National Zoological Gardens of Sri Lanka

The Department of National Zoological Gardens, which started during the early 20th century, is the pioneer institute that posses manages and conserves wild animals and displays the animal collection to the public throughout the year in the country.

Initially, it was established as a collecting depot for captured wild animals destined for the zoos of Europe and was taken to the government in 1936. When it was made an autonomous department in 1946, the main aim was to satisfy people’s curiosity and thus, the zoo was more focused on entertainment than conservation.

The National Zoo in Sri Lanka also improved through the cultural, educational, scientific, and commercial variations toward conservation goals with the changes in world zoo concepts. Being a conservation centre, managing captive populations, especially threatened species, a zoo can play an important role in conservation efforts according to the global continent.

Currently, the Department of National Zoological Gardens has expanded to have Dehiwala Zoo, Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, Pinnawala Zoo, and Ridiyagama Safari Park and a farm at Gonapola, which provides fruits and vegetables for the Dehiwala Zoo animals.

The Dehiwala Zoo and Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage are well known worldwide and are visited by over 1.9 million visitors every year.

A need for a new zoo arose with the inability to expand the Dehiwala Zoo and the need to supply adequate spacious enclosures according to the modern standards of the zoo world. Accomplishing the requirement, the new Zoological Gardens at Pinnawala was opened in April 2015. A separate Master Plan has been implemented to develop Dehiwala Zoo to achieve the necessary standards.

To offer a novel experience for Sri Lankans, to improve the welfare and management of excess animals at the Dehiwala Zoo and to generate additional revenue for the country by promoting Eco – tourism, the Safari Park at Ridiyagama is underway.  It will be opened to the public in the near future, offering an adventurous experience for the first time in Sri Lanka.