Lorenzo and Diaz, two of the zoo’s newest residents, made a quiet public debut June 9th, 2010 in the South American Pampas exhibit.  The two Maned wolf brothers are the first of their kind to live at the zoo.

Standing 3 feet tall at the shoulder and weighing 60 pounds, these beautiful wolves use their long legs to traverse the grass and swamplands of Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, and Argentina in search of small animals, insects, fruit and other plant material.  

   

The Maned Wolves will be on display in the South American Pampas exhibit daily during the zoo's hours of 8 am to 6:30 pm but will have access to their holding area until they are more acclimated to their new home.

 

Growing Up and Moving On

Our little lion cubs have grown up and the two males have moved on to a new home at the Dallas Zoo.  The young female cub, Kianga, will be staying with parents Razi and Amali and grandmother Classie for a while longer.   Kianga will eventually be placed with another zoo since her genes are important for future lion breeding.  But before you become too sad about saying goodbye to our cubs, the good news is we have been given permission to breed Razi and Amali again, so perhaps some new cubs will be in our future soon!

 

 

New Baby Bactrian Camel

 Born Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010, the silvery-grey male calf stands 4.5 feet tall and weighed in at 133 pounds.  This is the seventh calf for the fourteen-year old mother and fifteen-year old father.  Camels give birth every two years after a 13 month gestation.

The baby, mother, and father can all be seen on display in their exhibit next to the water fall.

 

 

New Baby Pygmy Slow Loris

Born March 14th, 2010, this little bundle of fur was found clinging to its mother's belly when the Keepers came to work.  This is the first baby for both parents, and the mother is exhibiting excellent maternal instincts.  The infant is only about 2-3 inches long and was born fully furred with eyes open.  The sex of the baby is still undetermined.

 

 

New Female Gaur

A new female Gaur arrived from the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha Nebraska on Wednesday, March 31st, 2010 to keep company with our current male Gaur resident. 

Gaur are the largest of all wild cattle.  Males stand about 5 feet tall and weigh up to 2,100 pounds while females are slightly smaller. 

Breeding is not anticipated between this couple as the male has been rendered sterile.
   

           

     

Wetlands Restoration Project

Zoo staff and volunteers plant and launch a floating island for the main duck pond. The plants will grow through the floating fibrous mat down into the pond, where they will absorb nutrients from the water. In time, they will fill in the island and contribute to improved water quality in the duck pond.
 
This floating island is only a small part of the wetland construction that took place to help improve water quality at the Lee Richardson Zoo duck pond.  Click here to view more information and photos of the wetland project.
 

 

 
The Zoo Expands and Updates!

The Finnup Center for Conservation Education has added a new expansion!  This addition will add a new conference room, distance learning studio, docent lounge, garage, and larger and more spacious rooms for our ambassador animals. 

The Finnup Center serves the community and the rest of North America by providing educational programs to over 10,000 students and adults annually.  It is also a frequent meeting place for local businesses.

There are other constructions projects going on around the zoo as well.  Our South American Pampas Barn has been updated and expanded to accommodate our existing animals and also add room for us to acquire new animals in the future.

A new siamang barn has been built to better house our mother / daughter duo of siamangs and possible provide room for a male siamang and little ones in the future.