A true definition of digest: The Official Houston Zoo Blog

The Houston Zoo Blog is a digest, in the true definition of the term—a collection of condensed information about the day to day happenings at the Houston Zoo.

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Jan
14

Big Cats Don’t Make Good Pets, Part 2

Posted by in Animal Info,Carnivores,Keepers,Mammals,Zoo News

Big Cats Don’t Make Good Pets, Part 2

A student at Texas A & M University at Galveston where she studies marine biology, Kaitlin McGraw interned at the Houston Zoo last summer. “When I came to the Zoo, I heard stories about the animals, and where they came from,” said Kaitlin.  “I was surprised to learn how many of the animals in the [...]

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Jan
13

First Ever “Crowd Curated” Exhibit!

Posted by in Crowd Curated Exhibit,Mammals,Primates,Wortham World of Primates

Hi All.  Hope everyone enjoyed the holidays! On our exhibit front, bad news on pudu. Currently there are none available, and it doesn’t look like there will be any time soon. Many species in North American zoos have what is called a Species Survival Plan(SSP). This is a management group that is under the umbrella of the [...]

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Jan
13

Houston Zoo Featured in The Biodiversity Project

Posted by in Photography,Zoo News

National Geographic magazine contributing photographer Joel Sartore has been working on a personal initiative, the Biodiversity Project, which has taken him around the world to document a wide range of animals. Over the last six years he has created a collection of striking images of nearly 1,800 species. In December, Joel visited the Houston Zoo [...]

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Jan
12

Houston Zoo Welcomes Baby Bongo

Posted by in Babies,Hoofed Stock,Mammals,Zoo Births,Zoo News

Our new baby is Brody, born December 6, 2011. Brody weighed in at 18.3 kg (just over 40 pounds) at birth. He’s a big healthy boy with a good appetite as evidenced by his current weight 5 weeks later – 42 kg (just over 92 pounds). Brody can be seen every day (weather permitting) on [...]

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Jan
09

Wolves at the Houston Zoo!

Posted by in Carnivores,Events,Just for Kids,Mammals,Memories

One wolf in particular. On Sunday, January 15, the Houston Zoo is proud to partner with the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra and InterActive Theater Company to present two performances of the children’s classic, Peter and the Wolf. With the intent to “cultivate musical tastes in children from the first years of school,” this beloved story [...]

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Jan
05

Big Cats Don’t Make Good Pets

Posted by in Carnivores,Keepers,Mammals,Zoo News

Big Cats Don’t Make Good Pets

Houston Zoo Intern’s Videos Tell the Real Stories A student at Texas A & M University at Galveston where she studies marine biology, Kaitlin McGraw interned at the Houston Zoo last summer. Through the ExxonMobil Community Summer Jobs Program, Kaitlin spent 8 weeks working with the Zoo’s carnivore staff. Kaitlin has a special appreciation for [...]

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Jan
04

Mangabeys Munching

Posted by in Primates

Mangabeys munching are a fun sight to see at the Houston Zoo. We have Red-capped mangabeys, native to central Africa; they are the most colorful of the mangabey species with a bright red “cap” on the top of their heads. These are very social animals that usually live in a harem, which consists of one [...]

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Dec
26

12 Days of Grub: Day 12 – Twelve Flamingos Flocking

Posted by in Birds,Gift of Grub,Holidays

12 Days of Grub: Day 12 – Twelve Flamingos Flocking

On the Twelfth Day of Grub, your zoo gift will help to feed…Twelve Flamingos Flocking, Eleven Meerkats Mobbing, Ten Chimps a Chasing, Nine Fruit Bats Flying, Eight Giraffes a Galloping, Seven Snakes a Slithering, Six Mole-rats Mining, Five Golden Frogs, Four Calling Birds, Three Wild Dogs, Two Grizzly Bears, and Darwin the Cassowary! CLICK HERE [...]

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Dec
24

We’re Closed on Christmas Day

Posted by in Christmas,Events

The Houston Zoo will be closed on Christmas Day. Keepers will work abbreviated shifts on December 25 cleaning exhibits and feeding the Zoo’s 6,000 animals. The Zoo will reopen December 26 observing the standard 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. operating hours. Christmas Day is the only day of the year the Zoo is not open [...]

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Dec
23

First Ever Zoo “Crowd Curated” Exhibit!

Posted by in Crowd Curated Exhibit,Mammals,Primates,Wortham World of Primates

Pudu Baby. Pretty cute! Photo credit: Belfast Zoo

So many good thoughts this week!  Several of you  brought up good points that must be considered when curating an exhibit. I think you’re right Trowaman when you say capybaras might be better off in a large area like our South America yard but pudu might do well in a space the size of our [...]

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