Wild Connections

Check out the latest feature article from our monthly Wild Connections Newsletter below. Be sure to subscribe below to have the latest news and events delivered directly to your inbox!

Latest Feature Articles

Groceries at the Zoo

January 19, 2024

Each week a zookeeper and a volunteer go grocery shopping. They are hunting for ingredients for over 150 recipes in the zoo kitchen diet binders. There are two kitchens at the zoo. One in the Kauthoffer building and the other in Zoo Lab. The kitchens are busy places. Every day meals are prepared for over…

Winter at the Zoo

December 14, 2023

“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” This phrase originally referred to the courier service of the ancient Persian Empire. Today it certainly applies to those hardy souls who keep the zoo thriving throughout Illinois winters. Winter brings changes for animals…

Saving a Species

November 16, 2023

Once believed to be extinct, the Puerto Rican Crested Toad (PRCT) population has been on the rise. Since 2019, Miller Park Zoo has been working with other accredited institutions to breed a small population of toads for reintroduction into the wild. Our efforts have finally paid off! Recently, we sent off 37 tadpoles to Puerto…

Learning at the Zoo

October 17, 2023

On any visit to the zoo there is much to learn about the animals. You can read the signs, ask a keeper, or just observe. There is something to be learned about every animal. In addition to what you can learn on your own, there are classes, education programs, and events both at the zoo and outside the…

Flapjacks and Flamingos

July 28, 2023

Ever since the Flamingo exhibit opened in June of 2016, greater flamingos have been greeting guests as they enter the zoo. On Saturday July 15 of this year, Silvia Schuh, Events/Volunteer Coordinator turned the tables and made it possible for fifty-seven guests to greet the flamingos as they burst from their overnight digs to have…

Tortoise Moving Day

July 11, 2023

On Monday, June 19th, around 9:15 A.M., Gala and Pagos headed for their new home in the recently opened South American exhibit.   The distance they traveled could be measured in yards. For half of the journey, they were moved on a rolling platform by a cadre of keepers. After being lifted off the platform,…

South America Residents

July 11, 2023

Giant Anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) Distribution: Central and South America from southern Belize and Guatemala to northern Argentina Habitat: swamps, forests, grasslands Life History: 6’ – 8’ ft long; 60 – 100lbs.; Median live expectancy: 19.5 years Diet: Ants, termites, soft- bodied grubs, occasional soft fruit Conservation status: Vulnerable (IUCN) Population declining Myrmecophaga tridactyla is locally uncommon…

South America Phase 1 rendering

South America Habitats and Building Opening

July 11, 2023

The highly anticipated South America habitats and building will open to the public June 22. Building construction for the $1.1 million project was completed as planned in April, funded by an Illinois Department of Natural Resources grant, the Miller Park Zoological Society, and the Ewing Zoo Foundation. We know everyone will love “Puddles” the Chilean…

A Mob at Miller Park Zoo

June 12, 2023

Miller Park Zoo’s mob of wallabies is the largest in the United States. A mob usually consists of a single male and several females. Our mob has eleven wallabies and two wallaroo. Wallabies, wallaroos, and kangaroos are marsupials or pouched mammals that differ in size. tendons in their legs make it possible for them to…

Mark Your Calendar

May 9, 2023

Endangered Species Day at the Zoo May 20th 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM  This is the last installment of our month-long Party for the Planet celebration. Join us as our Zookeepers give talks about Miller Park Zoo’s effort to save endangered species. Learn about the animals we are specifically helping with by playing a scavenger hunt.…