Philadelphia Zoo - History

History

In the early morning of December 24, 1995, a fire in the World of Primates building killed 23 animals, including a family group of six lowland gorillas, a family group of three orangutans, four white-handed gibbons, and ten lemurs (two ruffed lemurs, six ring-tailed lemurs, and two mongoose lemurs). All were members of endangered species. The animals died in their sleep from smoke inhalation (carbon-monoxide poisoning); none were burned. Ten primates housed in an adjoining building, the Discovery House, survived. At the time of the fire, detection equipment existed in only 20% of the zoo buildings; the primates building, which had been constructed in 1985, was not one of them. In the ten months following the fire, the zoo installed fire detection equipment in all animal buildings.

On July 1, 1999, the zoo opened a new primate exhibit, the PECO Primate Reserve. It features 2.5 acres (10,000 m2) of indoor and outdoor exhibits with ten species of primates, including Sumatran orangutans, Western lowland gorillas, lemurs, langurs, and gibbons.

In 2006 the zoo opened a new, $20-million big cat exhibit, Big Cat Falls. Showcasing the animals in scenes reminiscent of their natural habitats, this exhibit allows visitors to get very close to the cats, sometimes separated only by a pane of glass. Visitors can see 12 endangered big cats from around the world, including three new snow leopard cubs, three new cougar kittens, and a new black jaguar cub.

On May 25, 2007, three Amur Tiger cubs were born at the Philadelphia Zoo to mother Kira and father Dmitri (also spelled "Dimitri"). The three female cubs, named Changbai, Koosaka, and Terney, were introduced to the public August 16, 2007.

On June 9, 2008, Petal, the oldest African elephant in a United States zoo, died at the age of 52.

On March 21, 2009, the zoo opened its 150th Anniversary Year-Long Celebrations.

On May 30, 2009, the zoo opened the McNeil Avian Center, a renovation of its classic bird house. It features two birds that are extinct in the wild: the Guam Rail and the Guam Kingfisher, a subspecies of the Micronesian Kingfisher. A theatre presents a fourteen-minute, 4D-movie about avian migration, following the migration of an animated oriole named Otis.

On October 2, 2009, the Zoo welcomed a baby Sumatran Orangutan, subsequently named "Batu". Batu, a female, is the first-born child to 15-year-old father Sugi and 18-year-old mother Tua. She is also the first baby orangutan to be born in the PECO Primate Reserve, which opened in 1999. The Zoo, however, does have a history of successfully breeding orangutans, being the first zoo in the nation to have a successful birth in 1928.

On April 10, 2010, the Zoo's seasonal "Creatures of Habitat" opened, a unique exhibit featuring 9 animal stations throughout the Zoo, each featuring an endangered animal, and each consisting of statue(s) made completely out of Lego bricks. Each statue was created by Sean Kenney, the first of only nine LEGO-certified artists in the world.

On July 17, 2010, the Zoo welcomed a new female baby giraffe to first-time parents Stella, 7, and Gus, 4 after a gestation period of over 15 months. This is the first giraffe birth at the Philadelphia Zoo in over a decade.