Oregon Zoo
Encyclopedia
The Oregon Zoo, formerly the Washington Park Zoo, is a zoo
in Portland
, the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon
. Located 2 miles (3.2 km) southwest of Downtown Portland
, the zoo is inside Portland's Washington Park, and includes a narrow-gauge railway that connects to the International Rose Test Garden
inside the park. Opened in 1887 after a private animal collector donated his animals to the City of Portland, the 64 acres (25.9 ha) zoo is now owned by the regional Metro
government.
A member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums
, it has successful breeding programs for California Condor
s and Asian elephant
s. The zoo also boasts an extensive plant collection throughout its animal exhibits and specialized gardens. During the summer it is host to a concert series, and in the winter produces a holiday light show viewed from the train. The Oregon Zoo is Oregon's largest paid attraction, with more than 1.6 million visitors in 2008 to 2009.
. It all began with two bears purchased by Richard Knight, one brown bear and one grizzly. A former seaman turned pharmacist, Knight began collecting animals from his seafaring friends. He kept his collection in the back of his drug store on Third & Morrison streets. When caring for the animals became too large a responsibility he sought to sell them to the city of Portland. Instead of buying the animals, the city offered to give Knight two circus cages and allowed him to place the caged bears on the grounds of City Park (now called Washington Park).
Care and feeding of the bears, however, still fell to the Knight family and friends. It wasn't long before Knight addressed the city council again regarding the bears. Just five months later, he offered to donate the bears, along with their cages, to the city. Portland City Council accepted his offer on November 7, 1888, and thus began the Portland Zoo. Located in Washington Park, it was sometimes referred to as the Washington Park Zoo.
By 1894 there were over 300 animals in the zoo’s collection. In 1925, the zoo moved to the site of the present Portland Japanese Garden
, still within Washington Park.
The zoo moved again in 1958–59 to its current site, designed by Lawrence, Tucker & Wallmann. This was located in Hoyt Park, west of Washington Park, but some years later the two parks were combined as Washington Park. At this time, Portland Zoo Railway was constructed to connect the zoo to its former site in Washington Park and other attractions there. The zoo's move to the new, much larger site was made in stages, over more than a year, with the first animals being moved in spring 1958 and limited public access being opened in June 1958, one day after the first section of the Zoo Railway opened. During the transition period the new zoo was only open on weekends, as most animals were still at the old site awaiting completion of their new enclosures. However, the new railway operated six days a week until mid-September. Meanwhile, the old zoo remained in operation, but in May 1959 was restricted to pedestrian access only, closed to automobile access, for its last months of operation.
The zoo at its current site opened on July 3, 1959. It was renamed the Portland Zoological Gardens at that time, but remained commonly known as the Portland Zoo. The elephants and big cats were not moved to the new zoo until November. A new interchange was constructed on the adjacent freeway, the Sunset Highway
, for better access to the new zoo.
The zoo became popular locally in 1953, when Rosy the Asian elephant was acquired. The zoo became world-famous in 1962 when the Asian elephant
"Packy" was born. He was the first elephant born in the western hemisphere in 44 years and is (as of 2010) the tallest Asian elephant in the United States at 10.5 ft (3.2 m) tall. A total of 28 more calves have been born at the Oregon Zoo, including seven sired by Packy (two of which still live with him), making it the most successful zoo elephant breeding program in the world. On August 23, 2008, Rose-Tu, the granddaughter of the zoo's first elephant Rosy, gave birth to a son named Samudra. This makes Samudra the first third generation captive born elephant in North America.
Until 1971, the zoo was operated by the City, and then by the Portland Zoological Society under contract to the City. In 1976, area voters approved a tax levy plan under which the zoo was taken over by the Metropolitan Service District
(or MSD, now known as Metro
). Ownership of the zoo passed to Metro on July 1, 1976. Metro has continued expansion projects, aided by donors, sponsors and volunteers.
Later in 1976, MSD renamed the zoo the Washington Park Zoo after a naming contest. The railway was renamed the Washington Park and Zoo Railway two years later.
The Metro Council changed the zoo's name from the Washington Park Zoo to the Oregon Zoo in April 1998. In September of that year, the zoo became accessible by the region's MAX light rail system, with the opening of a Westside MAX
line featuring an underground Washington Park station
. In 2003, the zoo began participation in a California condor
recovery program started by San Diego Wild Animal Park
and Los Angeles Zoo
. The program is designed to breed California condors to be released into the wild and save them from extinction.
In November 2008 regional voters approved a $125 million bond measure to improve infrastructure, enhance older exhibits and increase access to conservation education and the degree of sustainability. Attendance at the zoo reached a record 1.6 million visitors for their 2008 to 2009 year. The record was due in part to the birth of another baby elephant. A new record was set the following year with 1,612,359 people visiting the zoo.
s, Egyptian Fruit Bat
s, King Colobus Monkey
, Allen's Swamp Monkey
, Red Flanked Duiker, Hadada Ibis
, Saddle-billed Stork
, White-Faced Whistling Duck
s, Slender-snouted Crocodile
, Nile Monitor Lizard
, Lungfish
, Cichlid
s, and Hooded Vulture
s.
and areas for large mammals. These include Black Rhinoceros
, De Brazza's Monkey
, Hippopotamus
, Naked Mole-Rat, Reticulated Giraffe, Gerenuk
, Egyptian Spiny Mouse
, Damara Zebra
, Speke's Gazelle
, Southern Ground Hornbill, Weaver Birds, Marabou Stork
s, Cape Thick-Knee, Red-crested Turaco
, Hamerkop, Buffalo Weaver, Hingeback Tortoises, Meerkat
, and Spiny-Tailed Lizards.
It is located on the site of the former Alaska Tundra exhibit, with some of the animals from the Alaska exhibit moved to other locations inside the zoo, such as the wolf exhibit. Animals in the Serengeti exhibit include Lion
s, Cheetah
s, African Wild Dog
s, Caracal
s, Scorpion
s, Chameleon
s, Nile crocodile
s, Dwarf mongoose
, red-billed hornbill
, and African Rock Python. The zoo previously had lions, but closed the exhibit in 1998 and converted the area into Steller Cove. The three new lions come from zoos in Virginia and Wisconsin.
, Green Iguana
, Golden Lion Tamarin
, Ocelot
, Agouti
, Black Howler Monkey
, Pale-Faced Saki Monkey
, Brazilian Cockroach, Arrau Turtle, Red-handed Tamarin
, Blue Poison Dart Frog, Dwarf Caiman, Emerald Tree Boa, Yellow-banded Poison Dart
, Cardinal Tetra
, Heckel Discus
, Orange Spot, Pacu
, Arawana
, Plecostomus
, Green Anaconda
s, and Green and Black Poison Dart Frog
Three female (Sung-Surin "Shine", Rose-Tu, Chendra) and four male (Packy, Rama, Tusko, Samudra "Sam") Asian elephant
s are displayed at the popular elephant exhibit. All were born at the zoo, except Chendra and Tusko, who were born in the wild. Chendra is the only Borneo Elephant
in the United States. The exhibit is currently 1.5 acres (6,070.3 m²), but there are plans to expand it to 6 acres (24,281.2 m²) under the 2008 bond measure. On August 23, 2008, Rose-Tu and Tusko gave birth to Samudra, who is also the first third-generation elephant born in the United States. There is a swimming hole in which up to ten elephants can simultaneously completely submerge, sandy ground for comfortable walking and a scratching station, which the elephants often choose to scratch their head, sides, belly, etc.
The Lilah Callen Holden Elephant Museum is a collection of historical, religious, and sociological artifacts including some on long term loan from the Smithsonian, such as an 8 foot (2.4 m) tall mastodon
skeleton. The museum also contains original artwork by Henry Moore and Salvador Dalí.
There are eight bears in three separate bear exhibits. Two Polar Bear
s (Ursus maritimus) are located in an exhibit that is designed to mimic the area near Hudson Bay
in Canada. One female, Tasul, and her brother named Conrad, are easily viewed. The exhibit previously had another female, Yugyan, but she was euthanized in August 2008 due to kidney failure. The exhibit opened in 1986 and has two pools of water for the animals, one for winter and one for summer. There are two Malaysian sun bears (Helarctos malayanus) in a tropical forest environment simulated in part with heat producing artificial trees. Both bears are females, named Vivian and Jody. The Great Northwest exhibit's Black Bear Ridge has four black bears
added in April 2010 after the previous three had been euthanized for health reasons.
, it was open from May to September 2008. The dinosaurs were Parasaurolophus
, Megalosaurus
, Dilophosaurus
, Pachycephalosaurus
, Rhamphorhynchus (not a dinosaur), Brachiosaurus
, Stegosaurus
, Triceratops
, Apatosaurus
,
Tyrannosaurus
, Compsognathus
, Deinonychus
and Iguanodon
and also includes a map of the timeline, baby dinosaurs, a dig site, a fossil to make the fossils back together and toys in the Elephant Museum.
In 2010 the zoo opened a new exhibit with new dinosaurs, called Prehistoric Predators. The dinosaurs featured were Edmontosaurus
, Baryonyx
, Styracosaurus
, Troodon
, Dilophosaurus
(returning and also having a juvenile), Therizinosaurus
, Allosaurus
, Quetzalcoatlus
(not a dinosaur), Sarcosuchus
(not a dinosaur), Cryolophosaurus
, Rugops
, Kentrosaurus
, Deltadromeus
, Giganotosaurus
, Brachiosaurus
(returning but in a new spot), Carnotaurus
, and Amargasaurus
. The exhibit also has a dig site, with fossil parts of various dinosaurs, and dinosaur toys are available in the Elephant Museum.
, and has eight areas: Black Bear Ridge, Eagle Canyon, Cascade Stream and Pond, Cougar Crossing, Elk Meadow, Cascade Crest, Trillium Creek Family Farm, and Steller Cove. Cascade Canyon Trail connects each of the exhibits, except Steller Cove, and includes a suspension bridge that offers views of Black Bear Ridge.
The Cascade Stream and Pond portion is the oldest of these exhibits, which opened in 1982 and features beaver
s, North American river otters, Ring-tailed Cat
s, egret
s, and heron
s. Elk Meadow opened in 1993 originally with only elk. Wolves were added to the 1.9 acre (0.7689034 ha) exhibit in 2007. The only animals on display are Gray wolf
and Roosevelt Elk
. Opened in 1998, Cascade Crest is a mountain-like exhibit made mostly of basalt and features a snow cave, cirque lake, and twisted alpine trees. The 10920 ft2 exhibit cost $11.6 million and is located near the entrance to the zoo. The only animals are mountain goat
s. Black Bear Ridge is the next exhibit along the Cascade Canyon Trail. The $2 million area opened in 2007 and has two Bobcat
s. The exhibit had three American Black Bear
s, but all three were euthanized in 2009 due to various causes. The zoo acquired four new bears from a Utah zoo.
Eagle Canyon is the next exhibit along the trail and has two Bald eagles along with Coho salmon in a stream. This 20800 ft2 area opened in 2004. Cougar Crossing comes after Eagle Canyon and features three cougars in a 4260 ft2 facility that opened in 2006. The last area along the Cascade Canyon Trail is the Trillium Creek Family Farm. Opened in 2004 at a cost of $1 million, animals are presented by high school students who also explain local farming historical trends, technology, and demonstrate related activities such as composting, shearing, and agriculture. A variety of domestic animals such as Dexter cattle
, Shetland sheep, Guinea Hog
s, Pygora Goat
s, Araucana
chicken
s, Runner duck
s, and Domestic rabbit
s are part of the farm's exhibits. The final area of the Great Northwest Exhibit is the Steller Cove which features animals and plants from the Oregon Coast
. The $11 million exhibit opened in 2000 and includes a tide pool and kelp forest populated with Steller Sea Lions, (Eumetopias jubatus), Sea Otter
s (Enhydra lutris), Sea Anemone
s, Chiton
, Limpet
, Snail
, Mussel
, Crab
, Sea Cucumber
, Urchin
, Sea Star
, Sculpin
, Goby
, Painted greenling
, and Gunnel.
The zoo also has areas with Humboldt penguin
s, Inca tern
s, Lories and Lorikeets, and the Insect
Zoo Hut. Other exhibits include the Cats of the Amur Region which houses Amur Leopard
s and Amur Tiger
s. The Primate Exhibit features Chimpanzee
s, Orangutan
s, White-Cheeked Gibbons, Mandrill
s, Siamang
s, Tree Shrews, Burmese Python
s, Ring-tailed Lemur
s L'Hoest's Monkey
s and Francois' Langur
s.
Red Ape Reserve opened September 3, 2010. It is an indoor/outdoor exhibit housing both orangutans and white cheeked gibbons. There are two species of endangered wild pigs in the Asian Pigs exhibit: Babirusa
s and Visayan Warty Pigs. A tree-kangaroo exhibits endangered Matschie's Tree-kangaroo
s.
), in conjunction with Brøderbund
, ran a summer-long event titled Where in the Zoo is Carmen Sandiego
?, which functioned as a full-immersion live-action Carmen game in which zoo patrons were the investigating detectives. This was a pioneering example of Alternate Reality Gaming
. Actors were hired to play Carmen's henchmen, who could be found around the zoo, and on occasions a costumed Carmen appeared, as well, but never in a location where patrons could interact with her. Clues were given out at various stations by members of the ZooTeens volunteer group.
, World Forestry Center
, Oregon Vietnam Veterans Memorial
, and Hoyt Arboretum
. An adjacent trail system connects the zoo to the International Rose Test Garden
, the Portland Japanese Garden
, and Forest Park
.
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 Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. Located 2 miles (3.2 km) southwest of Downtown Portland
Downtown Portland
Downtown Portland, the city center of Portland, Oregon, United States, is located on the west bank of the Willamette River. It is in the northeastern corner of the southwest section of the city and is where most of the city's high-rise buildings are found....
, the zoo is inside Portland's Washington Park, and includes a narrow-gauge railway that connects to the International Rose Test Garden
International Rose Test Garden
The International Rose Test Garden is a rose garden in Washington Park in Portland, Oregon, United States. There are over 7,000 rose plants of approximately 550 varieties. The roses bloom from April through October with the peak coming in June, depending on the weather...
inside the park. Opened in 1887 after a private animal collector donated his animals to the City of Portland, the 64 acres (25.9 ha) zoo is now owned by the regional Metro
Metro (Oregon regional government)
Metro, formerly known as Metropolitan Service District, is the regional governmental agency for the Oregon portion of the Portland metropolitan area...
government.
A member of 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...
, it has successful breeding programs for California Condor
California Condor
The California Condor is a New World vulture, the largest North American land bird. Currently, this condor inhabits only the Grand Canyon area, Zion National Park, and coastal mountains of central and southern California and northern Baja California...
s and Asian elephant
Asian Elephant
The Asian or Asiatic elephant is the only living species of the genus Elephas and distributed in Southeast Asia from India in the west to Borneo in the east. Three subspecies are recognized — Elephas maximus maximus from Sri Lanka, the Indian elephant or E. m. indicus from mainland Asia, and E. m....
s. The zoo also boasts an extensive plant collection throughout its animal exhibits and specialized gardens. During the summer it is host to a concert series, and in the winter produces a holiday light show viewed from the train. The Oregon Zoo is Oregon's largest paid attraction, with more than 1.6 million visitors in 2008 to 2009.
History
The Oregon Zoo was founded in 1888, making it the oldest North American zoo west of the MississippiMississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. It all began with two bears purchased by Richard Knight, one brown bear and one grizzly. A former seaman turned pharmacist, Knight began collecting animals from his seafaring friends. He kept his collection in the back of his drug store on Third & Morrison streets. When caring for the animals became too large a responsibility he sought to sell them to the city of Portland. Instead of buying the animals, the city offered to give Knight two circus cages and allowed him to place the caged bears on the grounds of City Park (now called Washington Park).
Care and feeding of the bears, however, still fell to the Knight family and friends. It wasn't long before Knight addressed the city council again regarding the bears. Just five months later, he offered to donate the bears, along with their cages, to the city. Portland City Council accepted his offer on November 7, 1888, and thus began the Portland Zoo. Located in Washington Park, it was sometimes referred to as the Washington Park Zoo.
By 1894 there were over 300 animals in the zoo’s collection. In 1925, the zoo moved to the site of the present Portland Japanese Garden
Portland Japanese Garden
The Portland Japanese Garden is a traditional Japanese garden occupying 5.5 acres , located within Washington Park in the west hills of Portland, Oregon, USA.- Design :...
, still within Washington Park.
The zoo moved again in 1958–59 to its current site, designed by Lawrence, Tucker & Wallmann. This was located in Hoyt Park, west of Washington Park, but some years later the two parks were combined as Washington Park. At this time, Portland Zoo Railway was constructed to connect the zoo to its former site in Washington Park and other attractions there. The zoo's move to the new, much larger site was made in stages, over more than a year, with the first animals being moved in spring 1958 and limited public access being opened in June 1958, one day after the first section of the Zoo Railway opened. During the transition period the new zoo was only open on weekends, as most animals were still at the old site awaiting completion of their new enclosures. However, the new railway operated six days a week until mid-September. Meanwhile, the old zoo remained in operation, but in May 1959 was restricted to pedestrian access only, closed to automobile access, for its last months of operation.
The zoo at its current site opened on July 3, 1959. It was renamed the Portland Zoological Gardens at that time, but remained commonly known as the Portland Zoo. The elephants and big cats were not moved to the new zoo until November. A new interchange was constructed on the adjacent freeway, the Sunset Highway
Sunset Highway (Oregon)
The Sunset Highway No. 47 , in the state of Oregon, is an official designation for the portion of U.S. Route 26 between its western terminus, south of Seaside, and the interchange with Interstate 405 in downtown Portland...
, for better access to the new zoo.
The zoo became popular locally in 1953, when Rosy the Asian elephant was acquired. The zoo became world-famous in 1962 when the Asian elephant
Asian Elephant
The Asian or Asiatic elephant is the only living species of the genus Elephas and distributed in Southeast Asia from India in the west to Borneo in the east. Three subspecies are recognized — Elephas maximus maximus from Sri Lanka, the Indian elephant or E. m. indicus from mainland Asia, and E. m....
"Packy" was born. He was the first elephant born in the western hemisphere in 44 years and is (as of 2010) the tallest Asian elephant in the United States at 10.5 ft (3.2 m) tall. A total of 28 more calves have been born at the Oregon Zoo, including seven sired by Packy (two of which still live with him), making it the most successful zoo elephant breeding program in the world. On August 23, 2008, Rose-Tu, the granddaughter of the zoo's first elephant Rosy, gave birth to a son named Samudra. This makes Samudra the first third generation captive born elephant in North America.
Until 1971, the zoo was operated by the City, and then by the Portland Zoological Society under contract to the City. In 1976, area voters approved a tax levy plan under which the zoo was taken over by the Metropolitan Service District
Metro (Oregon regional government)
Metro, formerly known as Metropolitan Service District, is the regional governmental agency for the Oregon portion of the Portland metropolitan area...
(or MSD, now known as Metro
Metro (Oregon regional government)
Metro, formerly known as Metropolitan Service District, is the regional governmental agency for the Oregon portion of the Portland metropolitan area...
). Ownership of the zoo passed to Metro on July 1, 1976. Metro has continued expansion projects, aided by donors, sponsors and volunteers.
Later in 1976, MSD renamed the zoo the Washington Park Zoo after a naming contest. The railway was renamed the Washington Park and Zoo Railway two years later.
The Metro Council changed the zoo's name from the Washington Park Zoo to the Oregon Zoo in April 1998. In September of that year, the zoo became accessible by the region's MAX light rail system, with the opening of a Westside MAX
MAX Blue Line
The MAX Blue Line is a 33 mile light rail line in the MAX Light Rail system in the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon. Operated by TriMet, the line runs between Hillsboro and Gresham, via downtown Portland...
line featuring an underground Washington Park station
Washington Park (MAX station)
Washington Park is a station in the MAX Light Rail system of TriMet, served by the Blue and Red lines. It is located in Portland, Oregon and is a part of the Robertson Tunnel under Portland's West Hills. It is the fourth station westbound on the Westside MAX alignment...
. In 2003, the zoo began participation in a California condor
Condor
Condor is the name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere.They are:* The Andean Condor which inhabits the Andean mountains....
recovery program started by San Diego Wild Animal Park
San Diego Wild Animal Park
The San Diego Zoo Safari Park, formerly known as the San Diego Wild Animal Park, is a zoo in the San Pasqual Valley area of San Diego, California, near Escondido. It is one of the largest tourist attractions in San Diego County. The Park houses a large array of wild and endangered animals including...
and Los Angeles Zoo
Los Angeles Zoo
The Los Angeles Zoo , is a zoo founded in 1966 and located in Los Angeles, California. The City of Los Angeles owns the entire zoo, its land and facilities, and the animals...
. The program is designed to breed California condors to be released into the wild and save them from extinction.
In November 2008 regional voters approved a $125 million bond measure to improve infrastructure, enhance older exhibits and increase access to conservation education and the degree of sustainability. Attendance at the zoo reached a record 1.6 million visitors for their 2008 to 2009 year. The record was due in part to the birth of another baby elephant. A new record was set the following year with 1,612,359 people visiting the zoo.
Africa Rainforest
Opened in 1991, the Africa Rainforest exhibit covers 1.3 acres (5,260.9 m²) and was built at a cost of $4.3 million. In addition to animals, the exhibit includes artwork and the Kongo Ranger Station, a mock up of a safari expedition. Animals in the exhibit include Rodriguez Fruit Bats, Straw-Colored Fruit BatStraw-coloured Fruit Bat
The Straw-coloured Fruit Bat is the most widely distributed of all the African megabats. It is quite common throughout its area ranging from southwestern Arabian Peninsula, forest and savanna zones of Africa and to the offshore island of Madagascar...
s, Egyptian Fruit Bat
Egyptian fruit bat
The Egyptian Fruit Bat or Egyptian Rousette is a species of Old World fruit bat found throughout Africa, except in the desert regions of the Sahara, and throughout the Middle East, as far east as Pakistan and northern India...
s, King Colobus Monkey
King Colobus
The king colobus , also known as the western black-and-white colobus, is a species of Old World monkey, found in lowland and mountain rain forests in a region stretching between Gambia and Côte d'Ivoire within Africa. It eats mainly leaves, but also fruits and flowers. Though it is arboreal, it...
, Allen's Swamp Monkey
Allen's Swamp Monkey
Allen's swamp monkey is a primate species that is categorized in its own genus Allenopithecus in the Old World monkey family...
, Red Flanked Duiker, Hadada Ibis
Hadada Ibis
The Hadada or Hadeda Ibis, Bostrychia hagedash, is an ibis found in Sub-Saharan Africa.-Appearance:The Hadeda is a large , dark brown ibis with a white "moustache", glossy greenish purple wings, a large black bill with a red stripe on the upper mandible, and blackish legs.-Call:It has a...
, Saddle-billed Stork
Saddle-billed Stork
The Saddle-billed Stork is a large wading bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. It is a widespread species which is a resident breeder in sub-Saharan Africa from Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya south to South Africa, and in The Gambia, Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire and Chad in west Africa.This is a close...
, White-Faced Whistling Duck
White-faced Whistling Duck
The White-faced Whistling Duck, Dendrocygna viduata, is a whistling duck which breeds in sub-Saharan Africa and much of South America.This species is gregarious, and at favoured sites, the flocks of a thousand or more birds arriving at dawn are an impressive sight...
s, Slender-snouted Crocodile
Slender-snouted Crocodile
The African Slender-snouted Crocodile is a species of crocodile. Recent studies in DNA and morphology suggest that it may belong in its own genus, Mecistops, but at present most continue to use Crocodylus for this species.African Slender-snouted Crocodile are native to freshwater habitats in...
, Nile Monitor Lizard
Nile monitor
The Nile Monitor, Water Leguaan, or River Leguaan is a large member of the monitor lizard family ....
, Lungfish
Lungfish
Lungfish are freshwater fish belonging to the Subclass Dipnoi. Lungfish are best known for retaining characteristics primitive within the Osteichthyes, including the ability to breathe air, and structures primitive within Sarcopterygii, including the presence of lobed fins with a well-developed...
, Cichlid
Cichlid
Cichlids are fishes from the family Cichlidae in the order Perciformes. Cichlids are members of a group known as the Labroidei along with the wrasses , damselfish , and surfperches . This family is both large and diverse. At least 1,300 species have been scientifically described, making it one of...
s, and Hooded Vulture
Hooded Vulture
The Hooded Vulture is an Old World vulture in the order Accipitriformes, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards and hawks. It is the only member of the genus Necrosyrtes....
s.
Africa Savanna
The Africa Savanna exhibit opened in April 1989 and is 4 acres (16,187.4 m²) in size. This exhibit includes animals typical of East Africa and includes an aviaryAviary
An aviary is a large enclosure for confining birds. Unlike cages, aviaries allow birds a larger living space where they can fly; hence, aviaries are also sometimes known as flight cages...
and areas for large mammals. These include Black Rhinoceros
Black Rhinoceros
The Black Rhinoceros or Hook-lipped Rhinoceros , is a species of rhinoceros, native to the eastern and central areas of Africa including Kenya, Tanzania, Cameroon, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Angola...
, De Brazza's Monkey
De Brazza's Monkey
De Brazza's monkey is an Old World monkey endemic to the wetlands of central Africa.- Taxonomy :Locally known as swamp monkeys, these primates are named after the Italian-French explorer Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza. They were given the species name neglectus because of their skill in hiding from...
, Hippopotamus
Hippopotamus
The hippopotamus , or hippo, from the ancient Greek for "river horse" , is a large, mostly herbivorous mammal in sub-Saharan Africa, and one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae After the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third largest land mammal and the heaviest...
, Naked Mole-Rat, Reticulated Giraffe, Gerenuk
Gerenuk
The Gerenuk , also known as the Waller's Gazelle, is a long-necked species of antelope found in dry bushy scrub and steppe in East Africa, from Somalia and eastern Ethiopia through northern and eastern Kenya to northeastern Tanzania...
, Egyptian Spiny Mouse
Cairo Spiny Mouse
The Cairo Spiny Mouse is a species of rodent in the family Muridae.It is found in Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, and Djibouti.Its natural habitats are rocky areas and hot deserts....
, Damara Zebra
Burchell's Zebra
Burchell's Zebra is a southern subspecies of the Plains Zebra.-Range:Formerly Burchell's zebra ranged north of the Vaal/Orange river system, extending northwest via southern Botswana to Etosha and the Kaokoveld, southeast to Swaziland and Kwazulu-Natal...
, Speke's Gazelle
Speke's Gazelle
Speke's Gazelle is the smallest of the gazelle species. It is confined to the horn of Africa where it inhabits stony brush, grass steppes, and semi deserts . This species has been sometimes regarded as a subspecies of the dorcas gazelle though this is now widely disregarded...
, Southern Ground Hornbill, Weaver Birds, Marabou Stork
Marabou Stork
The Marabou Stork, Leptoptilos crumeniferus, is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It breeds in Africa south of the Sahara, occurring in both wet and arid habitats, often near human habitation, especially waste tips...
s, Cape Thick-Knee, Red-crested Turaco
Red-crested Turaco
The Red-crested Turaco, Tauraco erythrolophus, is a turaco, a group of African near-passerines. It is a fruit-eating bird endemic to western Angola...
, Hamerkop, Buffalo Weaver, Hingeback Tortoises, Meerkat
Meerkat
The meerkat or suricate, Suricata suricatta, is a small mammal belonging to the mongoose family. Meerkats live in all parts of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana, in much of the Namib Desert in Namibia and southwestern Angola, and in South Africa. A group of meerkats is called a "mob", "gang" or "clan"...
, and Spiny-Tailed Lizards.
Predators of the Serengeti
Predators of the Serengeti, which opened in September 2009, covers 2.5 acres (10,117.2 m²) and cost $6.8 million to build.It is located on the site of the former Alaska Tundra exhibit, with some of the animals from the Alaska exhibit moved to other locations inside the zoo, such as the wolf exhibit. Animals in the Serengeti exhibit include Lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
s, Cheetah
Cheetah
The cheetah is a large-sized feline inhabiting most of Africa and parts of the Middle East. The cheetah is the only extant member of the genus Acinonyx, most notable for modifications in the species' paws...
s, African Wild Dog
African Wild Dog
Lycaon pictus is a large canid found only in Africa, especially in savannas and lightly wooded areas. It is variously called the African wild dog, African hunting dog, Cape hunting dog, painted dog, painted wolf, painted hunting dog, spotted dog, or ornate wolf...
s, Caracal
Caracal
The caracal is a fiercely territorial medium-sized cat ranging over Western Asia, South Asia and Africa.The word caracal comes from the Turkish word "karakulak", meaning "black ear". In North India and Pakistan, the caracal is locally known as syahgosh or shyahgosh, which is a Persian term...
s, Scorpion
Scorpion
Scorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by the pair of grasping claws and the narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back, ending with a venomous stinger...
s, Chameleon
Chameleon
Chameleons are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of lizards. They are distinguished by their parrot-like zygodactylous feet, their separately mobile and stereoscopic eyes, their very long, highly modified, and rapidly extrudable tongues, their swaying gait, the possession by many of a...
s, Nile crocodile
Nile crocodile
The Nile crocodile or Common crocodile is an African crocodile which is common in Somalia, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Egypt, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Gabon, South Africa, Malawi, Sudan, Botswana, and Cameroon...
s, Dwarf mongoose
Dwarf Mongoose
The Common Dwarf Mongoose , sometimes just called the Dwarf Mongoose, is a small African carnivore belonging to the mongoose family .-Physical characteristics:...
, red-billed hornbill
Red-billed Hornbill
Red-billed Hornbill is a relatively small species of hornbill found in savanna and woodland of sub-Saharan Africa. It is sometimes split into five species, the Northern Red-billed Hornbill , Western Red-billed Hornbill , Tanzania Red-billed Hornbill , Southern Red-billed Hornbill Red-billed...
, and African Rock Python. The zoo previously had lions, but closed the exhibit in 1998 and converted the area into Steller Cove. The three new lions come from zoos in Virginia and Wisconsin.
Amazon Flooded Forest
This exhibit opened in September, 2001. It simulates the Amazonian basin during its seasonal floods. Visitors can view the flooded environment from either above or below the water. Animals in the exhibit include Pygmy MarmosetPygmy Marmoset
The pygmy marmoset or dwarf monkey is a New World monkey native to the rainforest canopies of western Brazil, southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador, eastern Peru, and northern Bolivia. It is one of the smallest primates, and the smallest true monkey, with its body length ranging from...
, Green Iguana
Green Iguana
The Green Iguana or Common Iguana is a large, arboreal herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana native to Central and South America...
, Golden Lion Tamarin
Golden Lion Tamarin
The golden lion tamarin also known as the golden marmoset, is a small New World monkey of the family Callitrichidae...
, Ocelot
Ocelot
The ocelot , pronounced /ˈɒsəˌlɒt/, also known as the dwarf leopard or McKenney's wildcat is a wild cat distributed over South and Central America and Mexico, but has been reported as far north as Texas and in Trinidad, in the Caribbean...
, Agouti
Common agouti
The popular term Agouti designates several rodent species of the genus Dasyprocta that inhabit areas of Middle America, the West Indies, and northern South America. They are related to guinea pigs and look quite similar but have longer legs. The species vary in color from tawny to dark brown with...
, Black Howler Monkey
Black Howler
The Black howler is a species of howler monkey, a large New World monkey, from northeast Argentina, east Bolivia, east and south Brazil and Paraguay. Together with the brown howler, it is the southernmost member of the Alouatta genus. Only the adult male is black; adult females and juveniles of...
, Pale-Faced Saki Monkey
Saki monkey
Sakis, or saki monkeys, are any of several New World monkeys of the genus Pithecia. They are closely related to the bearded sakis of genus Chiropotes.-Range:...
, Brazilian Cockroach, Arrau Turtle, Red-handed Tamarin
Red-handed Tamarin
The red-handed tamarin , also known as the golden-handed tamarin or Midas tamarin, is a New World monkey named for the contrasting reddish-orange hair on their feet and hands. It is native to wooded areas north of the Amazon River in Brazil, Guyana, French Guiana, Suriname, and possibly Venezuela...
, Blue Poison Dart Frog, Dwarf Caiman, Emerald Tree Boa, Yellow-banded Poison Dart
Yellow-banded Poison Dart
The Yellow-banded poison dart frog , Dendrobates leucomelas, is a poison dart frog from the Dendrobates genus of the Dendrobatidae family.-Distribution and habitat:...
, Cardinal Tetra
Cardinal tetra
The cardinal tetra, Paracheirodon axelrodi, is a freshwater fish of the characin family of order Characiformes. It is native to the upper Orinoco and Negro Rivers in South America....
, Heckel Discus
Discus (fish)
Discus are a genus of three species of cichlid freshwater fishes native to the Amazon River basin. Discus are popular as aquarium fish and their aquaculture in several countries in Asia is a major industry.-Taxonomy:...
, Orange Spot, Pacu
Pacú
Pacu or pacú is the common name of several South American fishes.PACU, Pacu or pacú may also refer to:*Piaractus mesopotamicus , a South American ray-finned fish that is endemic to the Paraguay-Paraná River basin*Tambaqui , known as black pacu, black-finned pacu, giant pacu*Philippine Association...
, Arawana
Arawana
Arawana is a genus of ladybirds....
, Plecostomus
Plecostomus
Hypostomus plecostomus is the scientific name for a type of freshwater tropical Central and South American fish belonging to the family Loricariidae. They are large algae eaters, and to differentiate them from small algae eaters, they are often referred to as plecostomus, often abbreviated as...
, Green Anaconda
Green Anaconda
Eunectes murinus is a non-venomous boa species found in South America. It is the heaviest known snake species...
s, and Green and Black Poison Dart Frog
Green and Black Poison Dart Frog
Dendrobates auratus, also known as the green and black poison dart frog or the green and black poison arrow frog, and sometimes mint poison frog , is a brightly-colored member of the order Anura native to Central America and north-western parts of South America...
Asian Elephants
Asian Elephant
The Asian or Asiatic elephant is the only living species of the genus Elephas and distributed in Southeast Asia from India in the west to Borneo in the east. Three subspecies are recognized — Elephas maximus maximus from Sri Lanka, the Indian elephant or E. m. indicus from mainland Asia, and E. m....
s are displayed at the popular elephant exhibit. All were born at the zoo, except Chendra and Tusko, who were born in the wild. Chendra is the only Borneo Elephant
Borneo Elephant
The Borneo Elephant also called the Borneo Pygmy Elephant inhabits northeastern Borneo. Its origin remains the subject of debate. A definitive subspecific classification as Elephas maximus borneensis awaits a detailed range-wide morphometric and genetic study...
in the United States. The exhibit is currently 1.5 acres (6,070.3 m²), but there are plans to expand it to 6 acres (24,281.2 m²) under the 2008 bond measure. On August 23, 2008, Rose-Tu and Tusko gave birth to Samudra, who is also the first third-generation elephant born in the United States. There is a swimming hole in which up to ten elephants can simultaneously completely submerge, sandy ground for comfortable walking and a scratching station, which the elephants often choose to scratch their head, sides, belly, etc.
The Lilah Callen Holden Elephant Museum is a collection of historical, religious, and sociological artifacts including some on long term loan from the Smithsonian, such as an 8 foot (2.4 m) tall mastodon
Mastodon
Mastodons were large tusked mammal species of the extinct genus Mammut which inhabited Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and Central America from the Oligocene through Pleistocene, 33.9 mya to 11,000 years ago. The American mastodon is the most recent and best known species of the group...
skeleton. The museum also contains original artwork by Henry Moore and Salvador Dalí.
Bears
Polar Bear
The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...
s (Ursus maritimus) are located in an exhibit that is designed to mimic the area near Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
in Canada. One female, Tasul, and her brother named Conrad, are easily viewed. The exhibit previously had another female, Yugyan, but she was euthanized in August 2008 due to kidney failure. The exhibit opened in 1986 and has two pools of water for the animals, one for winter and one for summer. There are two Malaysian sun bears (Helarctos malayanus) in a tropical forest environment simulated in part with heat producing artificial trees. Both bears are females, named Vivian and Jody. The Great Northwest exhibit's Black Bear Ridge has four black bears
American black bear
The American black bear is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most common bear species. Black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave forests in...
added in April 2010 after the previous three had been euthanized for health reasons.
Dinosaurs
This exhibit has fake animatronic animals from the prehistoric world. Called DINOSAURS! sponsored by Wells FargoWells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational diversified financial services company with operations around the world. Wells Fargo is the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by assets and the largest bank by market capitalization. Wells Fargo is the second largest bank in deposits, home...
, it was open from May to September 2008. The dinosaurs were Parasaurolophus
Parasaurolophus
Parasaurolophus is a genus of ornithopod dinosaur that lived in what is now North America during the Late Cretaceous Period, about 76.5–73 million years ago. It was an herbivore that walked both as a biped and a quadruped. Three species are recognized: P. walkeri , P. tubicen, and the...
, Megalosaurus
Megalosaurus
Megalosaurus is a genus of large meat-eating theropod dinosaurs of the Middle Jurassic period of Europe...
, Dilophosaurus
Dilophosaurus
Dilophosaurus was a theropod dinosaur from the Sinemurian stage of the Early Jurassic Period, about 193 million years ago. The first specimens were described in 1954, but it was not until over a decade later that the genus received its current name...
, Pachycephalosaurus
Pachycephalosaurus
Pachycephalosaurus is a genus of pachycephalosaurid dinosaur. It lived during the Late Cretaceous Period of what is now North America. Remains have been excavated in Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming. It was an herbivorous or omnivorous creature which is only known from a single skull and a few...
, Rhamphorhynchus (not a dinosaur), Brachiosaurus
Brachiosaurus
Brachiosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Jurassic Morrison Formation of North America. It was first described by Elmer S. Riggs in 1903 from fossils found in the Grand River Canyon of western Colorado, in the United States. Riggs named the dinosaur Brachiosaurus altithorax,...
, Stegosaurus
Stegosaurus
Stegosaurus is a genus of armored stegosaurid dinosaur. They lived during the Late Jurassic period , some 155 to 150 million years ago in what is now western North America. In 2006, a specimen of Stegosaurus was announced from Portugal, showing that they were present in Europe as well...
, Triceratops
Triceratops
Triceratops is a genus of herbivorous ceratopsid dinosaur which lived during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period, around 68 to 65 million years ago in what is now North America. It was one of the last dinosaur genera to appear before the great Cretaceous–Paleogene...
, Apatosaurus
Apatosaurus
Apatosaurus , also known by the popular but scientifically deprecated synonym Brontosaurus, is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived from about 154 to 150 million years ago, during the Jurassic Period . It was one of the largest land animals that ever existed, with an average length of and a...
,
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus meaning "tyrant," and sauros meaning "lizard") is a genus of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur. The species Tyrannosaurus rex , commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other...
, Compsognathus
Compsognathus
Compsognathus was a small, bipedal, carnivorous theropod dinosaur. The animal was the size of a turkey and lived around 150 million years ago, the early Tithonian stage of the late Jurassic Period, in what is now Europe. Paleontologists have found two well-preserved fossils, one in Germany...
, Deinonychus
Deinonychus
Deinonychus was a genus of carnivorous dromaeosaurid dinosaur. There is one described species, Deinonychus antirrhopus. This 3.4 meter long dinosaur lived during the early Cretaceous Period, about 115–108 million years ago . Fossils have been recovered from the U.S...
and Iguanodon
Iguanodon
Iguanodon is a genus of ornithopod dinosaur that lived roughly halfway between the first of the swift bipedal hypsilophodontids and the ornithopods' culmination in the duck-billed dinosaurs...
and also includes a map of the timeline, baby dinosaurs, a dig site, a fossil to make the fossils back together and toys in the Elephant Museum.
In 2010 the zoo opened a new exhibit with new dinosaurs, called Prehistoric Predators. The dinosaurs featured were Edmontosaurus
Edmontosaurus
Edmontosaurus is a genus of crestless hadrosaurid dinosaur. It contains two species: Edmontosaurus regalis and Edmontosaurus annectens. Fossils of E. regalis have been found in rocks of western North America that date from the late Campanian stage of the Cretaceous Period 73 million years ago,...
, Baryonyx
Baryonyx
Baryonyx is a genus of carnivorous saurischian dinosaur first discovered in clay pits just south of Dorking, England, and later reported from fossils found in northern Spain and Portugal. It is known to contain only one species, Baryonyx walkeri...
, Styracosaurus
Styracosaurus
Styracosaurus was a genus of herbivorous ceratopsian dinosaur from the Cretaceous Period , about 76.5 to 75.0 million years ago...
, Troodon
Troodon
Troodon is a genus of relatively small, bird-like dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous period . Discovered in 1855, it was among the first dinosaurs found in North America...
, Dilophosaurus
Dilophosaurus
Dilophosaurus was a theropod dinosaur from the Sinemurian stage of the Early Jurassic Period, about 193 million years ago. The first specimens were described in 1954, but it was not until over a decade later that the genus received its current name...
(returning and also having a juvenile), Therizinosaurus
Therizinosaurus
Therizinosaurus is a genus of very large theropod dinosaur. Therizinosaurus lived in the late Cretaceous Period , and was one of the last and largest representatives of its unique group, the Therizinosauria...
, Allosaurus
Allosaurus
Allosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period . The name Allosaurus means "different lizard". It is derived from the Greek /allos and /sauros...
, Quetzalcoatlus
Quetzalcoatlus
Quetzalcoatlus was a pterodactyloid pterosaur known from the Late Cretaceous of North America , and one of the largest known flying animals of all time. It was a member of the Azhdarchidae, a family of advanced toothless pterosaurs with unusually long, stiffened necks...
(not a dinosaur), Sarcosuchus
Sarcosuchus
Sarcosuchus is an extinct genus of crocodyliform and distant relative of the crocodile that lived 112 million years ago. It dates from the early Cretaceous Period of what is now Africa and is one of the largest giant crocodile-like reptiles that ever lived...
(not a dinosaur), Cryolophosaurus
Cryolophosaurus
Cryolophosaurus was a large theropod dinosaur, with a crest on its head that looked like a Spanish comb. Due to the resemblance of this feature to Elvis Presley's pompadour haircut from the 1950s, this dinosaur was at one point informally known as "Elvisaurus".Cryolophosaurus was excavated from...
, Rugops
Rugops
Rugops is a genus of theropod dinosaur which inhabited what is now Africa approximately 95 million years ago...
, Kentrosaurus
Kentrosaurus
Kentrosaurus is a genus of stegosaurid dinosaur from the Late Jurassic of Tanzania. Its fossils have been found only in the Tendaguru Formation of Tanzania, dated to the Kimmeridgian stage, between about 155.7 ± 4 Ma and 150.8 ± 4 Ma . Apparently, all finds belong to one species, K...
, Deltadromeus
Deltadromeus
Deltadromeus is a genus of large basal ceratosaurian theropod dinosaur from Northern Africa. It had long, unusually slender hind limbs for its size, suggesting that it was a swift runner. The skull is not known. Two fossil specimens of a single species Deltadromeus (meaning "delta runner") is a...
, Giganotosaurus
Giganotosaurus
Giganotosaurus is a genus of carcharodontosaurid dinosaur that lived around 97 million years ago during the early Cenomanian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period. It included some of the largest known terrestrial carnivores, slightly larger than the largest Tyrannosaurus, but smaller than the...
, Brachiosaurus
Brachiosaurus
Brachiosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Jurassic Morrison Formation of North America. It was first described by Elmer S. Riggs in 1903 from fossils found in the Grand River Canyon of western Colorado, in the United States. Riggs named the dinosaur Brachiosaurus altithorax,...
(returning but in a new spot), Carnotaurus
Carnotaurus
Carnotaurus was a large predatory dinosaur. Only one species, Carnotaurus sastrei has been described so far.Carnotaurus lived in Patagonia, Argentina during the Campanian or Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous...
, and Amargasaurus
Amargasaurus
Amargasaurus is a genus of dicraeosaurid sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Period of what is now South America. It was small for a sauropod, reaching 10 meters length. It would have been a quadrupedal herbivore with a long, low skull on the end of a long neck, much like its relative...
. The exhibit also has a dig site, with fossil parts of various dinosaurs, and dinosaur toys are available in the Elephant Museum.
Great Northwest
This exhibit includes wildlife from the western portions of the Pacific NorthwestPacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
, and has eight areas: Black Bear Ridge, Eagle Canyon, Cascade Stream and Pond, Cougar Crossing, Elk Meadow, Cascade Crest, Trillium Creek Family Farm, and Steller Cove. Cascade Canyon Trail connects each of the exhibits, except Steller Cove, and includes a suspension bridge that offers views of Black Bear Ridge.
The Cascade Stream and Pond portion is the oldest of these exhibits, which opened in 1982 and features beaver
Beaver
The beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...
s, North American river otters, Ring-tailed Cat
Ring-tailed Cat
The ringtail is a mammal of the raccoon family , native to arid regions of North America. It is also known as the ringtail cat, ring-tailed cat or miner's cat, and is also sometimes mistakenly called a "civet cat"...
s, egret
Egret
An egret is any of several herons, most of which are white or buff, and several of which develop fine plumes during the breeding season. Many egrets are members of the genera Egretta or Ardea which contain other species named as herons rather than egrets...
s, and heron
Heron
The herons are long-legged freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae. There are 64 recognised species in this family. Some are called "egrets" or "bitterns" instead of "heron"....
s. Elk Meadow opened in 1993 originally with only elk. Wolves were added to the 1.9 acre (0.7689034 ha) exhibit in 2007. The only animals on display are Gray wolf
Gray Wolf
The gray wolf , also known as the wolf, is the largest extant wild member of the Canidae family...
and Roosevelt Elk
Roosevelt elk
The Roosevelt elk , also known as Olympic elk, is the largest of the four surviving subspecies of elk in North America...
. Opened in 1998, Cascade Crest is a mountain-like exhibit made mostly of basalt and features a snow cave, cirque lake, and twisted alpine trees. The 10920 ft2 exhibit cost $11.6 million and is located near the entrance to the zoo. The only animals are mountain goat
Mountain goat
The Mountain Goat , also known as the Rocky Mountain Goat, is a large-hoofed mammal found only in North America. Despite its vernacular name, it is not a member of Capra, the genus of true goats...
s. Black Bear Ridge is the next exhibit along the Cascade Canyon Trail. The $2 million area opened in 2007 and has two 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...
s. The exhibit had three American Black Bear
American black bear
The American black bear is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most common bear species. Black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave forests in...
s, but all three were euthanized in 2009 due to various causes. The zoo acquired four new bears from a Utah zoo.
Dexter cattle
Dexter cattle are the smallest of the European cattle breeds, being about half the size of a traditional Hereford and about one third the size of a Friesian milking cow. They were considered a rare breed of cattle, until recently, but are now considered a recovering breed by the American Livestock...
, Shetland sheep, Guinea Hog
Guinea Hog
The Guinea Hog, also called the Pineywoods Guinea, Guinea Forest hog, Acorn Eater, and Yard pig, is a breed of domestic pig originating in the United States. Despite its name, the breed is not from Guinea, though the foundation stock is thought to be derived from West Africa...
s, Pygora Goat
Pygora Goat
The Pygora goat is a cross between the Pygmy goat and the Angora goat that produces three distinct kinds of fleece and has the smaller size of the Pygmy.-History:...
s, Araucana
Araucana
The Araucana, also known in the USA as a South American Rumpless, is a breed of chicken originating in Chile. The Araucana is often confused with other fowl, especially the Ameraucana and Easter Egger chickens, but has several unusual characteristics which distinguish it. They lay blue eggs, have...
chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
s, Runner duck
Indian Runner Duck
Indian Runners are an unusual breed of domestic duck. They stand erect like penguins and, rather than waddling, they run. The females usually lay about 150 – 200 eggs a year or more, depending whether they are from exhibition or utility strains...
s, and Domestic rabbit
Domestic rabbit
A domestic rabbit, or more commonly known as simply the rabbit, is any of the several varieties of European rabbit that have been domesticated....
s are part of the farm's exhibits. The final area of the Great Northwest Exhibit is the Steller Cove which features animals and plants from the Oregon Coast
Oregon Coast
The Oregon Coast is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon. It runs generally north-south along the Pacific Ocean, forming the western border of the state; the region is bounded to the east by the Oregon Coast Range. The Oregon Coast stretches approximately from the Columbia River in the north to...
. The $11 million exhibit opened in 2000 and includes a tide pool and kelp forest populated with Steller Sea Lions, (Eumetopias jubatus), Sea Otter
Sea Otter
The sea otter is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between 14 and 45 kg , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals...
s (Enhydra lutris), Sea Anemone
Sea anemone
Sea anemones are a group of water-dwelling, predatory animals of the order Actiniaria; they are named after the anemone, a terrestrial flower. Sea anemones are classified in the phylum Cnidaria, class Anthozoa, subclass Zoantharia. Anthozoa often have large polyps that allow for digestion of larger...
s, Chiton
Chiton
Chitons are small to large, primitive marine molluscs in the class Polyplacophora.There are 900 to 1,000 extant species of chitons in the class, which was formerly known as Amphineura....
, Limpet
Limpet
Limpet is a common name for a number of different kinds of saltwater and freshwater snails ; it is applied to those snails that have a simple shell which is more or less conical in shape, and either is not spirally coiled, or appears not to be coiled in the adult snails.The name limpet is most...
, Snail
Snail
Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...
, Mussel
Mussel
The common name mussel is used for members of several families of clams or bivalvia mollusca, from saltwater and freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other edible clams, which are often more or less rounded or oval.The...
, Crab
Crab
True crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" , or where the reduced abdomen is entirely hidden under the thorax...
, Sea Cucumber
Sea cucumber
Sea cucumbers are echinoderms from the class Holothuroidea.They are marine animals with a leathery skin and an elongated body containing a single, branched gonad. Sea cucumbers are found on the sea floor worldwide. There are a number of holothurian species and genera, many of which are targeted...
, Urchin
Sea urchin
Sea urchins or urchins are small, spiny, globular animals which, with their close kin, such as sand dollars, constitute the class Echinoidea of the echinoderm phylum. They inhabit all oceans. Their shell, or "test", is round and spiny, typically from across. Common colors include black and dull...
, Sea Star
Sea star
Starfish or sea stars are echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea. The names "starfish" and "sea star" essentially refer to members of the class Asteroidea...
, Sculpin
Sculpin
A Sculpin is a fish that belongs to the order Scorpaeniformes, suborder Cottoidei and superfamily Cottoidea, that contains 11 families, 149 genera, and 756 species...
, Goby
Goby
The gobies form the family Gobiidae, which is one of the largest families of fish, with more than 2,000 species in more than 200 genera. Most are relatively small, typically less than 10 cm in length...
, Painted greenling
Painted greenling
The painted greenling, Oxylebius pictus, is a marine fish native to the eastern Pacific Ocean. Its range is from Kodiak Island, Alaska to central Baja California. It can reach a total size of 25 cm and has seven vertical dark bands. It inhabits rocky areas usually shallower than 50 m. It feeds on...
, and Gunnel.
Other exhibits
Humboldt Penguin
The Humboldt Penguin is a South American penguin, that breeds in coastal Peru and Chile. Its nearest relatives are the African Penguin, the Magellanic Penguin and the Galápagos Penguin...
s, Inca tern
Inca Tern
The Inca Tern is a seabird in the family Sternidae. It is the only member of the genus Larosterna.This uniquely-plumaged bird breeds on the coasts of Peru and Chile, and is restricted to the Humboldt current...
s, Lories and Lorikeets, and the Insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
Zoo Hut. Other exhibits include the Cats of the Amur Region which houses Amur Leopard
Amur Leopard
The Amur leopard , also known as the Far Eastern leopard, Korean leopard, and Manchurian leopard is one of nine recognised subspecies of leopard. It is a wild feline predator native to the mountainous areas of the Russian Far East. It used to inhabit the forests of Korea and China, but it has...
s and Amur Tiger
Amur Tiger
The Siberian tiger , also known as the Amur tiger, is a tiger subspecies inhabiting mainly the Sikhote Alin mountain region with a small subpopulation in southwest Primorye province in the Russian Far East. In 2005, there were 331–393 adult-subadult Amur tigers in this region, with a breeding adult...
s. The Primate Exhibit features Chimpanzee
Chimpanzee
Chimpanzee, sometimes colloquially chimp, is the common name for the two extant species of ape in the genus Pan. The Congo River forms the boundary between the native habitat of the two species:...
s, 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...
s, White-Cheeked Gibbons, Mandrill
Mandrill
The mandrill is a primate of the Old World monkey family, closely related to the baboons and even more closely to the drill. Both the mandrill and the drill were once classified as baboons in genus Papio, but recent research has determined they should be separated into their own genus, Mandrillus...
s, Siamang
Siamang
The siamang is a tailless, arboreal, black-furred gibbon native to the forests of Malaysia, Thailand, and Sumatra. The largest of the lesser apes, the siamang can be twice the size of other gibbons, reaching 1 m in height, and weighing up to 14 kg...
s, Tree Shrews, Burmese Python
Burmese Python
The Burmese Python is the largest subspecies of the Indian Python and one of the 6 largest snakes in the world, native to a large variation of tropic and subtropic areas of Southern- and Southeast Asia. They are often found near water and are sometimes semi-aquatic, but can also be found in trees...
s, Ring-tailed Lemur
Ring-tailed Lemur
The ring-tailed lemur is a large strepsirrhine primate and the most recognized lemur due to its long, black and white ringed tail. It belongs to Lemuridae, one of five lemur families. It is the only member of the Lemur genus. Like all lemurs it is endemic to the island of Madagascar...
s L'Hoest's Monkey
L'Hoest's Monkey
L'Hoest's monkey , or mountain monkey, is a guenon found in the upper eastern Congo basin. They mostly live in mountainous forest areas in small, female-dominated groups...
s and Francois' Langur
Francois' Langur
Francois' langur or Francois' leaf monkey is a species of lutung and the type species of its species group. Francois' langur belongs to the Colobinae subfamily, Cercopithecidae family, in the Primates order...
s.
Red Ape Reserve opened September 3, 2010. It is an indoor/outdoor exhibit housing both orangutans and white cheeked gibbons. There are two species of endangered wild pigs in the Asian Pigs exhibit: Babirusa
Babirusa
The North Sulawesi babirusa, Babyrousa celebensis, is a pig-like animal native to northern Sulawesi and the nearby Lembeh Islands in Indonesia. It has two pairs of large tusks composed of enlarged canine teeth. The canines in the maxilla penetrate the top of the snout, curving back toward the...
s and Visayan Warty Pigs. A tree-kangaroo exhibits endangered Matschie's Tree-kangaroo
Matschie's Tree-kangaroo
Matschie's Tree-kangaroo , also known as the Huon Tree-kangaroo is a tree-kangaroo native to the Huon Peninsula of North Eastern New Guinea...
s.
Other attractions
- Wildlife Live! summer shows, weather permitting
- Zoolights: December holiday evenings light display
- Washington Park and Zoo Railway
Where in the Zoo is Carmen Sandiego
In the late 1990s, the Metro Washington Park Zoo, (now the Oregon ZooOregon Zoo
The Oregon Zoo, formerly the Washington Park Zoo, is a zoo in Portland, the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Located southwest of Downtown Portland, the zoo is inside Portland's Washington Park, and includes a narrow-gauge railway that connects to the International Rose Test Garden inside...
), in conjunction with Brøderbund
Brøderbund
Brøderbund Software, Inc. was an American maker of computer games, educational software and The Print Shop productivity tools. It was best known as the original creator and publisher of the popular Carmen Sandiego games. The company was founded in Eugene, Oregon, but moved to San Rafael,...
, ran a summer-long event titled Where in the Zoo is Carmen Sandiego
Carmen Sandiego
Carmen Sandiego is a media franchise of educational computer and video games, television programs, books and other media featuring a thieving villain of the same name. The basic premise of the franchise lets the user or protagonists become agents of the ACME Detective Agency, who attempts to thwart...
?, which functioned as a full-immersion live-action Carmen game in which zoo patrons were the investigating detectives. This was a pioneering example of Alternate Reality Gaming
Alternate reality game
An alternate reality game is an interactive narrative that uses the real world as a platform, often involving multiple media and game elements, to tell a story that may be affected by participants' ideas or actions....
. Actors were hired to play Carmen's henchmen, who could be found around the zoo, and on occasions a costumed Carmen appeared, as well, but never in a location where patrons could interact with her. Clues were given out at various stations by members of the ZooTeens volunteer group.
Nearby attractions
The zoo is located at the southern boundary of Washington Park, which is also the home of Portland Children's MuseumPortland Children's Museum
Portland Children's Museum is a children's museum located in Portland's Washington Park, adjacent to the Oregon Zoo. Founded in 1946, Portland Children's Museum is the sixth oldest children's museum in the world and the oldest West of the Mississippi. The museum receives over a quarter of a...
, World Forestry Center
World Forestry Center
The World Forestry Center is an American nonprofit educational institution in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. Located near the Oregon Zoo in Washington Park, the center was established in 1964 as the Western Forestry Center.-History:...
, Oregon Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Oregon Vietnam Veterans Memorial
The Oregon Vietnam Veterans Memorial is a 3.25 acre outdoor memorial dedicated to Oregonians who served in the Vietnam War. It is located in Portland, Oregon's Washington Park at . The memorial was dedicated in 1987, inspired in 1982 by visits to the national Vietnam Veterans Memorial by five...
, and Hoyt Arboretum
Hoyt Arboretum
The Hoyt Arboretum is located atop a ridge in the west hills of Portland, Oregon, United States. It was founded in 1922 by a collection of timber industry representatives, the U.S...
. An adjacent trail system connects the zoo to the International Rose Test Garden
International Rose Test Garden
The International Rose Test Garden is a rose garden in Washington Park in Portland, Oregon, United States. There are over 7,000 rose plants of approximately 550 varieties. The roses bloom from April through October with the peak coming in June, depending on the weather...
, the Portland Japanese Garden
Portland Japanese Garden
The Portland Japanese Garden is a traditional Japanese garden occupying 5.5 acres , located within Washington Park in the west hills of Portland, Oregon, USA.- Design :...
, and Forest Park
Forest Park (Portland)
Forest Park is a public municipal park in the Tualatin Mountains west of downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. Stretching for more than on hillsides overlooking the Willamette River, it is one of the country's largest urban forest reserves...
.