History

Around the turn of the century, Carl Hagenbeck (14^th June 1844 to 14^th April 1913) had the idea of exhibiting animals in bar-less, open-air enclosures instead of in cages. Instead of bars, the animals are separated from the public by invisible ditches. This idea was patented by Carl Hagenbeck in 1896, and in 1907 he opened his Zoo in Stellingen, a district of Hamburg.

Since then, zoos modelled on Carl Hagenbeck’s design featuring open-air enclosures and panoramic landscapes have opened all over the world. Hagenbeck’s Zoo has become known as the forerunner of the modern Wild Animal Park.