The Bronx Zoo's African Plains exhibit will turn 75 on May 1, and to celebrate, the zoo has released vintage photos from its opening in 1941.
The zoo drew a record crowd of almost 85,000 people the first Sunday after the exhibit opened.
Wildlife Conservation Society
The exhibit cost $110,000 to construct and took 18 months to plan, design and complete.
Wildlife Conservation Society
Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, Parks Commissioner Robert Moses and New York Zoological Society President Fairfield Osborn spoke at the opening ceremony for the exhibit.
Wildlife Conservation Society
The exhibit featured animals including lions, elands, zebras, warthogs and birds and was the first time the Bronx Zoo showcased animals in settings similar to their natural habitats.
Wildlife Conservation Society
Many of the same species are still in the exhibit today.
Julie Larsen Maher/Wildlife Conservation Society
The naturalistic concept behind the exhibit has remained as well and inspired the designs of several other exhibits at the Bronx Zoo.
Julie Larsen Maher/Wildlife Conservation Society
And now here's a peacock and a herd of nyala. Have a great weekend.
Julie Larsen Maher/Wildlife Conservation Society