Los Angeles Zoo & Botanical Gardens Los Angeles Zoo News 2025

Our winter here is quite a bit nicer than my experience with Botswana's winter but that's a good point!

@Lori Patton I didn't notice Pink's, sorry, I was hoofing it to make sure I had time to do a full lap in limited time. Most of the food services seemed to be closed yesterday, I only noticed Reggie's Cafe and the churro hut open. The building looked the same from the outside.

Julio is dead-on about the roundhouse - I'd add that the zoo's hornbill collection was a real highlight yesterday, at least 4-5 species on display, all beautiful birds and seemingly in good spirits.

Obligatory note, the children's zoo is still closed off and I was rushing too much to chat.
 
Lori Patton said:
@jpc323 -- Were you able to go into the roundhouse by the vultures that has been inaccessible for the past couple years? It used to hold a black duiker, Von der Decken's hornbill, and Lady Ross's turacos. Also, the zoo has updated its map on the website and lists Pink's Hot Dogs where the Gorilla Grill was located. Did you see if Pink's was open?
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Pink's is still under construction as of my visit yesterday.

I saw a male and a female Von der Decken's Hornbill and a Southern Pudu in the exhibit on the left when you enter the roundhouse and an Abyssinian Ground Hornbill in the exhibit on the right where the Lady Ross's turacos used to be.

Some male langurs are back in the langur exhibit so the repairs are complete but the entrance to the exhibit was closed to visitors.
 
African Grey said:
February animal transactions: https://lazoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/3-Animal-Transaction-Commission-Report-2.2025.pdf

Unfortunately, the zoo's last Calamian deer has passed away.
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They still have at least one Calamian deer as I saw one in the exhibit this morning.

The Children's Zoo nursery area has reopened. The glass area in the middle of that row of exhibits that was previously used for any babies they had to hand rear now has a small axolotl exhibit in the lower part of the first glass window. The other 2 glass windows for that space have been covered (one with artwork and the other with information about axolotls).
 
Elena said:
Pink's is still under construction as of my visit yesterday.

I saw a male and a female Von der Decken's Hornbill and a Southern Pudu in the exhibit on the left when you enter the roundhouse and an Abyssinian Ground Hornbill in the exhibit on the right where the Lady Ross's turacos used to be.

Some male langurs are back in the langur exhibit so the repairs are complete but the entrance to the exhibit was closed to visitors.
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What happened to the Lady Ross's Turaco?

The Abyssinian Ground Hornbill must be one of the individuals that has retired from the Bird Show?
 
The Area where the Cape Vulture Habitat is located is called Cape Vulture Plaza which also includes the Small Hornbills/Pudu Roundhouse, Bongos/Yellow-backed Duikers, and Gerenuks.

I saw the Nursery Area of the Animal Care Center in the Children's Zoo is sealed off with Information about the Axolotls which would be more visible to the visitors now compared to when they were in the Caves.

There is a Fake Grass Lawn Turf in the Eucalyptus Grove Event Area.
 
Thomas said:
What's to become of the two former Calamian Deer Habitats, maybe they could be new homes to new species possibly the Pudu?
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Elena said:
They still have at least one Calamian deer as I saw one in the exhibit this morning.
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Really, it is a sorry state that a deer species like Calamian deer has been allowed to fall by the wayside like this. Some applies to quite a number of other threatened and/or (critically) endangered deer species: bharasingha, brow-antlered deer, hog deer, Visayas Panay subspecies deer ...!

It seems Ministry/Dept. of Agriculture (and whatever other departments have been involved with industrialised farming practices in North America) and livestock management is valued as far more important - and has been for many a year, decades and even a Century+ - than the good husbandry, wild animal and vet health management of exotic threatened wildlife and in the above cases in particular threatened deer and hoofstock within some other family groups within Artiodactyla / Perissodactyla.


BTW: I have the same misgivings and sometimes even more serious apprehensive concerns where this concerns Continental European standards of (industrial) farming and (industrial) livestock management. The latter is equivalent with lack of animal welfare, lack of animal well-being, lack of qualitative accomodation and preconditional allowed to be out on pasture ..., not to mention all the issues with non-vaccination, animal disposal and slaughter conditions and both the environmental, antibiotic cum chemical pollution of our air, land and soil and freshwater resources and the destruction of the Natural World and One Healthy Planet as we knew it (before). If you look at the state of livestock farming in the "western advanced" and "developped" industrialised world in general (Europe, North America, South America and Australia ... mainly it is a shamelessly sorry lot. If We All wish to continue to have some form of decent Healthy Living it is high time we take steps to Reduce our Footprints and Extend our Hand Shakes.... Hear, Hear, Hear!
 
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Thomas said:
Thanks for letting me to know.
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Instead of replying with simply "thank you" to the thread, you can go to the bottom righthand corner and click the "Like" button. This will show people that you like something that was said, but doesn't create extra clutter in the thread with quick, simple and short responses that don't add much of anything to the discussion.
 
Nile Hippo Expert said:
Instead of replying with simply "thank you" to the thread, you can go to the bottom righthand corner and click the "Like" button. This will show people that you like something that was said, but doesn't create extra clutter in the thread with quick, simple and short responses that don't add much of anything to the discussion.
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Yes, users can use the like button.

However, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the post in question. It is not your job to gatekeep posts on my discussion forum, please stop.
 
Wow, somewhat stunned about the Calamian deer but admittedly I haven't been up to their enclosure in a few years.

Exciting news about the new jaguar.

I wonder if the plan for the children's zoo is to add more space and signage for axolotls to appeal to the local population and their cultural significance. The axolotl house in Mexico City is enormously popular.
 
The city of Los Angeles is seeking a court order preventing a Los Angeles Zoo nonprofit established more than 60 years ago to help the city operate and develop the attraction from taking $50 million in surplus funds meant to benefit the zoo and use it instead for the nonprofit's own benefit or interests.
LA seeks to stop zoo nonprofit from allegedly misusing $50 million

"The motion filed by the city on Tuesday with Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kerry Bensinger stems from a lawsuit the city brought Dec. 20 against the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association, alleging breach of contract and the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing as well as breach of fiduciary duty and conversion. The city also seeks an accounting and a judge's declaration of the rights and duties of the parties.

GLAZA manages at least $50 million in an endowment and in other accounts made up of money that GLAZA raised on behalf of the city for the zoo's benefit, the City Attorney's Office states in its filing.

"Unless a preliminary injunction issues, GLAZA can and will dissipate Zoo funds for its post-contract operating and other expenses to the detriment of the zoo," the City Attorney's Office states in its court papers in advance of a scheduled May 14 hearing.

GLAZA also "can and will interfere with zoo operations, exercising control over the use and allocation of zoo assets...," according to the City Attorney's Office's pleadings.

A GLAZA representative did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the filing.

GLAZA was founded in 1963. Last May, the parties entered an interim agreement to run through June 30 of this year designed to ensure the continuity of critical programs and services while the city completes the proposal process for the zoo's long-term management, the suit states.


But GLAZA subsequently amended its articles to divide its loyalties and reserve the right to distribute assets other than the zoo if GLAZA winds down or dissolves, even though the organization was "effectively only ever permitted to raise funds on behalf of the city for the benefit of the zoo," the suit states.

GLAZA also wrote the city a letter that "appeared to claim some exclusive interest over the zoo's endowment" and asserted, among other things, that if anyone from the city believed that the city maintains any authority over the allocation of GLAZA's endowment, they are "grossly mistaken," the suit states.

GLAZA did not reply when the city sent the group a July letter reminding its members that the organization's "very formation was for the exclusive purpose of assisting and aiding the city to benefit the zoo," according to the suit.

On Oct. 17, GLAZA advised the city that the organization would continue in some capacity separate from the city after the interim agreement expires, according to the suit, which further alleges that GLAZA engaged in a "rapid succession of acts in breach of its contractual, good faith and fiduciary obligations to the detriment of the city and the zoo."

GLAZA "seemingly began to devote resources to engage in fundraising efforts for purposes other than for the benefit of the zoo," the suit alleges.

GLAZA unilaterally canceled the 2025 Beastly Ball, the zoo's largest and most important annual fundraising event, which GLAZA is under contract to stage, according to the suit, which also alleges GLAZA used the city's own intellectual property to spread communications criticizing the city and the zoo.

GLAZA also refused to provide member, donor, volunteer and other data, even though the city is the exclusive owner of all such information, the suit states."
 
Nile Hippo Expert said:
The city of Los Angeles is seeking a court order preventing a Los Angeles Zoo nonprofit established more than 60 years ago to help the city operate and develop the attraction from taking $50 million in surplus funds meant to benefit the zoo and use it instead for the nonprofit's own benefit or interests.
LA seeks to stop zoo nonprofit from allegedly misusing $50 million

"The motion filed by the city on Tuesday with Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kerry Bensinger stems from a lawsuit the city brought Dec. 20 against the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association, alleging breach of contract and the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing as well as breach of fiduciary duty and conversion. The city also seeks an accounting and a judge's declaration of the rights and duties of the parties.

GLAZA manages at least $50 million in an endowment and in other accounts made up of money that GLAZA raised on behalf of the city for the zoo's benefit, the City Attorney's Office states in its filing.

"Unless a preliminary injunction issues, GLAZA can and will dissipate Zoo funds for its post-contract operating and other expenses to the detriment of the zoo," the City Attorney's Office states in its court papers in advance of a scheduled May 14 hearing.

GLAZA also "can and will interfere with zoo operations, exercising control over the use and allocation of zoo assets...," according to the City Attorney's Office's pleadings.

A GLAZA representative did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the filing.

GLAZA was founded in 1963. Last May, the parties entered an interim agreement to run through June 30 of this year designed to ensure the continuity of critical programs and services while the city completes the proposal process for the zoo's long-term management, the suit states.


But GLAZA subsequently amended its articles to divide its loyalties and reserve the right to distribute assets other than the zoo if GLAZA winds down or dissolves, even though the organization was "effectively only ever permitted to raise funds on behalf of the city for the benefit of the zoo," the suit states.

GLAZA also wrote the city a letter that "appeared to claim some exclusive interest over the zoo's endowment" and asserted, among other things, that if anyone from the city believed that the city maintains any authority over the allocation of GLAZA's endowment, they are "grossly mistaken," the suit states.

GLAZA did not reply when the city sent the group a July letter reminding its members that the organization's "very formation was for the exclusive purpose of assisting and aiding the city to benefit the zoo," according to the suit.

On Oct. 17, GLAZA advised the city that the organization would continue in some capacity separate from the city after the interim agreement expires, according to the suit, which further alleges that GLAZA engaged in a "rapid succession of acts in breach of its contractual, good faith and fiduciary obligations to the detriment of the city and the zoo."

GLAZA "seemingly began to devote resources to engage in fundraising efforts for purposes other than for the benefit of the zoo," the suit alleges.

GLAZA unilaterally canceled the 2025 Beastly Ball, the zoo's largest and most important annual fundraising event, which GLAZA is under contract to stage, according to the suit, which also alleges GLAZA used the city's own intellectual property to spread communications criticizing the city and the zoo.

GLAZA also refused to provide member, donor, volunteer and other data, even though the city is the exclusive owner of all such information, the suit states."
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To be a little more clear for those not familiar - GLAZA is a non-profit arm of the zoo that is not directly under city oversight. It oversees fundraising, membership, food & concessions, events, and volunteers. A little while back the zoo essentially called for proposals on things that GLAZA normally handles (reportedly for transparency), which flared tempers. There has been no resolvement and the non-profit is due to dissolve come June if nothing changes. Things are getting heated because GLAZA has threatened to give part/all of the 49 million under its control to organizations other than the zoo if it dissolves, which the zoo is citing as dishonest as that money was raised specifically for the zoo and should not be sent elsewhere.
 
Some very sad news. I asked a docent about the male Tadjik markhor as I hadn't seen him on my recent visits and was told that he passed away. His passing leaves the zoo with one female.

A second scarlet macaw is now in the exhibit with the one who's been on exhibit for awhile in the South America section by the Andean condor exhibit.
 
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