The Birmingham Zoo is a

zoological park A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility where animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoology, ...

that opened in 1955 in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...

, United States. The Birmingham Zoo is an independent, not for profit, 501(c)(3) organization, and is accredited by the

Association of Zoos and Aquariums The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), originally the American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums (AAZPA), is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1924 and dedicated to the advancement of zoos and public aqu ...

(AZA), participating in AZA

Species Survival Plan The American Species Survival Plan or SSP program was developed in 1981 by the (American) Association of Zoos and Aquariums to help ensure the survival of selected species in zoos and aquariums, most of which are threatened or endangered in the w ...

s (SSP). It is the only AZA accredited zoo in the state of Alabama. Over 550 animals of 180 species call the Birmingham Zoo home, including

giraffe The giraffe is a large Fauna of Africa, African even-toed ungulate, hoofed mammal belonging to the genus ''Giraffa.'' It is the Largest mammals#Even-toed Ungulates (Artiodactyla), tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on ...

ostrich Ostriches are large flightless birds. Two living species are recognised, the common ostrich, native to large parts of sub-Saharan Africa, and the Somali ostrich, native to the Horn of Africa. They are the heaviest and largest living birds, w ...

es,

zebra Zebras (, ) (subgenus ''Hippotigris'') are African equines with distinctive black-and-white striped coats. There are three living species: Grévy's zebra (''Equus grevyi''), the plains zebra (''E. quagga''), and the mountain zebra (''E. ...

rhino A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...

elephant Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant ('' Loxodonta africana''), the African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''), and the Asian elephant ('' Elephas maximus ...

s, and other endangered species from six continents.

History

;Early history The Birmingham Zoo originated with a small menagerie of exotic animals kept in a Southside firehouse. As the collection grew, it was moved first to Magnolia Park (now

Brother Bryan James Alexander Bryan, known as Brother Bryan, (March 20, 1863, near Kingstree, South Carolina – January 28, 1941, in Birmingham, Alabama) was a pastor of Third Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Bryan came to Birmingham while he was ...

Park) and then to

Avondale Park Avondale Park is a small park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, between Walmer and Sirdar Roads. It has a mix of formal gardens, sports facilities and lawns. Notably, it is home to what is believed to be Britain's ...

. At the time, the collection consisted mainly of non-exotic animals, except for "Miss Fancy," a lone elephant donated by the Birmingham Advertising Club which had purchased it as a promotional novelty from a struggling

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...

stranded in the city. As the collection grew in size and scope, city leaders contacted the

Olmsted Brothers The Olmsted Brothers company was a Landscape architecture, landscape architectural firm in the United States, established in 1898 by brothers John Charles Olmsted (1852–1920) and Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (1870–1957), sons of the landscape ar ...

landscape architecture Landscape architecture is the design of outdoor areas, landmarks, and structures to achieve environmental, social-behavioural, or aesthetic outcomes. It involves the systematic design and general engineering of various structures for constructio ...

firm, which had drawn up plans for a system of parks in Birmingham, for advice about housing a zoological collection. They were put in contact with the few municipal zoos existing in that period and plans began for providing a new permanent home for the growing attraction. ;Lane Park Birmingham, under mayor A. O. Lane, had purchased land on the south of Red Mountain between 1889 and 1896. The former Red Mountain Cemetery, a pauper's cemetery was part of the parcel that was dedicated as a city park in 1934. The

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...

built a fish

hatchery A hatchery is a facility where eggs are hatched under artificial conditions, especially those of fish, poultry or even turtles. It may be used for ''ex situ'' conservation purposes, i.e. to breed rare or endangered species under controlled ...

and a number of pavilions from the Hartselle

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

quarried out of the mountain within the park's borders. The hatchery was fed by a

natural spring A spring is a natural exit point at which groundwater emerges from an aquifer and flows across the ground surface as surface water. It is a component of the hydrosphere, as well as a part of the water cycle. Springs have long been important fo ...

and provided stock for recreational lakes in the region until the zoo took over the park. The first source of post-World War II support for a new zoo came from the Birmingham Junior Chamber of Commerce. In 1946, Elton B. Stephens chaired a

Jaycees The United States Junior Chamber, also known as the Jaycees, JCs or JCI USA, is a leadership training service organization and civic organization for people between the ages of 18 and 40. It is a branch of Junior Chamber International (JCI). A ...

committee to create a new zoo for the city of Birmingham. In 1949, then Birmingham mayor, James R. Morgan, a key supporter of the development, began an initiative to help in the planning and development of a city zoo. ;Jimmy Morgan Zoo A zoo commission was also established, and it decided to build the zoo on of land on the southern foot of Red Mountain with a budget of $250,000. A much larger parcel of land that included the zoo parcel was incorporated into the city of Birmingham and was named Lane Park, home of the zoo as well as the neighboring botanical gardens. The budget would be spent to build six exhibits with the opening of the zoo that included "Monkey Island," an elephant house, bear moat, birdhouse, snake pit and seal pool. The funds were raised through private

donation A donation is a gift for Charity (practice), charity, humanitarian aid, or to benefit a cause. A donation may take various forms, including money, alms, Service (economics), services, or goods such as clothing, toys, food, or vehicles. A donati ...

s, charter memberships, and in-kind donations from a broad base of community and business supporters. The zoo, once known as the Jimmy Morgan Zoo, opened its doors with Monkey Island as its first official exhibit on April 2, 1955. The Jimmy Morgan Zoo operated as a quasi-private venture until city of Birmingham decided to assume responsibility in November 1955. In 1960, Bob Truett, a zoologist at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago was hired as the first real zoo director. Truett petitioned the city and changed the name to the Birmingham Zoo. The city set an annual budget of $663,000 for its first year under city control. By the early 1960s, the Alabama Zoological Society was created as a non-profit support group to raise funds to supplement the escalating operational necessities, since funding for the zoo was inadequate to maintain and operate it at acceptable professional standards. A series of master plans were developed but never came to fruition due to lack of funding throughout the 1970s and 1980s. The need for significant improvements became increasingly evident by the 1990s. Truett was instrumental in starting the Zoological Society, creating the master plan and beginning the implementation of the plan. He was zoo director for 30 years before retiring in 1991. During his tenure, the zoo went from a few exhibits centered around a monkey island to a full-fledged, fully accredited, world class zoo.Marietta Truett The numerous financial demands on the city taking precedence led to the zoo's loss of accreditation by the

in the late 1990s due to concern about aging facilities and uncertainty over continued funding. In 1999, members of the Alabama Zoological Society worked with Birmingham mayor

Richard Arrington Jr. Richard Arrington Jr. (born October 19, 1934 in Livingston, Alabama) was the first African American mayor of the city of Birmingham, Alabama (U.S.) and the second African American on the City Council. He served on the council for two terms fro ...

and other political leaders to set up a public-private partnership to operate the zoo. Strong community leaders were recruited to serve as the first board of directors of a new organization, Birmingham Zoo, Inc. (BZI). The new organization established a transitional funding package with contributions from four government entities to support BZI during its first five years of operation. ;21st century Ara ararauna -Alabama Zoo-6

BZI undertook an intense 18-month effort to address the most pressing and immediate problems so that the zoo could become accredited by the AZA once again, ranking the zoo in the top 10% of animal holding facilities in the nation. The zoo also received 501 (c)(3) status from the

IRS The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...

, and the first major capital campaign was launched in January 2001. William R. Foster, DVM, joined the zoo as chief executive officer in January 2004. Foster, a veterinarian and leading zoo management authority on the national scene, is the past president of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association and was president and executive director of the

Louisville Zoo The Louisville Zoological Gardens, commonly known as the Louisville Zoo, is a zoo in Louisville, Kentucky, situated in the city's Poplar Level neighborhood. Founded in 1969, the "State Zoo of Kentucky" currently exhibits over 1,200 animals in na ...

. Chris Pfefferkorn, with over 25 years of Zoological experience, took over as President & CEO on July 1, 2018. Since privatization, the Birmingham Zoo has hosted traveling exhibits of bats,

koala The koala (''Phascolarctos cinereus''), sometimes inaccurately called the koala bear, is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia. It is the only Extant taxon, extant representative of the Family (biology), family ''Phascolar ...

s, and black-footed penguins, added a permanent

Komodo dragon The Komodo dragon (''Varanus komodoensis''), also known as the Komodo monitor, is a large reptile of the monitor lizard family Varanidae that is endemic to the Indonesian islands of Komodo (island), Komodo, Rinca, Flores, Gili Dasami, and Gili ...

exhibit and interactive

lorikeet Loriini is a tribe of small to medium-sized arboreal parrots characterized by their specialized brush-tipped tongues for feeding on nectar of various blossoms and soft fruits, preferably berries. The species form a monophyletic group within the p ...

aviary An aviary is a large enclosure for confining birds, although bats may also be considered for display. Unlike birdcages, aviaries allow birds a larger living space where Bird flight, they can fly; hence, aviaries are also sometimes known as flig ...

, and regained AZA accreditation. The zoo completed the Junior League of Birmingham – Hugh Kaul Children's Zoo, a $15 million anchor exhibit dedicated to children and devoted to urban, rural, and wild animals and environs of

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

in April 2005, its 50th anniversary of operation. In 2004, the zoo's older

western lowland gorilla The western lowland gorilla (''Gorilla gorilla gorilla'') is one of two Critically Endangered subspecies of the western gorilla (''Gorilla gorilla'') that lives in Montane ecosystems#Montane forests, montane, Old-growth forest, primary and sec ...

, Babec, became the first gorilla to be implanted with a pacemaker due to advanced heart disease. In 2011, the zoo opened its new Trails of Africa exhibit with the goal of housing an all-male herd of

African elephant African elephants are members of the genus ''Loxodonta'' comprising two living elephant species, the African bush elephant (''L. africana'') and the smaller African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''). Both are social herbivores with grey skin. ...

s and becoming a national leader in the care and breeding of elephants. It included Bulwagi of

Disney's Animal Kingdom Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park is a zoological theme park at Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando. Owned and operated by the Walt Disney Company through its Experiences division, it is the largest theme park in the worl ...

, Callee of the

Pittsburgh Zoo The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium is a zoo and aquarium in the United States, one of only six major zoo and aquarium hybrids in the United States. Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's Highland Park, the zoo sits on of park land where it exhibits ...

, and Ajani of the

Indianapolis Zoo The Indianapolis Zoo is a non-profit zoo, public aquarium, and botanical garden in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. Incorporated in 1944, the Indianapolis Zoological Society established the first zoo at George Washington Park in 1964. The c ...

. A fourth bull elephant named Tamani arrived from Tampa's

Lowry Park Zoo ZooTampa at Lowry Park (originally known as Tampa Fairyland and later Tampa Fairyland Zoo, Lowry Park Zoo, and Lowry Park Zoological Garden) is a nonprofit zoo located in Tampa, Florida. In 2009, Lowry Park Zoo was voted the #1 Family Friendly ...

in April 2012 to complete the herd. The Kiwanis Giraffe Encounter was opened to the public at that same time. Four months later, the two male African lions, Baron and Vulcan were sent to the

Montgomery Zoo Montgomery Zoo is a zoo located on the north side of Montgomery, Alabama. The zoo is an independent city department, and is supported in part by The Montgomery Area Zoological Society. It is home to approximately 750 animals representing 140 sp ...

for a recommendation of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums' Species Survival Plan. In late October 2012, a southern white rhinoceros named Max arrived from the

Brevard Zoo Brevard Zoo is a 75-acre nonprofit facility located in Melbourne, Florida, United States, that is home to more than 800 animals representing more than 170 species from Florida, South America, Africa, Asia, and Australia. The zoo features animal ...

to take part in a breeding program with the zoo's two female southern white rhinos, Laptop and her daughter, Ajabu. The zoo was also home to a male Nile hippopotamus named Tadpole until his passing in June 2020. It opened a temporary exhibit with fifteen

animatronic An animatronic is a puppet controlled electronically to move in a fluent way. Animatronics are the modern adaptation of the automaton and are often used for the portrayal of characters in films, video games and in theme park attractions. Anim ...

dinosaurs known as "Dino Discovery". They were on display from March 16 to September 2, 2013. In March 2014, two female

American black bear The American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), or simply black bear, is a species of medium-sized bear which is Endemism, endemic to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most widely distributed bear species. It is an omnivore, with ...

cubs were added to the zoo. They were sent from

Big Sky, Montana Big Sky is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Gallatin and Madison counties in southwestern Montana, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 3,591, up from 2,308 in 2010. It is by road southw ...

. The zoo introduced an exhibit featuring these two black bears known as the ''Barbara Ingalls Shook Black Bear Trail'' a year later. In late February 2015, Cenzoo, the western lowland gorilla, was transferred to

Riverbanks Zoo The Riverbanks Zoo and Garden is a zoo, aquarium, and botanical garden located along the Saluda River in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. A small portion of the zoo extends into the nearby city of West Columbia. It is operated by th ...

to breed with three female gorillas. The African elephant, Tamani, was sent to Missouri's

Kansas City Zoo The Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium is a zoo founded in 1909 and is located in Swope Park at 6800 Zoo Drive, Kansas City, Missouri, in the United States. The zoo has a Friends of the Zoo program to help promote the work of the zoo which sees over o ...

to breed with six female elephants eight months later. In March 2017, the zoo introduced a three-year-old male jaguar named Khan. He was sent from the

Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens The Jacksonville Zoo and Botanical Gardens is located at the river delta, mouth of the Trout River (Florida), Trout River, near where it flows into the St. Johns River, in Jacksonville, Florida. The zoo occupies approximately and has over 2,00 ...

. The African elephant, Ajani was sent to Wichita's

Sedgwick County Zoo The Sedgwick County Zoo is an AZA-accredited wildlife park and major attraction in Wichita, Kansas, United States. Founded in 1971, with the help of the Sedgwick County Zoological Society, the zoo has quickly become recognized both nationally ...

to breed with six female elephants in May 2018. A year later, Callee the African elephant was transferred to Omaha, Nebraska's

Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium is a zoo in Omaha, Nebraska. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums. In August 2014, TripAdvisor rated it the "world's best zoo" ...

to breed with its five female elephants. Bulwagi remained the zoo's only African elephant until two young male African elephants named Ingadze and Lutsandvo arrived from

San Diego Zoo Safari Park The San Diego Zoo Safari Park is a zoo and safari park in Escondido, California, Escondido, a suburb of the city of San Diego, California, located in San Pasqual Valley, San Diego, San Pasqual Valley. Opened in 1972, the park operates as a sis ...

. Following Kwanzaa the lion's death, a young adult male lion named Josh arrived from the

San Antonio Zoo The San Antonio Zoo is a zoo located in Brackenridge Park in San Antonio, Texas, United States. It is home to over 750 species, some of which are endangered or extinct in the wild, and has an annual attendance of more than 1 million. The zoo ...

in April 2022. In June 2022, a five-year-old eastern black rhinoceros named Moyo successfully arrived from the

Saint Louis Zoo The Saint Louis Zoo, officially known as the Saint Louis Zoological Park, is a zoo in Forest Park in St. Louis, Missouri. It is recognized as a leading zoo in animal management, research, conservation, and education. The zoo is accredited by th ...

. Around that same time in summer of 2022, a five-year-old female eastern black rhinoceros named Kesi arrived from the

Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium is a zoo and aquarium in the United States, one of only six major zoo and aquarium hybrids in the United States. Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's Highland Park, the zoo sits on of park land where it exhibits ...

to be Moyo's potential mate. Unfortunately, Moyo suffered a severe dental procedure on January 26, 2024. The zookeepers euthanized him afterwards. This zoo opened its

North American cougar The North American cougar (''Puma concolor couguar'') is a cougar subspecies in North America. It is the biggest cat in North America (North American jaguars are fairly small), and the second largest cat in the New World. It was once common in e ...

and

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the wildcat, bay lynx, or red lynx, is one of the four extant species within the medium-sized wild cat genus '' Lynx''. Native to North America, it ranges from southern Canada through most of the c ...

habitats in its Alabama Wilds section on March 19, 2025.

Exhibits

One day old giraffe with mother -Birmingham Zoo

;Main Zoo * Sea Lions:

California Sea Lion The California sea lion (''Zalophus californianus'') is a coastal eared seal native to western North America. It is one of six species of sea lions. Its natural habitat ranges from southeast Alaska to central Mexico, including the Gulf of Califo ...

s * Southern Bayou: American alligators * Flamingo Lagoon:

black-necked swan The black-necked swan (''Cygnus melancoryphus'') is a species of waterfowl in the tribe Cygnini of the subfamily Anserinae.HBW and BirdLife International (2021) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of ...

American flamingo The American flamingo (''Phoenicopterus ruber'') is a large species of flamingo native to the West Indies, northern South America (including the Galápagos Islands) and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is closely related to the greater flamingo and ...

s * Lorikeet Interactive Feeding and Observation Aviary (only open spring and summer):

Rainbow lorikeets The rainbow lorikeet (''Trichoglossus moluccanus'') is a species of parrot found in Australia. It is common along the eastern seaboard, from northern Queensland to South Australia. Its habitat is rainforest, coastal bush and woodland areas. Six ...

and coconut lorikeets. * Predator Building:

African lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus '' Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the tip of its tail. It is ...

Black-footed cat The black-footed cat (''Felis nigripes''), also called the small-spotted cat, is the smallest wild cat in Africa, having a head-and-body length of . Despite its name, only the soles of its feet are black or dark brown. With its bold small spots ...

Coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans''), also known as the American jackal, prairie wolf, or brush wolf, is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the Wolf, gray wolf, and slightly smaller than the c ...

Fennec fox The fennec fox (''Vulpes zerda'') is a small fox native to the deserts of North Africa, ranging from Western Sahara and Mauritania to the Sinai Peninsula. Its most distinctive feature is its unusually large ears, which serve to dissipate hea ...

Pallas’s cat The Pallas's cat (''Otocolobus manul''), also known as the manul, is a small wild cat with long and dense light grey fur, and rounded ears set low on the sides of the head. Its head-and-body length ranges from with a long bushy tail. It is we ...

Prevost's squirrel Prevost's squirrel or Asian tri-coloured squirrel (''Callosciurus prevostii'') is a colourful species of rodent in the family Sciuridae. It is found in forests in the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo and nearby smaller islands, with an int ...

Red panda The red panda (''Ailurus fulgens''), also known as the lesser panda, is a small mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. It has dense reddish-brown fur with a black belly and legs, white-lined ears, a mostly white muzz ...

Sand cat The sand cat (''Felis margarita'') is a small wild cat that inhabits sandy and stony deserts far from water sources. With its sandy to light grey fur, it is well camouflaged in a desert environment. Its head-and-body length ranges from with a ...

. * Primate Building (South America):

black howler monkey The black howler (''Alouatta caraya'') or black-and-gold howler, is among the largest New World monkeys and a member of the ''Alouatta'' genus. The black howler is distributed in areas of South America such as Paraguay, southern Brazil, eastern ...

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

giant anteater The giant anteater (''Myrmecophaga tridactyla'') is an Insectivore, insectivorous mammal native to Central America, Central and South America. It is the largest of the four living species of anteaters, which are classified with sloths in the or ...

giant otter The giant otter or giant river otter (''Pteronura brasiliensis'') is a South American carnivorous mammal. It is the longest member of the weasel family, Mustelidae, a globally successful group of predators, reaching up to . Atypical of mustel ...

Sumatran orangutan The Sumatran orangutan (''Pongo abelii'') is one of the three species of orangutans. Critically endangered, and found only in the north of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, it is rarer than the Bornean orangutan but more common than the recently ...

s * Reptile Building:

snakes Snakes are elongated Limbless vertebrate, limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales much like other members of ...

* Wildlife Stage ;Junior League of Birmingham-Hugh Kaul Children's Zoo * Alabama Barn:

goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a species of Caprinae, goat-antelope that is mostly kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the ...

s * Alabama Wilds:

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

sandhill crane The sandhill crane (''Antigone canadensis'') is a species of large Crane (bird), cranes of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird refers to its habitat, such as the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's S ...

North American river otter The North American river otter (''Lontra canadensis''), also known as the northern river otter and river otter, is a semiaquatic mammal that endemism, lives only on the North American continent throughout most of Canada, along the coasts of the U ...

wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland game bird native to North America, one of two extant species of Turkey (bird), turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey (''M. g. dom ...

s * Barbara Ingalls Shook Black Bear Trail:

s * The Corral: * Grandma's Back Porch * Granny's Butterfly House (Memorial Day through Labor Day) * Granny's Goose Patch Trails of Africa In 2007, the zoo announced a major expansion called Trails of Africa. Opened in 2011, this exhibit features bull African elephants in a bachelor herd setting. The exhibit is revolutionary; a US zoo had never before housed multiple males together and attempted to replicate these bull herds recently discovered in the wild. At this time, three elephants (Bulwagi, Ingadze, and Lutsandvo) reside in the new facility. Trails of Africa includes an interactive boma yard, safari cafe, waterhole exhibit, and many more small accessories. This exhibit makes the Birmingham Zoo a national leader in the care and breeding of elephants. After the completion of the main exhibit in early 2011, the 50-year-old pachyderm building was renovated to allow staff to provide a higher quality of care for the three southern white rhinoceroses and the one now-deceased Nile hippo that resided there. A new giraffe yard, added in April 2012, allows the zoo's young herd to continue to grow and a new feeding platform was added for visitors to have the chance to feed them. Tadpole the hippo was euthanized due to old age in June 2020, and all three southern white rhinos (Max, Laptop, and Ajabu) were permanently transferred to a private conservation facility in December 2021 with the intention for the zoo to switch back to black rhinos, which were at the zoo until 2009. They currently reside on a 450-acre rhinoceros preserve at

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private university, private research university in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison Clark, Addison and Randolph Clark as the AddRan Male & Female College. It i ...

. A pair of eastern black rhinos moved into that paddock (including the former

hippopotamus The hippopotamus (''Hippopotamus amphibius;'' ; : hippopotamuses), often shortened to hippo (: hippos), further qualified as the common hippopotamus, Nile hippopotamus and river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Sahar ...

habitat as part of its expansion). It opened on March 25, 2023. Moyo died in late January 2024, leaving Kesi is the zoo's only rhinoceros at the moment. * Boma Yard * Kiwanis Giraffe Encounter:

Reticulated giraffe The reticulated giraffe (''Giraffa reticulata'' or ''Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata'') is a species/subspecies of giraffe native to the Horn of Africa. It is differentiated from other types of giraffe by its coat, which consists of large, p ...

s * Main Elephant Yard:

African bush elephant The African bush elephant (''Loxodonta africana''), also known as the African savanna elephant, is a species of elephant native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of three extant elephant species and, along with the African forest elephant, one ...

s * Rhinoceros Habitat:

Eastern black rhinoceros The eastern black rhinoceros (''Diceros bicornis michaeli''), also known as the East African black rhinoceros, is a subspecies of the black rhinoceros. Its numbers are very low due to poaching for its horn, and it is listed as critically endanger ...

* Savannah Hoofstock Yards:

Grant's zebra Grant's zebra (''Equus quagga boehmi'') is the smallest of the seven subspecies of the plains zebra. This subspecies represents the zebra form of the Serengeti- Mara ecosystem and others across central Africa. Distribution This subspecies is di ...

es,

duiker A duiker is a small to medium-sized brown antelope native to sub-Saharan Africa, found in heavily wooded areas. The 22 extant species, including three sometimes considered to be subspecies of the other species, form the subfamily Cephalophinae ...

s and

tortoise Tortoises ( ) are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin for "tortoise"). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like o ...

s Birds *

African pygmy goose The African pygmy goose (''Nettapus auritus'') is a perching duck from sub-Saharan Africa. It is the smallest of Africa's waterfowl, and one of the smallest in the world. Though pygmy geese have beaks like those of geese, they are more related ...

Barn owl The barn owls, owls in the genus '' Tyto'', are the most widely distributed genus of owls in the world. They are medium-sized owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long, strong legs with powerful talons. The ter ...

Barred owl The barred owl (''Strix varia''), also known as the northern barred owl, striped owl or, more informally, hoot owl or eight-hooter owl, is a North American large species of owl. A member of the true owl family, Strigidae, they belong to the genus ...

* Beautiful fruit dove *

Black crowned crane The black crowned crane (''Balearica pavonina'') is a part of the family Gruidae, along with its sister species, the grey crowned crane. It is topped with its characteristic bristle-feathered golden crown. It is usually found in the shallow we ...

Black vulture The black vulture (''Coragyps atratus''), also known as the American black vulture, Mexican vulture, zopilote, urubu, or gallinazo, is a bird in the New World vulture family whose range extends from the southeastern United States to Peru, Ce ...

Black-billed magpie The black-billed magpie (''Pica hudsonia''), also known as the American magpie, is a bird in the corvid family found in the western half of North America. It is black and white, with the wings and tail showing black areas and iridescent hints ...

Black-naped fruit dove The black-naped fruit dove (''Ptilinopus melanospilus''), also known as the black-headed fruit dove, is a medium-sized, up to long, green fruit dove with yellowish Beak, bill and Iris (anatomy), iris. The male has a pale grey head with a black ...

Black-necked swan The black-necked swan (''Cygnus melancoryphus'') is a species of waterfowl in the tribe Cygnini of the subfamily Anserinae.HBW and BirdLife International (2021) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of ...

Blue crane The blue crane (''Grus paradisea''), also known as the Stanley crane and the paradise crane, is the national bird of South Africa. The species is listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN. Description The blue crane is a tall, ground-dwelling bird, ...

Blue-bellied roller The blue-bellied roller (''Coracias cyanogaster'') is a member of the Coraciidae, roller family of birds which breeds across Africa in a narrow belt from Senegal to northeast Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is resident, apart from some loca ...

Blue-crowned motmot The blue-capped motmot (''Momotus coeruliceps'') or blue-crowned motmot, is a colorful near-passerine bird found in forests and woodlands of eastern Mexico. This species and the Lesson's Motmot, Whooping Motmot, Trinidad Motmot, Amazonian Mo ...

Blue-faced honeyeater The blue-faced honeyeater (''Entomyzon cyanotis''), also colloquially known as the Bananabird, is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family, Meliphagidae. It is the monotypic taxon, only member of its genus, and it is most closely related to hon ...

Buff-crested bustard The buff-crested bustard (''Lophotis gindiana'') is a medium-sized bird of East Africa; Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya belonging to the family Otididae. The populations are stable and the species is of least concern. Description The buff-crested bus ...

Cape thick-knee The spotted thick-knee (''Burhinus capensis''), also known as the spotted dikkop , or Cape thick-knee, is a wader in the family Burhinidae. It is native to tropical regions of central and southern Africa. Description The spotted thick-knee, whic ...

Chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...

Cinereous vulture The cinereous vulture (''Aegypius monachus''), also known as the black vulture, Eurasian black vulture, and monk vulture, is a very large Raptor (bird), raptor in the family Accipitridae distributed through much of temperate Eurasia. With a body ...

Coconut lorikeet The coconut lorikeet (''Trichoglossus haematodus''), also known as the green-naped lorikeet, is a parrot in the family Psittaculidae. Seven species of lorikeets now recognised were once lumped together under ''Trichoglossus haematodus''. Taxonom ...

Common ostrich The common ostrich (''Struthio camelus''), or simply ostrich, is a species of flightless bird native to certain areas of Africa. It is one of two extant species of ostriches, the only living members of the genus ''Struthio'' in the ratite group ...

Eastern screech owl The eastern screech owl (''Megascops asio'') or eastern screech-owl, is a small typical owl, owl that is relatively common in Eastern North America, from Mexico to Canada. This species resides in most types of woodland habitats across its range, ...

Emerald starling The emerald starling (''Lamprotornis iris'') is also known as the iris glossy starling. It is a small starling with a metallic green crown, upper body, wings and tail. The ear-coverts and underparts are metallic purple. Both sexes are similar. Mo ...

Eurasian eagle-owl The Eurasian eagle-owl (''Bubo bubo'') is a species of eagle-owl, a type of bird that resides in much of Eurasia. It is often just called the eagle-owl in Europe and Asia. It is one of the largest species of owl. Females can grow to a total le ...

* Forsten's lorikeet *

Golden eagle The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known bird of pr ...

Great horned owl The great horned owl (''Bubo virginianus''), also known as the tiger owl (originally derived from early naturalists' description as the "winged tiger" or "tiger of the air") or the hoot owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an extreme ...

Green aracari The green araçari (''Pteroglossus viridis''), is a toucan, a near-passerine bird. It is found in the lowland forests of northeastern South America (the Guiana Shield), in the northeast Amazon Basin, the Guianas and the eastern Orinoco River drain ...

Green wood hoopoe The green wood hoopoe (''Phoeniculus purpureus'') is a large, up to long tropical bird native to Africa. It is a member of the family Phoeniculidae, the wood hoopoes, and was formerly known as the red-billed wood hoopoe. Taxonomy In 1784 the En ...

Harris's hawk Harris's hawk (''Parabuteo unicinctus''), formerly also known as bay-winged hawk or dusky hawk, and known in Latin America as the peuco, is a medium-large bird of prey that breeds from the southwestern United States south to Chile, central Argent ...

Helmeted guineafowl The helmeted guinea fowl (''Numida meleagris'') is the best known of the guinea fowl bird family, Numididae, and the only member of the genus ''Numida''. It is native to Africa, mainly south of the Sahara, and has been widely introduced, as ...

Jambu fruit dove The jambu fruit dove (''Ptilinopus jambu'') is a smallish colourful fruit dove. It is a resident breeding species in southern Thailand, Malaysia, Brunei and the Indonesian islands of Kalimantan, Sumatra and Java. It is a monotypic species. Taxo ...

Kori bustard The kori bustard (''Ardeotis kori'') is the largest flying bird native to Africa. It is a member of the bustard family (biology), family, which all belong to the order Otidiformes and are restricted in distribution to the Old World. It is one of ...

* Lady Ross' turaco *

Laughing kookaburra The laughing kookaburra (''Dacelo novaeguineae'') is a bird in the kingfisher subfamily Halcyoninae. It is a large robust kingfisher with a whitish head and a brown eye-stripe. The upperparts are mostly dark brown but there is a mottled light ...

Marbled teal The marbled duck or marbled teal (''Marmaronetta angustirostris'') is a medium-sized species of duck from southern Europe, northern Africa, and western and central Asia. The scientific name, ''Marmaronetta angustirostris'', comes from the Greek ' ...

* Marigold lorikeet *

Masked lapwing The masked lapwing (''Vanellus miles'') is a large, common and conspicuous bird native to Australia (particularly the northern and eastern parts of the continent), New Zealand and New Guinea. It spends most of its time on the ground searching for ...

Mute swan The mute swan (''Cygnus olor'') is a species of swan and a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It is native to much of Eurasia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is an introduced species in North America, home to ...

Nicobar pigeon The Nicobar pigeon or Nicobar dove (''Caloenas nicobarica'', Car: ') is a bird found on small islands and in coastal regions from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India, east through the Indonesian Archipelago, to the Solomons and Palau. It is ...

* North American ruddy duck *

Pheasant pigeon The pheasant pigeon (''Otidiphaps nobilis'') is a species of large terrestrial pigeon. It is the only species of the monotypic genus ''Otidiphaps''. The pheasant pigeon is found in the primary rainforests of New Guinea and nearby islands. It ran ...

Pied imperial pigeon The pied imperial pigeon (''Ducula bicolor'') is a relatively large, Piebald, pied species of pigeon. It is found in forest, woodland, mangrove, plantations and scrub in Southeast Asia, ranging from Myanmar and Thailand, throughout Indonesia and ...

Plush-crested jay The plush-crested jay (''Cyanocorax chrysops'') is a jay of the family Corvidae (which includes the crows and their many allies). It is found in central-southern South America: in southwestern Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and northeastern ...

Red-billed hornbill The red-billed hornbills are a group of hornbills found in the savannas and woodlands of sub-Saharan Africa. They are now usually Lumpers_and_splitters#Biology, split into five species, the northern red-billed hornbill (''Tockus erythrorhynchus ...

Red-billed leiothrix The red-billed leiothrix (''Leiothrix lutea'') is a member of the family Leiothrichidae, native to southern China and the Himalayas. Adults have bright red bills and a dull yellow ring around their eyes. Their backs are dull olive green, and the ...

Red-crested cardinal The red-crested cardinal (''Paroaria coronata'') is a passerine bird in the tanager family Thraupidae. Notwithstanding its similar name, this bird is not closely related to the true cardinal family Cardinalidae. It is sometimes known as the Brazi ...

Red-crested turaco The red-crested turaco (''Tauraco erythrolophus'') is a turaco, a group of African otidimorph birds. It is a frugivorous bird endemic to western Angola. Its call sounds somewhat like a jungle monkey. Description The red-crested turaco weighs ...

Red-crowned crane The red-crowned crane (''Grus japonensis''), also called the Manchurian crane (; the Chinese character '丹' means 'red', '頂/顶' means 'crown (anatomy), crown' and '鶴/鹤' means 'crane'), is a large East Asian Crane (bird), crane among the ...

Red-shouldered hawk The red-shouldered hawk (''Buteo lineatus'') is a medium-sized buteo. Its breeding range spans eastern North America and along the coast of California and northern to northeastern-central Mexico. It is a permanent resident throughout most of its ...

Red-tailed hawk The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members of ...

Roseate spoonbill The roseate spoonbill (''Platalea ajaja'') is a social wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family, Threskiornithidae. It is a resident breeder in both South and North America. The roseate spoonbill's pink color is diet-derived, consisting of ...

Sandhill crane The sandhill crane (''Antigone canadensis'') is a species of large Crane (bird), cranes of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird refers to its habitat, such as the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's S ...

Secretary bird The secretarybird or secretary bird (''Sagittarius serpentarius'') is a large bird of prey that is endemic to Africa. It is mostly terrestrial, spending most of its time on the ground, and is usually found in the open grasslands and savanna of ...

Southern ground hornbill The southern ground hornbill (''Bucorvus leadbeateri''; formerly known as ''Bucorvus cafer'') is one of two species of ground hornbill, both of which are found solely within Africa, and is the largest species in the hornbill order worldwide. It ...

Southern screamer The southern screamer (''Chauna torquata'') is a species of bird in family Anhimidae of the waterfowl order Anseriformes. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. ...

Speckled mousebird The speckled mousebird (''Colius striatus'') is the largest species of mousebird, as well as one of the most common. It is found throughout most of Central Africa, Central, East Africa, Eastern and Southern Africa. Taxonomy The speckled mousebir ...

Spectacled owl The spectacled owl (''Pulsatrix perspicillata'') also called a Murucututu, is a large tropical owl native to the neotropics. It is a resident breeder in forests from southern Mexico and Trinidad, through Central America, south to southern Brazil, ...

Sulphur-crested cockatoo The sulphur-crested cockatoo (''Cacatua galerita'') is a relatively large white cockatoo found in wooded habitats in Australia, New Guinea, and some of the islands of Indonesia. They can be locally very numerous, leading to them sometimes being ...

Sunbittern The sunbittern (''Eurypyga helias'') is a bittern-like bird of tropical regions of the Americas, and the sole member of the family Eurypygidae (sometimes spelled Eurypigidae) and genus ''Eurypyga''. It is found in Central and South America, an ...

Tawny frogmouth The tawny frogmouth (''Podargus strigoides'') is a species of frogmouth native to the Australian mainland and Tasmania and found throughout. It is a big-headed, stocky bird often mistaken for an owl due to its nocturnal habits and similar colouri ...

* Taveta golden weaver *

Vasa parrot :''The name vasa parrot is also used for the greater vasa parrot.'' The vasa parrots that form the genus ''Coracopsis'' are four species of parrot in the Old World parrot family Psittaculidae that are endemic to Madagascar and other islands in th ...

Victoria crowned pigeon The Victoria crowned pigeon (''Goura victoria'') is a large, bluish-grey pigeon with elegant blue lace-like Crest (feathers), crests, maroon breast and red Iris (anatomy), irises. It is part of a genus (Goura (genus), ''Goura'') of four unique, v ...

* Violet-backed starling *

White-crested laughingthrush The white-crested laughingthrush (''Garrulax leucolophus'') is a member of the family Leiothrichidae.White-headed buffalo weaver The white-headed buffalo weaver or white-faced buffalo-weaver (''Dinemellia dinemelli'') is a species of passerine bird in the family Ploceidae native to East Africa. The buffalo part of its name derives from its habit of following the African bu ...

White-naped crane The white-naped crane (''Antigone vipio'', formerly ''Grus vipio'', also known as the ''Daurian crane'' in Russian sources) is a bird in the crane family, Gruidae. It is a large bird measuring 112–125 cm (44–49 in) long, about 130 ...

White-throated ground dove The white-throated ground dove (''Pampusana xanthonura'') is a species of ground dove in the genus ''Pampusana''. It is classified as near-threatened. This species was formerly in the genus ''Alopecoenas'' Sharpe, 1899, but the name of the gen ...

Wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland game bird native to North America, one of two extant species of Turkey (bird), turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey (''M. g. dom ...

Wood stork The wood stork (''Mycteria americana'') is a large wading bird in the family (biology), family Ciconiidae (Ciconiiformes, storks). Originally described in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus, this stork is native to the subtropics and tropics of the Americas ...

Mammals *

Black howler The black howler (''Alouatta caraya'') or black-and-gold howler, is among the largest New World monkeys and a member of the ''Alouatta'' genus. The black howler is distributed in areas of South America such as Paraguay, southern Brazil, eastern ...

* Blackbelly sheep *

Black-handed spider monkey Geoffroy's spider monkey (''Ateles geoffroyi''), also known as the black-handed spider monkey or the Central American spider monkey, is a species of spider monkey, a type of New World monkey, from Central America, parts of Mexico and possibly a ...

Blue duiker The blue duiker (''Philantomba monticola'') is a small antelope found in central, southern and eastern Africa. It is the smallest species of duiker. The species was first described by Swedish naturalist Carl Peter Thunberg in 1789. 12 subspe ...

Bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the wildcat, bay lynx, or red lynx, is one of the four extant species within the medium-sized wild cat genus '' Lynx''. Native to North America, it ranges from southern Canada through most of the c ...

Cape porcupine The Cape porcupine (''Hystrix africaeaustralis''), Cape crested porcupine or South African porcupine, is a species of Old World porcupine native to central and southern Africa. Description left, 180px, Porcupine head Cape porcupines are the la ...

Common squirrel monkey Common squirrel monkey is the traditional common name for several small squirrel monkey species native to the tropical areas of South America. The term common squirrel monkey had been used as the common name for ''Saimiri sciureus'' before gene ...

Cotton-top tamarin The cotton-top tamarin (''Saguinus oedipus'') is a small New World monkey weighing less than . This New World monkey can live up to 24 years, but most of them die by 13 years. One of the smallest primates, the cotton-top tamarin is easily reco ...

Crowned lemur The crowned lemur (''Eulemur coronatus'') is a lemur that is long and weighs . Its tail is about long. Description The crowned lemur is endemic to the dry deciduous forests of the northern tip of Madagascar. It eats a diet of mostly flowers, f ...

De Brazza's monkey De Brazza's monkey (''Cercopithecus neglectus'') is an Old World monkey endemic to the riverine and swamp forests of central Africa. The largest species in the guenon family, it is one of the most widespread arboreal African primates. Aside from ...

* Eastern bongo *

Fishing cat The fishing cat (''Prionailurus viverrinus'') is a medium-sized wild cat of South and Southeast Asia. It has a deep yellowish-grey fur with black lines and spots. Adults have a head-to-body length of , with a long tail. Males are larger than f ...

Giant anteater The giant anteater (''Myrmecophaga tridactyla'') is an Insectivore, insectivorous mammal native to Central America, Central and South America. It is the largest of the four living species of anteaters, which are classified with sloths in the or ...

Giant otter The giant otter or giant river otter (''Pteronura brasiliensis'') is a South American carnivorous mammal. It is the longest member of the weasel family, Mustelidae, a globally successful group of predators, reaching up to . Atypical of mustel ...

Gulf Coast Native sheep The Gulf Coast Native is a breed of sheep found in the U.S. states bordering the Gulf Coast. Also occasionally known as the ''Louisiana Scrub'', ''Pineywoods Native'' or simply ''Gulf Coast sheep'', the breed is a mix of many of the sheep varietie ...

Hoffmann's two-toed sloth The Hoffmann's two-toed sloth (''Choloepus hoffmanni''), also known as the northern two-toed sloth, is a species of sloth from Central and South America. It is a solitary, largely nocturnal and arboreal animal, found in mature and secondary ra ...

* Lar gibbon *

Nigerian Dwarf goat The Nigerian Dwarf is a modern American breed of dwarf goat. Like the American Pygmy Goat, it derives from the West African Dwarf group of breeds of West Africa. History Between about 1930 and 1960 a variety of small goats of the West Afric ...

Lesser hedgehog tenrec The lesser hedgehog tenrec (''Echinops telfairi'') is a species of mammal in the family Tenrecidae. It is the only species in the genus ''Echinops'' and is named in honour of Charles Telfair. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitats ...

Pallas's cat The Pallas's cat (''Otocolobus manul''), also known as the manul, is a small wild cat with long and dense light grey fur, and rounded ears set low on the sides of the head. Its head-and-body length ranges from with a long bushy tail. It is w ...

Red-flanked duiker The red-flanked duiker (''Cephalophus rufilatus'') is a species of small antelope found in western and central Africa in countries as far apart as Senegal and Sudan. Red-flanked duikers grow to almost in height and weigh up to . They have russe ...

Ring-tailed lemur The ring-tailed lemur (''Lemur catta'') is a medium- to larger-sized strepsirrhine (wet-nosed) primate and the most internationally recognized lemur species, owing to its long, black-and-white, ringed tail. It belongs to Lemuridae, one of fiv ...

Serval The serval (''Leptailurus serval'') is a wild small cat native to Africa. It is widespread in sub-Saharan countries, where it inhabits grasslands, wetlands, moorlands and bamboo thickets. Across its range, it occurs in protected areas, and ...

Southern three-banded armadillo The southern three-banded armadillo , also known as La Plata three-banded armadillo or Azara's domed armadillo, is an armadillo species from South America. It is found in parts of northern Argentina, southwestern Brazil, Paraguay and Bolivia, at ...

Striped skunk The striped skunk (''Mephitis mephitis'') is a skunk of the genus ''Mephitis (genus), Mephitis'' that occurs across much of North America, including southern Canada, the United States, and northern Mexico. It is currently listed as least concern ...

Reptiles * African pancake tortoise *

Aldabra giant tortoise The Aldabra giant tortoise (''Aldabrachelys gigantea'') is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae and genus '' Aldabrachelys''. The species is endemic to the Seychelles, with the nominate subspecies, ''A. g. gigantea'' native to Alda ...

Alligator snapping turtle The alligator snapping turtle (''Macrochelys temminckii'') is a large species of turtle in the Family (biology), family Chelydridae. They are the largest freshwater turtle in North America. The species is Endemism, endemic to freshwater habitat ...

* American alligator * Blood python *

Blue-tongued skink Blue-tongued skinks comprise the Australasian genus ''Tiliqua'', which contains some of the largest members of the skink family (biology), family (Scincidae). They are commonly called blue-tongued lizards or simply blue-tongues or blueys in Aust ...

Caiman lizard ''Dracaena'' (romanized form of the Ancient Greek δράκαινα - ''drakaina'', "female dragon"), is a genus of lizards, also commonly called caiman lizards or water tegus, in the family Teiidae, along with tegus and ameivas. Caiman liza ...

* Cave dwelling rat snake *

Coahuilan box turtle The Coahuilan box turtle (''Terrapene coahuila''), also known commonly as the aquatic box turtle, is an Endangered species, endangered species of turtle in the Family (biology), family Emydidae. Unlike the other members of the genus ''Terrapene'', ...

Cottonmouth ''Agkistrodon piscivorus'' is a species of venomous snake, a pit viper in the subfamily Crotalinae of the family Viperidae. It is one of the world's few semiaquatic vipers (along with the Florida cottonmouth), and is native to the Southeaster ...

Desert tortoise The desert tortoise (''Gopherus agassizii'') is a species of tortoise in the Family (biology), family Testudinidae. The species is native to the Mojave Desert, Mojave and Sonoran Deserts of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico ...

Eastern indigo snake The eastern indigo snake (''Drymarchon couperi'') is a species of large, non-venomous snake in the Family (biology), family Colubridae. Native to the southeastern United States, it is the longest native snake species in the country. Taxonomy ...

Egyptian tortoise Kleinmann's tortoise (''Testudo kleinmanni''), also called commonly the Egyptian tortoise, Leith's tortoise, and the Negev tortoise, is a critically endangered species of cryptodire turtle in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to L ...

Emerald tree boa The emerald tree boa (''Corallus caninus'')Mehrtens JM. 1987. ''Living Snakes of the World in Color''. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. . is a boa species found in the rainforests of South America. Since 2009 the species '' Corallus batesi ...

* Garden tree boa *

Gopher tortoise The gopher tortoise (''Gopherus polyphemus'') is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to the southeastern United States. The gopher tortoise is seen as a keystone species because it digs burrows that provide she ...

Green anaconda The green anaconda (''Eunectes murinus''), also known as the giant anaconda, emerald anaconda, common anaconda, common water boa, or southern green anaconda, is a semi-aquatic boa species found in South America and the Caribbean island of Trin ...

* Home's hinge-back tortoise *

Japanese pond turtle The Japanese pond turtle (''Mauremys japonica''), also called commonly the Japanese pond terrapin and the Japanese pond tortoise, is a species of turtle in the family Geoemydidae endemic to Japan. Its Japanese name is ''nihon ishigame'', Japane ...

Mexican beaded lizard The Mexican beaded lizard (''Heloderma horridum'') or beaded lizard is a species of lizard in the family Helodermatidae, one of the two species of venomous beaded lizards found principally in Mexico and southern Guatemala. It and the other membe ...

* New Caledonian giant gecko *

Philippine sailfin lizard ''Hydrosaurus pustulatus'', commonly known as the Philippine sailfin lizard or the Philippine sailfin dragon, is a large semiaquatic agamid lizard endemic to all of the major island groups of the Philippines, with the exception of the Palawan isl ...

Prehensile-tailed skink The Solomon Islands skink (''Corucia zebrata''), also known as prehensile-tailed skink, monkey-tailed skink, giant skink, zebra skink, and monkey skink, is an arboreal species of skink endemic to the Solomon Islands archipelago. It is the larg ...

Radiated tortoise The radiated tortoise (''Astrochelys radiata'') is a tortoise species in the family Testudinidae. Although this species is native to and most abundant in southern Madagascar, it can also be found in the rest of this island, and has been introd ...

* Red-tailed ratsnake *

San Esteban chuckwalla The San Esteban chuckwalla (''Sauromalus varius''), also known as the piebald chuckwalla or pinto chuckwalla, is a species of chuckwalla belonging to the family Iguanidae endemic to San Esteban Island in the Gulf of California. It is the largest ...

Timber rattlesnake The timber rattlesnake (''Crotalus horridus''), also known Common name, commonly as the canebrake rattlesnake and the banded rattlesnake,Albert Hazen WWright AH, species:Anna Allen WWright AA (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes of the United States a ...

Amphibians * Asian giant toad *

Yellow-banded poison dart frog The yellow-banded poison dart frog (''Dendrobates leucomelas''), also known as yellow-headed poison dart frog or bumblebee poison frog, is a poison dart frog from the genus '' Dendrobates'' of the family Dendrobatidae. Distribution and habitat ...

Fish *

Rainbow shark The rainbow shark (''Epalzeorhynchos frenatum'') is a species of Southeast Asian freshwater fish from the family Cyprinidae. It is also known as the ruby shark, red-fin shark, red-finned shark, rainbow sharkminnow, green fringelip labeo, whitefin ...

Red lionfish The red lionfish (''Pterois volitans'') is a venomous coral reef fish in the family Scorpaenidae, order Scorpaeniformes. It is mainly native to the Indo-Pacific region, but has become an invasive species in the Caribbean Sea, as well as along the ...

Other facilities and activities

* Birmingham Zoo Express/Red Diamond Express trains -

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge (distance between the rails) narrower than . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with Minimum railw ...

prior to 1976 gauge was * Carousel * Primary Giftshop * Nourish 205 Cafe * Lorikeet Feeding (open seasonally) * Wild Burger Cafe * Safari Peak Pavilion * Sea Lion Show (ending in 2024) * Tiki Hut Giftshop (open seasonally) * Wildlife Show

Incidents

On February 15, 2006, a zookeeper was taken to the hospital for minor injuries after being mauled by the resident female lion, Sheeba. On September 16, 2019, two white-crested laughing thrushes were discovered missing from their habitat. It is unknown whether the birds were taken or flew off once their containment was compromised. On July 18, 2022, the zoo's sixteen-year-old lioness Akili was fatally injured due to a confrontation with its new residential lion, Josh.

References

External links

*
Birmingham zoo
o
zooinstitutes.com
{{Authority control Buildings and structures in Birmingham, Alabama Landmarks in Alabama Zoos in Alabama Works Progress Administration in Alabama Protected areas of Jefferson County, Alabama Tourist attractions in Birmingham, Alabama