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Recent Animal News

Upcoming Events

May 29 - September 6
Adventure Dinosaur!
Sponsored by Lowe's
Venture into our prehistoric park, featuring more than 25 life-size dinosaurs, moving and rumbling in their tropical outdoor habitat. Come face to face with a Tyrannosaurus rex and baby, or a daunting Dilophosaurus! Cost is $2.50 after regular Zoo admission.

September 3
Senior Celebration
Sponsored by Wheaton Franciscan Senior Health
Seniors are the stars, as they enjoy a day uniquely designed for their interests. Take part in health and wellness outreach booths, entertainment and bingo. All guests 55 and older receive free admission.

September 11-12
Family Farm Weekend
Sponsored by GG Golden Guernsey Dairy® and Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board
This weekend is devoted to the rich farming heritage of our state. The cornucopia of activity includes a kid's tractor-pull contest, cooking demonstrations and down-home entertainment.

September 18
Elephant Appreciation Day
Enjoy a special day highlighting one of the most fascinating and intriguing animals at the Zoo and in the wild - elephants! This first-ever event will feature behind-the-scenes tours, a zookeeper talk, elephant artifacts and more! Trunk-sized craft activities for the kids include creating a pair of elephant ears, face painting and temporary tattoos. The event activities take place from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

October 22 and 23
6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Boo at the Zoo
Sponsored by westbury bank
The Zoo comes alive with Halloween hauntings during this "not-too-spooky" event designed especially for our little ghosts and goblins! Wind your way through our haystack maze, ride the Raven's Rail train, create your very own Origami bat, and more!

October 23
Wolf Awareness Day
Wolves have always been shrouded in mystery. Today, visitors will come to a better understanding of these precious animals, and the important role they play in our natural world. See the pack take their daily feeding, see the enrichment items that keep their minds active and healthy and take part in our howling contest.

October 29 (6 p.m. to 9 p.m.)
October 30 (9 a.m. to 9 p.m.)
Halloween Trick-or-Treat Spooktacular
Sponsored by westbury bank
The Zoo is the place to trick-or-treat among the animals! Halloween fun includes a costume parade, musical illumination show and bat presentations in the Small Mammal Building.

Now Open
"The Language of Conservation"
Poetry Installation
This unique permanent exhibit blends the beauty of poetry with the importance of conservation. The Zoo will feature poetry vignettes throughout the park, written by renown poets, deepening the awareness of environmental issues through poetry.

SAVE THE DATES for the 2010 Family Free Days!
November 6 and December 4

Zoo News

Dinosaurs Are in Your Backyard at the Milwaukee County Zoo’s “Adventure Dinosaur!”

Sponsored By Lowe’s

Adventure Dinosaur! sponsered by Lowe's

Have you ever seen a dinosaur? Would you like to? Starting May 29, and running through September 6, journey within an outdoor display of prehistoric wild plants and dinosaurs with “Adventure Dinosaur!” sponsored by Lowe’s.

Read all about the 29 life-size dinosaurs appearing this summer!

Update on Zoo's Amur Tiger Cubs, Tula and Nuri

August 2010

Tiger Cub

Our Amur tiger cubs, Tula and Nuri, in the Florence Mila Borchert Big Cat Country, continue to grow, as they continue to eat six pounds of their formulated diet each day!

Tiger Cub Zookeepers report the girls are playful, and sometimes a bit on the rowdy side! Maybe your house cat doesn't like water, but these two sure do! They love their pool, and manage to get water all over their indoor exhibit. Tula and Nuri have also discovered the rocks in their exhibit, and the most recent game they've started is to drag the rocks everywhere, even into their pool!

Both of them are still responding well to their keepers. It's now come to the point where they frequently greet their keepers with lots of "prustens." Prustens are the quietest of tiger calls, and are a way to express friendliness and harmless intentions. Tigers make the sound by puffing air through their noses. Prustens expresse to the keepers that the cubs are content, and it's also their way of saying "hello." It is the house cat equivalent to purring.

Mother Amba won't be giving the cubs siblings anytime soon, as there are no immediate plans to breed Amba in the near future.

Next time you're at the Zoo, be sure to visit these playful and entertaining animals!

“Happy” Days are Here at the
Milwaukee County Zoo!

Happy Update: August 2010

Happy the Hippo

Happy is thriving here at the Milwaukee County Zoo! He seems to have gotten over his fear of the scale platform and his keepers are now able to get a weight on him. This big boy weighs in at approximately 5,300 pounds!

At this time, Happy’s appearances on outdoor exhibit are unscheduled and vary in length of time. Visitors will be able to see more of him as he continues to be introduced to the outdoor exhibit. He seems to be acclimating to the new area quite well, as he’s been observed marking his territory both inside and out. This is a good indication that he’s feeling more comfortable.

Progress also has been made in Happy’s training. He’s allowing more keepers to interact with him, and is expanding his footwork, meaning that zookeepers are now able to trim his back nails. When he lived at the National Zoo, Happy was taught how to have tooth trims in the water. Here at our Zoo, he’s being worked with to have his tooth trims on land as well.

We’re pleased to report that everyone will be able to enjoy Happy’s time on outdoor exhibit to the fullest, as a couple of changes were made to the yard. Higher walls and bars along the front of the pool will ensure that this 11-foot-long and 5-foot-high hippo stays happily in the exhibit! Come visit our large friend today!

“Language of Conservation” Exhibit
Now Open

Pattian Rogers in front of a recently installed poetry exhibit
The Zoo's poet-in-residence, Pattiann Rogers,
reads from one of the permanent poetry installations.

On June 19, the Milwaukee County Zoo will unveil a permanent poetry installation of more than 50 poems, creatively displayed throughout the animal exhibits, as a way to blend the beauty of poetry with the importance of conservation.

The Zoo partners with the Milwaukee Public Library, as one of only five zoos and four libraries in the country that was chosen to participate in “The Language of Conservation” exhibit. Pattiann Rogers is a longtime published poet, essayist and college professor who was asked to serve as the Zoo’s poet-in-residence and select the poetry to be displayed in the park. “My aim was for everyone who visits the Zoo to find at least one poem they could relate to and really like,” Rogers says.

An excerpt from one of Rogers’ poems, “Animals and People: ‘The Human Heart in Conflict with Itself,’” is featured in the exhibit.

The poems featured in the exhibit will range from Walt Whitman verses to pieces by Native American writers to international poetry translated from Spanish and Hebrew. Rogers tried to choose poetry that doesn’t preach, but instead addresses the beauty and majesty of nature. “I’m hoping this will help people become aware of Zoo animals not only as beautiful living beings, but as ambassadors for their species,” says Rogers.

The poems, or excerpts from poems, will be on display and incorporated in a variety of ways: added to walls and exhibit glass, carved into rocks and projected with light displays.

The poetry was specially selected by Rogers to complement the animals and habitats in the area it is featured. For instance, an excerpt highlighting a trout will be added near Lake Evinrude, and visitors will be able to see it when they lean over to look at the water. “Our goal is to present a different way of looking at the Zoo, the landscapes and the animals,” says Rogers.

The exhibit also was made possible with the support of a National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

News Archive

Meet the Zoo’s New Badger, Tink (June 2010)
Bactrian Camel Born at the Zoo (February 2010)
Zoo's New Groundhog Makes Weather Prediction (February 2010)
Polar Bear Zero Leaves for Seneca Park Zoo (January 2010)
Meerkats Added to Zoo Collection (May 2009)
Flamingos Return to the Zoo (May 2008)
U.S. Bank Gathering Place (May 2008)
Update on Zoo's New Orangutan Mahal (April 2008)

Zoo Hours 2010

January & February 2010 / November & December 2010
Monday-Friday 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Saturday-Sunday 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

March 1 through May 28, 2010
Daily 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

May 29 through September 6, 2010
Daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

September 7 through October 31, 2010
Daily 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The Zoo accepts Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover.
Unfortunately, we do not accept personal checks.

General Admission Rates 2010
View our Education Rates or Group Rates

January 1 through March 31, 2010
and November 1 to December 31, 2010
Adult: $11.75
Junior (age 3 to 12): $8.75
Child (2 and under): FREE
Senior Citizen (age 60 and over): $10.25

April 1 through October 31, 2010
Adult: $13.25
Junior (age 3 to 12): $10.25
Child (2 and under): FREE
Senior Citizen (age 60 and over): $12.25

Parking fees: $11 for cars, $15 for buses

Milwaukee County residents with I.D. receive $1.75 off regular Zoo admission everyday except Wednesday. On Wednesdays, Milwaukee County residents with I.D. are admitted at a reduced rate of $8 for adults and $5.50 for children (age 3 to 12).

For more information, call the Zoo at (414) 256-5466.