GUWAHATI, Nov 25 - After nearly 20 years, visitors to the Assam State Zoo Cum Botanical Garden will now be able to see an ostrich.
A pair of ostriches and another pair of striped hyenas have been brought from the Ranchi�s Bhagwan Borsa Biological Park as part of an animal exchange programme approved by the Central Zoo Authority. The State Zoo has given a male black panther and three leopard cats to the Ranchi zoo.
�The animals were brought by road in a truck. A team from the Ranchi zoo led by Dr Ajay accompanied the animals,� Zoo DFO Tejas Mariswamy said.
The ostriches are around two years of age and are reaching maturity, while the hyenas are around one and half years of age.
The inmates were put in enclosures yesterday and visitors can see them.
The State Zoo had around six to seven ostriches earlier. The last time it had this huge flightless bird species was way back in 1998.
The Central Zoo Authority had earlier approved another exchange programme, through which the State is getting crocodiles from Kanpur. The crocodiles are expected to arrive in the State Zoo by January.
The State Zoo also got a few exotic birds from Darjeeling recently. Among them are pairs of Lady Amherst, golden pheasant and silver pheasant. In return, the State is giving a male slow loris to the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park of Darjeeling.
The State Zoo currently houses around 1,100 inmates.
