Mister Zoo: The Life and Legacy of Dr Charles Schroeder

by Douglas G. Myers, Lynda Rutledge Stephenson

"I HATE WIRE !" So said Charlie Schroeder, and the result was a zoo revolution. Stroll through any modern zoo and marvel at the wonder of seeing a tiger, a rhino or perhaps a gorilla with seemingly nothing but air between you and the wild animal, and you'll be feeling the incredible, personal impact of Dr. Charles Schroeder's vision. Veterinarian, scientist, visionary, leader, political genius, taskmaster, mentor, con man, rascal, P.T. Barnum in a suit and tie - Charlie Schroeder was all these things as the World-Famous San Diego Zoo's legendary director. With his 1,000-watt smile and his talent for making good ideas come to life, he touched millions in his lifetime while becoming beloved as "Mister Zoo" to the zoological world. Charlie Schroeder led an amazing life, a true All-American saga. Mister Zoo is a funny, inspiring, surprising biography of a man who made a difference.

271 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1999

Reviews

[Anne McKeirnan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, especially because I grew up in San Diego and recognized it even knew quite a few of the people quoted in the book. Not to mention I live across the road from the house Dr Schroeder built for himself and his wife years ago just down the road from the Wild Animal Park. A fun book to read.

[Scott Klemm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mr. Zoo sounds like the title of a children’s book, but the subtitle, The Life and Legacy of Dr. Charles Schroeder, places it squarely in the category of biography. Dr. Schroeder, well known and respected internationally, was the director of the world famous San Diego Zoo, and could be called “The Father of the Modern Zoological Park” for his many visionary innovations.

Dr. Schroeder’s zoo career began as a veterinarian. He was among the pioneers in a field dedicated to the treatment of exotic and wild and animals. While working at the Bronx Zoo, he discovered a round worm in a giant panda that was named after him, Ascaris schroederi. As the Director of the San Diego Zoo, he was instrumental in replacing cages with enclosures reproducing natural habitat, and replacing the wire and bars with open moats. He also introduced a Children’s Zoo where visitors could get up close to some of the animals. Education was always a prime goal for Dr. Schroeder.

Perhaps the most important of Dr. Schroeder’s contributions was in the area of conservation – particularly the breeding of wild animals thereby reducing the need of capturing and further depleting the wild populations. To this end Schroeder fought hard for a reserve north of San Diego where the animals roamed freely and the people were confined to monorails that circled the park. Called the San Diego Wild Animal Park, it opened in 1972 and proved to be a great success especially for the breeding of endangered animals and birds such as the southern white rhinoceros, the Przewalski’s horse, the Arabian oryx and the California condor. In the case of the Arabian oryx, it was extinct in the wild, but the Wild Animal Park was so successfully in its breeding that it was able to send some back to Oman to be released.

I did question the accuracy of a couple of things I saw in the book. For example, it said that when Dr. Schroeder visited Kenya, he saw gerenuks (long-necked antelope) at the Nairobi National Park. When I visited Kenya I saw them at Samburu and was told they were found only north of the equator. Nairobi is south of the equator. Also, Schroeder mentioned seeing lizards with turquoise bodies and orange heads that the book identified as geckos. I too saw this beautiful reptile - but it was an agama – not a gecko. The book is not footnoted, and since these remarks were not within quotation marks, I presume they were made by the author.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

An extremely interesting biography of Dr. Charles Schroeder and a history of the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Wild Animal Park in one. Dr. Schroeder was the first vet at the Zoo and its second Director. He innovated or widely adopted many changes in how modern zoos are run and presented including: moated enclosures, exhibits with mixed species, a focus on conservation and breeding of endangered species, etc. Definitely worth the read for anyone who's either been to the San Diego Zoo, from San Diego or interested in the history and evolution of zoological parks.

[Jeff Koslowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a must read for anyone who makes a career in zoos. It very much paints Dr. Schroeder in a positive light and breezes past some of the points that would be interesting from a historical stand point.