The construction of the State Zoological Park of Udmurtia began in February 2007.
The concept of the Izhevsk zoo was designed according to the international requirements for the organization of zoos, and was based on recommendations of Bohumil Krall, a reputable specialist in Europe.
The developers faced a difficult task - to build a unique architectural complex where animals would live in open cages, i.e. in the conditions that are close to those in the natural habitat. Instead of railings there are ditches, ponds, electric fences, glass windows. On the one hand, it allows visitors to see the animals, and, on the other hand, it does not suppress the inhabitants of the zoo.
In September 2008 the Udmurt Republic celebrated the 450th anniversary of voluntary entering of Udmurtia into the Russian state. One of the festive occasions was the opening of the State Zoological Park of Udmurtia.
The expositions in the zoo are based on zoogeographical and landscape principles. The territory is divided into several main areas of the animals’ distribution that are presented with the following exhibitions:
- “White North” - snowy owls, polar bears, arctic foxes, seals, walruses;
- “Far East” - Amur tigers, Amur leopards;
- “Our Taiga” - brown bears, wolves, lynxes, wolverines, martens, sables;
- “Udmurt village” - domestic animals;
- “Pond” - Koi carps.
At this point there are about 300 inhabitants, 85 species of animals in the Izhevsk zoo. Some of the zoo inhabitants are listed both in the Red Data Book of Russia and in the IUCN Red List, as there are not many of them left in the wild. The zoo is aimed at preserving of these species and providing of the comfortable environment for their life and reproduction.