Indianapolis
Zoo Breaking News!
Click on a headline to get
a closer look at today's top stories:
Beautiful Butterflies Welcome You to White River Gardens
Spotlight
on Saving Rhinos at Bowling for Rhinos
Enjoy
a Day of Unlimited Rides With New Passes
Ring-Tailed
Lemurs Are the Zoo's Newest Arrivals
It's a Budgie Baby Boom in Flights of Fancy
Meet
the New Team in Town — the Orangutans!
Save
$2 When You Buy Tickets Online
Butterflies
Are Taking Over White River State Park
JUMP!
The Ultimate Dog Show is BACK!
Watch
the Zoo's Future Come to Life...LIVE!
Indianapolis
Prize Upped to Quarter of a Million Dollars
Put a Tiger on Your Trunk!
Elephant photo by Carla Knapp
Bright,
bold, beautiful colors — that’s what you’ll see from start to
finish during a visit to White River Gardens and the Zoo’s
newest exhibit,
Butterfly Kaleidoscope presented by
Citizens Energy Group. The butterflies have returned to the
Hilbert Conservatory following a two-year
hiatus, but this exhibit is like nothing our guests have seen
before. As you approach the White River Gardens, you’ll be
greeted by an awe-inspiring 3-D mural complete with vibrant,
oversized butterfly sculptures and a lifelike image of the
outdoor gardens. Created by Colorado-based Banner Art Studio
with the help of AMPeirce Cycles, Yves Art and the Zoo’s own
Creative Services department, the mural has transformed the
Gardens entrance into a work of art. You can learn more about
the creation of this amazing artwork in
our blog. that offers visitors a glimpse of
what awaits inside. The highlight of the Butterfly Kaleidoscope
exhibit is, of course, the butterflies. Hundreds of these
wonderful winged creatures from nearly
40 native and exotic species fill the
Conservatory. The exhibit continues through Labor Day, and
throughout the season, roughly 13,000 butterflies will be
released into the space. That means guests can expect plenty of
close encounters as butterflies float nearby and perhaps even
land on them!
There
are five species of rhinos in the world — white, black, Indian,
Sumatran and Javan — found in at least 15 African and Asian
countries. However, combined, their populations number less than
30,000 animals, which isn't even enough to fill half the seats
at Lucas Oil Stadium. But the recovery of these amazing species
is possible. You can help by coming to the annual
Bowling for Rhinos fundraiser May 18 at the
All Star Bowl! This event is hosted by the
Indy Chapter of the American Association of Zookeepers
and features a night of fun, food and prizes. All of the proceeds and donations going directly to three different rhino sanctuaries in Kenya,
Java and Sumatra, Indonesia. Rhinos in these sanctuaries help
support an entire ecosystem, including some of the world's most
endangered plants and animals. Last year's event raised a total
of $5,335. So get your team together to bowl and raise money for
this great cause! Plus, stay up to date with all the info on
Bowling for Rhinos by joining our
Facebook event.
When
your family visits the Zoo, do your little ones love to ride the
Carousel ... and the
Train ... and the
Kōmbo
Coaster?
Then on your next visit, be sure to check out our newest option
for rides. Our all-day ride passes allow an individual to enjoy an
unlimited amount of rides during a single visit. So now you and
your flock can hop from ride to ride as much as you want
throughout the day. Plus, budgie and lorikeet feedings are also
included (does not include giraffe feeds). An all-day
unlimited ride pass is $10 per child and $6 per adult, and
Zoo members can save $1 per wristband. The
White River Junction Train is presented by Marathon and the
Kōmbo Family Coaster is presented by Outback Steakhouse.
Check out all the Zoo's fun
rides and attractions.
At
the Indianapolis Zoo, the arrival of spring generally also means
the arrival of new
Zoo Babies! This spring, we’ve been
fortunate enough to have three happy, healthy ring-tailed lemur
babies. The first was born sometime between 10:30-11:30am on
April 1 (no foolin’) and it was the second baby for mother Bree.
That’s Bree with her baby pictured at left, though you need to
look close to spot the youngster — it's hiding back by mom's
tail. Bree is an excellent mom and keeps close tabs on her baby,
so keepers haven’t gotten a good enough look to tell whether
it’s a boy or a girl. The other two lemur babies are girls that
were born April 3 and April 9 to first-time mom Sheridan and
experienced mom Sona. At birth, ring-tailed lemurs weigh less
than 3 oz. Moms will carry their babies on their chest for up to
two weeks before the baby moves around to ride on mom’s back.
Special thanks to our friends
Community Health Network for presenting Zoo Babies!
It's
a budgie baby boom! This spring, a total of 27 budgie chicks and
several more lorikeet chicks hatched behind the scenes in
Encounters. And the very first of those birds are now on exhibit in
Flights of Fancy: A Brilliance of Birds.
Many of the new birds are identified with yellow bands on their
legs, but otherwise, they blend in with the rest of the flock.
You can see these beautiful budgies and lovely
lorikeets along with the many other species throughout the five
aviaries in Encounters! These colorful exotic birds come from warmer
climates like Africa, South America, Asia and Australia. Don't forget your camera to capture the moment when you feed a
budgie or a lorikeet. New this year, you can enjoy unlimited
bird feeding opportunities (giraffe feeds are not included) when
you purchase a
ride wristband. For just $10 per child and
$6 per adult,
these wristbands also include unlimited rides for the whole day!
There’s a new team in Indianapolis! Several hundred fans were
introduced to the New Team in Town — the Indianapolis Zoo
orangutans — during a massive pep rally March 26 at Bankers Life
Fieldhouse. The high-energy rally kicked off the public
fundraising phase of the $30 million
Campaign for Conservation and Community: Save the Orangutans.
Now you can meet these newcomers, too! Just visit the new
website azyandfriends.com
to get glimpses of the great apes’ amazing human-like
characteristics and personalities. Plus you can play the match
game to find your orangutan match along with specific details of
the animal’s personality. You'll be able to see this new team in
action when the new
International Orangutan Center opens in May 2014. Until
then, you can keep up with the progress on the construction site
through the
webcam.
Would you like the chance to save time and money during your
next Indianapolis Zoo visit? Now you can do both when you
purchase tickets online! Now through Oct. 31, ticket prices at
the gate are $16.95 for adults, $15.95 for seniors 62+ and $11.95
for children 2-12. But you can save $2.00 on all General
Admission when you
purchase online! Plus, buying your tickets
in advance means no more waiting in line to
buy tickets. Simply bring your bar-coded ticket straight to the
admission gate and you'll be on your way in for a day of animal
adventures and fun! Tickets purchased at this special price are
only valid through Oct. 31.
Experience
the beauty of butterflies like never before at two White River
State Park attractions, and save money when you visit both!
Surround yourself with a mesmerizing swirl of living color as
the Zoo's newest exhibit,
Butterfly Kaleidoscope presented by
Citizens Energy Group, opens in the
Hilbert Conservatory. Enjoy the warmth and
beauty of this tropical paradise while thousands of free-flying
butterflies fill the space. Then follow the epic journey of one
of the most iconic butterfly species, the monarch, in Flight of
the Butterflies 3D, now playing at the
Downtown Indy IMAX. This 3D adventure
follows the real-life migration of these wonderful winged
insects, and you can experience it in amazing high-definition on
the state's largest movie screen. The Downtown Indy IMAX is
located at the Indiana State Museum, east of the river in
White River State Park, and just a quick
walk across the pedestrian bridge. Plus, pick up the coupon at
the entrance to the Hilbert Conservatory and receive $1 off your
movie tickets!
Get ready for some high-flying fun and fast-paced action as
JUMP! The Ultimate Dog Show returns to the
Indianapolis Zoo for 2013!
On your next trip to the Zoo, stop by Dean's Arena for one of
the multiple daily shows held each Saturday and Sunday! You've
seen Lou "Mack" McCammon and his canine costars
performing amazing aerial feats during halftime shows at
sporting events and special venues across the country. This energetic show is filled with
upbeat music, jaw-dropping aerial tricks and non-stop action!
Plus, these shows come with a great message about animal
conservation and pet adoption. Best of all, this must-see
experience is free
with your Zoo
admission.
Friends
of the Indianapolis Zoo now have access to a webcam from the
International Orangutan Center’s construction site.
The International Orangutan Center Construction Cam
presented by Turner offers a bird’s eye view of the
site and allows viewers to watch the exhibit come to life. To
give you a frame of reference, do you see the huge construction
crane out there? When the boom is fully extended, it reaches a
height of 100 feet. The indoor height of the exhibit’s atrium
will be 90 feet, and the soaring Beacon of Hope will tower 150
feet above the exhibit. You can find more fun facts about what's
happening on the construction site on the
Zoo Blog. Construction crews are now working six
days a week, weather dependent, so check back and
see the daily progress being made on the
International Orangutan Center.
The
world's leading award for animal conservation just got even
bigger. Beginning in 2014, the winner of the prestigious
Indianapolis Prize will receive a $250,000
monetary award in addition to the Lilly Medal while the other
five finalists will each receive $10,000. Myrta Pulliam,
Indianapolis Prize Executive Committee chairwoman, announced the
change, saying: "Increasing the Prize to a quarter of a million
dollars is the natural result of the success the Indianapolis
Prize has experienced over the past several years. Because the
money is unrestricted, the Prize winners have been able to
invest the funds in ways that make the most sense to them. We
are confident that this increase in the money will reap huge
dividends in actually saving species." The Indianapolis Prize
recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions
to the sustainability of an animal species or group of species.
Previous recipients Indianapolis Prize, which has been awarded
biennially since 2006, include Dr. George Archibald, co-founder
of the
International Crane Foundation; Dr. George
Schaller, senior conservationist for the
Wildlife
Conservation Society; Dr. Iain Douglas-Hamilton,
founder of
Save the Elephants; and Dr. Steven Amstrup,
chief scientist for
Polar Bears International.
Thanks to input from Facebook fans, the Indianapolis Zoo is
represented by the image of the beautiful and endangered Amur
tiger on the new Zoo specialty license plate. The Zoo was one of 10 organizations approved for specialty license plates
in 2012 by the
Indiana Bureau
of Motor Vehicles. The
tiger plate is available for
purchase
through the BMV for $40, with $25
going directly to the Zoo to support food and medicine for the
animals in its care. The Zoo is a nonprofit
organization that receives no direct tax support, so
contributions from programs like this are essential to
supporting our conservation mission. In 2010, Hoosiers purchased 442,573 specialty plates that
generated more than $11 million for the sponsoring
organizations.
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