The former La Plata Zoo remains without lions: Melena and Manso will be released in the United States – 11/27/2018

As in a drifting exodus, the animals leave the former La Plata Zoo. Now it's the turn of two lions who will travel up to United States to be housed in the sanctuary "Wildcat Sanctuary" Minnesota.

Melena (male) and Mansa (female) were born in L & # 39; money, in captivity. They are brothers and will travel today on a special flight so that the animals can arrive without difficulty to the new destination. The plane will leave them in Miami and then they will take them to their new home where they will share their development with a hundred other animals of their species.

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Over the past three years, a hundred animals have left the cages of the traditional zoo of platan, installed since the beginning of the last century in the heart of the forest. This is no longer a walk open to the public. Since the end of last year, the Deliberative Council has changed status to become a "thematic biopark". it's closed.

The cats were separated for 10 years and were reunited 20 days ago. They are 11 and 7 years old. These are the children of Nico, an old lion who died last week at age 24 because of his advanced age. A team of blacksmiths and carpenters from the municipality has built the special compartments that will be installed in the warehouse of the ship. leave Ezeiza.

"The Wildcat Sanctuary" is an all-natural, non-profit habitat with a free life of exposure and exploitation. It is closed to public visits. Tigers, lions, leopards, jaguars, cougars, lynx and wild cats live together, which have the necessary space for their corresponding development.

"Some time ago we joined this ccultural ambio that occurs around the worldand in just over two years, we have managed to release more than a hundred animals in order to live better and give up exhibitionism, "said the mayor of the town, Julio Garro, who announced the transfer of lions.

The animals are part of the municipal heritage. However, the male, Melena, obtained a breeding loan in 2008 with other animals on Olavarría's "La Máxima" biopark. Mansa has always been captive and exposed in the park of La Plata. C & # 39; is to say, they were separated by 10 years.

In 2016, the transfer and release of a family of chimpanzees, deer, lemurs, buffaloes, donkeys and different species of sheep present in the zoo began. In addition, several species of birds were confiscated in procedures that, after a healing process in the Biopark, were released in the Nature Reserve of Villa Elisa Ecological Park and in the town of Sendero del Monte, in the province of Entre Ríos.

The process included the transfer of deer and capybaras that were relocated to the Wildlife Conservation Center (ECAS); and a cougar found in the city of Maipú were released in the provincial multipurpose nature reserve "Arroyo Los Gauchos", by coronel Dorrego.

It is planned to finalize the release of 32 deer that will go to a nature reserve.

La Plata Zoo closed in early July of this year, when elephant Pelusa is dead, who was undergoing treatment for reintegration in an Ecopark in Mato Grosso, Brazil. "It was a painful moment, but it forced us to accelerate the reconversion," said Mayor Garro.

The commune aims to reopen in 2019 the space for the public. "It's to be able to enter schools and institutions, see the work done and to testify to all the people who think every day how to get animals out of this place so they can recover their freedom" , explained the authorities.