News

Washington, D.C.’s beloved family-friendly winter wonderland, ZooLights, returns to brighten the holiday season.

A new study shows environmental conditions in migratory birds’ winter homes affect their ability to survive the rest of the year.

With the help of 3D modeling technology, a team of veterinary experts successfully carried out a rare spinal surgery on a female cheetah cub.

Reaching up to 10 feet (3 meters) long, arapaima are the largest freshwater fish in South America. Learn what else makes these animals unique.

Kiwi feathers collected from across the U.S. and Europe will soon be heading home in a repatriation effort between the U.S. and New Zealand.

This summer has been eventful for our youngest western lowland gorilla, Zahra, who will be 16 months old on Sept. 27. Read primate keeper Francesca Bozzo's update!

Conservation partnership advances the establishment of the first wild population in more than 30 years

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute has been awarded a five-year accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

David M. Rubenstein has pledged $10 million toward the Zoo’s $25 million campaign to fund the giant panda conservation program.

Through a creative collaboration, Smithsonian scientists are using historic collections and current conservation practices to bring back declining populations of grassland birds.

It looks like the angriest housecat you’ve ever seen, but it’s actually the Pallas’s cat: a small Asian wildcat known for its thick fur and unusual face.

How do you monitor disease in Asian elephants? By building their trust and teaching them to voluntarily participate in medical exams! Get a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into caring for our herd.

A recently published study sheds light on the ecological importance of red-backed salamanders in the northeastern United States. The article, published in the journal Biology Letters, revealed the amphibians’ densities and biomass across the region were much higher than expected, with a great...

It’s no trick, only the sweetest treat: Boo at the Zoo, sponsored by Mars Wrigley Confectionery, and the Zoo’s 21+ spooktacular cocktail party, Night of the Living Zoo, are back at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Washington, D.C.

On the wings of last year’s award-winning baby boom, our Bird House team recently welcomed 27 chicks among seven duck and songbird species! Meet them in this update.

The ferret kits at our breeding facility in Front Royal, Va., just passed their 90-day health check with flying colors.

Read some quick tips for having a good time at the Zoo when the summer heat kicks in.

With their warm golden-hued eyes, coats that camouflage them in the tree canopy and cheery “chuff” greetings—there’s no denying clouded leopards’ charisma. Get to know our cats!

August is Asian Elephant Awareness Month, and we’re celebrating with stories and fun facts about this endearing—and critically endangered—species.

Smithsonian scientists are exploring a radical effort to preserve and safeguard biological samples from important and at-risk species inside the cold craters of the Moon.

Small Mammal House keepers have confirmed the sexes of our 4-month-old pygmy slow loris babies. It’s a boy…and a girl!

Smithsonian ecologist Ellen Welti was awarded the Frontiers Planet Prize for her work on the halted recovery of European freshwater biodiversity.

A groundbreaking new initiative will address the question of how improvements in the environment and health are financed in 21st-century African landscapes.

In honor of National Zookeeper Week, we're recognizing some of the dedicated professionals who go above and beyond for the animals in our care!

Three fluffy feathered friends have joined the flock at our Front Royal, Virginia, campus: one whooping crane and two red-crowned crane chicks!