Brookfield Zoo Chicago 2024 Year-in Review
Time for my annual Brookfield Zoo holiday tradition of recapping the highlights of the past year. I'm almost certainly missing some births/deaths/transfers that weren't publicized or have gone unnoticed, so I'm just going off of what has been reported or observed.
New Species Gained:
Mammals
Brush-tailed Bettong
Crested Capuchin
Koala
Birds
Barred Rock Chicken
Cattle Egret
Golden Wyandotte Chicken
Greater Prairie-Chicken
Partridge Rock Chicken
Sandhill Crane
Silver-laced Wyandotte Chicken
Ectotherms
Horn Shark
Prairie Rattlesnake
Porkfish
Queen Angelfish
Scrawled Filefish
Smallmouth grunt
Spanish hogfish
Swell Shark
Invertebrates
California Two-spot Octopus
Honey Bee
Species Lost:
Mammals
Fishing Cat
Pygmy Hippo
South American Tapir
Ectotherms
Australian Water Dragon
Frilled Lizard
Mexican Beaded Lizard
Reported Births
0.0.4 American Flamingo
0.0.2 Binturong
0.0.2 Emerald Monitor
1.0 Gray Seal
1.0 Grevy’s Zebra
?.?.? Greater Prairie-Chicken (at least several)
0.0.3 Humboldt Penguin
2.2.7 Meerkat
6.3 Mexican Gray Wolf
0.0.1 Short-beaked Echidna
1.0 Squirrel Monkey
0.0.1 White-bellied Pangolin
0.1 Yellow-backed Duiker
Reported Deaths
0.1 American Bison, Judy
1.0 Domestic Dog, Kirby
0.1 Grevy’s Zebra, Mypa
Reported Specimen Arrivals
1.2 Emu
3.0 Mexican Gray Wolves
1.0 Sandhill Crane, Buckbeak
0.1 Sloth Bear, Lila
0.1 Tufted Capuchin, Mika
1.0 Western Gray Kangaroo, Cheerio
Reported Specimen Departures
1.0 African Painted Dog, Caesar
0.1 Amur Leopard, Lisa
1.0 Gray Seal, Mikey
0.1 Sloth Bear, Hani
Completed Animal-related Projects:
Seven Seas Dolphinarium Renovation
Koala Exhibit
North American Prairie Aviary
Native Turtle Exhibits
Swamp Aviary Renovation
Indoor Toucan & Seriema Exhibit
Chicken Coop
Honey Bee Exhibit
Completed Non Animal-related Projects
Philip W. K. Sweet Center For Animal Care And Wellness
Other Initiatives
New Logo and Brand Identity Unveiled - Brookfield Zoo Chicago
Next Century Plan Unveiled
90th Anniversary Ferris Wheel
Brookfield Zoo Chicago Mobile App
Extra fee for Hamill Family Play Zoo and Wild Encounters was removed.
Ongoing Construction Projects
Tropical Forests (Summer 2025)
Building off of last year's successes, 2024 continued to push the zoo in a very positive direction: more new species, more new exhibits, and more new attractions. However, it was the major announcements and initiatives that made this year so significant. Finally seeing that master plan after literal years of waiting was amazing by itself; the fact that it’s one of the most ambitious and innovative zoo master plans in decades was the cherry on top. The rebranding into Brookfield Zoo Chicago was also pretty major. Even something as simple as making the children’s areas permanently free was such a pleasant surprise. While the physical acreage of the zoo did not change significantly, the amount of improvements over the last two years is really starting to be felt. The prairie aviary and outdoor turtle exhibits have added some much needed activity to the Nature Plaza and have established a cohesive local species section in that part of the zoo. The dolphinarium renovation was also highly successful and even the small stuff like various additions made to the play zoo and the renovated swamp aviary were inspired enhancements.
Whereas last year saw a large number of shake ups in the collection, this year didn't see nearly as much species turnover. The highly publicized addition of koala was a highlight, which in conjunction with the recent (presumed) arrival of brush-tailed bettongs further enhanced the Australian collection. The arrival of crested capuchins was also a welcome surprise that has further restored primate diversity in Tropic World; it doesn't hurt that they’re only found at two other collections outside of South America. Once again it was the bird collection that saw the most substantial growth, although unless you’re a chicken fanatic the additions weren’t quite as exciting as the previous year. Species that did leave the zoo this year, namely the pygmy hippo and South American tapirs, were inevitable and are in the name of much needed upgrades. The only question mark is the fishing cat, but based on the fact they’ve recently redirected their adoption funds to the Pallas’ cats, it seems unlikely they’ll return even once the lemurs move out.
2025 will see the completion of Tropical Forests, the conclusion of phase 1 of the master plan, and likely the beginning of phase 2. It’ll be interesting to see what other significant developments will occur. At the very least we can expect to see a new species (or several) introduced to the soon-to-be former gorilla enclosure. I'll elaborate on some further thoughts once I pay another visit sometime in the next week or two.
I saw her a couple weeks ago. Sometimes she is laying at the very bottom of the tank where you can barely see her.
