Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by Craig Newberry, Communications Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo We are eggstatic to announce the arrival of a new Humboldt penguin chick! The chick hatched June 20 to mom Merlin and dad Tucker; she represents the first chick between the parents. Incubation for penguins takes 39 to 41 days, with both parents sharing incubation duties in the nest and day-to-day care for their chicks. Most penguins mate for life. The yet-to-be named chick remains in a nesting burrow where she is under the care of mom and dad. Staff routinely weigh her to ensure she’s achieving growth milestones with minimal disturbance to the parents. The chick will join the colony in the outdoor habitat later this summer. Thanks to the expertise and dedication of the penguin care staff, Woodland Park Zoo has one of the most successful Humboldt penguin breeding programs in North America. Since the zoo’s first breeding season in 2010, a year after the new penguin habitat opened, the zoo has success...

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Editors note: a previous version of this blog incorrectly stated that western lowland gorillas live in the range where Mandinka is spoken. They do not. The information has been corrected below. Jamani, holding baby Oku is on the left. Olympia holding Kadre on the right. Photo:  Beth Keplinger/Woodland Park Zoo   With a little help from friends, Woodland Park Zoo’s western lowland baby gorillas, both males, have been officially named: Kadre (ka-DRAY) and Oku (OH-koo). Western lowland gorillas live in lowland tropical forests and swampy clearings in Central Africa. Kadre was born on May 18 to mom Jamani. The opportunity to name him was given to Woodland Park Zoo Board member Jill Walker and her husband, Scott Walker, as a small token of gratitude for their long-time, generous support of the zoo. “We’re so honored to have the privilege of naming the baby gorilla. Kadre, meaning ‘helper’ and ‘supporter’ in the Mandinka language, feels fittin...

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Hello Goose! This particular cat species may not meow, but it has attitude and a grumpy face to back it up. Meet the newest animal member at Woodland Park Zoo, a manul (MAH-nool, rhymes with cool) named Goose. The male feline arrived from Columbus Zoo in Ohio and just turned 2 years old. Just one glance at the manul’s face and it’s no wonder grumpy cat comes to mind. With a flat-looking face, wide-set ears and round pupils, this cat displays some of the funniest expressions in the feline kingdom. More commonly known as Pallas’s cat, manul is the cat's name in the Mongolian language. Woodland Park Zoo received its first manul, two females, in 1992 as a gift from Chongqing Zoo as part of the Seattle-Chongqing Sister City Association. The last manul at Woodland Park Zoo passed away in 2005 of age-related causes. “People may be curious about his peculiar name, Goose, for a cat. He was named Goose at...

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Welcome to the world, baby! A fuzzy, pink-faced monkey with all-white fur has made its appearance in the tropical rain forest at Woodland Park Zoo! A black and white colobus monkey was born on June 15 to mom Mokiki (moh-KEE-kee) and dad Lewis, marking the first birth of the species at the zoo in 29 years. Mokiki is an experienced mother. This is her second offspring and the first for new father, Lewis. The new baby, whose sex has not yet been determined, is the second offspring for mom Mokiki; she gave birth to a daughter, Anapenda, while living at her former home. Anapenda arrived at Woodland Park Zoo in 2024 with her mom. With long white fringes that run down their dramatic black coats and merge with their floofy, snow-white tail, black and white colobus look very much like skunks! Their long tails, which can grow to a length of 20 to 40 inches, act a bit like a parachute, slowing down their land...

Posted by Craig Newberry, Communications Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Marabou storks are one of the world's largest stork species! Woodland Park Zoo is thrilled to welcome a pair of massive Marabou Storks! These feathery friends, native to Africa, stand between four to five feet tall and boast a wingspan of up to ten feet. The male, Olaf, 8, and the female, Abigail, 4, are now viewable to the public in the zoo's Temperate Forest across from the maned wolves, they’ll be sharing the same habitat as the zoo’s other new feathered residents—two critically endangered hooded vultures. These large birds are bald and beautiful with no feathers on their neck and head. Similar to vultures, the marabou storks are primarily scavengers feeding off dead animals, as well as fish, insects and food scraps from humans. The birds provide an essential ecosystem service by rapidly consuming animal remains, helping prevent the spread of disease. These large birds are bald and beaut...

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Jamani is caring for Olympia's baby boy.  Olympia is caring for Jamani's baby boy. The birth and care of two western lowland gorillas at Woodland Park Zoo have been exciting and fluid with several twists and turns along the way. The newest twist: The newborns have been switched and each mother is caring for the other’s baby—intentionally. Jamani gave birth to a son on May 18 and Olympia delivered a son on May 24 via cesarean section, an extremely rare procedure on gorillas, due to complications that indicated a non-productive labor. With intentions of introducing Olympia’s son to her the following day, Jamani picked up the baby instead and stepped in to care for both babies while Olympia recovered from the procedure and remained nearby. Each gorilla baby now has a mama nursing and caring for them. All the adults and babies are doing well and are together as a family unit.  While Jamani pull...