News Archive

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo’s American Trail team is celebrating the arrival of a female gray seal pup, born Jan. 21 at 12:43 a.m. to mother Kara.

A geriatric black-footed ferret named Capone was humanely euthanized Jan. 19 at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI). He was seven years old.

Where and when will the next global health crisis occur? As part of USAID’s Emerging Pandemic Threat program, PREDICT, scientists in Smithsonian’s Global Health Program are on the ground in Myanmar, training local wildlife biologists on how to answer that very question.

Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute scientist Michael Power and primate keeper Erin Stromberg discuss the science behind great ape milk in this Q & A.

When the Shenandoah Valley and Northern Piedmont grasslands thaw from winter’s frost and transform with spring’s arrival, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) researchers and citizen scientists travel the region in pursuit of pollinators and other wildlife. As part of the Virginia...

Join the Smithsonian’s National Zoo for “Bye Bye, Bao Bao,” a series of online and on-site celebratory events to bid a fond farewell to giant panda Bao Bao (BOW-BOW) before she departs for China.

Tracking pacific loons from two breeding populations in Alaska.

Bei Bei is continuing to recover well from his major surgery, and he started eating small amounts of bamboo again a few weeks ago. He now gets several meals of leaf eater biscuits, sweet potatoes and apples, and several bamboo feedings every day. He eagerly consumes all his food—much as he has since...

How big does a “weeble-wobble” have to be to withstand the strength of six female Asian elephants? Over the fall 2016 semester, students at MICA, the Maryland Institute College of Art, sought to answer that question. Collaborating with the Smithsonian’s National Zoo’s animal care team, they designed...

Calaya is not like the Zoo’s other western lowland gorillas. For months, keepers tried to encourage Calaya to train and participate in enrichment activities to no avail. Then came an “AHA!” moment: Calaya learned best not solely through human interaction, but by observing the actions of the other...