Santa Barbara Zoo

Keeper Martin’s bringing out his prehensile-tailed skink friend for a special National Zookeeper Week edition of ! 🦎👅



Alt-text: Keeper Martin holds a green prehensile-tailed skink up for an admiring audience. The skink rests on the protective glove that Martin wears along his forearm and sticks its pink tongue out to gather olfactory information about its surroundings.

It’s ! 🙌🦒🦎🦅

We’re grateful to our passionate animal care team that works tirelessly 365 days a year to optimize the health and wellbeing of the animal inhabitants of the Santa Barbara Zoo.

Thank you to our keepers and keepers all across the country who have dedicated themselves to the important work of animal care, research, conservation, and public education!

Alt-text: Photos of our zookeeper team showing up for our animals with a smile! In the first, keeper Alina (right) happily cradles a Humboldt penguin chick while Director of Animal Care Rachel (left) looks on while doing the same. In the second, keeper Joe leads a keeper talk about our Amur leopards outside the big cats’ habitat. Next, we see senior keeper Ellie flicking a bit of debris off of Antonio the capybara’s snout as she hands him a leafy green snack. Finally, we stand back as keeper Meghan arcs water into the air to give Banjo the emu a hose shower.

: The orange-yellow color of Java’s beak/casque is a buildup of the preening oil secreted from a gland near the base of his tail.

Rhinoceros hornbills rub preening oil on their beak and then coat their feathers with it to condition them.

Alt-text: Java the rhinoceros hornbill gives his feathers a good preening in these pictures. In the first, he turns his head and rubs the backside of his right wing with the tip of his beak. In the second, he lifts his wing and diligently cleans the inside feathers of that wing as well.

Who told Theo, “You are what you eat?!” 🌿🦒

Alt-text: Theo the Masai giraffe getting really into his browsing. In both pictures, Theo reaches his long neck so far over to munch on leaves hanging from a feeder that he finds himself wrapped in the very branches he was reaching for!

Picture perfect purr usual! 📸🦁



Alt-text: Ralph the African lion lies atop a rockface in his habitat. He calmly looks down at our camera with all the regal coolness of a Santa Barbara lion patriarch.

Amelia the bald eagle may look rather perturbed, but believe us, she’s a happy camper! 😊🦅

Bald eagles owe their permanently furrowed brow to their accentuated supraorbital ridge. This pronounced skeletal feature just above their eyes helps these birds of prey see even in the sunniest of conditions.

Alt-text: Amelia the bald eagle perches on a branch and stares ahead. Her (unintentional) intimidating glare can be seen through the leaves of the trees in her habitat.

Hot outside? Not a problem for condors. Condors have a "unique" way of cooling off in hot weather. Known as urohydrosis, condors will urinate on their legs and cool down through the evaporative cooling process - a lot like us when we sweat!



Photos courtesy of the Santa Barbara Zoo

Mood: Tired but refusing to miss out on summer fun! 😴🤘

Alt-text: Raj the red panda fighting off the sleepies in his burlap bed up in the trees. In the first picture, we see the red panda’s head peaking out over the edge of his tree branch balanced resting place. In the second, we see Raj’s face in a close-up. His heavy eyelids look like they’re about to shut despite the arboreal critter’s best efforts to keep them open.

Just like your cats at home, lions rub their faces on objects to scent mark them! 😼

African lions produce secretions through glands within their skin, especially their face and cheeks which they rub on permanent fixtures in their environment. They do so in order to communicate information about their territory and individual identity to other members of their species.

These scent messages communicate meaning that lingers longer than the sound of roaring.

Alt-text: Felicia the African lion rubs her face on a tree in her habitat while lying leisurely. We see the well-worn bark of the tree, the color of which has darkened from the frequent scent marking of our big cats.

Kind Fest is this Friday, July 19 from 4 to 8 PM! 😊🤝😃

Celebrate kindness this weekend at Kind Fest, a brand-new family festival celebrating the importance of being kind to people, animals, and our planet!

Your ticket includes access to bounce houses, face painting, music, games, and animal encounters. Additional fees apply to attractions such as the Zoo Train, giraffe feeding, and rock wall. Special food and beverage items will also be available for purchase.

Don’t wait ‘til the last day! Get your Kind Fest tickets here: https://reservations.sbzoo.org/Policies.aspx

Alt-text: All smiles around the Zoo! In the first picture, kids have fun sliding down the Ant Hill on cardboard sleds as parents supervise. In the second, guests have a blast zipping down a bounce house slide. Finally, Zoo train engineer Dee smiles as she guides a train full of Zoo guests on a trip around the animal world.

Those bubbles… 👀

Alt-text: Poppy the capybara treads water peacefully in her pool. The big rodent keeps the top of her head above water as the bubbles reach the water's surface near her hindquarters…

Baby’s first ! 😋🍼

Alt-text: Malia the Masai giraffe wrestles with a straw of hay in these pictures. In the first, Malia wags the straw about as she pokes her tongue out of her mouth. In the second, she points her tongue to the sky as she slurps up the pesky morsel.

Slow and steady wins the race! 🏁🐢💨

Burmese mountain tortoises are slow movers. They lumber around with their spurred, scaly legs at an easy pace even when threatened by predators. When the weather’s hot, they’ll hunker down in dirt or leaf burrows.

Alt-text: Mathilda the Burmese mountain tortoise is on the move… slowly! The determined tortoise lifts her big, shelled body over a fallen branch in her habitat.

Don’t forget! Ales Saving Trails is happening this Wednesday (7/15)! 🥾🍻🌲

Join us for a “Flight Night” at Figueroa Mountain Brewing Company's Buellton Taproom. Local beers are paired with local trails, and you'll learn about the Zoo’s conservation work with monarch butterflies, sea otters, condors, and more.

𝘊𝘰𝘴𝘵: $12/𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘈 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘶𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘛𝘢𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘮 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘡𝘰𝘰’𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬.

Alt-text: A poster graphic for our Ales Saving Trails event in collaboration with Figueroa Mountain Brewing Company! To the right of the typography spelling out the event’s details, we see an animated rendition of migrating monarch butterflies.

Sometimes we wonder what the California condors are gossiping about… !

Alt-text: A pair of California condors converge on a branch in their habitat. One leans in with its beak open while the other ducks its head as if bringing its ear over to receive a whispered secret.

You would not want to challenge Bangori to an arm wrestle! 💪🦍

Western lowland gorillas are incredibly strong! They’re estimated to be able to lift up to 10 times their body weight. That’s about 4,000 pounds!

Alt-text: Bangori the Western lowland gorilla squats and snacks. He looks up at our camera as he helps himself to a handful of nutritious herbivore pellets.

: The Southern ground hornbill's long eyelashes are actually modified feathers that help shield their eyes from sunshine and dust.

A handy adaptation that helps them never drop a worm!

Alt-text: Mbali the Southern ground hornbill tosses a worm into her mouth in these pictures. In the first, the big bird holds a worm in her long beak and keeps both eyes fixed on it. In the second, she lifts her head and tosses the little worm back into her mouth.

Unbothered. Eating healthy. Well-groomed. Happy. In my lane. Manifesting abundance. ✨🐒✨

Alt-text: Jasmine the white-handed gibbon peacefully munches on greenery on Gibbon Island. She lifts a sleeve of peas up to her mouth as she stares at Zoo guests across the way.

Kind Fest is only a week away! 🎉💃

Kind Fest is a brand-new family festival celebrating the importance of being kind to people, animals, and our planet. Join the Zoo and community partners on Friday, July 19 from 4 to 8 PM for a variety of activities designed to reflect an ongoing commitment to inclusion and kindness in our society.

Your ticket includes access to bounce houses, face painting, music, games, climbing wall, and animal encounters. Additional fee applies to additional attractions such as the Zoo Train and giraffe feeding. Special food and beverage items will also be available for purchase.

During this after-hours event, most of the animals settle down for bedtime and will not be visible to the public.
For tickets and more info: https://www.sbzoo.org/events-calendar/event/4196086

Alt-text: Pictures of play around the Zoo! In the first, Zoo kids slide down the Ant Hill on cardboard sleds. Next, we see a child looking at animal artifacts including a tarantula and various animal skulls. Finally, we see guests jumping down a bounce house slide.

Have you seen? Our website's been revamped! 🧑‍💻🙌✨

A big thank you to our friends at Speak Creative for lending their sensational skills to design a gorgeous new look Santa Barbara Zoo website that’s as functional as it is fashionable!

Visit us at https://www.sbzoo.org/ to feast your eyes for yourself!

Alt-text: A screenshot of our new and improved website! We see the vibrant front page complete with Malia the Masai giraffe looking back at us.

We celebrated our first Western snowy plover release of the year yesterday! 🎉🪶

As part of our Western snowy plover conservation program, the Zoo takes in abandoned plover eggs found on Central Coast beaches. We incubate the eggs, hatch them, and then monitor the chicks’ growth until they are deemed ready to be released back into their natural habitat.

Please give a virtual round of applause to the many dedicated members of our animal care and conservation teams who provided excellent daily care to the 11 Western snowy plovers that now call Coal Oil Point home!

Alt-text: Photos from yesterday’s Western snowy plover release party! In the first, VP of Animal Care & Health Dr. Julie Barnes (left) and senior zookeeper Heather open the temporary pens for the 11 Western snowy plovers to take to the beaches of Coal Oil Point. In the second, the little birds take their first steps onto the open sands of the beach. Finally, we see one of the plovers flap its wings and kick up some sand as it explores its new home.

Two reasons to smile today:

1. You made it through another Monday.
2. Raymie’s face!

Alt-text: Raymie the Masai giraffe looks right at us as he laps up leafy browse. In between bites, the tip of his long, purple tongue hangs out of his mouth while bits of browse decorate his forehead like glitter.

What a well-mannered mammal! 🍽️🧐

Prehensile-tailed porcupines eat while holding onto food with both hands. They anchor themselves to branches with their strong tails for balance.

Alt-text: Miles the prehensile-tailed porcupine munching on a hunk of jícama. He sits upright rather daintily as he keeps his hands and feet close together while his long tail wraps around the branch behind him.

Turkey vultures may have the best sense of smell of any bird! 👃🤯

The portion of the brain responsible for processing smell, the olfactory bulb, is four times larger in turkey vultures than in their black vulture counterparts. This allows turkey vultures to smell carrion from over a mile away!

That’s one strong sniffer!

Alt-text: Veronica the turkey vulture perches nimbly on a branch. From this high-angle view, we see the red-headed vulture looking away from our camera as if distracted by a smell down below.

Join us in wishing a happy birthday to Raj the red panda! 🎂🥳🎉

Raj is celebrating his 2nd birthday today! This handsome critter joined us in Santa Barbara in 2023 and quickly became a favorite of our staff and guests alike.

Alt-text: Raj the red panda balances on a wicker platform in a tree. He grasps an herbivore in his left front paw as he enjoys a snack with an elevated view.