News Archive

Scientists, veterinarians and keepers have been monitoring Mei Xiang closely for the past several months to determine if she is pregnant or experiencing a pseudopregnancy.

Local citizen scientists working with the Changing Landscapes Initiative and Virginia Working Landscapes, both programs of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI), discovered a rare orchid that is nearly extinct in the commonwealth of Virginia.

Three new Home’s hinge-back tortoises recently made their debut at the Reptile Discovery Center! Get the scoop on these totally awesome tortoises from animal keeper Sara Hasenstab.

Meet Henderson and Kingston—two white-eared titi monkeys that live in Amazonia’s rainforest habitat! Get to know them in this Q&A with animal keeper Donna Stockton.

All seasons on the prairie are special. But spring is just a little more special than the rest, as every day birds return for summer breeding season.

For the past 40 years, brown-headed cowbirds have been trapped and killed in Michigan to prevent them from laying eggs in endangered Kirtland’s warbler nests—causing warbler parents to care for cowbird chicks instead of their own chicks.

Persian onagers are an amazing species! And even though they are not one of the iconic species that you may know, as someone who gets to care for them and spend time with them every day, let me tell you just how amazing they are.

This summer, Abyssinian ground hornbill Karl got a new roommate — a hornbill named Karoline! The pair met in June, but their story really began two years ago when keepers decided to build Karl a new beak.

At first glance, Virginia’s farmlands seem quite peaceful. But beneath the swaying fields of hay lies a bustling ecosystem for the birds that call the grasslands home. One such avian animal—the eastern meadowlark—is key to the health of its habitat.

Excitement is in the air at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Virginia, where hoofstock keepers are eagerly anticipating the births of three Persian onagers! Get to know this rare and endangered species in this Q&A with supervisory biologist Dolores Reed.

Kristina Anderson-Teixeira—a forest ecologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute’s (SCBI) Conservation Ecology Center and at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute’s Center for Tropical Forest Science—is a recipient of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and...

During the past several weeks, Bei Bei has been experiencing some gastrointestinal discomfort which has caused him to pass several mucous stools and loose stools.

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute's herd of scimitar-horned oryx is growing. Keepers welcomed five calves during the past few weeks.

Female Asian elephant Maharani is turning 29 years old Sunday, July 14, and we are celebrating with her favorite thing—food!

Keepers are still waiting to find out if giant panda Mei Xiang is pregnant. She has not started exhibiting many behaviors associated with the secondary hormone rise of a pregnancy or pseudopregnancy.

A 2-year-old female Asian water dragon who was the first documented birth by facultative parthenogenesis in her species died from blood cancer.

Western lowland gorilla infant Moke is becoming bolder, and with his growing confidence, we are beginning to see traces of his mom’s personality, says assistant curator Becky Malinsky.

Why is this mountain tapir wearing a collar? His movements and behaviors are being tracked via satellite by Smithsonian scientists!

As his name suggests, Zoo staff are “grateful” for 5-month-old male lesser kudu, Kushukuru! He was born Jan. 12, 2019, to 5-year-old first time mother Rogue and 8-year-old father Garrett.

Lion cubs grow up fast, and even faster in zoos. In a long-term study, scientists at SCBI found that male African lions living in human care hit puberty a full year earlier than their counterparts in the wild.

Make the most of your time out of the office with a visit to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo!

A new set of flippers splashed down at Smithsonian’s National Zoo, where American Trail keepers are celebrating the arrival of a California sea lion pup. Animal care staff are closely monitoring the pup—born June 23—in an off-exhibit area.

Moonlight, a 4-year-old red panda, gave birth to a cub overnight June 12 at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Virginia. Moonlight and the cub appear to be doing well and keepers are cautiously optimistic that the cub will continue to grow.

Visitors to Washington, D.C., can expect warm weather and humidity this season. But not to worry — we’ve rounded up a few of the best ways to beat the heat at the Zoo this summer.

The study, which is among the first genomic studies on otters, found that both the sea otter and giant otter have lost a considerable number of genes related to the sense of smell — a faculty that is not essential underwater.