Our Mission The Houston Zoo connects communities with animals, inspiring action to save wildlife. Our Vision The Houston Zoo will be a leader in the global movement to save wildlife. The Houston Zoo is made up of many moving parts. We have over 6,000 permanent residents (our animals) for whom we provide housing, meals, medical care and, yes, even education! There are over 2 million guests each year who come to experience our incredible variety of animals and ecosystems, as well as attend special private and public events and entertainment. Our dedicated staff works around the clock to ensure that the Zoo is always running smoothly for the safety and well being of our residents and guests.
External link for Houston Zoo
1513 Cambridge St
Houston, Texas, US
Trunk’s up for elephant conservation! 🐘 💚 This month, we celebrated both World Elephant Day and Asian Elephant Awareness Month. Our animal care team prepped elephant day-themed enrichment and gave out watermelons. Just by visiting Houston Zoo, you’re helping support the Asian elephants here at the Zoo and in the wild. Drop your favorite thing about our herd in the comments. 📸: Elephant Team
Support our pack! 🐾 We’re shining a spotlight on one of the lesser-known carnivores in the animal kingdom, the African painted dog. They are remarkable, highly social animals whose strength lies in teamwork – just like ours. African painted dogs live in tight-knit packs and rely on one another to succeed, but they face serious threats from snares, roads, and disease. We support AZA’s SAFE program for African painted dogs to ensure their populations continue to thrive. By visiting our trio—Wiki, Modo, Tamu—at the Houston Zoo, you’re actively safeguarding their counterparts in the wild and the habitats they depend on. 📸: Zoo Staff Emilie C.
Berani turns 13 tomorrow! 🐅 🎉 Join us at our Malayan tiger habitat for our 11:30am Meet the Keeper Chat sponsored by CenterPoint Energy Foundation to help us celebrate our favorite striped friend. Every time you visit the Zoo, you’re helping us save animals in the wild. With an estimated 800 Malayan tigers left in the wild, your ticket purchase helps support our conservation partners in the field who are saving this critically endangered species.
Our #HouZooCrew, along with partners from ECOS, swam alongside reef sharks and sea turtles today, and uploaded their observations to the community science project Shark Count which will help local conservationists protect these species and understand the health of the ecosystem. These incredible animals, just like our sharks and sea turtles off the Gulf Coast, need clean oceans and healthy habitats to thrive. Reducing our use of single-use plastics can help save the animals in the wild
Today, we said goodbye to our beloved red panda, Také. At 16 years old, Také far exceeded the typical life expectancy for red pandas (8-10 in the wild). This incredible milestone is a testament to the exceptional care he has received from his dedicated team over the years. Také was more than just a red panda, he was a favorite among guests and staff alike and a wonderful ambassador for his species. Thank you for keeping Také, his care team, and everyone who loves him in your thoughts during this time. Read more: bit.ly/4miuwmQ
Saving animals in the wild. That’s what we’re doing here in Houston. On this #WorldElephantDay, we’re sharing an update on how we’re saving elephants in our next EEHV docuseries episode. For the past 15 years, we’ve worked with our friends at Baylor College of Medicine to develop a treatment protocol and vaccine for EEHV (elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus), a devastating viral disease in Asian and African elephants. Last summer – after years in the making – we administered the first-ever mRNA vaccine for EEHV 1A to our female Asian elephant, Tess. Since then, we’ve given the vaccine to two other elephants and helped our friends at other AZA zoos. Dr. Christine Molter, our animal health director, shares “This is a tremendously rewarding experience that’s going to not only save one animal’s life but potentially play a role in saving many animal lives in the future.” Hear from our team and Dr. Paul Ling at BCM in our latest episode. Watch now on YouTube: bit.ly/45csajg
Microplastics have a huge impact on marine wildlife. Microplastics are created when larger plastic pieces break down into smaller and small pieces. Ocean animals can mistake these small plastic particles for food which can make them sick. Today, our #HouZooCrew helped the Molas Club conduct microplastic surveys on Tortuga Bay by counting how many microplastics they find in samples of sand on the beach. Houston Zoo Crew are doing similar surveys on Texas beaches. The data collected from both these surveys will help inform policies that will protect wildlife from the harm of microplastics.
On this #WorldLionDay, we're celebrating the incredible work our partners at Ewaso Lions are doing to protect lions in the wild. Our team recently traveled to Kenya with our friends at KPRC to visit our lion-saving partners. From cheetahs to elephants to finally spotting lions, our team’s recent journey to Kenya and through Samburu National Reserve was unforgettable. 🦁 Even 9,000 miles apart, we’re united in the mission to save lions. Thank you for your support that makes all this work possible. Watch the full series: bit.ly/45IU6LJ
Say hello to the newest (and most adorable) resident of South America’s Pantanal — a baby Baird’s tapir! Born overnight on July 23 to parents Moli and Noah, this spotted sweetie came into the world at 18 pounds and is already up to 30 pounds. She’s still rocking her baby watermelon stripes 🍉 (which help her hide in the wild), but those will fade as she grows into her sleek adult look around 7 months old. Read more about our new addition: bit.ly/46K1wiV