Spending the day at the zoo isn't one of the first things families think of any more when they're looking for weekend recreation. As both new alternatives -- from the recent upsurge of interest in soccer to the rash of flashy theme parks -- as well as more familiar ones -- like the movies -- vie for the urbanite's limited leisure time, zoos are feeling the pinch.

The animals at Ueno Zoological Gardens in Taito Ward, Tokyo, for instance, haven't had that many visitors of late. At this oldest of all Japan's 100-odd zoos, the number of visitors in 2001 was less than half the 7.65 million who went there in 1974 -- the peak year after the first giant panda, gifted by China, went on display.

So, in the face of their troubled balance sheet, Japan's zoos -- both old and new -- are scrambling to find ways in which their visitor numbers can be plumped up. One response has been to widen their role from that of mere recreational venues to that of educative tools, since zoos are becoming increasingly aware of the vital role they can play in promoting environmental awareness and the conservation of endangered species.