News Archive

Cities tend to be noisy places.

Sans berets, smocks or palettes, the animals at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo are getting their paws dirty with non-toxic, water-based paint and creating one-of-a-kind works of art. Painting is one among many activities that fall under Animal Enrichment—a program that provides physically and...

Imagine measuring the tail of a squirmy, inch-long tadpole. Now imagine doing that where the air is thin enough to make you dizzy, a hail storm is about to start and you just spent 45 minutes up to your elbows in a freezing cold stream. Last December, a research scientist with SCBI and a biologist...

The newest member of the charismatic cephalopod community at the Smithsonian's National Zoo may only be the size of a grapefruit now, but he (or she) has some long arms to grow. On Nov. 4, the Zoo's beloved giant Pacific octopus, Octavius, died at the old age of about 4 years and a feisty new young...

Nearly 20 years after the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute became the first to produce an Eld's deer fawn through artificial insemination, SCBI scientists have now contributed to the birth of the first Eld's deer via in vitro fertilization. The researchers collected eggs, inseminated them...

Instead of hibernating this holiday season, visitors can weather the winter at the Smithsonian's National Zoo. With so much to see indoors, a stroll through the Zoo will not feel like an arctic trek. Visitors can stop in any of the eight animal houses to warm up, enjoy animal demonstrations and chat...

WHAT: Washington Capitals Players, Marcus Johansson and Mathieu Perreault, skate with 50 contest winners on Dec. 11, at ZooLights, following the reveal of the Gin-GRR-bread Kids' Farm habitat contest winner. WHEN: ZooLights has been expanded this year with new activities and added dates. The event...

Sparkling brighter than ever in its fifth straight year at the Smithsonian's National Zoo, ZooLights-- powered by Pepco--remains the only free holiday light show in the Washington-Metro area. With added dates and expanded hours this year, ZooLights will run the weekends of Nov. 25–27, Dec. 2–4, and...

After voting polls closed at noon today, black-footed ferret keepers at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Va., revealed the ferret webcam star’s new name—on the webcam. More than 1,000 voters picked the winning name, Rosebud, on the Smithsonian magazine’s website. The...

Introduction Three Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute scientists left in late November 2011 for the remote and mountainous Kingdom of Bhutan nestled in the Himalayas between India and China. The Smithsonian team includes the National Zoo’s chief veterinarian Suzan Murray, National Zoo...

HANOI, Vietnam – Project Predator, an initiative to protect and save the world's last surviving wild tigers was unveiled today at the 80th INTERPOL General Assembly, a gathering of global law enforcement officials from the organization's 190 member countries. Created by INTERPOL, Project Predator...

Human history has never seen a more pivotal time for wildlife. While extinction threatens nearly one-quarter of all known vertebrate species, scientists are creating interdisciplinary techniques and partnerships geared toward recovering endangered populations. To meet the global challenge of...

Changes in North American ecosystems over the past 150 years have caused coyotes to move from their native habitats in the plains and southwestern deserts of North America to habitats throughout the United States. In a new study, published Oct. 17 in the Journal of Mammalogy, researchers from the...

She is small, she is cute and she is a webcam star. But this little black-footed ferret, born April 15 at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Va., does not have a name. So SCBI has teamed up with Smithsonian magazine to find her just the right name, and they are asking for...

Using one of the largest DNA data sets for a group of birds and employing next-generation sequencing methods, Smithsonian scientists and collaborators have determined the evolutionary family tree for one of the most strikingly diverse and endangered bird families in the world, the Hawaiian...

Veterinary and pathology experts from the Smithsonian Institution, University of Illinois and the Wildlife Conservation Society will conduct a five-day training workshop for pathologists in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia on how to identify and investigate unknown diseases.

Twenty years ago today, the Smithsonian’s National Zoo welcomed naked mole-rats ( Heterocephalus glaber) into its collection. These rodents, which are more closely related to porcupines and guinea pigs than to their namesake, are one of only a handful of mammals that exhibit eusocial behavior. Like...

Using one of the largest DNA data sets for a group of birds and employing next-generation sequencing methods, Smithsonian scientists and collaborators have determined the evolutionary family tree for one of the most strikingly diverse and endangered bird families in the world, the Hawaiian...

By Tony Barthel, Curator of Large Mammals at the National Zoo This past October I was lucky enough to travel to Malaysia and join a team who was exploring opportunities for collaboration on elephant and wildlife conservation between the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI), the National...

The birth of a Persian onager at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Va., Wednesday, Sept. 7, is a boon for a vital program that seeks innovative ways to manage endangered species that live in herds. The foal is now one of 26 onagers in captivity in North America. The last...

The black-footed ferret, once thought to be extinct in the wild, was rediscovered in 1981 with a small population of 24 animals in Wyoming―30 years later the species’ future is brighter than ever. The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute is marking this anniversary with a record-breaking year...

Pierre Comizzoli, a gamete biologist at SCBI’s Center for Species Survival received one of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers. President Obama named 94 researchers as recipients of the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers, the highest honor...

Thunder, lightning and strong winds greeted the National Zoo’s two female red panda cubs when they were born June 17, and that stormy night has now determined their names. One cub, Pili, received her name today after voting closed on NBC Washington’s website. Pili, which means “clap of thunder” in...

Smithsonian’s National Zoo Director Dennis W. Kelly has been elected to serve on the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Board of Directors. Kelly will be one of nine members on the Board, which works to promote AZA’s mission of dedication to the advancement of zoos and aquariums in the areas of...

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo’s Communications Team won the prestigious PR News Platinum Award! The award, in the Public Affairs category, recognizes their work on the amphibian crisis public relations campaign.This is a significant honor and acknowledgement from the public relations industry. PR...