Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Gigi Allianic, Communications Sunny the otter (foreground) with her mate, Duncan. Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo. For the past couple of decades, a female river otter named Salishan enchanted visitors with her energetic diving, gliding and cuteness. Now we say goodbye to the otter keepers fondly called "Sunny." Sunny was humanely euthanized today at the age of 19 following a period of declining health and lethargy. River otters live 8 to 10 years in the wild and 18 to 20 years in zoos. The zoo’s consulting veterinary cardiologist, Dr. Jerry Woodfield with Northwest Cardiology Consultants, diagnosed the otter a year ago with age-related congestive heart failure. She was given a prognosis of three to six months to live but survived another 12 months. Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo. “Targeted treatment, close monitoring, excellent supportive care, and lots of TLC by our keeper and veterinary staff all contributed to giving Salishan a v

Photos by Stan Milkowski/Woodland Park Zoo Junior the jaguar encountered a 40-year-old icon in his exhibit: the samoa cookie! As Girl Scouts of Western Washington celebrate the 40th birthday of the popular cookie, Junior received a giant samoa-inspired piñata stuffed with fish and topped with real coconut. We admit: it’s not exactly the same recipe the Girl Scouts use! Next up the Asian small-clawed otter family proved their ability to turn anything into a game when they got their hands—and teeth, and feet, and tails—onto, into and all over an empty box of the iconic cookies. Girl Scouts of Western Washington has been a great supporter of the zoo throughout the years—they have volunteered hours of service, contributed cookie fund donations, and joined us for many of our own zoo celebrations. They came to party, and the Girl Scouts who attended were decked out in cookie-inspired party gear! You can follow the party all week long by looking for #SamoaSightings  on Fa

As many of you know, we have spent the last three months carefully evaluating new homes for Asian elephants Chai and Bamboo in order to give them a chance to join a larger social herd and ensure their long-term health and well-being. Bamboo at Woodland Park Zoo. Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo. Chai at Woodland Park Zoo. Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo. We are happy to announce that we have selected Oklahoma City Zoo, which best meets our criteria based on recommendations from animal welfare experts: a social herd of Asian elephants into which Chai and Bamboo may successfully integrate, a state-of-the-art facility, a healthy environment free of active infectious disease, high caliber elephant keeper and veterinary staff, a restricted contact management system, and an established history of stable finances and leadership. In the wild elephants live in multi-generational herds, so we are delighted we can place them with a herd that includes younger elephants to

Posted by: Robert Long, Senior Conservation Fellow Washington’s North Cascades Ecosystem, an area of 9,800 square miles comprising large swaths of public land and wilderness, is one of only two regions in the contiguous United States—the other being the Northern Rockies—capable of supporting all of the larger carnivore species native to the United States. Most of these species, including black bears, cougars, and now gray wolves and wolverines, already occur in or are recolonizing their former habitats. Now, the American public will get the opportunity to support the recovery of grizzly bears—an iconic symbol of wildness—in the North Cascades. Photo courtesy of Western Wildlife Outreach. Grizzly bear populations once stretched from the tundra of northern Canada down through the Pacific Northwest and into California and even Mexico. Because of excessive hunting and trapping during the 1800s and early 1900s, however, grizzlies are now gone from the southern Pacific states, and

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Editor It’s official: the lion cubs are now going out on a daily schedule, 9:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m., weather permitting. Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo. We want to see your photos! Please share your best cub pics with us on Facebook or tag @woodlandparkzoo on Twitter and Instagram .

Posted by: Kirsten Pisto, Communications If you missed the Great Ape Senior Celebration on Saturday (or just want to relive the jubilee) check out a few of our favorite photos from the birthday festivities honoring orangutans, Chinta and Towan as well as gorillas, Pete and Nina. Photo by Stan Milkowski/ Woodland Park Zoo Twin orangutans Chinta and Towan celebrated their 47th birthday with special treats, birthday decorations and a whole lot of party guests! Born in 1968, the twins were the first born in a zoo. Towan is now the oldest male orangutan in North America. Born at Woodland Park Zoo, the twin orangutans gained instant national celebrity status as the first-known twin orangutans born in a zoo. Photos of the pair in diapers appeared around the globe, including “Life” magazine. While other twins have since been born, twin orangutan births are still a rare occurrence. A handful of fruit and a fistful of presents...what could be better? Photo by Stan Milkowski/ Woo

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Editor We’re disappointed to share the news that legislation to #BanIvoryWA failed to pass in Olympia this year. Special interest groups opposing the bipartisan House and Senate bills fought hard to put the protection of ivory products above the protection of elephants. Which one will you fight to protect?  The African elephant will go extinct within 20 years if we don’t take unprecedented action to stop wildlife trafficking, which includes ending the legal loopholes that allow the ivory black market to continue right here in the United States. If you believe no one needs ivory more than elephants, then we need your help. Next year we’ll bring this legislation back to Olympia and we’ll need to be louder than before to contend with the opposition. We need voices all over the state—from Aberdeen to Zillah—to stand up for elephants. Talk to your friends, ask them to join the herd, and sign up for news at www.zoo.org/96elephants to be on t