Thiruvananthapuram Zoo is located at 3km distance from the Trivandrum railway station/ bus stand and is spread across 55 acres of land. It was an initiative of the Travancore ruler Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma who ruled between 1830 and 1847 and his brother Uthram Thirunal along with the British Resident William Cullen formally opened the zoo in 1857 for the public. The premise consists of woodland, lakes and lawns. The establishment purpose behind the zoo was for recreation so large iron – barred cages were built to keep the animals. But later stage it turned out to be conservational as loss of forest area and human encroachment became a threat for the wildlife in general. The zoo houses 82 different animal species from around the world. Lion-tailed macaque, Langur, Rhinoceros, leopard, royal tiger, lion, cheetah, deer, boar, elephants, Zebra, Giraffe, Cape buffalo and hippos are inhabitants of the zoo. A snake park is conserved inside the zoo where poisonous and non-poisonous snakes are kept. A huge collection of birds such as Ostrich, Strokes, Peacocks, Vultures, Emu, Kites, and Pelican are kept here in indigenous living conditions. Thiruvananthapuram zoo is the oldest zoo in Asia.
