[7] According to Dun and Bradstreet, the Biblical Zoo was the most popular tourist attraction in Israel from 2005 to 2007, and logged a record 738,000 visitors in 2009.

Among Shulov's goals were to provide a research facility for his students; to gather animals, reptiles and birds mentioned in the Bible;[10][11] and, as he wrote in 1951, to break down the "invisible wall" between the intellectuals on Mount Scopus and the general public.

[9] More significantly, many of the animals mentioned in the Bible are now extinct in Israel due to over-hunting, destruction of natural habitats by rapid construction and development, illegal poisoning by farmers, and low birth rate.

The United Nations helped the zoo relocate[9] to a 15-hectare (37-acre) lot[15] in Givat Komuna, adjacent to the present-day neighborhoods of Romema.

Thanks to its breeding program, 11 species that had disappeared from Israel were reintroduced into nature reserves around the country, including the Syrian brown bear, the addax, and two types of fallow deer.

[10] The zoo was administered by a nonprofit corporation with representatives from Hebrew University, the Jerusalem Municipality, and the Israeli Ministries of Tourism and Education.

[17] The zoo closed its site in Romema in 1991 and reopened in the Malha valley, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) southwest of the city center,[17] in 1993.

[20] Designed by Miller-Blum & Associates Landscape Architects, and constructed by the Moriah Jerusalem Development Corporation,[20] the zoo sits on 62 acres (25 ha) in a valley surrounded by the hillside neighborhoods of Malha and Givat Masua.

[17] At the western end of the park stands a two-story, boat-shaped wooden visitor's center meant to resemble Noah's Ark.

It contains an auditorium, an art gallery, a gift shop, a snack bar, and computer stations providing information on animals mentioned in the Bible.

[27] The traditional zoo infrastructure of bars and cages has been replaced by open areas separated from the public by trenches, moats, bridges, and glass windows; outdoor exhibits also have an indoor shelter in case of bad weather.

Animals and birds reside in natural habitats, from an African savannah to a tropical rain forest to the underground world of mice and cockroaches.

The lesser kestrel exhibit is designed as a house in Jerusalem's Morasha district, formerly a major nesting ground for these birds.

[8] Each animal or bird which is mentioned in the Bible has a biblical verse in Hebrew, Arabic and English appended to its information sign.

This medical center cares for all zoo animals except the elephants, giraffes, rhinoceroses, hippopotamus, and bison, which are treated in their own exhibits.

[2] The massive amount of fruits and vegetables consumed daily by the zoo's animals are acquired free of charge through an agreement Shulov worked out with Israeli companies that tithe their produce in accordance with Jewish law.

[31][32] The animals of the Biblical Zoo receive nearly a ton of the choicest fruits and vegetables every day[33] through a distribution handled by the local religious council.

In 1978, four of these deer were brought to Israel and have since increased to several hundred, with a major breeding colony at the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo.

The zoo has successfully mated vultures with crippled wings – a feat that ornithologists previously thought could not be accomplished because these birds could not balance themselves properly.

[44] Additionally, the zoo participates in a countrywide breeding program coordinated by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority to increase the birth rate of griffon vultures in the wild.

[49][50] A newborn leopard rejected by its mother spent its days at the zoo and nights at veterinarians' homes for its first three and a half months of life.

[10] Dozens of zoo personnel man the displays during peak holiday times to stop visitors from throwing food and other items at the animals.

[8] This exhibit displays rare and endangered marine life[59] in 17 large aquariums and three huge water tanks measuring 2 × 4 metres (7 × 14 ft).

[60] In keeping with its "green" policy, the zoo maintains its own sewage treatment system and uses recycled water to irrigate its gardens.

[34] The Jerusalem Biblical Zoo participates in national and international research projects in the fields of zoology, biology, and environmental science, and publishes papers in journals and at scientific meetings.

[67] The zoo hosts academic seminars and student research at the Gabi Center, located in a 21-square-foot (2.0 m2) facility inside the main entrance.

The center was named in memory of Dr. Gabi Eshkar, deputy director-general and chief veterinarian of the zoo for over 17 years, who was killed in an automobile accident in 2004.

Included in the total are 63 groups of special-needs children, both Jewish and Arab,[52] who participate in weekly sessions of animal-assisted therapy.

This committee convened in 1993, before the reopening of the zoo, and again in 1996, when it drafted plans for adding additional animal exhibits and visitor attractions by 2010.

[1] New plans have been drawn up for an educational center and an exhibit called Yemei Bereishit (In the Days of Genesis) which replicates Biblical conditions and excludes all modern devices, including cell phones.