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Meet our Curious, Charismatic and Clever Keas!

Posted by Elizabeth Bacher, Communications Photo: Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo Keas are native to the forested and alpine regions of the South Island of New Zealand, making them the world’s only Alpine parrots. Keas are known for their intelligence, curiosity, mischief and loud, squealing vocalizations! As a matter of fact, their name is believed to come from the Māori people, mimicking the sounds of the birds’ vocalizations—and if you’ve heard it before you’ll recognize that almost ear-splitting “KEEEEE-AAAAHHHH” call! Keas are very hardy birds, well adapted to a cold alpine climate. They are mostly olive-green in color with bright orange feathers on the undersides of their wings and they have a long, narrow, curved, gray beak—great for manipulating things, digging through bark and plucking insects out of crevasses. Woodland Park Zoo is currently home to four of these feisty birds: males Squint, Mahoihoi and Jean Luc and female Teptep. Keas are mostly olive-green with bright orange
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Goodbye to our amazing tapir Bintang, celebration of his life

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Woodland Park Zoo had to make the difficult decision this week of euthanizing its only male Malayan tapir, Bintang, due to age-related decline. Male tapirs have a life expectancy of 19 years in zoos. At 23 years old, Bintang was geriatric.  Bintang in 2016, Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo Bintang in 2014, Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo According to Dr. Misty Garcia, associate veterinarian at Woodland Park Zoo, Bintang had been under treatment for decreased mobility due to age-related arthritis since 2016. “Bintang was on a prescribed program of treatments which included laser therapy, massage therapy, pain medications and joint supplements. Over the last three months, the geriatric tapir experienced an overall decline in condition including decreased mobility and significant weight loss,” said Garcia. “The zoo’s animal care team had been monitoring him closely with daily observations of his health and quality of life. We had to make
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Agave Alert: Rare flower about to bloom at Woodland Park Zoo!

Posted by Craig Newberry, Communications Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo An agave ovatifolia prepares to bloom near Woodland Park Zoo's Penguin Habitat. Woodland Park Zoo is bursting with excitement over a rare bloom getting ready to take place. The plant under the spotlight is an agave ovatifolia —or whale’s tongue agave—that typically grows in Mexico and has big, grayish-blue leaves with spiky edges. Whale’s tongue agave take about 10 years to mature, and their blooms can reach from 12 to 15 feet tall creating a dazzling display. The agave blooming at the zoo can be found on the southern end of the penguin habitat where guests can get an up-close look at the towering stalk, estimated to be 10 to 12 feet tall. Agave plants thrive in arid and semiarid environments similar to the desert environments Humboldt penguins are home to in Peru and Chile. The agave blooming at the southern end of the penguin habitat is estimated to be 10 to 12 feet tall. This type of agave i
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Tiny pudu fawn has arrived!

Posted by Craig Newberry, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo The Woodland Park Zoo family just got cuter with the arrival of a tiny female pudu fawn. Pudus are the smallest deer species in the world and are native to South America. The fawn, which has yet to be named, was born May 5 to parents Ted and Maggie. The birth is the pudus' fourth offspring together since they were paired under the Pudu Species Survival Plan , a cooperative breeding program across accredited zoos to help ensure a healthy, self-sustaining population of the species. The fawn's father, Ted, is 7 years old and arrived at the zoo in 2017. The mother, Maggie, 6, came in 2018. This is the pair’s first female fawn. All three of their male fawns now live at accredited zoos across the country and are doing well. “We are very excited to have the first female pudu birth at the zoo since 2010. The fawn is healthy and continues to get more comfortable exploring the habitat,” said Shawn
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Two new elk, welcome Huckleberry and Holly to Living Northwest Trail!

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Huckleberry and Holly are half-siblings. Woodland Park Zoo’s herd of elk just got bigger with the addition of a new male, Huckleberry, and female, Holly. Both elk, who are half-siblings, were born at Dakota Zoo in Bismarck, N.D. Both will turn 1 year old this summer. The new elk bring the herd to a total of five individuals. In addition to Huckleberry and Holly, the zoo is home to females Lily, Willow and Buttons. Last summer, the zoo mourned the loss of its only male elk, Goodwyn (good-win), who died at 20 years old due to geriatric-related issues. For now, Holly and her half-brother are smaller than the other elk in the herd. But they still have some growing to do! “We’re very fortunate to grow our herd so visitors to Woodland Park Zoo can learn about natural elk behavior and see how they socialize. After losing our sole male, Goodwyn, last summer, we’re back to a natural grouping with the additio
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Goodbye to our beautiful gray wolf Kaya

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren and Dennis Dow Woodland Park Zoo Kaya on Living Northwest Trail in 2023 Woodland Park Zoo is mourning the loss of a female gray wolf named Kaya (KAI-yuh). The 13-year-old passed away while under anesthesia for a diagnostic procedure at the zoo’s veterinary hospital. In human care, the median life expectancy is 11–12 years old. At 13 years old, Kaya was a geriatric wolf. Woodland Park Zoo has been home to gray wolves for more than 70 years. Kaya arrived at the zoo in 2010 along with three of her sisters, all 1 year old at the time. Only one wolf, Shila (SHY-lah), a sister of Kaya, remains at the zoo; two of their sisters passed away over the last couple of years. Shila lives in the Living Northwest Trail, which is also home to the new Canada lynx, brown bears, snowy owls, elk, river otters, western pond turtles and more wildlife native to the Pacific Northwest. “For more than seven decades, gray wolves have always
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The world’s rarest goose makes its zoo debut—meet the nene!

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Meet the newest members of our Woodland Park Zoo family—a pair of nene (pronounced nay-nay) also known as the Hawaiian goose. This species is the rarest goose in the world and it's the first time we've had them here in the zoo’s 123-year-old history. The male, 11 years old, and female, 5 years old, can be seen in the zoo’s Conservation Aviary walk-through along with other bird species including tawny frogmouths and Nicobar pigeons. Found only in Hawaii, the nene is the largest native land animal in the state. With a current population of approximately 3,800 nene in its native range, it is the sixth most endangered waterfowl species worldwide. Once numbering in the thousands, the population dropped to only 30 birds by the early 1950s due to predation by invasive species such as feral dogs, cats, rats, and mongoose in addition to hunting. For the past six decades, breeding and reintroduction p
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