Press Release Archive

Bei Bei (BAY-BAY) turned 4 years old today, Aug. 22. The Department of Nutrition Science at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo made him a panda-friendly frozen cake as a birthday treat.

The Smithsonian's National Zoo is mourning the loss of an 11-month-old male dama gazelle named Gustav who died Aug. 7.

Kids’ Farm keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo welcomed a new member to the cattle herd—a 10-month-old female Hereford calf named Willow. Her arrival bumps the number of cattle at the Kids’ Farm up to three, as she joins the Zoo’s 16-year-old Hereford heifer Rose and 1-year-old female Holstein...

Primate keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo are mourning the loss of Flare, an elderly red-fronted lemur who was humanely euthanized Aug. 6. At 33 years old, she was one of the oldest red-fronted lemurs in North America. The median life expectancy for this species is about 22 years for both...

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.

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.

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

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

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.

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.

A small beak broke through one of the hooded crane eggs at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) in Front Royal, Virginia, June 12.

Life found a way at Smithsonian’s National Zoo, where a female Asian water dragon at the Reptile Discovery Center underwent facultative parthenogenesis—that is, she reproduced and contributed a healthy, thriving offspring to her species despite never breeding with a male or receiving genetic...

A new Smokey Bear outdoor exhibit opened May 23 inviting visitors to look back in time to the mid-20th century, when a black bear cub was rescued from a forest fire and placed under the Zoo’s care. Archival photographs and 14 colorful posters line the pathway in front of Smokey Bear’s former habitat...

A new Smokey Bear outdoor exhibit will open at Smithsonian’s National Zoo Thursday, May 23, inviting visitors to look back at the legacy of one of the most famous residents in the Zoo’s 130-year history. A public celebration, beginning at 10 a.m., will follow brief remarks and a ceremonial ribbon...

Listed below are events being held June through August as part of the “Dino Summer” experience at Smithsonian’s National Zoo.

A tiny egg nestled in an incubator at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute began wiggling and cracking April 22 until a featherless Guam kingfisher chick emerged. Guam kingfishers are extinct in the wild and only approximately 140 live in human care, making every chick extremely precious.

This summer visitors can travel back millions of years as the Zoo presents "Dino Summer” featuring two dinosaur experiences of prehistoric proportions — “Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo Live,” a theater production with a larger-than-life cast of dinosaur puppets, and “DinoRoars,” an outdoor exhibit of six...

Wood turtles are endangered and can be difficult to find in the wild because of their cryptic nature and frequently small populations, but scientists from the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) found that environmental DNA (eDNA) can be used to find them much faster.

American Trail keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo are mourning the loss of Crystal, a female gray wolf who was humanely euthanized Sunday, April 21. At 14 years old, Crystal was considered geriatric for her species.

Virtual visitors to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo’s website will soon be able to watch naked mole-rats on two live webcams broadcasting the activities of the small, blind, subterranean-dwelling rodents.

See a list of events being held at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo from April through the beginning of June 2019.

A team of reproductive scientists, veterinarians and panda keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute performed an artificial insemination on giant panda Mei Xiang (may-SHONG) March 28.

An international study led by The Australian National University (ANU) has found that a fungal disease has caused dramatic population declines in at least 501 amphibian species, including 90 extinctions, over the past 50 years.