All Stories

3/23/21

Giant Otter Pups Make Their Public Debut

  Photos by John Reed By Katie Long, Mammal Keeper   Last year on October 16, giant otter Sarave gave birth to three pups: two girls and one boy. Their names were chosen by donors through our Toast to Conservation event. Meet Annie, Ken, and the other female who patiently waits for her name! They join our very dynamic and charismatic family of Buddy (dad), Sarave (mom), and their four siblings born in June 2019: Eleanor, Aiden, Olivia, and Coker.  It’s customary for... Read More
at 3/23/21
Featured

Are You Guilty of Crepe Murder?

By Harry Owens, horticulturist   There are horticultural atrocities taking place all over our city.  I start noticing it in the winter along roadsides, in front of businesses, and even in neighbors’ yards. The offense is the seasonal decapitation of crepe myrtles (Lagerstroemia sp.), a practice that I un-affectionately refer to as “crepe murder.”  Crepe myrtles were introduced to the United States around 1790 in Charleston, South Carolina and have been a st... Read More
AIYI Horticulture

Meet the Magellanic Penguins

By Allison Liu, Bird Keeper   January and April are special months for some of our favorite birds here at the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens.  Earlier this year, we celebrated our Magellanic penguins on January 20 for Penguin Awareness Day. Now, we’ll be celebrating them again on April 25 for World Penguin Day! There are 18 different species of penguins, with most of them congregating in Antarctica. The Magellanic penguins are one of four of the coastal species of penguin, me... Read More
AIYI