of the main causes of its financial problems. This contributed to the zoo being faced with closure in the 1980s, due to the public change of attitude to animals kept in captivity and unsuitably cramped space, the zoo also suffered dwindling visitor numbers. One benefit of the swell of support was the development of volunteer staff. Employed by both Education and Animal care, these volunteers give one day a week to assist the running of London Zoo and can be recognised by their red pullovers. On September 27,1940, high explosive bombs damaged the Rodent house, the Civet house, the office, the propagating sheds, the North Gate
5.
National Zoological Park (United States)
–
The National Zoological Park, commonly known as the National Zoo, is one of the oldest zoos in the United States. It is part of the Smithsonian Institution and does not charge for admission, founded in 1889, its mission is to provide engaging experiences with animals and create and share knowledge to save wildlife and habitats. The National Zoo has two campuses, the first is an 163-acre urban park located in Northwest Washington, D. C. that is 20 minutes from the National Mall by Metro. The other campus is the 3, 200-acre Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, on this land, there are 180 species of trees,850 species of woody shrubs and herbaceous plants,40 species of grasses, and 36 different species of bamboo. The SCBI is a facility devoted to training wildlife professionals in conservation biology and to propagating rare species through natural means. The National Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, altogether, the two facilities host about 1,800 animals of 300 different species. About one-fifth of them are endangered or threatened, most species are on exhibit at the Zoos Rock Creek Park campus. The best known residents are the giant pandas, but the zoo is home to birds, great apes, big cats, Asian elephants, insects, amphibians, reptiles, aquatic animals, small mammals. The SCBI facility houses between 30 and 40 endangered species at any time depending on research needs and recommendations from the zoo. The zoo was one of the first to establish a research program. Because it is a part of the Smithsonian Institution, the National Zoo receives federal appropriations for operating expenses, a new master plan for the park was introduced in 2008 to upgrade the parks exhibits and layout. The National Zoo is open day of the year except for December 25. The zoo first started as the National Museums Department of Living Animals in 1886, by an act of Congress in 1889, for the advancement of science and the instruction and recreation of the people the National Zoo was created. In 1890, it became a part of the Smithsonian Institution, william Temple Hornaday was the curator of all 185 animals when the park was first opened. Together, they designed a new zoo to animals for the public and to serve as a refuge for wildlife, such as bison and beaver. For the first 50 years, the National Zoo, like most zoos around the world, the number of many species in the wild began to decline drastically because of human activities. In 1899, the Kansas frontiersman Charles Buffalo Jones captured a bighorn sheep for the zoo, the fate of animals and plants became a pressing concern. Many of these species were favorite zoo animals, such as elephants and tigers, hence the staff began to concentrate on the long-term management, in the mid-1950s, the zoo hired its first full-time permanent veterinarian, reflecting a priority placed on professional health care for the animals
6.
Jurong Bird Park
–
Jurong Bird Park is an aviary and tourist attraction in Jurong, Singapore. The bird park, managed by Wildlife Reserves Singapore, covers an area of 0.2 square kilometres on the slope of Jurong Hill. It was reported by Wildlife Reserves Singapore on 1 June 2016 that Jurong Bird Park will cease operation, as for now, operation resumes normally. The idea of a permanent aviary was first conceived by the late Dr Goh Keng Swee, then Minister for Finance, during a World Bank Meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Dr Goh visited its zoological garden and was impressed with its free-flight aviary. He set out to ensure that Singaporeans would have a place where they could escape from urban life, work on the aviary started in January 1969. A35 acre site, on the slope of Bukit Peropok in Jurong, was chosen for the project. The bird park was expected to be completed by the end of 1969, on 3 January 1971, Jurong Bird Park, built at a cost of S$3.5 million, was opened to the public. Jurong Bird Park is now a bird zoo where there are specimens of magnificent bird life from around the world. It is currently the worlds largest bird park in terms of the number of birds, there are 5,000 birds of 400 species in Jurong Bird Park, of which 29 are of threatened species. In 2006, Jurong Bird Park completed a S$10 million makeover, with the upgrading, the park boasts a new entrance plaza, a park-owned and managed Bongo Burgers restaurant, an ice cream parlour, a gift shop and a bird hospital. The African Waterfall Aviary is the second largest walk-in aviary in the world, covering 2 hectares, the aviary is named after the 30-metre tall Jurong Falls, one of the worlds tallest man-made waterfalls. Species include the starling, turacos and the hoopoe. In one corner of the zoo there is a full of flightless birds, ostriches, emus, rheas. Visitors can see the largest collection of Southeast Asian birds, which has over 200 species, there are large, central walk-in aviaries and peripheral aviaries housing the more delicate and territorial birds. A thunderstorm is simulated at noon day, followed by a cool. Territorial species are kept in cages, while species that can coexist with each other are left to roam freely in the aviary. About nine storeys high and covering 3,000 square metres, the ambience is similar to that of a rainforest valley in tropical Northern Australia. Visitors can offer the lories a special nectar mix, houses five species of penguins within 1,600 square metres
7.
Singapore
–
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, sometimes referred to as the Lion City or the Little Red Dot, is a sovereign city-state in Southeast Asia. It lies one degree north of the equator, at the tip of peninsular Malaysia. Singapores territory consists of one island along with 62 other islets. Since independence, extensive land reclamation has increased its size by 23%. During the Second World War, Singapore was occupied by Japan, after early years of turbulence, and despite lacking natural resources and a hinterland, the nation developed rapidly as an Asian Tiger economy, based on external trade and its workforce. Singapore is a global commerce, finance and transport hub, the country has also been identified as a tax haven. Singapore ranks 5th internationally and first in Asia on the UN Human Development Index and it is ranked highly in education, healthcare, life expectancy, quality of life, personal safety, and housing, but does not fare well on the Democracy index. Although income inequality is high, 90% of homes are owner-occupied, 38% of Singapores 5.6 million residents are permanent residents and other foreign nationals. There are four languages on the island, Malay, Mandarin, Tamil. English is its language, most Singaporeans are bilingual. Singapore is a multiparty parliamentary republic, with a Westminster system of unicameral parliamentary government. The Peoples Action Party has won every election since self-government in 1959, however, it is unlikely that lions ever lived on the island, Sang Nila Utama, the Srivijayan prince said to have founded and named the island Singapura, perhaps saw a Malayan tiger. There are however other suggestions for the origin of the name, the central island has also been called Pulau Ujong as far back as the third century CE, literally island at the end in Malay. In 1299, according to the Malay Annals, the Kingdom of Singapura was founded on the island by Sang Nila Utama and these Indianized Kingdoms, a term coined by George Cœdès were characterized by surprising resilience, political integrity and administrative stability. In 1613, Portuguese raiders burned down the settlement, which by then was part of the Johor Sultanate. The wider maritime region and much trade was under Dutch control for the following period, in 1824 the entire island, as well as the Temenggong, became a British possession after a further treaty with the Sultan. In 1826, Singapore became part of the Straits Settlements, under the jurisdiction of British India, prior to Raffles arrival, there were only about a thousand people living on the island, mostly indigenous Malays along with a handful of Chinese. By 1860 the population had swelled to over 80,000, many of these early immigrants came to work on the pepper and gambier plantations
8.
Pittsburgh
–
Pittsburgh is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the United States, and is the county seat of Allegheny County. The city proper has a population of 304,391. The metropolitan population of 2,353,045 is the largest in both the Ohio Valley and Appalachia, the second-largest in Pennsylvania, and the 26th-largest in the U. S. The city features 30 skyscrapers, two inclines, a fortification and the Point State Park at the confluence of the rivers. Aside from steel, Pittsburgh has led in manufacturing of aluminum, glass, shipbuilding, petroleum, foods, sports, transportation, computing, autos, and electronics. For part of the 20th century, Pittsburgh was behind only New York and Chicago in corporate headquarters employment, Americas 1980s deindustrialization laid off area blue-collar workers and thousands of downtown white-collar workers when the longtime Pittsburgh-based world headquarters moved out. The area has served also as the federal agency headquarters for cyber defense, software engineering, robotics, energy research. The area is home to 68 colleges and universities, including research and development leaders Carnegie Mellon University, the region is a hub for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, sustainable energy, and energy extraction. Pittsburgh was named in 1758 by General John Forbes, in honor of British statesman William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham. The current pronunciation, which is unusual in English speaking countries, is almost certainly a result of a printing error in some copies of the City Charter of March 18,1816. The error was repeated commonly enough throughout the rest of the 19th century that the pronunciation was lost. After a public campaign the original spelling was restored by the United States Board on Geographic Names in 1911. The area of the Ohio headwaters was long inhabited by the Shawnee, the first known European to enter the region was the French explorer/trader Robert de La Salle from Quebec during his 1669 expedition down the Ohio River. European pioneers, primarily Dutch, followed in the early 18th century, Michael Bezallion was the first to describe the forks of the Ohio in a 1717 manuscript, and later that year European fur traders established area posts and settlements. In 1749, French soldiers from Quebec launched an expedition to the forks to unite Canada with French Louisiana via the rivers, during 1753–54, the British hastily built Fort Prince George before a larger French force drove them off. The French built Fort Duquesne based on LaSalles 1669 claims, the French and Indian War, the North American front of the Seven Years War, began with the future Pittsburgh as its center. British General Edward Braddock was dispatched with Major George Washington as his aide to take Fort Duquesne, the British and colonial force were defeated at Braddocks Field. General John Forbes finally took the forks in 1758, Forbes began construction on Fort Pitt, named after William Pitt the Elder while the settlement was named Pittsborough
9.
National Aviary
–
The National Aviary, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is the only independent indoor nonprofit aviary in the United States. It is also the countrys largest aviary, and the only accorded honorary National status by the United States Congress, the aviary is home to over 500 birds representing more than 150 species, and is a member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. The National Aviary is located at 700 Arch Street on Pittsburghs Northside, the National Aviary is open daily except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, and Christmas. Although some of the birds must be fed in private, almost all feedings are scheduled to be viewable by visitors, since 1999, annual attendance has consistently topped 100,000. The National Aviary has daily interactive experiences for visitors and these programs are joined by various trainer talks, bird presentations, feedings, and encounters that help to create an immersive experience for visitors. In the fall of 2010, the National Aviary completed an $18.5 million expansion and renovation project included the opening of a new café, classrooms. The theater is home to Wings. an indoor-avian adventure featuring flighted birds. The Helen M. Schmidt Theater is the first indoor theater in the nation built specifically for bird shows, the aviary also began outdoor shows from its new Sky Deck, featuring live flight demonstrations of eagles, falcons and kites out over West Park. The aviary is home to more than 500 birds of more than 150 species and it has one of the most diverse collections in North America. As a result, the aviary has many species that are found in other zoos or aviaries, for example, green-backed trogon, scarlet-headed blackbird. Among the most popular residents are Benito the hyacinth macaw and his roommate, both are trained, and perform at occasional educational exhibitions. The aviary has also had success in breeding, its spectacled owls had their first chick, named Franklin, Franklin can be seen in one of the aviarys exhibits. The National Aviary also takes part in breeding programs designed to increase the numbers of endangered birds in captivity including the Bali mynah, the Guam kingfisher, and its first two African penguin chicks hatched in February 2012. On March 13,2013, the aviary celebrated another success of its program, when a female Eurasian owlet hatched. In 1967 an expansion that included the wetlands room increased space to 25,000 square feet, Pittsburghs dwindling urban tax base forced the city to cease funding the institution in 1991. In 1991, neighborhood leaders founded Save the Aviary, Inc. and began a public campaign to raise money. Jill Sims, a volunteer at the Aviary, became the first chairperson of the organization. Mark P. Masterson, a Northside community leader, developed a plan and secured funding from the Buhl Foundation to produce a capital improvement plan
10.
Urban park
–
The design, operation and maintenance is usually done by government, typically on the local level, but may occasionally be contracted out to a private sector company. A park is an area of space provided for recreational use. Grass is typically kept short to discourage insect pests and to allow for the enjoyment of picnics, trees are chosen for their beauty and to provide shade. An early purpose-built public park, although financed privately, was Princes Park in the Liverpool suburb of Toxteth and this was laid out to the designs of Joseph Paxton from 1842 and opened in 1843. The land on which the park was built was purchased by Richard Vaughan Yates, the creation of Princes Park showed great foresight and introduced a number of highly influential ideas. First and foremost was the provision of space for the benefit of townspeople. Nashs remodelling of St Jamess Park from 1827 and the sequence of processional routes he created to link The Mall with Regents Park completely transformed the appearance of Londons West End. Liverpool had a presence on the scene of global maritime trade before 1800. The latter was commenced in 1843 with the help of public finance, frederick Law Olmsted visited Birkenhead Park in 1850 and praised its qualities. Indeed, Paxton is widely credited as having one of the principal influences on Olmsted. Another early public park is the Peel Park, Salford, England opened on 22 August 1846, in The Politics of Park Design, A History of Urban Parks in America, Professor Galen Cranz identifies four phases of park design in the U. S. As time passed and the area grew around the parks, land in these parks was used for other purposes, such as zoos, golf courses. These parks continue to draw visitors from around the region and are considered regional parks, because they require a higher level of management than smaller local parks. According to the Trust for Public Land, the three most visited parks in the United States are Central Park in New York, Lincoln Park in Chicago. In the early 1900s, according to Cranz, U. S. cities built neighborhood parks with swimming pools, playgrounds and civic buildings and these smaller parks were built in residential neighborhoods, and tried to serve all residents with programs for seniors, adults, teens and children. Green space was of secondary importance, as urban land prices climbed, new urban parks in the 1960s and after have been mainly pocket parks. One such example of a park is Chess Park in Glendale. This award-winning park was given an award by the American Society of Landscape Architects and these small parks provide greenery, a place to sit outdoors, and often a playground for children
