News Archive

After a five-year hiatus, Cheetah Conservation Station keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo are celebrating the birth of a critically endangered dama gazelle. The male calf was born in an off-exhibit enclosure Aug. 30.

ZooLights—powered by Pepco—at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo is wilder than ever and a perfect holiday event for everyone in the family. Now in its 11th year, the annual free lights festival twinkles from Nov. 24 through Jan. 1, 2018 (except Dec. 24, 25 and 31) from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

What happens when a migratory bird’s path lands it right in an urban area like Washington, D.C.? The city is known for its extensive park system, but can these urban parks support wild birds through the breeding season? Moreover, how do birds’ natural behaviors change when they’re living the city...

The panda house is closed to the public beginning today, Sept. 1 to provide quiet for Mei Xiang as she enters the final stages of a pregnancy or pseudopregnancy.

Get a behind-the-scenes glimpse of how keepers at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute enrich the lives of animals by presenting them with toys, training and novel food items.

The youngest members of American Trail’s pinniped family have made quite the splash this summer. In June, sea lion Catalina celebrated her first birthday. Meanwhile, 7-month-old gray seal Birdie is mastering some important training behaviors.

What animal has the ability to see in two directions at once, changes colors depending on its mood and can catch its prey with a flick of the tongue? Reptile Discovery Center keepers welcomed a brand new species, the Meller’s chameleon, into their care in June. What’s makes this species so unique...

Asian elephants get much less attention than African elephants, but there is less than a tenth as many left in the world. About 500,000 African elephants remain in the wild compared to 30,000 to 50,000 Asian elephants. Out of the two, Asian elephants are more endangered and face multiple threats...

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo welcomed two screaming hairy armadillo pups Aug. 11. The pups are the first ever born at the Zoo.

Since Aug. 2, Great Cats keepers at the Smithsonian's National Zoo have been supplemental feeding the 6-week-old male Sumatran tiger cub.

Mei Xiang has started exhibiting more behaviors consistent with the secondary hormone phase of a pregnancy or a pseudopregnancy. That means that she has been spending the majority of her time sleeping. Simultaneously, she is starting to build a nest in her den and to eat less. Keepers have also seen...

Giant panda Bei Bei celebrated his second birthday Aug. 22, with a panda friendly cake made by the Smithsonian's National Zoo's department of nutrition.

We’re celebrating the one-year anniversary of the reintroduction of scimitar-horned oryx to the wild! As part of the celebration, we’re asking for help naming two of our scimitar-horned oryx calves at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Virginia. The calves were born in...

Beginning Aug. 18, the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat will be partially closed to keep a quiet area around panda Mei Xiang’s den. Although we are not able to confirm if she is pregnant, Mei Xiang is exhibiting expected, normal behaviors following a secondary hormone rise that are in...

The Giant Panda Habitat will be partially closed to keep a quiet area around female giant panda Mei Xiang’s den. Although keepers are not able to confirm if she is pregnant, Mei Xiang is exhibiting expected, normal behaviors after the secondary hormone rise that are in line with both a pregnancy and...

Maja, a 13-year-old Przewalski’s horse, was humanely euthanized at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute Aug. 13, for renal failure.

Veterinarians are giving Mei Xiang weekly ultrasounds to track changes in her uterus. Though it's too early to see a possible cub on an ultrasound, SCBI scientists detected a rise in hormones, indicating Mei Xiang will either give birth or experience the end of a pseudopregnancy in 30 to 50 days.

Primate keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo are mourning the loss of Red Oak, a red-fronted lemur who was humanely euthanized Aug. 9.

An endangered brown kiwi chick kicked her way out of her egg at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) in Front Royal, Virginia, between Saturday, July 29, and Sunday, July 30.

All across the world, scientists are tracking the movements of animals, collecting considerable data to better understand how animals migrate, what paths they take and what threats they may face along the way. A new statistical model from the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) and...

Ever since 42-year-old Asian elephant Kamala arrived at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in May 2014, keeper Amanda Bobyack has helped her settle into her habitat. Part of that adjustment included learning husbandry and medical training behaviors that help Bobyack, her fellow keepers and the vet team...

For Asian elephant keepers, working among the giants of the animal kingdom entails training, enriching and caring for the Zoo's multi-generational herd, as well as contributing to research and educating visitors about the conservation of this endangered species.

Behavior can tell the giant panda team quite a bit about the pandas, but the behaviors they exhibit are only half the story. When it comes to predicting when Mei Xiang will give birth, or when she is in the final stages of a pseudopregnancy, scientists rely on a few different factors. They monitor...