News

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

For the Zoo’s insect-eating residents, no meal is complete without live, nutrient-packed bugs.

Staff are mourning the loss of the 19-year-old female California sea lion, who was euthanized June 27.

Each kit in the litter is currently gaining around 1% of its body weight per day. Watch them on our Black-footed Ferret Cam.

Recently, our Great Cats team bid farewell to African lion Amahle, who moved to another zoo to breed. Keeper Katy Juliano shares how Amahle's mother, Shera, is adjusting in this update.

A new study warns that increased carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the atmosphere may decrease the nutrient contents of plants and could cause further population declines farther up the ecological chain.

In June, we're celebrating World Ocean Month! Learn about some of the amazing aspects of corals and how they shape our world.

In March, we celebrated two pygmy slow loris births! Now, the bright-eyed babies are getting braver and exploring their exhibit.

In May, our Small Mammal House team said goodbye to two beloved tamanduas: Manny and Cayenne.

Smithsonian graduate fellow Johnny Stutzman shares how mentors can mold a scientific career in our latest Focus on the Future.

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo will welcome a new pair of giant pandas, Bao Li and Qing Bao, by the end of the year.

One year ago, our Primate team celebrated the much anticipated birth of a western lowland gorilla: Zahra!

Carnivore keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI) in Front Royal, Virginia, welcomed a litter of endangered black-footed ferrets this week.

When the Zoo's newest Allen's swamp monkey was rejected by his mother after birth, a team of staffers stepped up to care for the infant while he was young.

Smithsonian postdoctoral fellow Fernanda Abra was recognized for her pioneering work to build and monitor low-cost canopy bridges over Highway BR-174 in the Amazon rainforest, protecting tree-dwelling mammals from road impacts.

This Amphibian Week, take a closer look at what makes these species so wonderfully weird and worthy of our attention.

All it took was one hands-on experience with birds to get postdoctoral fellow Todd Jones hooked. Now, he's conducting ground-breaking research on a critical stage of birds' lives.

Experienced mom Victoria and first-time dad Winton welcomed a new joey, who is now starting to explore.

For the first time, the Small Mammal House is celebrating the birth of two pygmy slow lorises, an endangered species.

For graduate fellow Sean Lyons, "getting to the root of it all" was always his focus. So, it comes as no surprise that he wound up working with the root of all life: DNA.

Breeding season at the Bird House can create some spectacular behavior among the Zoo’s raucous flock of ducks.

Spring has arrived, and vernal pools are surging with life. Learn what makes these temporary wetlands ideal for wood frogs, spotted salamanders and other woodland species.

Three’s company, too! The morning of Jan. 26, Africa Trail staff reported for duty and discovered a female addax calf.

For ornithologist James Mouton, his "clear-cut" scientific career took a detour when he chose to join the military. But his non-traditional path shows there's more than one way to conserve wildlife.

Twenty-three years after being declared “extinct in the wild”, the scimitar-horned oryx has made a remarkable comeback. Smithsonian ecologist Katherine Mertes shares how the species reached the turning point.