8 Secrets Zoos Keep Under Wraps

Zoos exist to display exotic animals for all the world to see. But what's going on at zoos away from the public's view?

Few destinations conjure up as idyllic an image as an afternoon at the zoo. Strolling about on a nice day with some lighthearted animal-themed ice cream treat and checking out monkeys, bears, and a few sleeping reptiles is as wholesome as apple pie on the Fourth of July.

But certainly, some secrets must be hidden in the shadows of those cages and fake rock formations. For those who have ever wondered about what’s really going on at your local zoo behind the locked gates and after closing time, allow us to drops some zoo truths on you.

To read more on this story, click here: 8 Secrets Zoos Keep Under Wraps


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Abandoned by Their Parents, Baby Flamingo Take Their First Steps at the Prague Zoo

Baby flamingos who were abandoned by their parents have been learning to walk around the Prague zoo. This will help to socialized so they can easily reintegrate with the rest of the flock.
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Smithsonian's National Zoo: We Are Building A Naked Mole-Rat Exhibit

If you've ever been to the Smithsonian's National Zoo's Small Mammal House, you’ve probably seen the naked mole-rats—those small, nearly hairless rodents running through a series of tubes and chambers. These funky Zoo favorites are ready for a home renovation. 

Because of your generosity, we're getting a new exhibit: a corner habitat with more realistic tunnels where guests can see the mole-rats up close and peek at a keeper area behind them, along with a webcam so online viewers can watch the naked mole-rats anytime, anywhere!

We would like to extend a special thank you to the following donors who made this exhibit possible.

To read more on this story, click here: Smithsonian's National Zoo: We Are Building A Naked Mole-Rat Exhibit

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Blackpool Zoo Tries To Dissuade Man From Buying A Pet Giraffe

An exasperated customer service assistant from Blackpool Zoo found themselves having to dissuade man from purchasing a giraffe for Christmas.

Calling himself ‘Chudders’, the man emailed the zoo with the query: "Is it possible to buy and own a giraffe in Scotland? I’ve been after a giraffe for years now and I want to make it a reality now”.

His children, he said, had their heart set on a hamster – but that he would much prefer a giraffe.

He was sure to emphasise that he had “a decent sized back garden” and “an upstairs/downstairs house so it could be fed from the bedroom window without any hassle”.

To read more on this story, click here: Blackpool Zoo Tries To Dissuade Man From Buying A Pet Giraffe

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Bei Bei The Giant Panda, At Smithsonian's National Zoo, Turned 3-Years-Old Today

Washington, DC - Bei Bei turned 3 years old today! In celebration of his big day, Bei Bei enjoyed an ice-cake, participated in an enrichment painting session and received a new panda-friendly toy.

His cake was specially made by the Zoo’s department of nutrition sciences and included all of his favorite foods. The tiers were made of diluted apple, cranberry and grape juice with leaf-eater biscuit puree. It was decorated and filled with apples, pears, bananas, shredded carrots and cooked sweet potatoes. The number 3 that topped the cake was made of diluted apple juice with a leaf-eater biscuit puree center.

Now weighing in at almost 215 pounds, Bei Bei has been taking full advantage of his summer—splashing around in his big green tub, and napping in trees and on his new hammock.

Tian Tian is the next giant panda to celebrate a birthday. He turns 21 on Monday, Aug. 27 and will also receive a special cake at 11 a.m.

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Meet Tina, The Beluga Whale Who Has Fallen in Love With Her Zookeeper, And Behaves Like a Jealous Girlfriend

Beluga whales are usually very social and they always can be seen communicating and playing with each other in a playful way but this female beluga whale is not like other typical beluga whales.

Meet Tina, the female beluga whale who lives in a zoo in South Korea.

Everything about Tina seems typical except one thing; she has fallen in love with her zookeeper!

This is the lucky zookeeper whom Tina fell in love with.

She refuses to kiss anyone but the zookeeper.

Tina only wants to communicate and play with the zookeeper will shoot water at anyone who stands too close to him.

The beluga whale also only wants to play with the zookeeper and ignores the other staff even when they approach her in a nice and friendly way.

So, how did Tina learn to be jealous?

According to the zookeeper, Tina had a hard time adapting when she first came to the zoo.

While other zookeepers were treating her nicely, the male zookeeper paid her a lot of attention which might be the main reason why Tina feels safe when he is around.

However, there may be another reason why Tina behaves in that way. What do you think it could be?

Watch this hilarious video about Tina and her zookeeper to find out more

Click on video arrow twice.

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A Germophobe Gorilla? Philadelphia Zoo Primate Walks Upright So He Won't Get His Hands Dirty

An 18-year-old gorilla named Louis hates to get his hands dirty. That’s why he sometimes walks upright like a human -- especially when food is involved.

Louis, a 500-pound, 6-foot tall gorilla that lives at the Philadelphia Zoo, walks upright when he’s carrying tomatoes and other snacks, The Associated Press reported.

He also walks upright when the ground is muddy, according to the Philadelphia Zoo, which recently posted a video of Louis walking on two legs.

To read more on this story, click here: A Germophobe Gorilla? Philadelphia Zoo Primate Walks Upright So He Won't Get His Hands Dirty




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New Study Finds That Apes Can Also Experience a Kind of Midlife Crisis

Across many cultures, people report a dip in happiness during their late-40s, a time when they generally feel less satisfied with their lives than they do in their younger and older years.

Apes, too, experience a kind of midlife crisis, found a new study. The surprising result suggests that the middle-aged blues may be a result of biology, not culture, and its evolutionary roots run deep.

"It was an astounding thing for us to find this pattern, to be honest," said Andrew Oswald, an economist and behavioral scientist at the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom. "It may be that the midlife crisis is driven by primate biology in a way we don 't understand, and if that 's the case, we all have to learn how to deal with it."

"I think it 's helpful for people to understand this dip," he added. "With luck, this could people them see that this is completely normal and that could help them get through it."

Studies in more than 50 countries over the past 20 years have revealed a near-universal pattern. Over the course of life, happiness tends to follow a U-shaped curve, with people ranking their sense of well-being higher in the first and last decades of life than in the middle.

The low point generally strikes between age 45 and 50 for both men and women, and the pattern crosses economic and demographic lines.

For each animal, zookeepers, researchers or caretakers answered four questions about the well-being of their primate friends, including whether the apes seemed to be in good or bad moods. The humans also ranked how happy they thought they 'd be if they were to become the animal for a week. They had spent time with the animals for at least two years and knew them well.


Apes live to be about 50 or 55 years old and, just like in people, results showed a drop in happiness that reached its lowest point about halfway through the animals ' lives, the researchers report today in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The magnitude of the dip was on par with the dips in happiness that people experience in their middle age, Oswald said. He compared the difference between the apes ' highs and lows to the loss in well-being that people report with marital separation.

The new findings help rule out some theories for midlife slumps in humans, said Arthur Stone, a psychologist in the psychiatry department at Stony Brook University in New York. For example, a whole generation of people can end up feeling less happy at a certain time in their lives simply because of some external historical situation. But that is unlikely to happen in societies of apes.

Instead, it might be chemical or physical changes in our bodies that influence how our feelings morph throughout our lifetimes.

"What this really starts to point to is that maybe there are biological things that we just don 't know about," Stone said. "Maybe there are changes in the brain, changes in how neurotransmitters work or changes in how hormones work that relate to how people view their lives and how animals feel. People will be looking at this more seriously, I think."

Apes Giggle Like Humans

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Funny or Sad? Children Terrified at Sight of Purple Panda (VIDEO)

I wasn't sure if we should laugh or just feel bad for these kids, but this video is definitely worth watching.

The staff at Pennsylvania’s Center in the Woods preschool thought they would surprise their toddlers with a visit from Mr. McFeely, the delivery man character from the PBS Kids show
  “Mr. Rogers’.”

The youngsters eagerly listened to Mr. McFeely as he sat in front of the classroom and introduced another special guest, Purple Panda, one of the costumed characters also on the PBS show.

Mr. McFeely stood up to welcome his friend, and as he entered the classroom, Mr. McFeely held Purple Panda’s hand. The kids however, were not so welcoming.

Chaos immediately ensued. Screaming and crying children scattered to a far corner of a classroom, seemingly petrified by the sight of the Purple Panda, which was actually a person wearing a panda suit.

Confused, Mr. McFeely just told the kids to “stand right here” and as he waved at them. He then tried to calm them down by admitting that it’s not actually Purple Panda but “somebody pretending” to be the panda. His words did not soothe the children.

The Youtube clip has received over 770,000 hits and thousands of ‘Likes’ since it was first uploaded on April 9.



I must admit, as an adult...I would probably take off running if I saw someone dressed like that!

I think the purple panda should have immediately left the room when he saw that the children were upset. A little more thought should have been put in the designing of the costume. I understand that the characters have a whimsical look...however kids love Barney, the purple dinosaur.

Take a look at how receptive the kids are in the pictures below. I only hope that these kids are not scarred for life, and become afraid of animals.

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Adorable Hippo Fiona Stole the Limelight During a Couple’s Engagement Photo at Cincinnati Zoo in Ohio

You spend weeks planning the perfect proposal, only to be upstaged by a baby hippopotamus when you finally pop the question.

Adorable hippo Fiona stole the limelight during a couple’s engagement photo at Cincinnati Zoo in Ohio.

Nick Kelble and his girlfriend Hayley Roll regularly visit Fiona and were delighted their favorite animal witnessed the proposal.

The ecstatic new bride-to-be wrote in a message to her boyfriend on Instagram: “We're so happy Fiona could be there on our special day. Here's to many more years of going to zoos with you.”

She added in an interview with the Daily Buzz: “We went to the zoo for our one-year anniversary and Fiona was in the window.

“Nick, my boyfriend, and I were waiting in line to get our photo taken with Fiona and I gave my cell phone to someone to take the photo and when I turned back around, Nick was on one knee proposing.”

Fiona became the first Nile hippo born at the zoo in 75 years back in January and had a fight to survive after her mother gave birth six weeks early.

“Full term hippos usually weigh between 50-110lbs,” the zoo says. “Fiona only weighed 29lbs when she was born 6 weeks premature. She is the smallest hippo to ever survive.”

The zoo say Fiona is a “little hippo with a big personality”.

“As Fiona continues to grow, the many facets of her complex personality are really starting to show!” they said earlier this year.

“It’s fascinating to watch how the different elements of her personality seem to reflect the natural history of the hippopotamus.”

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Four Rare White Lions Cubs Were Born in the Zoo Safari in Borysew, Poland

Borysew, Poland - Four rare white lion cubs have been born in a private zoo in central Poland.

The lion cubs were born on Sunday at the Zoo Safari in Borysew and are doing well under the care of their mother, 5-year-old Azira. They are the fourth litter for Azira and 7-year-old Sahim. There are at most only a few hundred white lions in the world.

Head of the zoo Andrzej Pabich said the genders of the cubs was unknown because keepers have not touched them yet.

On Thursday, a white tiger also gave birth at the zoo, and Pabich believes there are three cubs.



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Giant Anteater Born at Houston Zoo

Houston, Texas - Houston Zoo guests may catch a glimpse of something odd on the back of one of the giant anteaters, but it's supposed to be there - it's a new baby.

Rio, a two-week-old giant anteater pup, can be seen riding atop mom at the zoo. The anteater was born on September 3 to parents Olive and Pablo.

The zoo explains giant anteaters spend the first few weeks of life clinging to their mothers and will typically hitch a ride on mom's back for almost 12 months.

The zoo says Olive has been very attentive to Rio, carefully nursing and transporting the pup around their habitat.

Zookeepers are waiting for Rio to grow a bit and bond with its mom before determining the baby anteater's gender.







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Orangutan Born at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo

For the first time in 25 years, primate staff at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo are celebrating the birth of a male Bornean orangutan. He was born at 8:52 p.m. Sept. 12. Both 19 years old, female Batang and male Kyle bred in January following a breeding recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan (SSP). Primate staff have confirmed the newborn is a male. Animal care staff have observed Batang nursing the infant who has been clinging closely to his mother, and they are cautiously optimistic that the newborn will thrive. The Great Ape House will remain closed to provide Batang a quiet space to bond with her infant.

Animal care staff believe that Batang had successfully conceived Feb. 2, based on a human pregnancy test. They confirmed pregnancy with a subsequent ultrasound. The Zoo announced Batang’s pregnancy June 14 through a Facebook Live broadcast of one of her ultrasounds. Over the past 12 weeks, the Zoo has provided weekly updates on Batang on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #OrangutanStory and will continue to share behind-the-scenes photos and videos as news breaks.

“Each and every birth of a critically endangered species is significant, but it is all the more exciting and this is a historic moment for our Smithsonian’s National Zoo,” said Meredith Bastian, curator of primates and member of the Orangutan SSP Steering Committee. “I am very proud of Batang and my team. Ever since we received the breeding recommendation, they have dedicated themselves to preparing Batang for motherhood. I look forward to watching the infant experience everything for the first time—especially meeting the other orangutans and going outside for the first time with Batang.”

For the past three years, keepers have been acclimating Batang to the experiences of motherhood and training her to care for an infant. Building upon behaviors Batang has learned through routine training sessions, keepers have trained Batang to hold a baby upright, present it to keepers for bottle feedings and place the baby in a specially designed box when asked. This training enables staff to retrieve the infant if medically necessary and evaluate its health in a way that is safe and not stressful for the animals.

To read more on this story, click here: Orangutan Born at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo


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Shanthi, a 41-Year-Old Asian Elephant at the National Zoo Gets a New Pair of Boots

Washington, DC – If you think your feet hurt after a long day spent atop them… imagine weighing 9,000 pounds.

That’s the situation that Shanthi, a 41-year-old Asian elephant at the National Zoo, finds herself in. Shanthi suffers from arthritis, which can make getting around painful. It’s also led to problems in her front feet, including cracks in her toenails and lesions on her skin.

Actually, they’re more like boots, custom made for Shanthi in about a size 20, with an EEEEEEEEEEEE width. Sitting on a table in a staff room in the zoo’s Elephant Community Center recently, a single boot resembled a rubberized birdbath.

When Shanthi wears the boots, said elephant keeper Deborah Flinkman, “She looks like she’s going off-road.”

Elephants have five toenails on their front feet and four (usually) on their back feet. An elephant foot can be close to 20 inches across when it’s resting on the ground, six inches smaller when it’s lifted up and the weight is off it.

“We put a lot of attention into elephant feet,” said Tony Barthel, curator of the zoo’s Elephant Trails and Cheetah Conservation Station exhibits. “It’s one of the things we can do to help ensure that they’re healthy.”

That foot care includes regular inspections, pedicures and occasional X-rays.

Shanthi’s arthritis has caused her to lean forward on her feet, stressing them. Zoo veterinarians needed to treat the arthritis with injections and apply topical treatments to Shanthi’s troubled nails and skin. They also needed to keep debris out of the fissures in her feet.

This all posed a challenge, especially keeping the medication on long enough to work. Elephants are intelligent and curious, with dexterous trunks well-suited for unwrapping bandages. Boots had been used successfully at other zoos, so the National Zoo decided to give them a try.

There is no Brannock device for elephants, that metal contraption humans step in to measure the length and width of their footsies. Instead, the Smithsonian’s 3-D Digitization Program produced scans of her feet that were sent to Teva in California.

The footwear company already had experience with interesting custom jobs. It made a pair of elephant shoes in 2004 and in 2011 created a tiny sandal for the Santa Barbara Zoo, where a Humboldt penguin named Lucky had an impaired foot.

“There’s not a tremendous amount of feedback that comes back from the animals,” said Chris Hillyer, director of innovation for Deckers Brands, which owns Teva. “But the reality is, all the principles we use in making good footwear for humans is absolutely applicable, from the standpoint of traction, durability, drainage and fit.”

Chris flew to China to oversee construction of the shoes, which Teva donated to the zoo gratis.

(A local outfit also made some custom boots for Shanthi before the zoo settled on the Tevas. Joe Stern, of Cobbler’s Bench in Landover, Md., fabricated a pair that was hardened with the spray-on lining used for truck beds. Joe finished them off with red soles to make them resemble high-end Christian Louboutin pumps. Shanthi seems to prefer the more casual Tevas.)

What does Shanthi think of wearing shoes?

At first, Tony said, it was like when you “put a sock on a dog and they don’t know how to walk. She did a little bit of that. . . . She was very careful about how she walked. That was an important part of the learning process.”

Now Shanthi takes the boots in stride.

The arthritis treatment seems to be working. The swelling in her left foot has eased. Keepers have to stuff some foam in the boot to make it fit — elephant orthotics — and Shanthi is more mobile and unafraid to amble down the steep incline into the pools, where she plays and rolls around.

“We’ve given her a good quality of life and improved her level of comfort,” said Don Neiffer, the National Zoo’s chief veterinarian.

On a recent afternoon, Deborah the elephant keeper knelt at Shanthi’s feet, separated from the elephant by widely-spaced bars. The world’s largest land mammal can be dangerous, after all.

“If she stood a foot away, I wouldn’t be able to do it,” Deborah said.

But Shanthi was standing up close, encouraged by Deborah’s calm patter and light touch — and by the apple-flavored fiber biscuits Deborah offered.

At just the tap of Deborah’s finger on a gnarled gray toe, Shanthi lifted her left foot. Deborah slid a boot under it, and Shanthi stepped down.

“Perfect,” Deborah said. “What a good girl.”

She sealed the Velcro closure, cinched the webbing at Shanthi’s ankle and then said “Over,” asking the elephant to rotate 180 degrees and present her right foot. This Shanthi did, pausing only to lazily grab some hay with her trunk.

Shanthi lifted her right foot, then, like Cinderella after the ball, gingerly stepped into the boot.

I’ve seen parents have more trouble getting their squirming toddler into a pair of sneakers.



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Salisbury Zoo, Recently Received a Year-Old Ocelot Kitten Named Anahi from the Greenville Zoo in South Carolina

Salisbury, Maryland - There's a brand new ocelot kitten at the Salisbury Zoo.

The zoo announced on Friday it recently received a year-old ocelot named Anahi from the Greenville Zoo in South Carolina. She was one of two female ocelot kittens born on Aug. 15, 2015. The kittens were the first offspring for parents Evita and Oz. The Greenville Zoo was one of two Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) institutions to breed ocelots in 2015.

The Salisbury Zoo lost its male ocelot, Ozzie, last winter. He was almost 17 years old, which the zoo says is old for an ocelot in captivity. Ozzie came to Salisbury from the Beardsley Zoo in Connecticut in 2009.

The Salisbury Zoo is part of the ocelot Species Survival Program, which strives to ensure the sustainability of a healthy, genetically diverse and demographically varied population through breeding programs with the AZA-accredited institutions. Working with the AZA and the Ocelot Species Survival Program, the zoo hopes to obtain a male in the near future to pair with Anahi.

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Village Enthralled by 7-Year-Old Who Naps, Cuddles with 16-Foot Python

Setbo Village, Cambodia - Being responsible parents, rice farmer Khuorn Sam Ol and his wife might not be expected to be keen on having their child play with a 16-foot-long, 220-pound snake.

Yet they are unflustered that their 7-year-old son, Uorn Sambath, regularly sleeps in the massive coil of the female python, rides the reptile, kisses it and even pats it down with baby powder.

"There is a special bond between them," Khuorn Sam Ol said. "My son played with the snake when he was still learning to crawl. They used to sleep together in a cradle."

The boy and his snake have become a tourist attraction in Setbo village, about 12 miles south of the capital Phnom Penh, as well as a source of wonder to the locals.

"People sometimes call the boy and the snake husband and wife," said Cheng Raem, a 48-year-old neighbor. "Maybe they were a couple from a previous life."

Boy and snake grew up together, ever since the python slithered into the family home when Uorn Sambath was 3 months old. His 39-year-old mother, Kim Kannara, discovered the reptile, then about the size of a thumb, coiled beneath a woven mat on their bed.

Khuorn Sam Ol took the snake away, releasing it into some bushes by a river, but one morning two weeks later, he found it back inside the house. He decided to keep it and named it Chamroeun — meaning "progress," in English.

He came to believe the snake possesses a magical spirit that understands what he says and protects the family from illness. The snake has its own 7-by-10-foot room with a spirit house at which Khuorn Sam Ol prays for the python to keep his family happy and healthy. The snake is so familiar with his son — one of four children — that it would never hurt him, he said.

According to Nikolai Doroshenko, a Russian snake expert living in Cambodia, it's true that pythons rarely attack humans unless provoked.

But there is still an element of danger in allowing any young child to play with a large python with a grip powerful enough to break bones, said Doroshenko, who runs the Snake House guesthouse in the southwestern city of Sihanoukville, with its own collection of snakes and other reptiles.

Chamroeun — whom it takes three adults to carry — eats about 22 pounds of chicken meat every week, posing a heavy financial burden on the family, said Khuorn Sam Ol.

His meals used to be a spiritual burden as well, when they fed him live rats and chickens. Uneasy that they were breaking the Buddhist injunction against killing living things, Khuorn Sam Ol said the snake eventually answered his prayers for it to stop eating live animals.

Wildlife and police officials used to come by to try to take the snake away and put it in a zoo. But they relented after seeing Uorn Sambath lovingly cuddling the reptile. They left with some pictures they took of the boy and the snake together, Khuorn Sam Ol said.

"I will not let anyone take her away from me, either. I love her very much," declared his son, Uorn Sambath, kissing his pet on the head.

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The Maryland Zoo Will Have “Lures” Activated Within the Park to Attract Customers With ‎Pokémon GO Perks

Baltimore, Maryland - The Maryland Zoo is trying to “catch ’em all.” Not Pokémon, but ‎Pokémon GO players.

Between 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Friday and Saturday, the zoo will have “lures” activated within the park to attract the digital monsters, and the real-life people who are hunting them.

‎Pokémon GO is a new augmented reality phone app that uses GPS to guide users to real-world landmarks for the purpose of collecting the digital cartoon creatures. It’s been downloaded by millions of people, causing Nintendo’s stock to soar.

At “Pokéstops,” players can collect gear to help them catch new monsters and heal injured ones, and they can fight their Pokémon at “gyms” to advance in the game.

The zoo says there are 26 Pokéstops and two gyms within its gates, and is encouraging ‎Pokémon chasers who visit to share the fun by tagging Pokémon screenshots on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram with #marylandzoo or @marylandzoo.

Adult admission to the zoo is $18.



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Weekend Outing at Cincinnati's Zoo Turned Tragic When a 4-Year-Old Boy Was Hospitalized After Falling into a Gorilla Enclosure

A holiday weekend outing at Cincinnati's zoo turned doubly tragic Saturday when a 4-year-old boy was hospitalized after falling into a gorilla enclosure - and zoo workers had to kill the rare gorilla to protect the boy.

Cincinnati police and emergency crews responded to a report of a child falling into the exhibit at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden at about 4 p.m. Saturday. Police confirmed the child was taken to Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center near the zoo, and was treated for serious injuries that were not considered to be life-threatening.

Cincinnati Zoo President Thane Maynard said the boy crawled through a barrier and fell an estimated 10 to 12 feet into the moat surrounding the habitat. He said the boy was not seriously injured by the fall.

The Cincinnati Fire Department reported in a press release that first responders "witnessed a gorilla who was violently dragging and throwing the child."

Maynard said the zoo's 17-year-old male western lowland gorilla, Harambe, grabbed the boy and dragged him around. Two female gorillas were also in the enclosure.

The boy was with the 400-pound animal for about 10 minutes before the zoo's Dangerous Animal Response Team deemed the situation "life-threatening," Maynard said.

"The choice was made to put down, or shoot, Harambe, so he's gone," Maynard said. "We've never had a situation like this at the Cincinnati Zoo where a dangerous animal needed to be dispatched in an emergency situation."

The fire department release said  the boy was in between the gorilla's legs at the time of the shot.

Maynard said the Dangerous Animal Response Team followed procedures, which they practice in drills. He said in the 38-year history of the zoo's gorilla exhibit that they've never had anyone get into the enclosure.

After the gorilla was shot, zoo employees unlocked the gate and two firefighters quickly retrieved the child, according to the fire department.

"It's a sad day all the way around," Maynard said. "They made a tough choice. They made the right choice because they saved that little boy's life. It could have been very bad."

Brittany Nicely of Dayton was visiting the zoo with her two children and four other children on Saturday. They were at Gorilla World when the incident took place.

"Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the little boy in the bushes past the little fence area. I tried to grab for him. I started yelling at him to come back," Nicely said.

"Everybody started screaming and going crazy," she said. "It happened so fast."

Nicely said the gorilla rushed toward the boy and led him by the arm through the water in the enclosure. She said initially the gorilla seemed protective and only alarmed by all the screaming.

The area was then evacuated by zoo staff. Nicely stood with her group outside the exhibit.

"About four or five minutes later we heard the gunshot," she said. "We were pretty distraught. All the kids were crying."

Nicely said she spent the whole trip home explaining why they are told to stay close and not run at the zoo.

"That could have been them," she said. "Something like that could have happened. It's a very traumatizing experience for anybody involved. The kids, the zookeepers, the other gorillas that now don't have him there any more."

News of the incident triggered huge social media response.   A video posted by the Enquirer  had been viewed about 71,000 times at 9:30 p.m. Saturday.

Many commenters criticized the parents of the boy for not watching him more closely. A Facebook group called Justice for Harambe was created and gathered more than 100 "likes" in less than two hours.

"This page was created to raise awareness of Harambe's murder on 5/28/16," the page states. "We wish to see charges brought against those responsible!"

Lt. Steve Saunders, the spokesman for the Cincinnati Police Department, said no charges were being pursued against the child's parents.

The decision to shoot Harambe instead of tranquilizing was made in the interest of the boy's safety, Maynard said.

"In an agitated situation, it may take quite a while for the tranquilizer to take effect," he explained, "At the instant he would be hit, he would have a dramatic response. You don't hit him and he falls over."

Maynard also explained that while Harambe didn't attack the child, the animal's size and strength posed a great danger.

"All sort of things could have happened in a situation like that. He certainly was at risk," Maynard said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and little boy.”

He said that zoo officials have not yet spoken with the family of the child who fell into the habitat. Zoo officials will be reviewing the security of the enclosure and their procedures, but said they have no plans to stop the gorilla program.

Harambe was born at the Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville, Texas before he was moved to Cincinnati in September 2014. Another gorilla, Gladys, named for her home zoo, also come to Cincinnati from Brownville.

Western lowland gorillas are one of the four gorilla subspecies. According to the World Wildlife Foundation, populations of the critically endangered animal are hard to estimate due to the dense, remote rainforests where they make their home, but experts say between 175,000 to 225,000 could live in mostly in Congo, but also in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon.

In 2009, the International Species Information System counted 158 male western lowland gorillas and 183 females in captivity in the United States.

"Harambe was good guy. He was a youngest who started to grow up. There were hopes to breed him," Maynard said. "It will be a loss to the gene pool of lowland gorillas."

The zoo is open Sunday, but Gorilla World will remain closed until further notice.










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The Kids' Farm at the National Zoo is Temporarily Closed Due to a Few Animals Having E. Coli

Washington, DC - The Kids' Farm at the National Zoo is temporarily closed due to a few animals having E. coli, the National Zoo announced Monday.

Zoo veterinarians first detected the presence of E. coli on Feb. 18 in the goats. On Friday, tests results revealed that four goats and one cow were positive. The zoo said the Kids' Farm was immediately quarantined.

The other animals in the Kids' Farm tested negative, according to the zoo.

No staff member or animals are showing signs of the disease, zoo officials said.

Once zoo veterinarians receive three consecutive weeks of negative results, the zoo will start planning to reopen the Kids' Farm.

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San Diego Zoo Global Releases New Video of the Largest Cheetah Litter Delivered at the Zoo

Get ready for more cheetah cubs than usual as San Diego Zoo Global releases new video of the largest cheetah litter delivered at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park’s off-exhibit breeding center.

Addison, an 8-year-old cheetah, gave birth to the six cubs in November. The litter is above average for cheetahs, according to zoo officials, and it was a surprise for Addison’s keepers.

Officials say they spotted three or maybe four cubs in the mother’s womb so after the cubs arrived, they were surprised to count six cubs in the birthing center.

Addison has had successful litters before. Her most recent one was four cubs.

These cubs will stay with her for a year. After that, zoo officials said they may go to other sites to help bolster the population of cheetahs.

Currently, it’s estimated that there are 10,000 cheetahs in the world today. That’s down from 100,000 in 1900, according to San Diego Zoo Global.

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