Reid Park Zoo - Tucson Zoological Society

The cubs are out!  Mom “Kaya” and her three cubs will have access to their exhibit in the mornings (usually until 12:00 or 1:00pm) until further notice. The cubs do get tired, and will rest periodically behind the scenes, so getting to the Zoo early is your best bet. The Zoo is open to the public at 9:00am every day. ZOO MEMBERS ONLY will also be admitted from 8:00am-9:00am for the next three days: Wed. 9/28, Thurs. 9/29, and Fri. 9/30.

“Sita,” a 10-year-old female tiger who arrived at Reid Park Zoo from the Bronx Zoo earlier this summer, went out on exhibit for the very first time this morning.  She was calm and confident, and got a lot of attention from Zoo guests and the media.  She’ll have some time to get comfortable on exhibit by herself, and then we’ll make plans to introduce male tiger “Baheem” back to the exhibit, and to Sita.  We hope they will hit it off!

As of this morning (9/9/11), the first phase of oleander removal at the Zoo is complete.  A HUGE thanks to TLC and Tree Removal Service Tucson–the two companies donated their services to help the Zoo by removing oleander plants at the south edge of the Zoo, and grinding the remaining stumps below ground level.  They’ll be back soon, joined by Made in the Shade, to remove additional oleander around the Zoo’s perimeter.

Starting Thursday, September 1, Zoo hours will return to 9am-4pm every day.  Times for the Giraffe Encounter will also return to 10:00 every day (ending at 10:45), and additionally at 2:00 on Saturdays and Sundays.

A tiny tamandua (pronounced tuh-MAN-deh-wah), or lesser anteater, was born at the Zoo on August 10th, 2011.  Mom and baby are doing fine. Tamanduas are part of our education program–although they are not on exhibit, you might see one of our our adult tamanduas onstage during a weekend presentation.

The lion cubs were weighed this morning, and are growing at a healthy rate. Two of the cubs now have visible teeth!  The cubs will remain behind the scenes for at least several more weeks, but we’ll let you know when their debut is planned.  Check out the new photos in our gallery:

Three African lion cubs were born to female “Kaya” late last week–Kaya’s Keeper heard them vocalizing when she arrived on the morning of July 28^th,2011.  Mom and the three cubs have been left largely undisturbed so that she can focus on taking good care of them, but vets gave the babies their first medical check this morning.  The three cubs (two boys and a girl) seem healthy and strong.  They won’t be on exhibit for a while, but we’ll keep you posted on their growth!

Planning a weekend Zoo visit?  Check the event board in the front plaza for the day’s scheduled presentations.  Our tamandua (lesser anteater) demonstration, sponsored by K12, gives Zoo visitors a chance to see a really unusual animal with amazing adaptations!

Thanks for all your supportive comments and well-wishes for Denver! She’s doing well: eating and behaving like a healthy giraffe. However, internal damage from her exposure to the oleander is always a possibility, so we’ll keep watching her very closely for any unusual symptoms. In the meantime, you may visit her at the Giraffe Encounter, each day from 9:30-10:15 (and also 1:30-2:00 on weekends).

Giraffe Denver went out on exhibit this morning without medication for the first time since she became ill.  She ate carrots enthusiastically during the Giraffe Encounter, and her digestion seems to be improving (although it’s not back to normal yet.)  Keepers will continue to monitor her progress very closely.