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Regular Session, 2013 ENROLLED
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON NO. 122
BY SENATORS GALLOT, KOSTELKA AND JOHN SMITH AND REPRESENTATIVE
DIXON
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON
To commend the Alexandria Zoo and its latest exhibit, the Land of the Jaguar.
WHEREAS, the Land of the Jaguar was funded by a grant from the City of
Alexandria's Special Planned Activity Redevelopment Corridors, with additional funding
from the city of Alexandria, the Friends of the Alexandria Zoo, and private and corporate
donors; and
WHEREAS, the jaguar is the largest feline in the western hemisphere, and its present
range, in the wild, extends from Mexico across much of Central and South America; and
WHEREAS, the Land of the Jaguar's unique environment includes giant rocks,
rivers, waterfalls, lush vegetation, and South American structures including a replica of a
Mayan temple, ruins of Central America, the Amazon rainforest, and vestiges of the Andes
Mountains; and
WHEREAS, the Alexandria Zoo has successfully bred Bengal tigers, Kumar and
Hannah, that produced a pair of white tigers in 2006, named B.B. King and Lanie, born just
days prior to the zoo's eightieth anniversary celebration; and
WHEREAS, in 1986, the Alexandria Zoo successfully met the highest zoo standards
in the world when it achieved accreditation by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, and
the zoo has since been reaccredited in 1991, 1996, 2001, 2008, and 2013, being one of only
two hundred and twelve accredited zoos in the world; and
WHEREAS, in addition to Bengal tigers, rare and significant births at the zoo include
maned wolves, clouded leopards, African servals, dik-dik antelope, and flamingos; and SCR NO. 122 ENROLLED
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WHEREAS, the Land of the Jaguar is one of only twenty zoos in the world to house
Malayan tigers, one of ten zoos in North America to exhibit lowland anoa, and the only
facility in North America to exhibit two white-tailed sea eagles; and
WHEREAS, as a number one family oriented, educational tourist attraction in central
Louisiana, the Alexandria Zoo has a significant horticulture collection consisting of varied
and rare species of trees, shrubs, and bamboo; and
WHEREAS, the Land of the Jaguar, the South American area renovation to the zoo,
is an extensive multi-species habitat featuring jaguars, spectacled bears, ocelots, monkeys,
crocodiles, anteaters, and more; and
WHEREAS, visitors to the Land of the Jaguar will be immersed in a unique
environment created with giant rocks, rivers, waterfalls, lush vegetation, and South
American structures; and
WHEREAS, the Land of the Jaguar is the largest project undertaken by the zoo since
the creation of the Louisiana Habitat exhibit; and
WHEREAS, the Alexandria Zoo was named as one of the best small town zoos by
Jack Hanna, the renowned television wildlife conservationist and animal adventurer.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
commend the Alexandria Zoo and its latest exhibit, the Land of the Jaguar.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
Alexandria Zoo and the Friends of the Alexandria Zoo.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES