Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo

Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo

Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo is located on Wanquan Street, Dadong District, Shenyang City, covering an area of 620,000 square meters. It was formerly known as Wanquan Park. The park was built in 1906 by a local gentry surnamed Shen. After the liberation of Shenyang, the development of the park accelerated rapidly. In 1973, it was transformed into a zoo, and large and rare animals from Zhongshan Park and Labor Park were relocated here. The zoo features modern, artistically designed panda and giraffe enclosures, a waterfowl lake, Lion and Tiger Mountain, and Monkey Hill. Currently, the zoo displays over 130 species of animals, including first-class nationally protected and rare foreign species such as the Siberian tiger, panda, cougar, Chilean turkey, leopard, seal, red-crowned crane, golden monkey, Pere David’s deer, and a mantled guereza gifted by Japan. The zoo is lush with lawns and flower stands, decorated with potted plants along the paths, and shaded animal enclosures. With its elegant and pleasant environment, it attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors annually, reaching a peak of over 1.62 million visitors in a single year.

Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo is a national first-class forest wildlife zoo approved by the State Forestry Administration and the Ministry of Construction. It is located within the Shenyang Qipanshan International Scenic Tourism Development Zone, 25 kilometers from downtown Shenyang, and covers an area of 2.4 million square meters (3,600 acres).

Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo was newly built after the relocation of the former Shenyang Zoo (located in Xiaohéyán in the urban area). It is a key tourism project in Shenyang, housing over 100 species and more than 3,000 animals. It is a first-class wildlife zoo in Northeast China, renowned nationwide for its grand scale and vibrant animal life.

The landscape design of Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo was undertaken by the Japanese company Seidan-do Landscape Co., Ltd. from Tokyo, Setouchi.　

The park consists of a drive-through safari area for free-roaming animals, a walk-in enclosed animal viewing area, and a lakeside amusement park. The first phase, the drive-through safari area for free-roaming animals, opened in December 2000 and includes Tiger Mountain, Bear Hollow, Wolf Valley, Lion Ridge, Asian Animal Grassland, African Animal Grassland, and the Waterfowl Lake. The entire park is composed of a free-roaming animal viewing area, a walk-in enclosed animal viewing area, and a lakeside amusement park. The initially opened free-roaming viewing area features Tiger Mountain, Bear Hollow, Wolf Valley, Lion Ridge, Asian Animal Grassland, African Animal Grassland, and the Waterfowl Lake. Additionally, there is a rare species breeding base and a national crane artificial breeding research base. Here, visitors can take sightseeing buses to observe free-roaming animals such as Siberian tigers, bears, wolves, sika deer, African lions, Mongolian horses, wild donkeys, ostriches, red-crowned cranes, and yaks. There is also a rare species breeding base and a national-level crane artificial breeding research base.

Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo has two major highlights in its landscape design. First, the design makes full use of the original terrain to achieve harmony with nature, with animal enclosures cleverly concealed. Most animal houses are built behind small hills, or artificial hills are constructed around them to block the view, or they are hidden among bushes on the mountains. Second, animal isolation fences and ditches are concealed within grass and woods. Even if a fierce lion and a gentle zebra are only five meters apart, they can coexist peacefully.

To enhance the overall viewing experience, Shenyang Forest Wildlife Zoo exhibited South African animals such as zebras and oryxes to the public before the May Day holiday in 2001. At the same time, a large number of waterfowl and other birds were introduced to the Waterfowl Lake, and a small animal village popular with children was established. In terms of services, fast-food restaurants, food streets, convenience stores, and kiosks were added to facilitate shopping and dining for visitors. To accommodate visitors with disabilities, the zoo purchased two specially designed wheelchairs and set up dedicated boarding points to ensure safe and convenient access for all guests.