Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications There are big changes coming soon to our tiger and Asian bear exhibits as we get ready to make over the 60-year-old spaces into naturalistic, state-of-the-art homes for these animals. Next week we’ll unveil our final design plans for the new space. But before we get caught up in what’s to come, we want to tell you about some related changes underway—saying goodbye to sun bears at Woodland Park Zoo. As we started to gather ideas for the new exhibits that will replace this outdated part of the zoo, we had to get serious about planning for space. You see, we are seeking to deepen our commitment to and involvement in the Association of Zoos & Aquariums Species Survival Plan captive breeding programs for Asian bears. To become a center for endangered Asian bear breeding, we need to use exhibit space more efficiently to allow for multiple generations of bears—from newborns to the elderly—and account for the need to separate bears that

Posted by: Martin Ramirez, Mammal Curator A month after arriving to Woodland Park Zoo via FedEx from Little Rock Zoo in Arkansas, 7-year-old, female sloth bear , Tasha, underwent her quarantine exam on Tuesday. At Woodland Park Zoo, the quarantine exam is the last major step in the process to clear a newly arrived animal out of standard 30-day quarantine and prepare them to move into their exhibit. Dr. Darin Collins, the zoo’s director of Animal Health, inspects Tasha's teeth. Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo. Tasha received a full physical examination by our expert Animal Health staff that included blood work, radiographs and weight—essential baseline data that we keep on file to reference as we track an animal’s health over their lifetime. Close up of Tasha's claws. Sloth bears dig out insect mounds with their long, sharp claws. Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo. Weighing in at 215 pounds, Tasha received a clean bill of health and has been approved to

Posted by: Kate Neville, External Relations Save the date! Next Thursday, June 23, the Seattle Foundation is promoting GiveBIG , a communitywide day of online giving to local non-profits. On this day, gifts to Woodland Park Zoo made through the GiveBIG event will be stretched by the Seattle Foundation. This is especially exciting because every dollar will go towards our Campaign for More Wonder More Wild that will not only support our ongoing commitment to animal care, conservation and education, but also help us to build a new, naturalistic exhibit complex for tigers and Asian bears. Our community needs more wonder. Our world needs more wild. Here’s how you can help make that happen: 1) On June 23, from 7:00 a.m. to midnight, visit the zoo’s page on the Seattle Foundation website 2) Click the red DONATE NOW button and make a donation to the zoo through our Seattle Foundation page (this is the only way your gift will count towards the GiveBIG event) 3) Funds from a s

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications I’m so excited about this one that I have typed and retyped a dozen starts to this blog post and think the best approach is just to shout it out: NEW TIGER AND ASIAN BEAR EXHIBITS…COMING SOON! This morning at our annual Thrive fundraiser a tremendous gift came to the zoo from an anonymous donor—a $4 million challenge gift toward building a new tiger and Asian bear exhibit complex and completing the zoo’s More Wonder More Wild comprehensive fundraising campaign! This is the largest challenge gift in zoo history and we’re so excited for the momentum it gives us as we launch the news to you all about this new exhibit complex we plan to build. And check out who else is on board... We’re still in the earliest stage of conceptual design for the exhibits (the drawing up above is one artist’s concept rendering). We’re putting together plans to replace the 60-year-old infrastructure that tigers and Asian bears inhabit now. We’ll be transforming this