Earlier this summer, the Zoo welcomed Basil, a Virginia opossum (also known as a North American opossum) to the Small Mammal House. Get to know Basil in our new feature, written by animal keeper Mimi Nowlin!
A female opossum can have up to 25 offspring in one litter!
Always free of charge, the Smithsonian’s National Zoo is one of Washington D.C.’s, and the Smithsonian’s, most popular tourist destinations, with more than 2 million visitors from all over the world each year. The Zoo instills a lifelong commitment to conservation through engaging experiences with animals and the people working to save them.
Old World primates and great apes, which have identical amino acids at the binding
Spending your days with a herd of bison is an idyllic way to pass a summer. I would know, because most of my days from May to August were spent observing the behaviors of a herd of about 300 bison in Montana.
For the last six months, I have worked with SCBI and the Reserve to study bison behavior
After a potentially deadly injury, one endangered wild horse got a new lease on life thanks to the Smithsonian’s veterinary team.
than their domestic cousins, a factor ungulate curator Dolores Reed believes may have
Smithsonian scientists, in collaboration with the Fort Belknap Fish and Wildlife Department, are embarking on a five-year swift fox reintroduction project to restore swift foxes to tribal lands and to help reestablish connectivity between disjointed swift fox populations.
the Fort Belknap Fish and Wildlife Department in Montana, Smithsonian scientists have
Recently, our Great Cats team bid farewell to African lion Amahle, who moved to another zoo to breed. Keeper Katy Juliano shares how Amahle’s mother, Shera, is adjusting in this update.
visitors to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute may have
With their big ears, wide eyes and furry paws, sand cats may look adorable… but they’re quite tough! Sand cats are the only members of the cat family that live exclusively in desert environments. Get to know these hardy felines in this Q&A.
Many desert species—including sand cats—have a variety of physical and behavioral
Why is giant panda Mei Xiang sleeping for longer periods, eating less and denning? After going into estrus this spring, months later, she’s experiencing a pseudopregnancy—even though she did not breed! Learn more from curator Michael Brown-Palsgrove.
Those of you who have followed our #PandaStory updates know that Mei Xiang and her
Love is in the air for the Zoo’s Sumatran tigers, Sparky and Damai! Their relationship, says keeper Dell Guglielmo, has been blossoming ever since the pair was introduced last September.
So far, they have shown interest in one another and behaved as we would expect.
Alligator snapping turtles are the largest freshwater turtles in the world. Their heavy heads, strong jaws, hooked beak and spiked shells give them a prehistoric appearance.
Alligator snapping turtles have long, narrow tongues equipped with an appendage that
