Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by Elizabeth Bacher, Communications Heeeeeere's Bumi! This handsome Malayan male tiger is getting comfortable behind the scenes at Woodland Park Zoo. Photo: Courtesy of Audubon Zoo Today is July 29, Global Tiger Day! To celebrate, we give you the first glimpses of our new boy, Bumi (pronounced Boom-y). This strappingly striped 9-year-old recently arrived here from Audubon Zoo in New Orleans and he is currently getting comfortable with his new digs behind-the-scenes at the zoo’s Malayan Tiger habitat in Banyan Wilds. Stay tuned for when he makes his debut later this summer. In the meantime, you can still see our other Malayan tigers, Olan and Eko, in the habitat area. Adult tigers are usually solitary (except a mother with cubs) so you’ll likely see one of them at a time.  "Are you looking at me?" Bumi is chillin' behind the scenes, getting ready for his debut. Photo: Carolyn Sellar/Woodland Park Zoo All subspecies of tigers are critically e

Posted by Kirsten Pisto, Communications Our summer art contest is complete and all of the incredible entries were so creative and wonderful to see! Thank you everyone for helping us thank the Junior Rangers!  Young people are the future of our communities and the future stewards of our planet. There is no better example of this than the Junior Rangers of Papua New Guinea. An integral part of the success of Woodland Park Zoo’s Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program , these youth are the real conservation heroes who are learning about and working towards a sustainable and balanced ecosystem in their own communities. These are the conservation stewards of tomorrow and we salute their dedication and passion for protecting endangered species like the Matschie’s tree kangaroo. Photo by Chris Banks, Zoos Victoria All of the artwork from the contest will be sent to the Junior Ranger Program in Papua New Guinea to show our appreciation for the Junior Rangers and their commitment to savi

Posted by the 2019 Jungle Party Co-Chairs Amy Alcala, Diane Shrewsbury, Alyssa Sunderland and Jill Walker On behalf of all of us at Woodland Park Zoo, thank you for joining us at the 43rd annual Jungle Party, Our Zoo, Our Oasis - Ensuring a Fierce Future!   We are honored to announce that collectively, more than $2 million was given for Woodland Park Zoo’s pioneering work and conservation mission. As a leading conservation zoo, we believe that saving wildlife and their habitats is our imperative. To achieve this, we are embarking on nothing less than a historic transformation that will redefine the relationship between people, our planet and all its creatures through a broad, social movement for wildlife conservation. Your support at Jungle Party and throughout the year enables us to build upon our proud history of innovation and leadership while embracing a rapid metamorphosis necessary for our times. We invite you to spend a few moments with our new strat

Posted by Barbara Segal, Intern, Communications Photo by Mike Patterson It takes a village to save a butterfly. Our zoo community’s mission includes saving wildlife near and far, and to save the Oregon silverspot butterfly we team up with many dedicated organizations of wildlife experts and activists. This beautiful and important pollinator once fluttered among flowers in Washington and across the west coast, but now is only found in isolated patches in Oregon and northern California. Threatened by habitat loss and invasive species, the silverspot butterfly needs our help. This means everyone from government agencies to you, our zoo community! Working together, we can bring this the silverspot butterfly back from the brink.  The first leg of the relay began when the U.S. Department of the Interior declared the silverspot butterfly threatened in 1980. This put the wheels in motion for conservation efforts, and in 1982 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service created a recovery p

Posted by Terra Vleeshouwer-Neumann, Intern, Public Affairs Photos by John Loughlin, Woodland Park Zoo A volunteer leads a guided tour at hippos. Woodland Park Zoo is dedicated to providing experiences that connect everyone to wildlife and conservation. Blind and low vision guests can request a trained sighted guide for their visit.  Here at the Woodland Park Zoo, we want everybody to feel welcome. One way we are working to include more of our community is through a series of Zoo For All events. Our most recent event on July 2, Celebrating All Abilities, was a huge hit. Despite the drizzly weather, the zoo was buzzing with excitement! Service animals are welcome. Woodland Park Zoo is responsible for the health and well-being of all of its animals, including many sensitive species. Therefore, there are additional steps to bringing fully-trained service animals on grounds. Here are all the details for service animals. Visitors learn about the special shoes our giraffe c

Posted by Elizabeth Bacher, Communications Kookaburras are known for their laugh-like vocalizations. Photo: Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo Listen carefully. Do you hear laughter? If you’re visiting Woodland Park Zoo’s Australasia area, you just might … and it could be coming from an unexpected source. Our laughing kookaburra family has just doubled in size thanks to these two newly-fledged chicks. Mama, Tamani, and Dad, Murray, are the proud parents of two young females who recently took their first hops—and flights—from the nest, just a few weeks ago. Two kookaburra chicks hatched in May. Photo: Amanda Dukart/Woodland Park Zoo The laughing kookaburra is the largest bird in the kingfisher family (think large head related to body size and long beak for catching prey like rodents, insects and lizards) and is so named for its distinctive vocalizations which sound like a mix of cackling laughter, chuckles and hoots. Each chick was regularly weighed, enabling keepers to