Sedgwick County Zoo

Sedgwick County Zoo
37°42′57″N 97°24′37″W / 37.7158°N 97.4104°W / 37.7158; -97.4104
Date opened	August 25, 1971; 53 years ago (August 25, 1971)[2]
Location	Wichita, Kansas, US
Land area	247 acres (100 ha)[1]
No. of animals	3,000
No. of species	400
Annual visitors	654,494 (2009)[2]
Memberships	AZA[3]
Public transit access	Wichita Transit
Website	scz.org

The Sedgwick County Zoo is an AZA-accredited wildlife park and major attraction in Wichita, Kansas, United States. Founded in 1971, with the help of the Sedgwick County Zoological Society, the zoo has quickly become recognized both nationally and internationally for its support of conservation programs and successful breeding of rare and endangered species. Having over 3,000 animals of nearly 400 species, the zoo has slowly increased its visitors and now ranks as the number one outdoor tourist attraction in the state.^[4]

Opening in 2004, the Downing Gorilla Forest starts out in a recreation of a small Congo village with exhibits for colobus monkeys and white pelicans. Across a bridge is an exhibit for saddle-billed storks, as well as one for black crowned cranes and okapis. The main attraction is a large gorilla exhibit. They can be viewed in their indoor home, outside through large viewing windows or across a moat.^[5][6]

Opened May 29, 2000, A path winds around exhibits of lions, red river hogs, and two exhibits of meerkats. Each exhibit has several views from all sides. The whole area has a kopje theme with giant boulders. At the end is an exhibit for African painted dogs.

Opened in 2007, Penguin Cove is the zoo's first marine exhibit, and home to a colony of Humboldt penguins. The $1.5 million exhibit features a 42,000-US-gallon (159,000 L) pool with rocky areas and coves on each side.^[7]

This exhibit features reticulated giraffes, African bush elephants, grévy's zebras, and a black rhinoceros. On March 11, 2016, six African elephants arrived at the zoo from Eswatini's Hlane Royal National Park to survive a drought.^[8][9] A new elephant exhibit named "The Reed Family Elephants of the Zambezi River Valley" opened in May of that year, housing all of the elephants.^[10]

Later, a male African elephant, Ajani, from Alabama's Birmingham Zoo, joined the six female elephants for breeding purposes in May 2018.^[11] In May 2023, Callee was introduced to the herd from Omaha, Nebraska's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium.^[12] A few months later, Ajani transferred to the Toledo Zoo to breed with its two female elephants.^[13]

This $3 million Asian themed naturalistic exhibit was opened in 2009 as the Slawson Family Tiger Trek, and housed Amur tigers, Malayan tigers, red pandas, and brow-antlered deer. In 2021, the exhibit was added on to an reopened as the Slawson Family Asian Big Cat Trek, and added amur leopards, snow leopards, and an area where they can be seen above guests' heads.^[14]

As of June 2021, the zoo is currently making a new elephant management complex, as well as some new additions to the Amphibians and Reptiles building. On April 16, 2022, they are expected to open a Shark and Stingray exhibit. They also have been expanding and moving the majority of exhibits, and planning on adding a lodge, water park, and savannah exhibit.^[2][15] A new entrance for the zoo opened on May 27, 2021.^[16]

• In June 2005, two flamingos escaped from the zoo during a stormy night. Since then, one of the flamingos, identified as No. 492, has been spotted in Wisconsin, Louisiana, and Texas.^[17]
• On May 6, 2011, a first-grade student on a class field trip climbed over a four-foot fence then crossed the eight-foot gap of the Amur leopard exhibit. The boy was attacked. He suffered lacerations and puncture wounds to his head and neck before a bystander kicked the leopard in the head. The injuries were not considered life-threatening, and the zoo did not euthanize the endangered animal.^[18]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sedgwick County Zoo.

• Official website