News Archive

On June 8, the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute hosted 27 Circle of Life Society donors for an exclusive donor recognition event at the Zoo’s Research Hill—home to the Center for Conservation Genomics, Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and Department of Wildlife Health...

In January, Tom Akre, former director of Virginia Working Landscapes (VWL), was appointed to the new position of Working Landscapes and Seascapes Scholar.

Bornean orangutan infant Redd is 9 months old! Although he still sticks close to mom, Batang, and she keeps a watchful eye on him, he is very active and seems to enjoy exploring his surroundings.

How does a conservation organization stop a threat to wildlife that cannot be seen by the naked eye? They examine it under a microscope.

Shell-ebration is in order for the Reptile Discovery Center, where two critically endangered Bourret’s box turtles hatched for the first time in the Smithsonian’s National Zoo’s history. This conservation success was more than a decade in the making for animal keeper Lauren Augustine, who manages...

Fitted with a GPS device the weight of a paperclip, a gray catbird in the Washington, D.C., area flies south, unaware that the device records its every move. That data is key for conservation biologists, like Brandt Ryder of the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, who aim to understand the threats...

Training sloth bears, making an otter puzzle feeder and researching red pandas by studying their poop. It’s all in a day’s work for animal keeper Tallie Wiles! Follow her story for a behind-the-scenes glimpse into a day in the life of an Asia Trail keeper. Asia Trail is home to the Smithsonian's...

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) humanely euthanized a X-year-old female scimitar-horned oryx, named Jenna, on June 18.

Keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo are celebrating a conservation success five years in the making: a pair of Bourret’s box turtle hatchlings.

On May 10, inquiring minds spent a day with Smithsonian scientists at the fourth annual Conservation Immersion Seminar – Genomics: The New Frontier. The seminar was held at the Zoo’s Rock Creek Science Building where participants learned how genomics can be applied to conservation, saw DNA...

In the largest camera-trap study ever conducted in a forest canopy, Smithsonian scientists and partners found that tree-dwelling mammals were willing to travel using intentionally preserved natural bridges.

It's nesting season. In April, the Reptile Discovery Center's Cuban crocodile Blanche built up a large mound nest. She constructed the nest by kicking up the mulch in the exhibit into a central location.

The James Smithson Bicentennial Medal will be presented Sept. 28 to Harrison Ford and Betty White to honor their commitment to wildlife and efforts to create a sustainable planet. The medals will be presented by Smithsonian Secretary David Skorton at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation...

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo isn’t home to any warthogs. So why is its chief veterinarian, Don Neiffer, interested in studying the species? Why study warthog health in South Africa? Humans are putting pressure on wildlife populations by expanding into their native habitats, bringing our livestock...

Neither wind, nor rain, nor dark of night can stop a songbird’s migration. Crossing the Gulf of Mexico, a popular stopover site, can take a 24 hour non-stop flight. Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center scientist Emily Cohen is studying how they survive against tremendous odds.

Venture into the Reptile Discovery Center and find more than 70 species, including crocodilians, snakes, lizards, turtles, frogs and salamanders, among others. Follow keepers Kyle Miller and Matt Neff as they train, enrich and care for some of the most charismatic (and dangerous) animals at the...

How do keepers ensure a gray seal’s teeth are healthy? American Trail animal keeper Diana Vogel is training the Zoo’s 26-year-old male gray seal, Gunther, to voluntarily participate in dental radiographs. Why does Gunther need dental radiographs? When we ask our gray seals to open their mouths on...

Ninety Limosa harlequin frogs bred in human care are braving the elements of the wild after Smithsonian scientists sent them out into the Panamanian rainforest as part of their first-ever release trial in May.

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute’s team of reproductive scientists, veterinarians and panda keepers performed two artificial inseminations on female giant panda Mei Xiang.

Four years after conservationists relocated 570 desert tortoises in California from a threatened habitat to a nearby location, the tortoises outwardly appeared to have successfully acclimated. Genetic paternity testing of 92 hatchlings by SCBI geneticists, however, has revealed that the translocated...

Mei Xiang, the Zoo’s 18-year-old female giant panda, is showing behavioral and physical signs of estrus.

Bei Bei is a bit of a daredevil. Although eating and sleeping are still his favorite pastimes, the giant panda cub also loves to climb trees. Lately, he has been climbing trees in his yard and sliding back down. Giant pandas are excellent climbers, but they are also built to withstand falls.

The loss of intact forest cover in Myanmar has accelerated over the past decade, according to a study by Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) scientists and partners published May 17 in PLOS ONE.