Blog - Page 7 of 10 - Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens

Keeper Interview: Behind the Scenes of a Koala Introduction

Last month, our resident koalas, female Maya and male Burra, took the next step toward fulfilling their biological destinies when the two were introduced to live together as partners in the koala habitat. From the bellowing to the branch shaking to the sloth-like inverted tree hang, find out directly from Senior Animal Keeper Kevin Gorowski how everything went down. Hi, Kevin! What can you tell us about Burra and Maya? How do they behave that […]

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Close-up of a koala against a dark background

Zoo Update from Director and CEO Denise M. Verret – August 2022

It’s August, which means we are hosting nearly 900 Zoo Campers and are also taking our outreach programs to 36 parks throughout the City as part of the Recreation and Parks Summer Play L.A. program, where we are engaging over 1,000 campers.

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a cockatoo with pink, gray, and white feathers, perches on a tree

Zoo Staffers Go Plastic-Free for July

This July, staff and volunteers of the L.A. Zoo are taking personal responsibility for one tenant of the Zoo’s Conservation Strategic Plan, to “do everything we can to create a just and sustainable world where people and wildlife thrive together.”

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a sea lion's head pokes above blue-green water

Gallery: Zoo Dads with Photographer Jamie Pham

Last month we shared a look at some of the cutest photos from our Zoo “family album,” featuring Zoo moms and their young over the years. This month, we’re taking a closer look at dads.

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a baby hippo with its mouth open wide and an adult hippo face each other in the water

Zoo Update from Director and CEO Denise M. Verret – June 2022

Earlier this year, I had the privilege of traveling to Africa for the very first time in my life. The purpose of this trip was to prepare and inform me of the full journey I am going to co-lead in Botswana and Namibia later in the fall as part of the Zoo’s travel program, but what happened was far more incredible than anything I could have imagined.

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A group of tourists pose with their guides at sunset during a trip to Botswana

Photo Gallery: Zoo Mothers and Their Young

Our award-winning photographers capture the quiet and not-so-quiet moments between mothers and their offspring. Check out some of our favorite previously un-shared photos that celebrate this special bond, in a gallery curated just for you!

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Author Spotlight: Tommy Morrow

In his book Just Take a Walk in the Zoo, author Tommy Morrow (along with illustrator Demar Douglas) show the wonder and magic of connecting with wildlife.

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Two women stand on opposite sides of a man who holds a children's book in his hands

Super Troopers: New Chimps Arrive

The Zoo has recently welcomed two new chimpanzees! Curator of Mammals Candace Sclimenti says “the intros are going great” with the rest of the troop, and in fact the duo—two males—were recently made acquainted with the current alpha male.

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Zoo Update with Director and CEO Denise M. Verret – April 2022

Spring is one of my favorite seasons of the year – it’s a time of birth and renewal when the natural world around us springs back to life. We also use spring as a time to commemorate our planet and the role we all play in protecting it. As we embark on another year celebrating Earth Day on April 22, I am thinking about how the L.A. Zoo is making a sustainable impact on our planet.

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Armenian Viper green and black in color with purple flowers in the background.

Fierce Females of the Species

When it comes to size, strength, cunning, and leadership, the females have it in some exceptional species. For these females, out-weighing and out-witting are the rule, both on the hunt and at home. Across the animal kingdom, females sometimes outsize their male counterparts, and the L.A. Zoo is home to several of these bigger beasts. Our birds, in particular, feature many species with females reaching greater size than males. Eagles, such as our bald eagle,

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