The Audu Bako Zoological Garden, named after a former governor of Kano State, is the city's main park and green space, tucked into a southern district away from the congestion of the Old City. The collection is modest by international standards — the emphasis is on West African species including crocodiles, baboons, and various antelope — but the zoo is popular with Kano families and offers a calm contrast to the city's frantic streets.
For visitors staying several days, the zoo is worth an hour in the early morning when the animals are most active and the heat has not yet peaked. It is also one of the better places in Kano to simply sit under trees. Children's play areas and food stalls cater to the local crowd who use it as much as a park as a wildlife attraction.