Houston Zoo Houston Zoo News 2021

Marine iguanas will not be featured. The zoo explicitly has made clear that no new species will be brought in from the Galapagos that are not already in captivity in AZA zoos.

 

Here’s an update on the elephant calves, Winnie and Teddy, as they begin to learn training behaviors.

Training our Elephant Youngsters, The Houston Zoo

 

Does anyone know the status of Emma the Jaguar born at the zoo in 2017? Did she move to another zoo or is she still at the Houston Zoo?

 

She is at Zoo Miami.

 

Okay, thank you so much!

 

Does the zoo still have Red-Capped Mangabeys or Patas Monkeys? Actually, has anyone ever compiled an updated species list here on Zoochat?

 

There have been numerous changes in the past 6 years, such as the demise of the Tropical Bird House and Aquarium, along with the Texas Wetlands and Pantanal additions. I have a lot of species listed for Houston Zoo on my Snowleopard's 2015 Road Trip thread and here is my review:

Houston Zoo:

Houston Zoo is a terrific facility and one of the best zoos in all of the United States in terms of its comprehensive list of species in mainly very good exhibits. If you are a fan of birds then the zoo has between 220 and 250 bird species and a staggering collection that contains St. Vincent Amazon Parrots, Andean Cock-of-the Rocks, Shoebill Storks, Cassowaries and everything in between. If you like primates then the zoo has 20 species, including state-of-the-art new exhibits for Lowland Gorillas and Chimpanzees. Felines are represented by 9 species: Malayan Tigers, African Lions, Jaguars, Cheetahs, Amur Leopards, Cougars, Caracals, Clouded Leopards and Bobcats. There are 105 species of reptiles and amphibians; a new $2 million Bug House with 34 species; 2.4 million visitors last year and this year will be even more with the $30 million addition Gorillas of the African Forest. If you like giraffes then you can stare at the herd of 9 that you can feed; there is a trio of Asian Elephant exhibits that total 3 acres and 8 elephants to watch. The list could go on all day. The Children’s Zoo is fantastic and I think that if I brought my 4 kids to the zoo they’d never leave that one area.

When I first visited the zoo in 2010 I was impressed and when I ranked all of the major American zoos that I’d seen I placed Houston around the #30 position. I pointed out that it was a solid zoo but one that lacked a marquee exhibit; now the zoo has elevated its position. In the past 5 or so years there have been excellent new enclosures for gorillas, chimpanzees, elephants, giraffes, rhinos, cheetahs, wombats and a Bug House. This unparalleled level of construction has upgraded perhaps 9 acres worth of land and a mini zoo seemingly has been built. Just the elephant, gorilla and chimp exhibits have contributed greatly to the overall quality of the establishment. I’d still place Dallas as the #1 zoo in the state of Texas but it is a very fine line these days. It would be interesting to compare the zoos head-to-head and for example I think that Dallas wins for its chimpanzees, elephants, giraffes, Reptile House, etc. Houston wins for its gorillas, size of collection, children’s zoo, Bug House, etc. I’d pick Dallas in first place but between them they are both knocking on the door of America’s top 10-15 zoos.

What flaws are in Houston? The Aquarium (built in 1980) has only 17 exhibits and is quite poor due to congestion and design flaws; the Tropical Bird House has seen better days; the sheer volume of crowds needs to be dealt with; and the two bear exhibits are disappointing. Here are some detailed lists of species (as I had several requests):

Bug House: This building was recently built and has exactly 25 exhibits inside with several displays of huge beetles. It is a great addition to the zoo and makes Houston even more comprehensive than it already was. Connected to the outside is a glass-fronted exhibit for Common Wombats, a rarity in American zoos. One really cool aspect of the insect terrariums is that the glass actually sticks out from the wall, which is almost unheard of. Most terrariums are set into the wall but this way it is possible to get side angles of the animals.

Species List (34 total): Atlas Beetle, Cactus Longhorn Beetle, Hercules Beetle, Rainbow Stag Beetle, Flamboyant Flower Beetle, Sunburst Diving Beetle, Fiery Searcher, Darkling Beetle, Harlequin Flower Beetle, Blue Death Feigning Beetle, Milkweed Leaf Beetle, Weevil Beetle, Elephant Beetle, Frog Legged Beetle, Giant Water Bug, Lubber Grasshopper, Thorny Devil Giant Stick Insect, Giant Prickly Stick Insect, Jungle Nymph, Giant Wingless Phasmid, Giant Katydid, Dragon-Headed Katydid, Giant Asian Mantid, Eastern Velvet Ant, Texas Leaf Cutter Ant, White-Eyed Assassin Bug, Giant Centipede, Monarch Larva, Asian Forest Scorpion, Madagascar Hissing Cockroach, Giant Cave Cockroach, Gooty Sapphire Tarantula, Red-Leg Tarantula and Brazilian Red and White Tarantula.

Primate Species list (20 total): Lowland Gorilla, Chimpanzee, Sumatran Orangutan, Bornean Orangutan, Siamang, Mandrill, Allen’s Swamp Monkey, Patas Monkey, Schmidt’s Red-Tailed Monkey, Black Howler Monkey, DeBrazza’s Monkey, White-Faced Saki Monkey, Goeldi’s Monkey, Pied Tamarin, Cotton Top Tamarin, Golden Lion Tamarin, Ring-Tailed Lemur, Red-Fronted Lemur, Crowned Lemur and Coquerel’s Sifaka.

Tropical Bird House: This aging building holds just a tiny portion (approximately 10%) of the zoo’s bird collection and the structure has seen better days. There is a walk-through section in the middle that has a few birds not on the species list below but the lack of signs makes identification difficult. The birds listed are all ones in basic, glass-fronted exhibits.

Species list (26 total): White-Bellied Go-Away Bird, Wonga Pigeon, Green-Naped Pheasant Pigeon, Taveta Golden Weaver, Western Bluebill, Luzon Bleeding-Heart Dove, Beautiful Fruit Dove, Black-Naped Fruit Dove, White-Throated Ground Dove, Tambourine Dove, Mariana Fruit Dove, Grey-Headed Lovebird, Northern Cardinal, Orange Bishop, Yellow-Crowned Bishop, Lavender Waxbill, Crested-Wood Partridge, Golden White-Eye, Micronesian Kingfisher, Tawny Frogmouth, Southern White-Faced Owl, Taiwan Yuhina, Swallow Tanager, Red-Legged Honeycreeper, Golden-Headed Manakin and Golden-Headed Quetzal.

Reptile House: This 1960 building has exactly 70 exhibits inside, plus 2 outdoor exhibits to make it 72 in total. There are 96 species in the building, plus another 9 different reptiles and amphibians in the Children’s Zoo, to give Houston a whopping 105 different species in total. Incredibly, both Dallas and Fort Worth have more species on-show than Houston and the state of Texas certainly does not lack for reptiles and amphibians in captivity. Houston’s Reptile House exhibits are actually rather outdated and everything from the sterile two halls, the signs and the furnishings inside each terrarium could use an overhaul.

Species list (96 total): Komodo Dragon (outdoors), Crocodile Monitor (outdoors), American Alligator (white), Malayan Gharial, Green Anaconda, Boelen’s Python, Black-Headed Python, Reticulated Python, Burmese Python, Lesser Sundas Python, Green Tree Python, Carpet Python, Emerald Tree Boa, Mexican Moccasin, Cottonmouth, Copperhead, Canebrake Rattlesnake, Western Diamond-Backed Rattlesnake, Eastern Diamond-Backed Rattlesnake, Arizona Black Rattlesnake, Southern Ridgenose Rattlesnake, Tamaulipan Rock Rattlesnake, Lance-Headed Rattlesnake, Aruba Island Rattlesnake, Mojave Rattlesnake, Banded Rock Rattlesnake, Mexican Massasauga, Monocellate Cobra, Black Forest Cobra, Black Mamba, West African Green Mamba, Brazilian Lancehead, Armenian Viper, Eyelash Viper, Rhino Viper, Sri Lankan Green Pit Viper, Mang Mountain Pit Viper, Dunn’s Hognosed Pit Viper, Rowley’s Palm-Pit Viper, Mexican Jumping Pit Viper, Vogel’s Pit Viper, Terciopelo, Broad-Banded Water Snake, Louisiana Milk Snake, Brown Tree Snake, Texas Coral Snake, Texas Rat Snake, Everglades Rat Snake, Thai Bamboo Rat Snake, Red-Tailed Green Rat Snake, Indigo Snake, Hognosed Snake, Madagascar Leaf-Nosed Snake, Anegada Island Iguana, Collared Lizard, Gila Monster, Mexican Beaded Lizard, San Esteban Chuckwalla, Haitian Galliwasp, Spiny-Tailed Lizard, Prehensile-Tailed Skink, African Plated Lizard, Caiman Lizard, Chinese Crocodile Lizard, Fringed Leaf-Tailed Gecko, New Caledonia Giant Gecko, Ricord’s Anole, Cuban Knight Anole, Panther Chameleon, Cameroon Stump-Tail Chameleon, Lace Monitor, Indian Star Tortoise, Egyptian Tortoise, Alligator Snapping Turtle, Yellow Headed Temple Turtle, Three-Toed Box Turtle, Gulf Coast Toad, Marine Toad, Houston Toad, Asian Climbing Toad, Sambava Tomato Frog, Bornean Eared Frog, Common Marsupial Frog, Giant Waxy Monkey Tree Frog, Spine-Headed Tree Frog, Hourglass Tree Frog, Green and Black Poison Dart Frog, Panamanian Golden Frog, Vietnamese Mossy Frog, Mantella, Glass Frog, Lemur Leaf Frog, Splendid Leaf Frog, Emperor Newt, Eastern Hellbender and Aquatic Caecilian.

Children’s Zoo Small Animal Species (14 total): Fat-Tailed Jird, Banded Mongoose, Desert Tortoise, Speckled Kingsnake, Spiderman Agama, Blue Spiny Lizard, Sandfish, African Plated Lizard, European Fire Salamander, Tiger Salamander, Black Spotted Newt, False Tomato Frog, Houston Toad, Emperor Scorpion and Texas Brown Tarantula.

 

They used to have Red-Capped Mangabeys, but they do have Patas Monkeys.

 

Not recently AFAIK. This is one of the largest US collections where a complete list has not been posted in several years.