Ross Park Zoo

About Ross Park Zoo

Ross Park Zoo occupies the northern face of Binghamton's South Mountain in Ross Park, on land donated to the city by wealthy businessman Erastus Ross. The zoo officially opened in 1875, making it the fifth-oldest zoological institution in the country, behind Philadelphia, Chicago, Cincinnati and Buffalo. It is currently operated by the Southern Tier Zoological Society, a nonprofit that has run the zoo's day-to-day operations under contract with the City of Binghamton since 1977.

The zoo is not currently accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums; it lost accreditation in 2014 and is now working through the AZA's Pathway Toward Membership Program to regain it. Ross Park Zoo's website lists 34 species on its grounds, set within winding wooded paths and naturalistic exhibits that replaced the concrete-and-steel-bars enclosures of decades past. The zoo shares its campus, though not its ownership, with the Southern Tier Discovery Center, a hands-on children's museum next door.

History

Erastus Ross donated the 90-acre plot that became Ross Park with instructions that it be built as a park the whole community could enjoy. Electric trolleys reached the area starting in 1887, and a line running up Park Avenue by way of the old Washington Bridge made the park easy to reach. Roller coasters, swings and other amusements helped Ross Park flourish as a recreational destination; stone entrance pillars went up in 1896, and 1919 brought both a bear exhibit and the park's carousel, which still stands today.

The rise of the automobile let residents travel outside Binghamton for recreation, and two World Wars and the Great Depression accelerated the park's decline until the U.S. Department of Agriculture threatened it with closure over substandard exhibits. In 1966, concerned residents formed the Southern Tier Zoological Society to push for upgrades. The city's budget included its first zoo-maintenance appropriation in 1972, and in 1977 the Society was granted a contract to oversee the zoo's operation and maintenance, a role it has held ever since.

The zoo received its first AZA accreditation in 1987 and was reaccredited in 1992, 1997 and 2009. It lost accreditation in December 2005, citing turmoil in its previous leadership and finances, regained it in 2009, and lost it again in 2014. Under the Southern Tier Zoological Society, the zoo has grown to house animals across naturalistic, wooded exhibits, and its conservation-education outreach now reaches more than 40,000 people across New York and Pennsylvania.

Exhibits and habitats

Ross Park Zoo's animal areas include an aviary, exhibits for red pandas, red wolves, a snow leopard, lemurs, penguins, Pallas's cats and howler monkeys, and a home for binturongs — also called bearcats, which serve as the mascot of nearby Binghamton University. The zoo's former lions' den has been renovated and repurposed for educational programs, with seating set up "behind bars" to evoke the space's original use. Just outside the zoo's entrance, a pavilion offers barbecue areas, a small park and restrooms, and the zoo's carousel remains free to ride, as Erastus Ross originally intended.

The zoo runs a calendar of annual events tied to its exhibits and mission, including Courtship Tails, Eggstravaganza, Zoo Brew & Wine Too!, Ice Cream Safari, Feast with the Beasts, Howloween at the Zoo and Boo at the Zoo.

Animal highlights

Ross Park Zoo lists at least 34 species on its website, including the African penguin, Amur leopard, red panda, red wolf, snow leopard, Pallas's cat, sand cat, binturong, black howler monkey, black-and-white ruffed lemur, Canada lynx, arctic fox, fennec fox and Geoffroy's marmoset, along with several tortoises, an owl collection that includes the barred owl and snowy owl, and smaller species such as chinchillas and a curly hair tarantula. Because some of the zoo's animals split their time between indoor and outdoor spaces depending on the weather, not every listed species is guaranteed to be visible on a given visit — the zoo's sulcata tortoise and African penguins, for example, move indoors for winter, while its arctic foxes and red pandas avoid the summer heat.

Conservation and programs

As a federally licensed facility, Ross Park Zoo is subject to USDA inspection, and its inspection reports are publicly available through the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. While the zoo works to regain AZA accreditation through the Pathway Toward Membership Program, it is recognized as a Sustainability Partner for multiple Species Survival Plan programs, the cooperative breeding effort the AZA runs to manage more than 300 species across accredited and partner facilities. The zoo participates in responsible breeding programs to support the long-term sustainability of some of the species in its care.

Visitors can round up their purchases to the next dollar at the Zoovenirs Gift Shop to support conservation, and the zoo holds periodic conservation weekends tied to awareness days such as International Red Panda Day, International Vulture Awareness Day and International Snow Leopard Day, with a portion of general admission on those days going to a matching wildlife fund.

Planning your visit

As listed on the zoo's website, Ross Park Zoo is open every day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with last admission at 3 p.m.; it closes on Thanksgiving and Christmas and may close for special events or inclement weather, so checking social media or calling ahead is worthwhile. The zoo offers a Museums for All discounted rate for guests with SNAP, EBT or WIC benefits, valid from September through Memorial Day, with up to four people admitted per card; general, group (10 or more people) and other discounted rates are also available, along with reciprocal discounts for members of other zoos.

The zoo notes that its hilly, occasionally steep terrain can be challenging for visitors with limited mobility. It does not offer motorized scooter rentals for this reason, but it does provide a limited number of free wheelchairs and offers strollers on request. A nine-passenger electric tram with a wheelchair ramp runs from April 1 through November 1 and can be reserved at least 24 hours in advance by calling the gift shop. The zoo is KultureCity Sensory Inclusive certified. Food is available seasonally at the Leopard's Spot Snack Shack, open weekends in April and May and daily from June through August, serving hot dogs, nachos and ice cream treats; there is no ATM on site, but cash and credit cards are accepted at the ticket booth, snack shack and gift shop. The zoo recommends setting aside at least one hour for a visit. As always, confirm current hours and pricing on the zoo's website before you go.