Mykolaiv Zoo during the war: how the Prague Zoo and other zoos help their Ukrainian colleagues

A year and almost eleven months have passed since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation into Ukraine. Thousands of human lives have been lost, but not only people but also animals suffer from the horrors of war. The full-scale war lost more than one life of our smaller brothers.

The difficult months of the war are also remembered in the Mykolaiv Zoo, where 8 rockets flew into its territory. Animals in the zoo are completely dependent on people, so employees worked 24/7 and even stayed overnight on the job.

Director and President of the Association of Zoos of Ukraine, Volodymyr Topchyi, told NikVesti about how the animals had to survive shelling and winter blackouts and how European partners helped.

Despite the shelling, the Mykolaiv Zoo survived

Today, Mykolaiv Zoo, which is 122 years old, is one of the oldest zoos in Ukraine. It has the largest collection of wild animals among the zoos of Ukraine, which includes about 434 species and 3267 individuals.

There are about four thousand animals in the zoo. It was impossible to evacuate all the animals to a safe place, so the workers had to take care of them around the clock. Also, in the first months of the war, the zoo was helped by volunteers, international organizations and caring residents of Mykolaiv.

«I am very grateful to the townspeople, volunteers, ordinary people who came and brought fodder so that we could feed the animals. It was especially important in March, April and May of last year,» recalls Volodymyr Topchyi.

Then everyone who could brought vegetables, fruits and food to the zoo. Also, at the beginning of the war, Volodymyr Topchyi appealed for help to the people of Ukraine and the whole world. People responded to his call and began actively buying online tickets to the Mykolaiv Zoo, even though it was closed to visitors at the time, and the city itself was under fire. Mykolaiv Zoo collected about 3 million hryvnias from the sale of entrance tickets worldwide via the Internet. These funds were enough for the zoo to pay utility bills and for animal feed.

Zoos of Ukraine rallied to save animals

Associations of zoos exist in almost all European countries. The Ukrainian Association of Zoos and Aquariums of Ukraine (UAZA) was established in 2015. Its initiators and founders were 5 leading zoos of Ukraine — Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Cherkasy and Rivne zoos. In September 2021, it was reorganized into the Association of Zoos of Ukraine (AZU). Now there are already 10 institutions in the association.

The director of the association, Volodymyr Topchyi, recalls that last year was difficult for all zoos in the country. After the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation, zoos united in a single desire to save animals.

«Now, the Association of Zoos of Ukraine includes 10 zoos located throughout Ukraine. This includes Berdiansk Zoo, Odesa Zoo, Lutsk Zoo, and Rivne Zoo. These are powerful zoos that keep large collections of animals, where distinguished specialists work. Ukraine can be proud of these people who, in such a difficult time, maintain the situation and have preserved the collection of animals. Of course, there was a lot of help and support from the whole of Ukraine so that Ukrainian zoos could endure, survive, because the situation, especially last year, was extremely difficult. Zoos that came under occupation suffered the most, the Feldman Ecopark was practically destroyed, and people died there while protecting animals. Although two of our employees also died in our zoo this year, they died at the front,» says Volodymyr Topchyi.

According to the director of the Mykolaiv Zoo, last year was difficult in winter. Power outages began in the country, and animals needed warmth.

«There was no light, there was no heat, this was the main problem that we solved with the help of diesel generators. Last winter there was no longer a strong tension with fodder, but the blackouts were very unpleasant for us. Many things depend on our electricity: heating, aquarium, feed shed, cooking, even the doors on our elephant farm are powered by electricity. And, to be honest, I am afraid of this winter as well, precisely for this reason,» says Volodymyr Topchyi.

The director of the Mykolaiv Zoo assures that there is enough to warm the animals this year, the main thing is to prevent power outages again.

«We have more than 10 different types of mini-fireplaces, there are gas boilers, there are electric boilers. Today, the city still does not provide heat (as of November 14, — note), but we have heat everywhere in all subdivisions, with the exception of the elephant house, the animal island, and the feed store. We have our own mini-heaters, and we ourselves heat the primates, the aquarium, and the terrarium,» adds Volodymyr Topchyi.

Also, some supplies of animal fodder have already been made. In addition, contracts for the supply of vegetables and meat have been concluded.

«We don't stock all feed, we don't have a place to store it. We have stocks of grain, hay, and brooms. We don't have large stocks of meat, because we have nowhere to store them, and we don't have stocks of vegetables. But we have contracts with suppliers who clearly fulfill their obligations, supply fodder. And we have no debt to suppliers, which is very important,» says Volodymyr Topchyi.

In difficult times, zoos of Ukraine were not left alone with problems. First of all, the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums (EAZA) provided significant assistance.

The European Association of Zoos and Aquariums is a community of progressive zoological institutions in Europe and West Asia and has more than 400 member institutions in 48 countries. There are three zoos in Ukraine that are candidates for membership in EAZA: Kyiv Zoological Park, Mykolaiv Zoo and Kharkiv Zoo. EAZA also cooperates with other partner institutions in the country through the Association of Zoos of Ukraine (AZU).

At the beginning of March 2022, EAZA announced the creation of a common European emergency fund to support zoos in Ukraine. EAZA coordinates and collects donations online, and also conducts fundraisers on Facebook. EAZA is working together with the Ukrainian Association of Zoos and Aquariums (UAZA) to monitor the current situation and help zoos.

In August 2023, EAZA reported on its Facebook page that since last March, the EAZA Emergency Fund for Ukrainian Zoos had collected almost 2 million euros thanks to the support of 215 institutions and more than 11,700 individual donations.

From this fund, more than 1.9 million euros have already been used to support zoos and aquariums in Ukraine.

«Donations bought animal feed, medicine, fuel, firewood, heaters, generators and much more. More than 20 institutions have received your help, including three candidates for membership in EAZA,» the European Association reported.

From them, the Mykolaiv Zoo received 13,000 euros in aid for 2022, the director of the zoo, Volodymyr Topchyi, said.

Mykolaiv also received 4,600 euros from the Berlin Zoo and 150,000 Czech crowns from the Zoo of the Czech Republic.

«We are putting up with this year of relief, although last year the Association of Zoos of Ukraine received help from volunteers and those who care both in Ukraine and from our colleagues from Western Europe. For example, EAZA collected more than 1.5 million euros for the zoos of Ukraine at that time, and these funds were sent to the zoos of Ukraine. During the online conferences, when the directors met, they decided which amount to allocate to which zoo. At the expense of these funds, we even helped the zoos of Berdiansk and Arabatsk, which are located in the occupied territory. Thanks to this help, they survived,» says the president of the Association of Zoos of Ukraine.

The Prague Zoo (20,000 euros) and the Berlin Zoo (75,000 euros) provided financial support to the Mykolaiv Zoo and zoos of Ukraine.

«There was and still is a very serious financial report to EAZA. After each transfer, they require confirmation of the use of funds, copies of documents, which we do constantly and transparently,» adds Volodymyr Topchyi.

In March 2022, Mykolaiv Zoo received aid in the form of fodder. The total weight of the humanitarian cargo amounted to more than a ton. In addition, the Prague Zoo sent a diesel generator to the Mykolaiv Zoo, which helped during the blackouts.

«Last Saturday (March 12, 2022, — note) in the morning, the director of the Mykolaiv Zoo, Volodymyr Topchyi, published a photo with the caption «a nightly gift for our zoo.» It depicted a cluster bomb planted in the ground. At more or less the same time, he also sent a signed contract, which was necessary for us to pay him ten thousand euros so that he could buy food and materials. What he immediately did the next day was a gift from the Prague Zoo,» wrote Myroslav Bobek, director of the Prague Zoo, on his Facebook page on March 19, 2022.

He said that the Prague Zoo conducts special tours and sells «charity tickets», the proceeds of which go to help Ukrainian zoos.

«I am incredibly proud of many of my colleagues from the Prague Zoo, who participate in fundraising for Ukraine, accommodate refugees, donate their property to furnish apartments for Ukrainian families, and arrange negotiations among themselves to raise money for them,» Myroslav Bobek wrote at the time.

In addition to helping zookeepers, the Prague Zoo provided tickets to the zoo for Ukrainian families with children who were forced to flee the war for a symbolic price of 1 Czech crown (1.6 hryvnias).

The Mykolaiv Zoo was able to accumulate a certain amount from the funds transferred by EAZA and other European zoos, which will help it survive difficult times. Volodymyr Topchyi does not name the exact amount, but notes that the funds have not yet been used and are being saved for next year.

«We have a zoo account. And on this account, accordingly, there are funds. These are the funds for next year, because, unfortunately, we do not know what the budget will be, and I think that due to the funds that we collected due to assistance from EAZA and the sale of tickets online, we will exist next year,» he notes.

But in 2023, the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums announced that it could no longer help Ukrainian zoos with money. It was offered to help with animal feed and necessary equipment.

«Recently, I met with a representative of EAZA at the San Diego Zoo. He is the director of Alpenzoo, he is the head of the group of financial and material support of EAZA. He said that, unfortunately, there will be no financial support this year, but if Ukrainian zoos need any help, write to us and we will try to help you with food or equipment. We are currently preparing a general list of assistance to zoos of Ukraine. This list will be sent to the EAZA, and we hope that the EAZA will somehow help the zoos of Ukraine next year,» said the director of the Mykolaiv Zoo.

In turn, the Mykolaiv Zoo will request a gas device to immobilize animals during operations. Volodymyr Topchyi notes that such equipment will cost approximately 10-15 thousand dollars.

«He will definitely be on this list. This is the main thing that we would like to receive in the form of assistance from EAZA. I know that the Berdiansk Zoo will ask for a modern incubator, and we need this gas installation for working with animals during operations. If they help us, it will be great, if not, then next year we will think about how to buy it ourselves,» says Volodymyr Topchyi.

War is a disaster for both humans and animals. After the start of a full-scale invasion, animals from Ukrainian zoos needed help, so European zookeepers responded to their plight. Thanks to international support, humanitarian aid and the help of everyone who cares, Ukrainian zoos are provided with everything they need. Today, the Mykolaiv Zoo continues to work, because, as its director Volodymyr Topchyi notes, the zoo is not only a place for preserving and breeding animals, but also a social object that helps people calm down, rest and rehabilitate.

Olena Kozubovska, Alona Kokhanchuk, Yuliia Boichenko NikVesti