Berdyansk Zoo «Safari» is one of the youngest zoos in Europe.
The first zoo was created in 2004 by entrepreneur Kalchenko Igor Leonidovich and became the first zoo built on the territory of Ukraine since independence. In total, there are eight zoos in Ukraine, including two private zoos in Yalta and Berdyansk.
In 2007, on the place of swampy wasteland on an area of about 3 hectares, was laid out park with spacious enclosures and picturesque buildings and in 2009 opened the second Berdyansk zoo «Safari» in the coastal resort area of the city.
The park is planted with many ornamental plants not typical of this dry and windy area. There are alpine hills, flower beds, which are a garden of continuous blooming from early spring to late fall. Daily care and attention to the plants have yielded positive results. Already today one can admire a beautiful oasis of exotic vegetation, which attracts not only the eyes of visitors, but also provides food and shelter for various birds and rare insects.
Everything here has been created for comfortable living of pets: spacious cages and aviaries, artificial reservoirs with fresh water and sandy islands, as well as green areas, represented by many species of rare and exotic trees and shrubs.
Blue juniper, Canadian spruce, alpine carnation, mountain lavender — you can find these plants rare for our area at the zoo. A wonderful rose garden of 20 kinds of roses will captivate you with its beauty and marvelous fragrance.
We would like to note that all the trees that were on this territory — olives, acacias, willows, which are more than forty years old — have been preserved.
From the very beginning Berdyansk Zoo has been opening new expositions. Scientific and cultural-educational work is carried out here. Back in December 2005 the Young Scientists Club of Berdyansk Zoo started its work. Today more than 40 children are engaged here.
But in order for each child to study and observe their favorite animal species in more detail, there are plans to expand the Club to 150 people and create a special section.
Nowadays it is the third zoo in the whole vast Black Sea-Azov basin of Ukraine and Russia. Finally, «Safari» is the first and only private zoo in Ukraine to become a member of the prestigious international organization — EARAZA (Euro-Asian Association of Zoos and Aquariums).
In our society few people realize that in Ukraine there is absolutely insufficient number of zoos, which have long become an integral part of life in civilized countries of the world. Let us limit ourselves to the example of the Czech Republic.
In this country of 10 million people, there are over 15 major zoos! In contrast, in our country of over 46 million people, there are only nine official zoos.
The appearance of the zoo is of great social importance, aimed at supporting the image of Ukraine and the development of spirituality of the Ukrainian people. We would like to note that its doors are always open for children from boarding school and disabled children from all cities of Ukraine.
To date, the existence of Berdyansk Zoo is known in 26 countries around the world. Learn about our zoo and you! Welcome to the fabulous world of animals!