Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications The Indianapolis Prize has named six distinguished conservationists as DeHaan Finalists for the 2025 award, and Woodland Park Zoo is proud to announce that Lisa Dabek, PhD, senior conservation scientist at the zoo and founder of the Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program in Papua New Guinea, is among the six finalists.  Lisa Dabek, PhD, in Papua New Guinea with a Matschie's tree kangaroo. Photo by Jonathan Byers. The esteemed biennial award recognizes animal conservationists who have achieved major victories in saving an animal species or group of species. The DeHaan Finalists will each receive a $50,000 award to continue their efforts. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the Indianapolis Prize is the world’s leading award for animal conservation, honoring individuals who are at the forefront of species protection and research. Nearly 30 years ago, Dabek traveled to the remote Huon Peninsula in Papua New Guinea in search of the elusive Matschie’s ...

Posted by Craig Newberry, Communications Ahhhh ... a fresh and delicious cup of conservation coffee! Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo You can sip a world of good with this conservation coffee! Beginning tomorrow, September 6, a limited offering of Tree Kangaroo Conservation Coffee is available for purchase at Woodland Park Zoo and Caffe Vita! The delicious brew is a collaboration between Woodland Park Zoo’s Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program (TKCP) and Caffe Vita. Sourced directly from farmers in Papua New Guinea (PNG), these 100% Arabica varietal beans, roasted by Caffe Vita, are grown under the shade of tree canopy in village gardens across 400,000 acres of protected forest in the YUS Conservation Area, named for the Yopno, Uruwa and Som rivers that flow through it. This special coffee from PNG helps protect endangered Matschie's tree kangaroos and the forests they live in. Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo “This coffee is fully traceable; we know the f...

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Woodland Park Zoo is home to five Matschie’s tree kangaroos, currently living behind the scenes while their new state-of-the-art exhibit is being built. Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Imagine a world without digital technology. It would be nearly impossible to track a mysterious animal that has exceptional climbing and jumping skills…an animal that lives high in the dense canopy of the tropical cloud forest… a forest that flourishes in the remote, rugged mountains of the Huon Peninsula in Papua New Guinea. If not for the ever-evolving digital assets of today, little would be known about this stealthy animal, the Matschie’s tree kangaroo, found only in Papua New Guinea. March 3, is World Wildlife Day, a day the United Nations designated a decade ago to celebrate Earth’s precious wild animals and plants. The theme for 2024 is Connecting People and Planet: Exploring Digital Innovation in Wildlife Conservation. Adorable Matschie’s tre...

Posted by Craig Newberry, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, Woodland Park Zoo Get excited! This Sunday, May 21, is World Tree Kangaroo Day and Woodland Park Zoo is celebrating by announcing two new endangered Matschie’s tree kangaroo joeys at the zoo.  Female tree kangaroos Elanna, 15, and Omari, 14, gave birth to the unnamed pair of joeys—the zoo’s male tree kangaroo Rocket, 9, fathered both. These joeys were actually born in August 2022 but have recently become large enough to be visible in their mother’s pouches. The arrival of these marvelous marsupials is particularly exciting because the zoo broke ground earlier this month on their future home. The new immersive, best-in-class exhibit will be home to Matschie’s tree kangaroos, red pandas, keas and forest reptiles. The exhibit, scheduled to open in 2026, will mark the first time visitors at Woodland Park Zoo will have an opportunity to see the tree kangaroos in a decade! Please note, tree kangaroos live in a be...

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, Communications Both Papua New Guinea’s Matschie’s tree kangaroos and Nepal’s red pandas need healthy forests! An elusive kangaroo living in trees. A reddish-brown floof chilling atop the forest canopy. What do animals such as Papua New Guinea’s Matschie’s tree kangaroos and Nepal’s red pandas have in common? Both these red furry animals are the faces of forests where conservation has become a community movement. Why? Because we need forests and now, with the health of the world’s forests at risk, forests need us. Only when forests thrive can nature reach its full potential as a climate solution. Picture the stories of these animals and more in the new Forests for All exhibit experience coming to Woodland Park Zoo in 2026. Following a competitive process, the zoo has selected the Seattle-based LMN Architects as principal architects with CLR Design (Philadelphia and Capistrano Beach, Calif.) as habitat designers fo...

Posted by Meghan Sawyer, Communications Members of the Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program team at work in the YUS (Yopno-Uruwa-Som) Conservation Area of Papua New Guinea. Photo: Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program/Woodland Park Zoo  Thousands of brave people around the world dedicate their lives to protecting wildlife, helping to ensure others can enjoy the beauty of planet earth for generations to come. These wildlife heroes are called rangers, and we’re celebrating them this World Ranger Day. While we can’t introduce you to all rangers around the globe, we can introduce you to an all-star team of rangers spanning the Pacific Northwest to Papua New Guinea (or PNW to PNG!). In PNG, they are diligently working to protect the endangered Matschie’s tree kangaroo and the pristine cloud forests in which they live. Matschie’s tree kangaroos are native to the Huon Peninsula of Papua New Guinea. Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo For more than 25 years, Woodland Park Z...

Posted by Stephen Reed, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Havam, a male joey was born last August to mom Omari and dad Rocket. We're celebrating our five Matschie’s tree kangaroos, Rocket, Elanna, Omari, Keweng and Havam  every day, but especially on Saturday, May 29 for Tree Kangaroo Awareness Day! Tree Kangaroo Awareness Day spotlights endangered tree kangaroos and the important role they play in their ecosystem. The five tree kangaroos, who currently live in a habitat that is off-view from the public at Woodland Park Zoo, enjoy snacking on yams, arugula, swiss chard, corn and dandelion greens. Elanna is described as “sassy” and “cheeky” by her animal keepers and Keweng, Elanna’s daughter, has inherited some of her mother’s personality. Omari and her son Havam are more laid-back and settled. Rocket, the father of Havam and Keweng, is more hesitant to try new things, but he loves to dig into yams and carrots. His name is Havam which is the word for “...

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 and Meghan Sawyer, Communications This has been a year of many challenges and changes—and for some that also has meant some hardship, separation and even loss. Still, there is much to be thankful for. We have been inspired by kids from our community who have found creative and thoughtful ways to safely reach out with kindness, spread joy and show they care for animals and for people.  Mia and her friends have a safe, socially-distanced meet-up at the zoo! Photo: Courtesy of Mia's family. MIA Nine-year-old Mia really likes the animals and the people at Woodland Park Zoo—and before the pandemic, she used to go there on a bus to meet up with and visit friends. In the spring, when quarantine started, Mia was only able to see classmates and teammates on video screens.  When they were unable to visit in person, Mia left animal-inspired care packages for her friends with t-shirts and coloring sheets. Photo: Courtesy of Mia's family As a way to reach out and get...