The Detroit Zoological Society (DZS) and the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, announced today that two polar bear cubs, Astra and Laerke, will move to Point Defiance Zoo in spring … Continued
Zoo News
animals
see allNearly 800 observers took part in this year’s City Nature Challenge spanning King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties, including Everett, Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma, Snohomish and any place in between. From April … Continued
The Detroit Zoological Society (DZS) and the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, announced today that two polar bear cubs, Astra and Laerke, will move to Point Defiance Zoo in spring … Continued
The bright-yellow school bus door opened, and the happy squeals and chatter couldn’t be contained. On this sunny spring morning, more than 200 students from Tacoma’s Lister Elementary School were … Continued
Collaborations with our community are an incredible opportunity to create meaningful connections. Tacoma students at Science and Math Institute (SAMi), School of the Arts (SOTA), and School of Industrial Design, … Continued
aquarium
see allThe bright-yellow school bus door opened, and the happy squeals and chatter couldn’t be contained. On this sunny spring morning, more than 200 students from Tacoma’s Lister Elementary School were … Continued
Splashing water and excited conversation filled the air behind the scenes of Baja Bay in the Pacific Seas Aquarium as veterinary staff and aquarists gathered for the annual exams of … Continued
If you have children at home, it’s likely you’ve heard the song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from the Disney movie Encanto. And if you don’t have children, you may … Continued
Did you know that Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium is home to the largest jellyfish display in Oregon and Washington. And now we have even more! Upside down jellyfish are … Continued
Care
see allNearly 800 observers took part in this year’s City Nature Challenge spanning King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties, including Everett, Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma, Snohomish and any place in between. From April … Continued
The Detroit Zoological Society (DZS) and the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, announced today that two polar bear cubs, Astra and Laerke, will move to Point Defiance Zoo in spring … Continued
If Dr. Karen Wolf needs another skilled set of hands for a tiger procedure, she knows who to call. And if Dr. Allison Case has a beaver or owl that … Continued
Collaborations with our community are an incredible opportunity to create meaningful connections. Tacoma students at Science and Math Institute (SAMi), School of the Arts (SOTA), and School of Industrial Design, … Continued
conservation
see allNearly 800 observers took part in this year’s City Nature Challenge spanning King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties, including Everett, Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma, Snohomish and any place in between. From April … Continued
The Detroit Zoological Society (DZS) and the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, announced today that two polar bear cubs, Astra and Laerke, will move to Point Defiance Zoo in spring … Continued
The bright-yellow school bus door opened, and the happy squeals and chatter couldn’t be contained. On this sunny spring morning, more than 200 students from Tacoma’s Lister Elementary School were … Continued
Cindy Roberts, a former staff biologist at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, recently received the American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK) Nico van Strien Leadership in Conservation Award. Cindy was … Continued
people
see allNearly 800 observers took part in this year’s City Nature Challenge spanning King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties, including Everett, Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma, Snohomish and any place in between. From April … Continued
The bright-yellow school bus door opened, and the happy squeals and chatter couldn’t be contained. On this sunny spring morning, more than 200 students from Tacoma’s Lister Elementary School were … Continued
Collaborations with our community are an incredible opportunity to create meaningful connections. Tacoma students at Science and Math Institute (SAMi), School of the Arts (SOTA), and School of Industrial Design, … Continued
Each year Tacoma students from the Science and Math Institute (SAMI) participate in a day of service with Point Defiance Zoo. In previous years, students have helped shovel sand in … Continued
plants
see allNearly 800 observers took part in this year’s City Nature Challenge spanning King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties, including Everett, Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma, Snohomish and any place in between. From April … Continued
Tomatoes. Apples. Almonds. Pumpkin. Coffee. Tea. Chocolate. All pretty important, right? And they all have one thing in common: they need pollinators. Around 1,000 plants that humans use for food, … Continued
Heavy as velvet, a bumblebee bounces over yellow coneflower petals. Next door a golden honeybee dives headfirst into a red salvia blossom to sip. And across the pathway, a hummingbird … Continued
It’s one of the fastest-growing plants in the world. It’s used for buildings, dishes, musical instruments. It’s food for animals and people. And there are over 45 types at Point … Continued
Uncategorized
see allThe Red Wolf Recovery Program announced the birth of a new litter of wild American Red Wolf pups in Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge. A cross-fostered male pup, born at … Continued
Zoo Art
see allJust above floor level at the Red Wolf Woods habitat, a young girl crouches low. Open-mouthed in wonder, she slowly runs her fingers over the soft snout of a sleeping … Continued
Zookeepers and the animals they love What’s the animal you feel most deeply inside? The one you connect with, love, relate to, share traits with? For National Zookeeper Week 2021, … Continued
UPDATE: Now over. Thanks for visiting! Q: Where in the world would you find an elephant, a sea turtle and an axolotl all together? A: In Species in the Sand, … Continued
UPDATE: May 1, 2019 We did it! We made 3,600 paper turtles, glueing them onto ten blue silk “waves” to create a cascading spiral of ocean beauty in the Pacific … Continued
zoolights
see allSightseeing Zoolights with Cameron McIntyre isn’t your standard experience. For one thing, we’re driving around the annual holiday lights display at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in a maintenance truck during daylight. The Zoo … Continued
Tickets on sale now. Purchase tickets here. Ghosts, goblins, and gourds – you can find all of that at the Zoo’s annual Halloween event, Zoo Boo. But something else festive is … Continued
What would you ask Santa for these holidays if you were a walrus? Or a tiger? Of course we can’t know what our animals are thinking, but we can definitely … Continued
It’s a problem, just how many spots Kazu the tapir calf has. Not for him, of course – the spots are excellent camouflage. But for Dennis Parkhurst and Mason Patzer, … Continued