The Smithsonian’s National Zoo was established March 2, 1889, by an Act of Congress for “the advancement of science and the instruction and recreation of the people.” Today, the National Zoo exhibits living animal and plant collections and conducts research in the broad discipline of conservation biology. Its mission is to provide leadership in animal care, science, education and sustainability.

The 163-acre park in the heart of Washington, D.C., is home to approximately 2,000 animals representing nearly 400 species. Almost a quarter of the animals at the National Zoo are endangered species, including giant pandas, Asian elephants, North Island brown kiwis and western lowland gorillas. The Zoo also maintains the Conservation and Research Center, a 3,200-acre research facility, in Front Royal, Va.

Major exhibits include:

• Asia Trail and the Fujifilm Giant Panda Habitat—Asia Trail is home to the giant pandas and six other species: sloth bears, clouded leopards, fishing cats, Asian small-clawed otters, red pandas and Japanese giant salamanders. Opened in October 2006, the $53-million exhibit represents the most significant improvement at the National Zoo in nearly 40 years. A bridge from the Asia Trail provides new access to the Zoo’s Bird House from the upper part of the Zoo. The National Zoo’s giant panda family—“Mei Xiang,” “Tian Tian” and their male cub “Tai Shan”—live in the Fujifilm Giant Panda Habitat. Tai Shan was born July 9, 2005.
  
  
• Cheetah Conservation Station—In November 2004, one of the National Zoo’s cheetahs gave birth to the first litter ever born at the Zoo in its then 115-year history. The Zoo currently has four adult cheetahs.
  
  
• Elephant House and the Elephant Trails—The National Zoo is renovating and expanding its elephant house for a new, expanded habitat that will allow visitors to watch a herd of elephants interact throughout the year. “Kandula,” the National Zoo’s young male Asian elephant, born in 2001, is the fifth elephant calf in the world conceived through artificial insemination and represents a first step in Zoo efforts to develop a herd of breeding elephants. To protect Asian elephants in zoos and in the wild, Elephant Trails is linked to “A Campaign to Save Asian Elephants,” a comprehensive breeding, education and scientific research program designed to save these remarkable animals from extinction.
  
  
• Bird House—Home to hundreds of birds, the National Zoo’s Bird House is one of the oldest exhibit spaces in the park. Many of the species on exhibit are endangered and are part of ongoing National Zoo research programs to save their species in the wild. In recent years, the National Zoo has been successful breeding many of these species, including kori bustards, Guam rails and North Island brown kiwis.
  
  
• Small Mammal House—Most species in the Zoo’s Small Mammal House are no bigger than a breadbox. Here you can gaze at the sprightly grace of golden lion tamarins, the expansive ears of the fennec fox, the uncanny armor of the three-banded armadillo and the fascinating quills of the prehensile-tailed porcupine.
  
  
• Great Apes, O-Line and Think Tank—Orangutans and western lowland gorillas can be found at the Great Ape House. The world’s first Orangutan Transport System (O-Line) is a series of towers and cables that allows the Zoo’s orangutans to move between the two buildings that comprise their exhibit. The O-Line enables visitors to see the orangutans travel as they would in their natural habitat. At the Think Tank, orangutans train and communicate with Zoo researchers, a ground-breaking exhibit exploring animal cognition.
  
  
• Reptile Discovery Center—Home to a diverse collection of cold-blooded animals, ranging from the American alligator and boa constrictor to the giant Aldabra tortoise and needle-nosed gharials, the Reptile Discovery Center is filled with some of the world’s most exciting reptiles and amphibians. Visitors can view the Zoo’s Komodo dragons in their open-air enclosure.
  
  
• Invertebrates Exhibit—The Invertebrate Exhibit is home to giant African millipedes, spiny lobsters, anemones, leaf-cutter ants, a giant Pacific octopus and much more. The beautiful zebra longwing, orange julia and erato butterflies flutter in the adjacent pollinarium.
  
  
• Great Cats—Sitting atop Lion-Tiger Hill, the Great Cats exhibit is inhabited by five Sumatran tigers and four lions. Three of the Sumatran tigers celebrated their first-year birthday in May 2007.
  
  
• North American Valley Trail—Home to bald eagles, Mexican wolves, sea lions and river otters, this wooded section of the Zoo features animals found in North America. The Bald Eagle Refuge was created in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and tells the story of the National Wildlife refuge system while providing visitors with a close-up view of two eagles.
  
  
• Amazonia—The 15,000-square-foot rainforest exhibit contains a living tropical forest with more than 350 species of plants, including 50-foot-tall trees, tropical vines and epiphytes. This habitat is also home to dozens of species of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and insects typical of the Amazon Basin—all moving freely throughout the exhibit.
  
  
• Kids’ Farm—While enjoying hands-on features at this exhibit, children learn about the time, dedication and knowledge necessary to care for animals. Under close staff supervision, children can help groom the cows, donkeys and goats at the Caring Corral.

Conservation Biology at the National Zoo
The National Zoo was one of the first zoosto establish a scientific research program. Today, the Zoo’s scientists conduct research to aid in the survival or recovery of species and their habitats and ensure the health and well-being of animals in captivity and in the wild. Conservation biology is a relatively young science that uses interdisciplinary approaches to address the challenges of maintaining biological diversity.

National Zoo scientists are based in Washington, D.C., the Zoo’s Conservation and Research Center, which is located in Front Royal, Va., and at field sites around the world. During the past 28 years, more than 4,300 people from 109 countries have been trained through the Zoo’s professional conservation and zoological medicine training programs. The CRC also recently launched a collaborative semester-long program with George Mason University for undergraduate students focusing on conservation biology.

Many animals at the National Zoo are part of conservation efforts managed by Species Survival Plans. Through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ SSPs, zoos match and exchange animals for breeding, fostering scientific research and reintroducing animals—such as black-footed ferrets, golden lion tamarins and Przewalski’s horses—back into the wild. The Zoo directs several SSP programs, including golden lion tamarins, maned wolves, Elds deer and kori bustards.

The CRC was recently selected as a candidate core site for the National Ecological Observatory Network, a planned continental-scale ecological observatory. This national observatory will consist of fixed and mobile sensors located in 20 wild areas across the continental United States, as well as in Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. NEON is a project of the National Science Foundation.

Education
Drawing upon the latest research of scientists at the Zoo and around the world, the National Zoo offers a broad array of classes, workshops, courses, curricula materials, summer camps, lectures and specially-themed events for adults and children.

Friends of the National Zoo
Friends of the National Zoo is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the conservation, education and science mission of the Smithsonian’s National Zoo. Since 1958, FONZ has supported the Zoo by developing and implementing education, membership and volunteer programs; hosting special events; raising funds for Zoo projects; and running the concessions, parking and gift stores for Zoo visitors. Currently, there are approximately 100,000 FONZ members.
FONZ operates an extensive wildlife-education program, and its corps of more than 1,600 volunteers provides about 90,000 hours of service to the Zoo each year.

Revitalization
The Fujifilm Giant Panda Habitat and Asia Trail opened in 2006. Plans are underway to renovate and expand the Zoo’s Asian elephant program, including renovated and expanded habitats, education programs and an in-depth conservation research program. Master planning includes the Rock Creek and Front Royal facilities.

Budget and Staff
The National Zoo’s fiscal year 2008 budget is approximately $27 million. It has a full-time staff of 240 employees, including animal caretakers, veterinarians, scientists and administrative personnel.

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SI-21D-2008