Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by Meghan Sawyer, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo We’re jumping for joey over our latest baby reveal—an 8-month-old Matschie’s tree kangaroo! The male joey was born last August to mom Omari and dad Rocket and he weighs two pounds already. His name is Havam which is the word for “tree kangaroo” in one of the many languages of the YUS Conservation Area in Papua New Guinea, home to wild and endangered Matschie’s tree kangaroos. It is normal for marsupials to spend their first months of life completely in their mother’s pouch—so it’s no surprise that Havam is just now starting to venture out and explore. Tree kangaroos are born hairless, blind and only the size of a jelly bean. In order to survive, the joey must quickly crawl from the birth canal, through its mother’s fur and into her pouch to immediately start nursing. At first, Havam did get a little bit too eager to make his debut, explains animal keeper Beth Carlyle-Askew.    “Havam exit...

Posted by Stephen Reed, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Gray wolf sisters Kaya, Doba and Shila recently celebrated an 11th birthday! The three sisters, born April 27, 2010, from a litter of nine at New York State Zoo at Thompson Park, joined Woodland Park Zoo in October of that year. All three sisters take after their mother with white coats. Wolf sisters Kaya, Doba, and Shila turn 11 years old on April 27. Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo Gray wolves (Canis lupus) display complex social pack dynamics, and the three sisters at Woodland Park Zoo are no different. Kaya, the dominant female of the group, plays the role of peacemaker and tracks any changes happening around the enclosure. With a reserved personality, she exemplifies quiet strength and stability. Doba plays a subordinate role in the group but is also the most curious. As the least wary of the wolf sisters, she excels at training and is usually the first to investigate new enrichment such...

Posted by Kirsten Pisto, Communications This Earth Day, April 22, 2021, renew your connection to nature and level up with actions you can take––big and small––that have a lasting impact on the health and resiliency of our incredible home planet.  Photo by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo 1. Plant something You can plant something specifically for pollinators  or you can plant something for yourself. .. planting the seed now for a more sustainable world is a family challenge we can all get behind. For inspiration, check out Earth Day Northwest's Next 5  or Common Acre's Green Line  or these incredible women who are planting an entire forest. 2. Clean it up Get outside and pick up garbage with the Great Global Cleanup (sometimes it really is that simple), join millions in going plastic free this summer , clean up your diet to fight climate change , clean up your shopping list and join the clean ocean movement . There's an app for that too. 3. Let your inner ...

Posted by Sarah Bruemmer, Learning & Innovation Woodland Park Zoo Photos by Woodland Park Zoo Volunteers are at the heart of Woodland Park Zoo’s mission to save wildlife and inspire everyone to make conservation a priority in their lives. Each one of our roughly 600 volunteers supports the zoo in positive, meaningful ways by donating their time, expertise, and passion to support our most critical needs – from horticulture and animal care to special events and education. During National Volunteer Week, April 18-24, we celebrate the power of volunteers to make a difference and the extraordinary individuals who are fostering a broad social movement for conservation at Woodland Park Zoo and beyond. As much as we would love to showcase all of the individuals who make up our dedicated volunteer community, we simply cannot do so in a single blog post! However, we did ask several volunteers to share some memories and highlights of their experiences at Woodland Park Zoo. The following stori...

Posted by Elizabeth Bacher, Communications Editor's Note: Sadly, after a very full life, we said goodbye to George on May 20, 2021. He was 25 years old—more than 10 years older than the average life expectancy for his species—and he was the oldest goral in the entire population at accredited N. American zoos. His longevity with such a high quality of life is a tribute to all his amazing Woodland Park Zoo caretakers over the years.  At Woodland Park Zoo, our commitment to conservation starts with the 1,000 or so animals who call this place home. No matter what stage of life they’re in, they deserve the very best care—including our seniors, many of whom are still active and healthy well into their golden years. George is a Chinese goral who lives his best retirement life at Woodland Park Zoo. Photo: Tamlyn Sapp/Woodland Park Zoo Among the oldest, relative to the life expectancy for his species, is one that you might not have ever seen or even heard of. Geng Rui, a.k.a. George, is a ...

Posted by Elizabeth Bacher and Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Oh, that face! Baby gorilla, Zuna, is ready to say hello to zoo visitors! The 11-week-old western lowland gorilla—the second baby for 25-year-old mom Nadiri and the first between her and 21-year-old father, Kwame, is spending a few hours outdoors each day now with her family. Their time outside in the public space, most likely between 1:45-4:30 pm, is weather-dependent and often takes place in short increments in order to accommodate the baby’s behind-the-scenes bottle-feedings. Nadiri did not immediately pick up her baby after giving birth January 29, so our gorilla keepers initially provided round-the-clock care and bottle feedings of human infant formula while they helped Nadiri build confidence as a mother and bond with her baby . Now the two are back together 24/7 and they are a great team! Nadiri’s bond with Zuna is strong. Gorilla keeper Shawn Bell tells us that Nadir...

Posted by Paula MacKay, Conservation Associate, Woodland Park Zoo Photos by Woodland Park Zoo It's National Wildlife Week, the perfect time to celebrate our PNW wild cats! We're big fans of using motion-triggered cameras to help us learn more about the wildlife around us. Impassioned volunteers with the Seattle Urban Carnivore Project maintain dozens of cameras throughout greater Seattle, while researchers with the broader Northwest Carnivore Monitoring Program gather important camera data from the Cascades and the Olympics. And of the many amazing animals we observe with our remote cameras, perhaps none are more entertaining than the wild cats. If you’ve ever lived with a domestic cat, you’re already an expert in feline behavior—rubbing against your chair leg, clawing at your couch, rolling around in catnip with fervor and delight. Sometimes your cat just stares at you, as if to remind you they are a cat. Cats are our buddies, but they’re also the boss! Wild felids exhibit m...

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo We’re so excited to announce the latest additions to our zoo family—the birth of three red ruffed lemur babies on March 29. This is the first lemur birth at Woodland Park Zoo in 16 years. These three bouncing babies were born March 29th to first-time red ruffed lemur mom, Sally. The triplets were born to first-time mom Sally who will turn 5 this summer. There are two adult males in Sally’s group—brothers Orion and Lucien who will be 14 years old next month. We don’t yet know which one is the father of the babies, but that’s not unusual in lemur groups. A genetic test may be done later to learn that. We have not been able to determine the sexes of the babies yet, but quick neonatal exams have confirmed the triplets are thriving; the zoo’s animal health team will continue to perform exams to closely monitor their weight gains. Currently, they range in weight from 6.7 to 7.8 oz., which is within the ...

Posted by Kirsten Pisto, Communications Today is World Health Day and we want to thank all of our visitors, members, staff, volunteers and our community for keeping health a top priority––not only for people, but for the animals too. We've asked you to visit your zoo with timed tickets (which helps spread folks out), to social distance (if you need help remembering how far six feet is, just imagine an adult tapir, from tail to snout, or our boa, Anahi, stretched all the way out!) and to mask up. You've been patient and kind as we've navigated the challenges of a new zoo experience and we want to acknowledge just how grateful we are for your understanding and willingness to go with the flow. We still have these precautions in place, but you can get a refresh on how to safely visit at www.zoo.org/visit/faq   as spring and summer heat up! For over a year now, much of the indoor space at Woodland Park Zoo has been closed to keep staff, visitors and animals healthy and safe duri...