SINGAPORE: Remember that school excursion or family trip to Jurong Bird Park?
Since opening in 1971, Asia’s largest bird park has welcomed more than 40 million visitors. It is home to 3,500 birds across 400 species.
More than 50 years on, the iconic attraction is preparing to close on Jan 3, 2023, ahead of its move to Mandai.
Here’s a look at the key milestones of Jurong Bird Park.
Opening of Jurong Bird Park
Built at a cost of S$3.5 million, Jurong Bird Park officially opened on Jan 3, 1971.
This was before the Singapore zoo opened in 1973.
The idea for a bird park came from the late Dr Goh Keng Swee, who was then Finance Minister, after he visited an aviary in Rio De Janeiro in 1968. He felt that having a bird park in Singapore would give Singaporeans an opportunity to connect with nature at a time of rapid urbanisation in the country.
“It was also famously reported that when asked why not build a zoo instead, Dr Goh said ‘bird seeds cost less than meat’,” said Mandai Wildlife Group on Tuesday (Aug 30) when it announced Jurong Bird Park’s closing date.
When the park opened in 1971, it had 78 display aviaries, a nursery breeding area as well as a tram system.
The centrepiece was the Jurong Falls Aviary, now known as Waterfall Aviary. It houses one of the world’s tallest man-made indoor waterfalls, standing at 30m tall.