Milwaukee County Zoo

About Milwaukee County Zoo

Milwaukee County Zoo is a 190-acre zoo at 10001 W Bluemound Road in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, operated by the Milwaukee County Parks Commission. The zoo houses about 3,100 animals from 350 species and draws roughly 1.3 million visitors a year, making it one of the larger municipally run zoos in the country. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, and in 2017 it was among the first seven zoos certified for humane animal treatment by the American Humane Society, a program that had grown to 42 zoos and aquariums nationwide by 2025.

The zoo is home to one of the largest groups of bonobos in one place outside their native Democratic Republic of the Congo, part of a broader bonobo breeding program considered one of the largest bonobo collections in professional care in the world. It has also recorded milestones including an early captive birth of siamangs and, historically, the second captive birth of polar bears. Its best-known former resident is Samson, a locally famous gorilla who lived at the zoo from 1950 to 1981; his bones are now on display at the Milwaukee Public Museum. During World War II, the zoo's Gertie the Duck and her ducklings became a local celebrity attraction.

The zoo's exhibits are grouped loosely by geography and habitat, with major indoor buildings for primates, reptiles, and small mammals alongside large outdoor exhibit areas themed around North America and Africa.

History

The zoo traces back to 1892, when the West Park Zoo opened with small mammals and birds. It added cinnamon bears and a bear den in 1893 and an herbivore building in 1899. Renamed Washington Park Zoo in 1900, it expanded to 23 acres in 1902 and continued growing through the Great Depression, including a naturalistic bear den; by 1931 its bear collection held 37 animals. A reptile exhibit opened in 1942, and by 1947, zoo director George Speidel had begun planning an entirely new zoo.

In 1953 the institution was renamed the Milwaukee County Zoological Gardens, and fundraising began for a new facility estimated at $12.6 million. The Milwaukee County Zoo opened in 1958 at its current site with a primate building, monkey island, feline house, pachyderm mall, grizzly bear den, and a 15-inch-gauge miniature railway known as the Zoo Line, later renamed the Safari Train, which still operates with steam-style locomotives. The zoo officially opened to the public on May 13, 1961.

Subsequent decades brought a steady string of new buildings and exhibits: an aviary (1962), an Australian building (1963), the original animal hospital (1963), a small mammal building (1965), an aquarium and reptile building (1968), a children's zoo (1971), and an underwater polar bear viewing exhibit (1986). The children's zoo was renamed the Stackner Heritage Farm in 1986, adding a dairy complex celebrating Wisconsin's dairy industry. The Taylor Family Humboldt penguin exhibit, education center, and Peck Welcome Center opened in 1988. The Sterns Family Apes of Africa building followed in 1992, at a cost of $10.7 million, along with later renovations of the aquarium, reptile building, and small mammal building. Macaque Island was renamed and renovated in 2002. In 2014, the zoo announced plans for a new West Entrance, a redesigned otter exhibit, and a new parking lot tied to nearby highway reconstruction.

Exhibits and habitats

Near the main entrance, the Taylor Family Humboldt Penguin Pool holds a group of Humboldt penguins in a 15,000-gallon tank with underwater viewing glass. The Herb and Nada Mahler Family Aviary is a walk-through building with more than 60 bird species, including a cageless free-flight room, Caribbean flamingo, scarlet ibis, rhinoceros hornbill, Bali mynah, and whooping crane.

The Stearns Family Apes of Africa building houses a large troop of bonobos and gorillas with both indoor and outdoor access, while the adjacent Primates of the World gallery displays Bornean orangutans, siamang, eastern black-and-white colobus, and black-handed spider monkeys; it was long home to Samson, once the largest gorilla in professional care. Macaque Island holds a troop of Japanese macaques on a water-surrounded mountain habitat, remodeled in 2002 with an expanded viewing deck.

The Aquatic and Reptile Center holds invertebrates, fish, reptiles, and amphibians, including Chinese alligators, green anacondas, Gila monsters, king cobras, and several poison dart frog species. The Small Mammal Building, set to close in 2025, includes a nocturnal room and residents such as fennec fox, prehensile-tailed porcupine, pygmy slow loris, ring-tailed lemur, and Hoffmann's two-toed sloth.

The North America area features outdoor exhibits for grizzly bear, Alaskan brown bear, American elk, harbor seal, prairie dog, and reindeer, several arranged in "panorama" predator-prey setups using hidden moats. The Northwestern Mutual Family Farm, which replaced the Stackner Heritage Farm in 2005, focuses on native midwestern wildlife and heritage farm breeds, including Guinea Hog and Kunekune pigs and several cattle breeds. The zoo's largest ongoing project, Adventure Africa, opened in phases starting in 2019 with a new elephant habitat and Elephant Care Center, followed in 2020 by a hippo exhibit with underwater viewing; a planned third phase would convert former elephant and rhino space for black rhinoceros and scimitar-horned oryx. The Otter Passage, opened in 2018 alongside the new West Entrance, gives visitors underwater views of river otters.

Animal highlights

The zoo lists at least 350 species on its website, representing about 3,100 individual animals. Its bonobo and gorilla groups in the Apes of Africa building are a particular focus, alongside a wide-ranging Adventure Africa collection that includes African bush elephants, hippopotamuses, African lions, cheetahs, spotted hyenas, plains zebra, reticulated giraffe, and red river hogs. Asian species on exhibit include Amur tigers, snow leopards, red pandas, Bactrian camels, and domestic yaks, while South American species include jaguars, Baird's tapirs, and greater rheas.

Smaller exhibits add fennec fox, prehensile-tailed porcupine, ring-tailed lemur, and Hoffmann's two-toed sloth in the Small Mammal Building, along with Chinese alligators, king cobras, and multiple poison dart frog species in the Aquatic and Reptile Center. The Family Farm rounds out the collection with domestic breeds such as Ayrshire and Holstein Friesian cattle, Scottish highland cattle, and several pig, goat, and rabbit breeds.

Conservation and programs

The zoo describes conservation as central to its daily operations and participates in Species Survival Plans, which bring together scientists and zoo staff to coordinate breeding and management plans that protect the welfare and genetic diversity of species in professional care. It provides environments for animals ranging from Near Threatened to Extinct in the Wild, and its staff take part in wildlife conservation and research projects at local, regional, and international levels, along with funding and support for outside conservation initiatives.

Planning your visit

As listed on the zoo's website, current hours run daily from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. through October 31, shifting in November and December to shorter weekday hours with unchanged weekend hours; admission closes 45 minutes before the zoo closes, and animal buildings close 15 minutes early. The zoo is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day, and it holds several Family Free Days scattered through the year. Beginning April 21, the zoo moved to license-plate-based entry for parking rather than traditional admission booths, with payment handled on-site by QR code.

The zoo has multiple accessible entrances, elevators, accessible restrooms in most major buildings, and wheelchair and mobility scooter rentals, along with sensory bags and quiet areas developed with KultureCity for guests with sensory sensitivities. Nursing suites, including some of the first Mamava lactation suites in any zoo nationally, are located in several buildings. Dining options are spread throughout the grounds, from Café 1892 near the main entrance to seasonal food trucks and stands; Milwaukee County Transit System routes serve the zoo directly. As details such as hours, pricing, and parking procedures can change, visitors should confirm current information on the zoo's official website before visiting.