Phoenix Zoo

About Phoenix Zoo

The Phoenix Zoo sits on 125 acres at 455 N Galvin Parkway in Phoenix, Arizona. It is run by the Arizona Center for Nature Conservation, a nonprofit that does business as the Phoenix Zoo and describes itself as one of the largest private nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations in the country. The zoo relies on admissions, concessions, memberships, special events, and philanthropic donations to fund its daily operations, and it serves nearly 1.4 million guests a year. It is the only zoo in the Valley accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

More than 3,000 animals live at the zoo, representing nearly 400 species, and many are threatened or endangered. Its collection is organized into a handful of named trails rather than a single continuous path: the Africa Trail, the Arizona Trail, the Tropics Trail, and the Children's Trail, each built around a different region or audience. The zoo also maintains the Arthur L. and Elaine V. Johnson Conservation Center, where staff raise and breed native Arizona species for release to the wild, and it partners with universities and conservation organizations on field research stretching from Arizona and Mexico to Costa Rica and Colombia.

Beyond its animal collection, the zoo runs an ongoing arts program called Art on the Wild Side, which rotates exhibitions through its Wild Side and Savanna Galleries, and it hosts educational programming that has grown from a 1965 arts-and-crafts summer camp into present-day science-based ZooLab and Distance Learning programs offered through several Arizona school districts.

History

The Phoenix Zoo traces back to the spring of 1961, when Robert E. Maytag, a grandson of the Maytag appliance company's founder, gathered friends at his home to discuss building a zoo in Phoenix. The group grew into the Arizona Zoological Society, which held its first meeting on April 27, 1961. Maytag died unexpectedly of pneumonia in March 1962, at age 38, which nearly ended the project. His wife, Nancy Maytag, stepped in and pledged that the zoo would open on schedule as a memorial to him, rallying individuals, clubs, and companies under the slogan "Build the Zoo in '62." Family memberships sold for $5 a year, and local media donated promotional spots to the cause.

On November 21, 1962, Nancy Maytag cut the ribbon to open the Maytag Zoo, named for her husband. The name changed to the Phoenix Zoo in 1963 to broaden community involvement. Financial struggles continued through the early years until banker Earl L. Bimson took over leadership for the next 13 years, renegotiating debts with creditors until the zoo was back in the black by 1965. Eugene and Nina Pulliam, owners of Central Newspapers, also supported the zoo in its early years, anonymously covering the zoo director's salary for five years.

The zoo's conservation work began almost immediately, with Operation Oryx launching in 1962 as an effort to save the Arabian oryx from extinction; more than 7,000 Arabian oryx now exist worldwide, a result the zoo credits with setting the pattern for later work on species such as the black-footed ferret, Chiricahua leopard frog, narrow-headed gartersnake, thick-billed parrot, and Mexican gray wolf. Educational programming grew alongside the conservation work, starting with the Summer Institute for Children in 1965. Since its 1962 opening, the zoo has welcomed more than 43 million guests.

Exhibits and habitats

The zoo's collection is grouped into named trails. The Africa Trail features many of the world's most recognizable animals, including some of its largest predators, and includes the Savanna habitat with close viewing of species such as the greater one-horned rhinoceros. The Arizona Trail is built to emulate the state's own wildlife and plant life, running past the coyote and condor exhibits and the Rose Garden, where greater flamingos are kept.

The Tropics Trail includes the Forest of Uco, a lush rainforest area that surrounds visitors along a one-mile walking path; it is described as the shadiest trail at the zoo, with multiple points to rest and several cooler exhibit areas, and it connects to the Wetlands. The Children's Trail, formally the Nina Mason Pulliam Children's Trail, lets children get close to small animals from around the world and includes a petting zoo as well as a playground.

Other named habitat areas include the Desert Lives Trail, which offers close viewing of Arabian oryx and desert bighorn sheep and passes Aldabra tortoises, African lions, several small bird habitats, and the Giraffe Encounter; and an area near the orangutan habitat with an indoor, air-conditioned viewing space and benches. A separate loop near the Andean bear habitat also passes several monkey, bird, and invertebrate exhibits. The zoo's two walk-through aviaries are both wheelchair accessible, and camel rides are offered near the Africa Trail entrance.

Animal highlights

At least 82 species are listed on the zoo's website, a floor rather than a full count, and the zoo describes its total collection as nearly 400 species and more than 3,000 individual animals. Large mammals on the list include the Asian elephant, Bornean orangutan, jaguar, cheetah, spotted hyena, and both greater one-horned and southern white rhinoceros, alongside big cats such as the Amur leopard and Sumatran tiger. Great apes and primates include siamangs, mandrills, hamadryas baboons, cotton-top tamarins, and ruffed lemurs.

The list also includes desert and native Arizona species such as the Gila monster, desert iguana, Sonoran desert tortoise, Sonoran gopher snake, and Arizona walking stick, reflecting the Arizona Trail's regional focus, along with raptors and large birds including the California condor, bald eagle, golden eagle, and Rüppell's griffon vulture. Smaller and invertebrate species on the list range from the naked mole-rat and four-toed hedgehog to leafcutter ants, tarantulas, and the blue death-feigning beetle.

Conservation and programs

The Phoenix Zoo's conservation work is organized through the Arthur L. and Elaine V. Johnson Conservation Center, where zoo scientists raise and breed species for release to the wild and conduct research into their biology and reproduction. The zoo's wildlife recovery and research programs focus on boosting wild populations of ten imperiled Arizona native species, and staff engage in field research with universities, other conservation organizations, and private land managers in Arizona, Mexico, Costa Rica, Colombia, and beyond.

The zoo's best-known conservation effort, Operation Oryx, began in 1962 and has been credited with helping grow the worldwide Arabian oryx population to more than 7,000 animals. The zoo says this program set a precedent for later conservation initiatives it has run involving black-footed ferrets, Chiricahua leopard frogs, narrow-headed gartersnakes, thick-billed parrots, and Mexican gray wolves.

Planning your visit

As listed on the zoo's website, the Phoenix Zoo is open daily except Christmas Day, with hours of 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday through Sunday; hours change seasonally and the zoo also opens for the separate ZooLights event in the evening. The zoo has gone entirely cashless. Guests under 14 must be accompanied by someone 14 or older. On Tuesdays and Sundays, guests with a valid Arizona EBT card and photo ID can buy up to four tickets at $10 each.

Parking fills up during busy periods; message boards direct overflow traffic to a lot at Phoenix Municipal Stadium, a roughly 15-minute walk from the entrance along a lit, paved path. The zoo has partnered with KultureCity to support visitors with sensory processing needs, offering sensory bags with fidget tools and noise-canceling headphones, designated quiet zones, and marked "headphone zones" in louder areas such as the aviary and petting zoo. Wheelchair and electric scooter rentals are available, with curbside service on some high-attendance days, though it isn't guaranteed.

For food, the zoo operates the Savanna Grill, Jungle Java (which serves Starbucks coffee), Safari Snacks, and the Crossroads Cafe, and it permits guests to bring coolers and picnic at tables around the grounds, excluding glass containers and alcohol. The Plaza Marketplace gift shop, remodeled in 2022, emphasizes local Phoenix artisans. Digital paper maps have replaced printed ones at the entrance. Ticket prices are not listed in the source material for this page; confirm current admission, hours, and any seasonal changes on the zoo's official website before visiting.