For the construction of the new gorilla pavilion, the Prague zoo will pay about 267 million CZK

Prague – The Prague Zoo will pay 267.22 million crowns for the construction of a new gorilla pavilion. The exhibit, which will be the largest exhibition space in the zoo in Troja once completed, is currently being built by the company Strabag. Originally, the construction company was supposed to build the exhibition spaces for 13 million crowns less. This follows from a contract from 2019 between the zoo and the construction company and from an addendum to the contract from mid-October. The pavilion is expected to open in the fall of 2022.

In the upper part of the zoo, a building measuring approximately 56 by 56 meters is being created according to a design by the ABM architects studio. The predominantly single-story structure is designed to blend as much as possible with the surrounding environment, supported by a green roof covered with temperate zone plants. The interiors of the pavilion will resemble the natural habitat of lowland gorillas, specifically the rainforests of Central Africa. The indoor spaces will be able to accommodate around 150 visitors at the same time, which is more than the existing ape pavilion in the lower part of the zoo. Outdoor enclosures for the animals will cover 3,000 square meters.

Next to the pavilion, the construction company is also building a new entrance to the zoo with ticket counters and turnstiles. People will also be able to access the gorilla pavilion from the adjacent African House, where giraffes can be seen, and via a new footbridge crossing Pod Hrachovkou Street.

The pavilion will be home to a seven-member group of lowland gorillas led by a male named Richard. It will also house mantle guerezas, mangabeys, hammies, and Egyptian fruit bats. Plants such as antler ferns, vines, and figs will help create a jungle environment in both the indoor and outdoor areas of the exhibit.

The zoo decided to build a new pavilion due to experiences from the floods of 2002 and 2013. The current pavilion is located in the lowest part of the zoo, which was flooded in 2002, resulting in the death of a male gorilla. According to the zoo director Miroslav Bobek, another reason for the new exhibit's construction is that the current pavilion, dating from the 1990s, is outdated and unfriendly to visitors.

The Prague Zoo has been breeding lowland gorillas since 1963. The first gorilla resident of the zoo in Troja was a male named Titan, followed by a female named Nigra. The first offspring was born at the Prague Zoo in 2014. A female named Moja thus became the first gorilla baby born in a zoo in the Czech Republic.

The Zoo in Prague, operated by the Prague City Hall, is one of the most visited places in the capital. By mid-October this year, it had been visited by 841,667 people. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and related government measures, the zoo opened to the public only on April 12 with a limitation on the number of visitors. Before the pandemic, about 1.4 million people passed through the zoo gates in the Czech capital each year. The highest number of visitors was recorded in 2019 when 1,456,526 guests visited the garden.