The army of 2,000 crows at the 136-year-old zoo easily outnumbers the 250 animals belonging to 40 species and 692 other birds of 30 varieties - making them a menace to the caged animals.

But crows apart, the health of the caged animals has been causing some concern, especially after the recent death of the last of four kangaroos brought from Japan in 1996.

The first three marsupials had died in quick succession in 1997 due to a rare respiratory infection called `pasteurella'. A fortnight ago, the fourth surviving kangaroo also died of the same infection. All four kangaroos had been brought to the zoo in exchange for gharials that were sent to Yokohama Zoo.

A recent visit to the zoo here revealed several sad spectacles, not least among which were the sorrowful faces of thecaptive creatures. While a foreign animal like a kangaroo may not have been able to adapt to the Indian climate, one wonders why even some of the Indian animals at the zoo appear to be in a state of poor health.

The worst affected seems to be the Indian sambhar. Express Newsline spotted at least three sambhars with cataracts rubbing their heads against the wire mesh for some relief.

And much to the horror of the visitors, crows freely pecked at the raw wounds of the deer caused by the natural shedding of its antlers.

Dr M S Karawale, the zoo vet, however, said the general health of the animals is satisfactory. ``The death of the last kangaroo was unavoidable as the symptoms are visible only when it is too late for a cure,'' he added.

Dr Karawale attributes the cataract to old age. ``It is possible to remove the cataract through an operation but post-operative care is expensive and difficult. The sambhar will remove the eye patch, resulting in an infection and further complications,'' reasonedDr Karawale.

As for the crow nuisance, K L Velodi, Superintendent of Gardens, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, says there are no solutions as yet. ``We have a full-fledged hospital and two BMC vets in charge of all the animals in the zoo, and despite their limitations they are doing their best. They take daily rounds of all the enclosures for the general upkeep of the animals, but the crow problem is difficut to tackle in spite of zoo keepers shooing them away,'' Velodi says.

An animal welfare officer with the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Jyoti Sharma, remarks: ``Overhead wire meshes are not a solution as small birds like egrets are required to remove the parasites from the animals.''

The 48-acre zoo-garden is now said to be too small to bring in more animals. In fact, a large animal like an elephant has to remain in chains due to space constraints.

The central and the state government have an ambitious five-year plan for the zoo which includes a Rs 7.5-crore project to enlarge andimprove the enclosures. Among others, the Himalyan Black Bear cage and the monkey cages have already been made more spacious, and a Nocturnal House is under construction.

But these plans are still five years away and immediate steps are obviously needed to look into the pressing health needs of the animals. According to Dr A R Rahmani, member of the Central Zoo Authority, and director of the Bombay Natural History Society: ``Earlier, a zoo was meant for entertainment, but now a modern zoo is required to educate and at the same time preserve the species.''