Izu Shaboten Zoo Cactus and Animal Park by Mount Omuro

History and founding

Izu Shaboten Zoo (伊豆シャボテン動物公園) opened on 22 October 1959 as “Izu Shaboten Park.” The park’s design and concept credit Tokyo University of Agriculture professor emeritus 近藤典生, while planning and design work involved Tokyo University of Agriculture desert-plant researcher and plant-ecology photographer 埴沙萠. The Emperor Showa visited the park in 1970 and again in 1975. On 22 October 2016 the facility was renamed “Izu Shaboten Zoo.”

Site, layout and management

The park sits on the northeast flank of Mount Omuro (大室山), at the Iwamuroyama side in the town of Yuto, Itō, Shizuoka Prefecture. It is operated by 株式会社伊豆シャボテン公園, a consolidated subsidiary of 伊豆シャボテンリゾート株式会社. The grounds are arranged with restaurants, shops and lodging on the northwest side, cactus facilities to the southwest, and the main gate and parking to the east.

Cactus houses and plant collections

Cactus and succulent plants are the founding focus: five heated greenhouses are organised by geographic and habitat type — South America, Africa, Madagascar, Mexico and a forest-type “jungle” cactus house. The park’s name uses the older form “shaboten” (シャボテン), reflecting its 1959 opening; some cactus products are offered to eat on site.

Sculptures and themed displays

Throughout the grounds are numerous full-size reinforced-plastic replicas of sculptures from ancient American civilisations. The collection includes Olmec colossal heads, the Aztec calendar known as the Sun Stone, a Coatlicue goddess figure, column capitals from the Xochicalco palace, Maya representations such as the rain god Chaac, depictions of the serpent deity Quetzalcoatl (Kukulkan in Maya usage), Palenque stelae, Toltec warrior figures and statues associated with the Huastec tradition. These replicas were gifts from the Federal District of Mexico.

The park’s symbolic statue is an hybrid beast-bird called 荒原竜; the site has been used frequently as a filming location for tokusatsu television and movie productions and has appeared in numerous shows and films over the decades.

Animals, shows and free-range residents

Animal collections include a wide range of mammals, birds and other species. Notable exhibit types and examples named in park material include chimpanzees (one individual recorded as Pinky, born 12 September 2002), capybaras, capuchins and squirrel monkeys, ring-tailed lemurs, kangaroos, tapirs, peccaries, llamas, meerkats, prairie dogs, porcupines, maras, southern tamanduas, great hornbills, blue-and-gold macaws, black swans, roseate pelicans, African marabou storks, crested cranes and emus. The park’s published lists also note species that are not currently kept, for example paca and shoebill.

Chimpanzee shows have been staged at the park since 1981, under animal trainers including 堤 秀世, who served as director and honorary director and retired in 2013. The park has also been involved in the reintegration of artificially reared chimpanzees into social groups.

Since 1964 squirrel monkeys (リスザル) have been kept free-range within the grounds to help with tree pest control; peacocks are also released free. The park’s account warns that free-ranging squirrel monkeys are curious and will rummage through food left in items such as baby strollers.

Capybaras, bathing and seasonal events

Capybaras are a distinctive feature of the park. The park’s capybaras use an outdoor hot-spring bathing facility: the practice began in the winter of 1982 when keepers, while cleaning with hot water, noticed small warm puddles that the animals used to rest in. The local newspaper described the park as the originator of the capybara-onsen custom. The park runs capybara bathing each winter and also stages themed variations such as yuzu baths; bathing continues for as long as the capybaras are content.

The park’s two capybara mascots are named “Kapiba” and “Kapina.” The names and the park’s capybara-related terms have been registered as trademarks: the phrases usually translated as “capybara open-air bath” and “capybara hot spring” are registered by 株式会社伊豆シャボテン公園, while the yuzu-bath name is registered by 伊豆シャボテンリゾート株式会社.

In 2015 the park concluded a “capybara open-air bath agreement” with 埼玉県こども動物自然公園, 那須どうぶつ王国 and 長崎バイオパーク; from 2017 the agreement added いしかわ動物園, forming a five-park collaboration. The collaboration schedules joint events: in summer, on 27 July (designated “Watermelon Day”) participating parks hold a watermelon-eating contest, and in winter they stage a “long-bath competition” among capybaras.

Visitor facilities, shops and accommodation

On-site dining and retail include the forest-animal restaurant GIBBONTEI (森のどうぶつレストラン「GIBBONTEI」), a Chinese restaurant (ちゃお), a Japanese restaurant (花むすび), a sandwich-and-bakery café called Cafe Sherry (カフェ・シェリー), a soft-cream and hamburger stand called Bell Station (ベルステーション) and a gift shop named Animal Mart (アニマルマート). The park also operates a lodging complex, Izu Shaboten Village (伊豆シャボテンヴィレッジ), which comprises a petit hotel and glamping accommodation.

The park is also linked administratively with other local leisure and marine facilities as a group. The Izu Shaboten Zoo Group manages nearby attractions (group listings in park material cite locations along National Route 135 and coastal addresses) that include Izu Granpal Park (伊豆ぐらんぱる公園), the former Izu Safari Park, former Izu Cosmo Land, Izu Kogen travel station Granpal Port (伊豆高原旅の駅ぐらんぱるぽーと), the New York Lamp Museum & Flower Garden (ニューヨークランプミュージアム＆フラワーガーデン) and facilities historically associated with Izu Marine Park and its diving centre.

FAQ

When did Izu Shaboten Zoo first open?

It opened on 22 October 1959 as "Izu Shaboten Park."

When was the park renamed Izu Shaboten Zoo?

The facility was renamed on 22 October 2016.

Why are capybaras associated with the park?

Capybaras at the park bathe in an outdoor hot spring; the bathing practice began in the winter of 1982 when keepers noticed them gathering in warm puddles.

How many greenhouse types of cactus does the park have?

The park has five greenhouses: South America, Africa, Madagascar, Mexico and a forest-type (jungle) cactus house.