Chahinkapa Zoo is an 18 acres (7.3 ha) zoo

Zoo

A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....

 in Wahpeton, North Dakota

Wahpeton, North Dakota

The first European explorer in the area was Jonathan Carver in 1767. He explored and mapped the Northwest at the request of Major Robert Rogers, commander of Fort Michilimackinac, the British fort at Mackinaw City, Michigan, which protected the passage between Lake Michigan and Lake Huron...

. Opened in 1933 on land that had been purchased in 1903, it is the first zoo built in North Dakota

North Dakota

North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....

. It is open May through October and by appointment during the winter. It features over 200 animals ranging from Gibbon

Gibbon

Gibbons are apes in the family Hylobatidae . The family is divided into four genera based on their diploid chromosome number: Hylobates , Hoolock , Nomascus , and Symphalangus . The extinct Bunopithecus sericus is a gibbon or gibbon-like ape which, until recently, was thought to be closely related...

 apes to Bengal Tiger

Bengal Tiger

The Bengal tiger is a tiger subspecies native to the Indian subcontinent that in 2010 has been classified as endangered by IUCN...

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Chahinkapa Zoo has been accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums

Association of Zoos and Aquariums

The Association of Zoos and Aquariums was founded in 1924 and is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of zoos and public aquariums in the areas of conservation, education, science, and recreation.The AZA headquarters is located in Silver...

 (AZA) since 1995.

History

Wahpeton purchased the land for Chahinkapa Park from the federal government in 1903. In 1933 the town established a Park Board with R.J. Hughes as director, and started the zoo with just a few animals.

In the 1960s the zoo was moved to its current location, occupying 18 acres (7.3 ha) at the North end of Chahinkapa Park. The Chahinkapa Zoo Association was formed in 1974 to help plan and raise money for the zoo, and by 1984 a master plan had been developed.

In 1989 the Rodger Ehnstrom Nature Center was opened as the center of educational activity in the zoo. The zoo hired its first director in 1994, and was accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) in 1995.

In April 1997 the zoo was flooded, but all animals were safely evacuated and the zoo reopened at the end of May. Subsequently a levee was constructed to protect the North side of Walpeton (including the zoo) from 500 year flood levels. The zoo was renovated at this time with new exhibits, paths, and a petting zoo.

Animals

The zoo is home to more than 200 animals representing about 70 species.

Primates at the zoo include orangutan

Orangutan

Orangutans are the only exclusively Asian genus of extant great ape. The largest living arboreal animals, they have proportionally longer arms than the other, more terrestrial, great apes. They are among the most intelligent primates and use a variety of sophisticated tools, also making sleeping...

, white-handed gibbon

Lar Gibbon

The lar gibbon , also known as the white-handed gibbon, is a primate in the Hylobatidae or gibbon family. It is one of the better-known gibbons and is often seen in zoos.-Range:...

, black-handed spider monkey

Geoffroy's Spider Monkey

Geoffroy's spider monkey, Ateles geoffroyi, also known as black-handed spider monkey, is a species of spider monkey, a type of New World monkey, from Central America, parts of Mexico and possibly a small portion of Colombia. There are at least five subspecies. Some primatologists classify the...

, black-and-white ruffed lemur

Black-and-white ruffed lemur

The black-and-white ruffed lemur is the more endangered of the two species of ruffed lemurs, both of which are endemic to the island of Madagascar. Despite having a larger range than the red ruffed lemur, it has a much smaller population that is spread out, living in lower population densities...

, ringtailed lemur, crowned lemur

Crowned Lemur

The crowned lemur is a lemur that is 31–36 cm long and weighs 2 kg. Its tail is about 42–51 cm long). The crowned lemur is endemic to the dry deciduous forests of the northern tip of Madagascar. It eats a diet of mostly flowers, fruits, and leaves...

, and cottontop tamarin

Cottontop Tamarin

The cotton-top tamarin , also known as the Pinché tamarin, is a small New World monkey weighing less than 1 lb...

. Grazing mammals include Bactrian camels

Bactrian camel

The Bactrian camel is a large, even-toed ungulate native to the steppes of central Asia. It is presently restricted in the wild to remote regions of the Gobi and Taklamakan Deserts of Mongolia and Xinjiang. A small number of wild Bactrian camels still roam the Mangystau Province of southwest...

, plains zebras

Plains Zebra

The plains zebra , also known as the common zebra or Burchell's zebra, is the most common and geographically widespread species of zebra. It ranges from the south of Ethiopia through East Africa to as far south as Angola and eastern South Africa...

, llama

Llama

The llama is a South American camelid, widely used as a meat and pack animal by Andean cultures since pre-Hispanic times....

, alpaca

Alpaca

An alpaca is a domesticated species of South American camelid. It resembles a small llama in appearance.Alpacas are kept in herds that graze on the level heights of the Andes of southern Peru, northern Bolivia, Ecuador, and northern Chile at an altitude of to above sea level, throughout the year...

, bison

Bison

Members of the genus Bison are large, even-toed ungulates within the subfamily Bovinae. Two extant and four extinct species are recognized...

, Dall sheep

Dall Sheep

The Dall sheep , Ovis dalli, is a species of sheep native to northwestern North America, ranging from white to slate brown in color and having curved yellowish brown horns...

, and elk

Wapiti

- Animals :* Elk , from the Cree language waapiti, a large deer species native to western North America and eastern Asia- Places :* Wapiti Pass, a mountain pass in British Columbia, Canada...

. Other mammals include Bengal tiger

Bengal Tiger

The Bengal tiger is a tiger subspecies native to the Indian subcontinent that in 2010 has been classified as endangered by IUCN...

, snow leopard

Snow Leopard

The snow leopard is a moderately large cat native to the mountain ranges of South Asia and Central Asia...

s, fossa

Fossa

Fossa may refer to:*Fossa dei Leoni, an Italian football supporters association of Milan*La Fossa, an Italian rap group*Formaggio di fossa, a sheep's milk cheese from Sogliano al Rubicone, Italy*Cacio di Fossa, a hard, sharp sheep's milk Italian cheese...

, grizzly bear

Grizzly Bear

The grizzly bear , also known as the silvertip bear, the grizzly, or the North American brown bear, is a subspecies of brown bear that generally lives in the uplands of western North America...

, cougar, bobcat

Bobcat

The bobcat is a North American mammal of the cat family Felidae, appearing during the Irvingtonian stage of around 1.8 million years ago . With twelve recognized subspecies, it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental United States...

, river otters, and red kangaroos

Red Kangaroo

The Red Kangaroo is the largest of all kangaroos, the largest mammal native to Australia, and the largest surviving marsupial. It is found across mainland Australia, avoiding only the more fertile areas in the south, the east coast, and the northern rainforests.-Description:This species is a very...

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Birds at the zoo include bald eagle

Bald Eagle

The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. It is the national bird and symbol of the United States of America. This sea eagle has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle...

, red-tailed hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

The Red-tailed Hawk is a bird of prey, one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "chickenhawk," though it rarely preys on standard sized chickens. It breeds throughout most of North America, from western Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West...

, rough-legged hawk

Rough-legged Buzzard

The Rough-legged Buzzard , called the Rough-legged Hawk in North America, is a medium-large bird of prey. It is found in Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Eurasia during the breeding season and migrates south for the winter.The species exhibits a wide variety of plumage patterns...

, turkey vulture

Turkey Vulture

The Turkey Vulture is a bird found throughout most of the Americas. It is also known in some North American regions as the Turkey Buzzard , and in some areas of the Caribbean as the John Crow or Carrion Crow...

, black vulture

American Black Vulture

The Black Vulture also known as the American Black Vulture, is a bird in the New World vulture family whose range extends from the southeastern United States to Central Chile and Uruguay in South America...

, great horned owl

Great Horned Owl

The Great Horned Owl, , also known as the Tiger Owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an adaptable bird with a vast range and is the most widely distributed true owl in the Americas.-Description:...

, Eastern screech owl

Eastern Screech Owl

The Eastern Screech Owl or Eastern Screech-Owl is a small owl that is relatively common in Eastern North America, from Mexico to Canada.-Description:...

, pheasant

Pheasant

Pheasants refer to some members of the Phasianinae subfamily of Phasianidae in the order Galliformes.Pheasants are characterised by strong sexual dimorphism, males being highly ornate with bright colours and adornments such as wattles and long tails. Males are usually larger than females and have...

s, duck

Duck

Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...

s, and Australian black swans

Black Swan

The Black Swan is a large waterbird, a species of swan, which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. The species was hunted to extinction in New Zealand, but later reintroduced. Within Australia they are nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon climatic...

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Reptiles at the zoo include American alligator

American Alligator

The American alligator , sometimes referred to colloquially as a gator, is a reptile endemic only to the Southeastern United States. It is one of the two living species of alligator, in the genus Alligator, within the family Alligatoridae...

, red-tailed boa

Boa constrictor

The Boa constrictor is a large, heavy-bodied species of snake. It is a member of the family Boidae found in North, Central, and South America, as well as some islands in the Caribbean. A staple of private collections and public displays, its color pattern is highly variable yet distinctive...

, Burmese tortoise

Burmese Star Tortoise

The Burmese star tortoise is becoming extinct in its native Myanmar . It lives in the dry, deciduous forest, and is eaten both by the native Burmese, and is traded to the Chinese, where it is sometimes found in the food markets. It is on CITES Appendix II, meaning a permit from the country of...

, Sulcata tortoise

African Spurred Tortoise

The African spurred tortoise , also called the African spur thigh tortoise or the sulcata tortoise, is a species of tortoise which inhabits the southern edge of the Sahara desert, in northern Africa...

, and Eastern leopard tortoise

Leopard Tortoise

The Leopard tortoise is a large and attractively marked tortoise found in the savannas of eastern and southern Africa, from Sudan to the southern Cape. It is the only member of the genus Stigmochelys, but in the past it was commonly placed in Geochelone instead...

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Carousel

The Prairie Rose Carousel is a restored 1926 wood carousel built by Spillman Engineering for Lee Funland in upstate New York. It has 20 jumping horses arranged in two rows, and two chariots. Music is provided by band organ #125 from the Johnson Organ Co. The carousel is now housed in a climate controlled pavilion.