What’s the most popular zoo in Japan? I think lots of people would answer “Ueno Zoo,” which is particularly well-known for its pandas. But there is a zoo in Hokkaido that is also very popular and attracts many visitors including tourists from overseas. The Asahiyama Zoo is Japan’s most northerly located zoo. Last year it recorded the top number of visitors in July—more than 220,000—which attests to its popularity. Why is the Asahiyama Zoo so popular?

The Asahiyama Zoo is different from other zoos in many respects. In general, the exhibits at most zoos are set up to “display” the animals so visitors can see how they look. But the exhibits at the Asahiyama have been created to focus on how the animals “behave,” in other words visitors can get an idea about how each species lives and watch their various behavioral patterns.
For example, the orangutan is an animal that lives in the treetops about 30 meters from the ground. To bring out the orangutan’s natural instinct and show visitors how it behaves in the wild, a horizontal ladder was built 17 meters from the ground with loops of ropes hanging from it and a tightrope below so that the orangutans hang on to the loops and cross over the tightrope to get their food. The height of the ladder and tightrope give visitors a good view of the speed of movement and interesting actions of the orangutan that couldn’t be seen if they were near the ground.

The efforts and original ideas that have been implemented by the staff at the Asahiyama Zoo are other reasons that it has become so popular. Although the animals live in captivity, the staff has done a number of things to ensure that they are able to relax and live in an environment that approximates their natural environment. The staff also has thought up ways to enhance the enjoyment of visitors. One of these is the colorful handmade sign boards that are handwritten describing how each animal lives and giving visitors other interesting information about them. These efforts bring visitors, staff, and the animals closer together. The Asahiyama Zoo is unique and its much-talked-about distinctive features inspire visitors to want to come again.

National Zoo of Malaysia (Zoo Negara) is managed by the Malaysian Zoological Society, a non-governmental organization established to create the first local zoo for Malaysians. Zoo Negara was officially opened on November 14, 1963 and has matured into a well-known zoo all around the world. We have a total of over 5,137 specimens from 476 species of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish.

Zoo Negara covers 110 acres of land which is situated only 5 km from the city of Kuala Lumpur. Over the years, the zoo has transformed itself to an open concept zoo with over 90% of its animals being kept in spacious exhibits with landscape befitting its nature. The old concept of zoo is changed entirely.

 The Zoo is home to almost 5,000 animals from 400 different species, and most of them are placed in spacious exhibit areas. The Zoo is large too, so be prepared to walk a bit, and brings a lot of water especially if you have kids in tow. One advice is to plan where and what your family would like to see and visit the most, and which exhibits and attractions to skip. Plan your trip around the Zoo as soon as you enter the gates.

If you take the path on the right, you’ll be greeted by the many monkeys and apes. Then you’ll reach the Animal Show Theater, but be careful, the shows are also limited to only two shows per day, at 11am and 3pm.

Next, there will be the Penguins' aquarium, before entering the Tunku Abdul Rahman Aquarium. You can skip this, as the old aquarium's building is quite small, cramped, suffocating, stuffy and unsuitable for children. Walk a bit more and you will discover the Bear Complex, and see the bears having fun and relaxing under the sun. By this time and distance, you should already be feeling the heat, so take a rest at the kiosks.

When you do continue, try not to miss the Savannah Walk, a large open concept exhibition area created like the safari, which is home to giraffes, zebras and antelopes. But some of the animals might be lazy and would prefer to sleep anyway, but you will appreciate the unique Savannah area which makes you feel the animals are close by, instead of them being in cages.

When you approach the Cat Walk area, if you're lucky, you might hear the roars of the tigers and the lions. Naturally, this is the main attraction of Zoo Negara, and the exhibit area is so crowded. Take your time here, be patient, and you will find a nice spot to view the tigers and lions, or wait for them to come near (if they're not sleeping). The big cats are truly majestic animals, true kings of the jungle, and you might want to spend more time here.

Mysore Zoo is located near the palace in Mysore, India. It is one of the oldest and most popular zoos in Southern India, and is home to a wide range of species. Mysore Zoo is one of the city’s most popular attractions. It was established under royal patronage in 1892, making it one of the oldest zoos in the world.
Mysore Zoo was originally created in 1892 in the summer palace of Maharaja Chamaraja Wodeyar, and was originally called the Palace Zoo. The zoo was originally set up by G.H. Krumbeigal, a German landscaper and horticulturist.
The zoo was opened to the public in 1902, and now includes a bandstand and an artificial lake.

The zoo is currently home to ten elephants, and has more elephants than any other zoo in India. A total of 34 elephants have lived at this zoo, many of which were eventually transferred to other zoos.

Ocean Park Hong Kong

Ocean Park opened in 1977 is a marine-life theme park including animal exhibits, thrill rides and shows. Tourists are cordially invited to get connected to over 70 penguins from three species - King Penguins, Southern Rockhopper Penguins and Gentoo Penguins, by exploring the newly built attraction "Polar Adventure." You can enjoy an up-close interaction by watching training shows through the glass-paneled floor. You can experience the polar climate where the penguins are living. You also can enjoy a break at Tuxedos Restaurant serving with fine cuisine with a view of 70 penguins.

Amazing Asian Animals

Get an inside look at different species of "Amazing Asian Animals" - Giant Panda, Red Panda and endangered Chinese Alligator. Come to say hello to eternally cheerful and cuddly giant pandas from Sichuan "An An" and "Jia Jia", and explore the world of this protected creatures.

The Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Garden.
  
One of the loveliest outdoor places within urban Hong Kong- Zoological and Botanical Garden, is absolutely a nice park to visit with a good selection of plants and animals, entry is free.
I think most of us have visited HKZBG in our childhood because it was the first zoo in Hong Kong and opened to the public in 1864. Linked by a subway, it was divided into two parks by Albany Road. The eastern part of the Garden where is Children’s Playground, Green House and a Fountain Terrace Garden are found. The West part of the Garden is mainly the home of mammals and reptiles. Nowadays, over 400 birds, 70 mammals and 50 reptiles are being exhibited in the Garden.

Bornean Orangutan

Rarely leave the tree for the ground Swinging from branch to branch by the strong hands Sleeping in large nests Favorite Food : Birds egg, fruit, small lizards

White-Faced Saki

Living in small monogamous groups A striking color difference between males and females Locally known as "flying monkeys" Favorite food :  Fruit, honey, flowers and small animals

Shanghai Wild Animal Park is the first national wild animal park established by Shanghai Municipal Government and State Forestry Administration.
The park is divided into 2 parts, bus visiting area and walking area. In the bus visiting area, you can see gentle giraffe, elongating his neck and expecting your visit. You can also see elephant, the biggest mammal on land, greeting the guest gently; what is more, you can find you are among golden antelopes, one of the 3 national treasures. At the same time, here you can see the most fast animal in the world, cheetah, who can run 110 km per hour; African lion, the king of beasts, showing his general deportment; Clumsy bear, begging food from the passing buses; Majestic tiger, watching the passing buses, showing his leadership. In the walking area, you can enjoy the world’s rare animals such as white lion, white tiger, white kangaroo, giant panda, Chinese alligator and so on. What is funny is you can have a photo with alpaca camel, zebra and elephant. It is really a good experience and opportunity. In the small animal garden, you can hug the small animal, feed lovely monkey, and have the experience of keeper to see personally the miraculously generating.

In the animal showing place, you can see the big show between human and beast, all kinds of animal showing, beast training show, the exciting show with the tiger and lion on the same platform. World-class sea lion show will give you astonishment and thinking. Newly presented big animal racing of Greyhound, horse of Mongolia will open your eyes.   

Xili Zoo is the first Open Zoo which has set up in Shenzhen, China. The area is more than 120 square meters with natural scenery, and it has not only park's fantastic animals and birds, quiet and tastefully layout and quiet natural scenery, but also unique garden design layouts in China.
There are more than 300 varieties and almost ten thousand wild animals are bred. In the Zoo, the animals are coming from all over the country and being displayed. The animals are giant pandas, golden monkeys, tigers, Manchurian tigers, flamingos, giraffes, zebras, elephants, red-crowned cranes, rhinos, etc. Designs of garden are out of the common feeding pattern; all kinds of animals have free activities in the open area, so that it can make them back to the original environment.
The whole park is divided into three areas, the herbivores area, the forbidden zone and the performance area. There are all kinds of wonderful shows every day.

There are many popular zoos in Taiwan, and the Taipei Zoo which was established in 1914 is the most famous and popular. Its current site is about 165 hectares; 90 hectares are open to the public. There are 8 outdoor areas, 7 indoor areas and over 400 species that visitors can see. Some of the main areas are: Giant Panda House, Formosan Animal Area, Fern Garden, Insect Valley, Koala House, Children’s Zoo, Asian Tropical Rainforest Area, Desert Animal Area, Australian Animal Area, African Animal Area, Bird World, Temperate Zone Animal Area, Education Center, Penguin House, and many more. Taipei Zoo not only allows the visitor to immerse themselves in zoo exhibitions but also to explore wildlife surroundings in their natural habitat.

Taipei Zoo usually has about 15,000 to 18,000 visitors during holidays. The most popular animals in Taipei Zoo are the koalas, penguins and the giant pandas. The koalas which can be seen in the Australian Animal Area came from Australia in 1999. There are also two different species of penguins: King penguin and African penguin. The giant pandas in Taipei Zoo came from China in December 2008. The two giant pandas are named: Tuantuan and Yuanyuan, which means “reunion”. And there’s good news! The female panda, Yuanyuan gave birth on July 6, 2013. Yuan Zai, the newborn giant panda is a female, 183.4 g in weight and 15.5 cm in length. Typically, a baby panda is around 7 inches in length and weighs only 1/900 of its mother’s weight.
Taipei Zoo is happy to welcome Yuan Zai, the baby panda. Pandas are endangered species but extremely popular animals. There are only 1,600 pandas left in the wild. Besides being cute, Yuan Zai’s birth is very important for the continuation of specie which is on the brink of extinction.

Dusit Zoo is called by two former names of “Dusit Park” or “Khao Din Wana.” It is established by His Majesty the King Rama 5 since 1895; he had inspiration from visiting the Botanical garden when he was travelling aboard and found that it was full of knowledge enjoyment and a recreation for the public so he had got an idea to create it in Thailand by located at Rama 5 Road. The garden concept was the manmade island (Khao Din) in the middle of lake and surround by various kind of plants (Wa Na) or we can call this area for conclude that “Khao Din Wa Na”.

 At fist His Majesty the King Rama 5 found this place for his personal relaxing area so this park is one part of the Dusit Palace. After that in period of His Majesty the King Rama 7, he had royal thought to develop by expansion the garden and also opened for the public. Next in period of His Majesty the King Rama 8, The Bangkok metropolitan had start operating the zoo by transferring wild animals from everywhere such as deer, crocodile, and monkey. Moreover, they also had elephant show from the Royal Palace on Sunday. Since March 19, 1938, it has been opened as “Dusit Zoo,” the first zoo of Thailand.

Till today, Dusit Zoo has operated for 75 years on the area around 47.2 acres in the center of Bangkok. The operation is completely met the objective for education of conservation, breed wild lift, zoo management, and recreation for public. Dusit zoo has various wild animals, including more than 1,600 animals. And there was a yearly average of 2.5 million visitors.

Dusit Zoo opens every day from 8am. to 6pm. It also provides other things besides wild animals such as the zoo learning program for student, training youth volunteers, feeding demonstrations in front of show area, pedal boat at lake and zoo trailer ride. If you have a chance to visit Bangkok, don’t forget to put Dusit Zoo in your plan!

300 km away from Nantong, located in Yancheng of Jiangsu Province, Yancheng Rare Birds Nature Reserve is mainly dedicated to the protection of tidal wetland ecosystem and rare birds represented by red-crowned cranes. It is a famous scenic site for bird watching.

The nature reserve is close to the Yellow Sea and covers an area of 453,000 hectares, with 444km-long tidal-flat area along the sea. Thanks to mild climate, abundant rainfall, smooth terrain and diversified biological species, the nature reserve is home to 450 plant species, 377 bird species, 45 amphibian and reptile species, 281 fish species and 47 mammal species. Among them, wild animals under key protection include: red-crowned cranes, hooded cranes, white cranes, golden eagles, white tailed sea eagles, paddlefish, river deer, whooper swans, common cranes and spotted seals etc.

Meanwhile, the nature reserve is a key passageway and stopover site for birds migrating from northeast Asia to Australia. It’s also an important wintering area for the world’s waterfowls. Every spring and autumn, close to 2 million shorebirds migrate passing Yancheng, with 0.2 million waterfowls living through winter in the nature reserve.

The ever-developing Yancheng Rare Birds Nature Reserve has become a science popularization base, birds’ paradise and natural museum, attracting as many as 100,000 tourists every year. The nature reserve warmly welcomes friends from home and abroad to dance with cranes, explore the “sea world,” get close to nature and have a great time.