Zoo Knoxville — Zoo in Knox County

Zoo Knoxville and its collection

Zoo Knoxville, opened in 1971, is a zoo in Knoxville, United States.

The animal population runs between 800 and 1,500 individuals of 200 species.

History

A local newspaper launched a Birthday Fund in 1923 to create a park for poor children. Birthday Park came into being in 1935 with city and New Deal support, laid out on a hillside at Chilhowee Park with a stone shelter, a small playground and a wading pool.

Animals and collection

Animals on show include River Otters, chimpanzees, gorillas, African lions and Hamadryas baboons.

Exhibits

Ageing reptile houses were superseded in the spring of 2021 by a new Clayton Family Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Campus. Black Bear Falls, the first habitat encountered on entering, keeps American black bears of the kind native to the national park nearby.

Things to do

Things to do include Red Panda Encounter and Asian Trek chats.

Conservation and approach

The zoo has produced more endangered red pandas than any other, and leads on the breeding of endangered tortoises; its curator of red pandas and special exhibits, Sarah Glass, became coordinator of the North American Red Panda Species Survival Plan in 2009. In 1978 it bred the first African elephant born in captivity in the Western Hemisphere, nicknamed Lil' Diamond, one of two African elephants born there that year.

What the venue says

• Food and dining available at the Zoo.
• Handicap parking is available free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis, and RV parking is also accommodated.
• KultureCity Certified Sensory Inclusive Venue
• Sensory bags (containing items like noise-cancelling headphones and fidget tools) are available at admissions.
• Service animals are welcome, though guests using them are asked to check in at the Ranger Station prior to entry.