Hogle Zoo

The A. LaMar Farnsworth Primate Forest opened to the public in June 1997. The exhibit was named after the former zoo director A. LaMar Farnsworth, who served as director for 33 out of his 45 years at the zoo. The exhibit, which cost $400,000 to construct, replaced the old concrete Monkey Island exhibit. Primate Forest offers lush, naturalistic landscapes for several species of primates. Primate Forest featured three outdoor exhibits and two indoor exhibits.

When it first opened the exhibit featured capuchin monkeys, colobus monkeys, and spider monkeys. Now, it is home to colobus monkeys, spider monkeys and howler monkeys. The exhibits were specifically designed for each species. The large central exhibit for the colobus monkeys, which is 5,100 square feet and reaches a central height of 18 feet, offers trees where the primates can jump from. Each exhibit also has water features.

Primate Forest is home to colobus monkeys Sefu, Safiya, Dahlia, Violet, Pepper, and Violet's unnamed baby; spider monkeys Lemon and Ebony; and black howler monkeys Eli and Jackie.

The Great Ape Building was constructed around 1965. Today, the exhibit was designed to house gorillas and orangutans. The building consists of four indoor exhibits with two adjoining outdoor exhibits.

The Hogle Zoo is home to two ape species, three western lowland gorilla and three Bornean orangutans. The gorilla troop is composed of silverback male Husani, as well as JoRayk and her adolescent daughter, Jabali. Next door are the Bornean orangutans, Mia, Acara, and Tuah. Acara and Tuah were born at the zoo in 2005 and 2014 respectively; however, both were made orphans when their parents died three months apart in 2014. With the untimely death of his mother, Tuah had to be hand raised by zookeepers. Acara has proved to be an attentive sister and after a lot of work and training, Tuah was placed with Acara full-time in March 2015. In 2016, Mia arrived as a future breeding partner to Acara.

The Small Animal Building was built in the 1970s. The building itself features four different ecosystems, including a Tropics Zone, Temperate Zone, Desert Zone, and Rainforest Aviary. Other animal exhibits can be found outside of the Small Animal Building. The building features various reptiles, amphibians, small mammals and birds.

Temperate Zone

The Temperate Zone features animals from temperate zones around the world. The zoo's nine-banded armadillos Kirby and Penny. The zoo's rare black-footed cats and Cape hyrax can also be found in the Temperate Zone. The zoo's Siamese crocodiles Hillary and Bill live in the Temperate Zone during the winter. Other reptiles found in the Temperate Zone include a Madagascar tree boa, crested geckos, and Madagascar flat-tailed tortoises.

Desert Zone

In the Desert Zone, guests can see animals found in deserts from all around the world. A mixed-species exhibit with the zoo's African crested porcupines Jack and Blanche and two female Von der Decken's hornbills is in the Desert Zone. The Desert Zone also has two sand cats named White Cheeks and Deserae, a breeding pair of burrowing owls, and a colony of short-tailed leaf-nosed bats. A red-tailed boa, Gila monsters, and common spider tortoises are some of the reptiles in the Desert Zone. The Sonoran Desert Exhibit includes white-winged doves, cardinals, a Gila woodpecker, and masked bobwhites. The Sonoran Desert Exhibit also is the home of the desert tortoises during the winter.

Tropics Zone

The Tropics Zone features animals from rainforests around the world. In the Tropics Zone, guests can see the zoo's family of titi monkeys, a kinkajou, two Wied's marmosets, and a colony of African straw-colored fruit bats. The zone also features many reptiles including Indian star tortoises, green tree pythons, and a cottonmouth.

Rainforest Atrium

The Rainforest Atrium is a free-flight aviary. Speckled mousebirds, scarlet ibises, roseate spoonbills, superb starlings, and rose-ringed parakeets are just a few of the birds that can be found in the atrium. The Rainforest Atrium is also the winter home for the zoo's Aldabra tortoises and radiated tortoises

Elephant Encounter was completed in 2005 as a replacement to the Animal Giants Complex. Elephant Encounter features three natural outdoor exhibits. The first being a large Serengeti with a swimming channel that spans 10.5 feet deep and holds over 110,000 gallons of water. Guests can then enter the African Lodge, a 2,600 square foot open-air African structure, constructed of wood and thatch materials, which overlooks the Working Yard. Next is the Kopje, a rock structure where guests can get face-to-face to rhinoceros.[7]

The Hogle Zoo houses two African elephants and two southern white rhinoceros. The elephant herd is made up of mother-daughter pair, Christi and Zuri. Southern white rhinoceros half-siblings, Princess and George, share the habitat next door.

Asian Highlands was opened in 2006 after the old Feline Building was demolished. The $6 million exhibit depicts an Asian Highland Village with various points to view Asian cats. In 2018, a red panda exhibit was added to the front of the exhibit near the Cat Wok Café.[8]

Asian Highlands houses Siberian tigers, Nikolai and Cila; Amur leopards, DMitri, Zeya, and their two unnamed cubs; snow leopards, Chimeegui and Milenka; Siberian lynx, Koyla and Leonid; Pallas cats, Petenka and Hal; and red pandas, Lhotse and Princess Lily.

Rocky Shores is an extensive multi-animal habitat featuring bears, sea lions, seals, and otters, anchored by its state-of-the-art polar bear habitat. The exhibit is modeled after a cannery or shipping dock on the northwest coast of the U.S. After opening in 2012, the zoo welcomed back several of its most popular animals. The exhibit replaced the Bear Grotto, completely renovating the west end of the zoo.

The exhibit is home to two female polar bears, Nora and Hope. Nora was born at the Columbus Zoo in 2015, however, she was rejected by her mother and was hand raised. Hope and Nora were brought to the zoo in 2017 so that Hope could teach Nora "how to be a bear". Next door is a home for three orphaned grizzly bear siblings Koda, Dolly, and Lulu. The three were found in Yellowstone causing trouble without a mother. They were deemed too young to be released in the wild. They were brought to the Hogle Zoo in 2012. Other habitats included California sea lions, Diego and Maverick; harbor seals, Nika and Mira; North American river otters, Howard and Nessie; and rescue bald eagles, Nemo and Betsy.

In 2014, the Hogle Zoo opened the $16 million African Savanna. The first habitat is a 4.5-acre rolling grassland, dotted with trees, and includes a watering hole. The habitat features reticulated giraffe, Hartmann's mountain zebra, ostrich, warthog, Egyptian geese, and guinea fowl. Guests can get a great view of the savanna from Twiga Terrace. The exhibit also offers a place for guests to feed and interact with the giraffes. The Savanna also has an exhibit called Lion's Hill. The exhibit allows guests to come face to face with lions. A training fence where guests can watch as keepers feed and train the lions. The whole exhibit is bordered by a train dubbed the Zoofari Express.

African Savanna is home to a breeding herd of reticulated giraffes, consisting of male Riley, his daughter Georgetta, and breeding female Minka; a breeding herd of Hartmann's mountain zebra, composed of male Scooby, and females Ziva, Poppy, and Zibby; ostrich brothers, Yellow and Blue; lone warthog, Swifty; and a flock of guinea fowl. Lions Hill features brothers Baron and Vulcan, sisters Busela and Nobuhle, and Baron and Nobuhle's daughter, Calliope.

Riding on the Hogle Zoo train

Princess Alice, a female Asian elephant, was the zoo's most famous and biggest attraction during the early 1900s. She came to the zoo, which at the time was located in Salt Lake City's Liberty Park, in 1916. Schoolchildren donated nickels and pennies to raise $3,250 to buy Princess Alice from a traveling circus called Sells-Floto Show Company. She was a big hit among Utahns. In 1917, a year after her arrival, the zoo built a building to house her in. Princess was the biggest draw for the small Salt Lake City zoo.

On April 29, 1918, Princess Alice gave birth to a male named Prince Utah. Utahans were thrilled with the news as he was the first elephant to be born in Utah. However, he died a year later on March 14, due to injuries he suffered after his mother rolled over him.

Utahans were upset after Princess Alice repeatedly broke free from her enclosure. This prompted the zoo to relocate. The Hogle family donated 42 acres of land at the mouth of Emigration Canyon in 1931. In July of that year, the zoo built its new elephant building with a safer and larger exhibit for Princess Alice. The building was dedicated to the children of Salt Lake City. The zoo opened later that year on August first. On August 14, 1932, a relief carving of Princess Alice was unveiled. It was donated by J. R. Fox, a local Utah sculptor.

In 1947, Princess Alice went on a rampage throughout the zoo grounds. She ripped up concrete, fountains, and an elm tree. After a few hours, she calmly returned to her exhibit. In 1953, Princess Alice was euthanized after becoming ill at the approximate age of 69. Princess Alice is one of the most famous animals in the zoo's history. She played a vital role in Utah's history as well.

Shasta, who was born on May 6, 1948, was one of Hogle Zoo's most famous animals. She was the first liger born in America. Her mother was Daisey, a tiger, and her father was Huey, a lion. The two had been raised together, and that was why the zoo was able to breed them. Shasta weighed just over a pound at birth. However, her mother rejected her, and therefore she was hand raised. Shasta was a huge draw at the zoo. She was the reason for the zoo's success during the mid-1900s. Without her, Hogle Zoo may have gone out of business. Every year, the zoo held birthday parties for her. This drew in large crowds. After she died in 1972, she was sent to a taxidermist to be stuffed. Her body can now be seen at the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum at Brigham Young University. At 24 years, Shasta holds the world record for the longest-lived liger in history.[9]

Gorgeous, a female western lowland gorilla, was one of the zoo's most famous animals. Gorgeous came to Hogle Zoo in 1985 from the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado. She was caught in the wild in 1949 when she was only an infant. Gorgeous was very popular among guests, as she constantly interacted with them. However, Gorgeous lived alone because she did not get along with other gorillas. Therefore, she never had any offspring. In 1990, Gorgeous became world-famous as she was the first gorilla ever to receive cataract surgery. Dr. Allan Crandall, an ophthalmologist at the University of Utah Medical School, performed the surgery and implanted a lens into Gorgeous's eye. Gorgeous died in 1999 at the age of 50 and was the oldest living female gorilla at the time. She died of age-related problems. Since Gorgeous was popular among guests and staff, a bronze bust of her was made and displayed near the outside ape exhibits. This statue can still be seen today.

Dari lived to be the oldest living African elephant in the world. She lived to the age of 55 and died due to age-related problems. Dari was loved by guests and staff alike. She was known for her caring attitude toward the other elephants in her herd.

Daphne was the oldest living giraffe in the world. She came to Hogle Zoo in 1985 from the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. She had nine calves at the zoo. Daphne died at the age of 31, which is double the average lifespan for giraffes.[10]

In 1997, Tino, a 450-pound male western lowland gorilla, attacked and bit Robert Pratt, the zoo's team leader for primates. Tino gained access to a room which Pratt was cleaning after a door was left open. Pratt was knocked down by the gorilla and suffered some bite wounds. Pratt was OK and returned to work soon after the incident.[13]

In 1999, two zookeepers were attacked by three chimpanzees after a man failed to close the gate to their indoor enclosure. Two chimpanzees were shot and killed and a third was contained and was sent to a zoo in Kansas. Both zookeepers were severely injured.[14]

In 2011, four spider monkeys escaped from the outdoor enclosure. The four primates did not travel far and were coaxed back into their exhibit by zookeepers. No one was harmed in the situation.[15]

Bear Grotto was constructed in the late 1950s in the western area of the zoo. The exhibit consisted of two concrete enclosures for the zoo's polar bears. In 1995, Andy, a male polar bear, came to Hogle Zoo from the Buffalo Zoo on a breeding recommendation. In November 1996, Chinook, the zoo's 20-year-old female polar bear, gave birth to twins. Andy was the father. The cubs were named Koluk and Kiska. Visitors were very excited about the birth of the cubs. Guests could not see the cubs, however, until the spring of the next year. On December 12, 2000, Chinook gave birth again to a female cub. Andy had sired the cub. Web-users were able to see two video clips of the mom and her cub. The cub was named Anana. Anana was not out on display until mid-April the following year. In December 2002, Chinook was euthanized because of her failing health. Chinook was 25 years old at the time. In November 2003, Andy died.

In July 2002, Dale, a female black bear, went on display in Bear Grotto. She was an orphan that was rescued from Minnesota. In 2003, Cubby, a male black bear, moved to Hogle Zoo from the Chahinkapa Zoo in North Dakota. Then in 2004, Tuff, a male black bear, came to live at Hogle Zoo. Tuff was born at a private breeder's farm in Missouri. He was then sold illegally. However, he was confiscated by officials and moved to a licensed facility. Tuff moved to Hogle Zoo shortly after. All of the black bears were moved to the Oregon Zoo because Hogle Zoo was going to start construction on their Rocky Shores exhibit.

In the late 1950s, the zoo constructed an exhibit for cougars. Large red cement rocks were made to mimic their natural habitat. The zoo's two cougars were orphaned brothers. Snow leopards were held in the exhibit at some point in time.

Between the cougar exhibit and Bear Grotto, a summer enclosure was built for the zoo's tortoise collection. Kronk and Isma, the zoo's large Aldabra tortoises, took residence in the exhibit. In 2004, the exhibit was renovated for the arrival of four endangered Chacoan peccaries. The renovated exhibit featured tunnels and dens for the South American pigs.

In 1964, The sea lion pool was built. In 1996 the sea lion pool was renovated to house endangered black-footed penguins. Hogle Zoo had fourteen penguins: Hardy, Gia, Puff, Rocky, Bluebird, Blackbird, Whitebird, Greenbird, Newton, Dancer, Scrappy, Sooty, Flap and Shaker. In 2002, three chicks were born. The exhibit consisted of rocky shoreline, a pool, a nesting area, and an indoor area for the birds.

In 2002, two female red pandas made their debut in the red panda exhibit behind Penguin Cove. The outdoor exhibit featured a large tree for the red pandas to climb and an indoor room for them during hot summer months. The indoor room was visible to guests. The red panda encounter was reopened with the debut of the Asian highland exhibits. This has come to include an outdoor viewing area and an indoor viewing area inside the small animal building.

A group of llamas lived in a large outdoor exhibit next to Penguin Cove. A bridge that went over Emigration Creek, near the red panda enclosure, led guests to the llama viewing. Near the llama viewing, guests could see the indoor penguin exhibit. Before construction on Rocky Shores started, the llamas were moved to the old bighorn sheep exhibit on the south pathway.

The savanna exhibit was split into two parts: the savanna and the zebra enclosure. At the bottom of a hill was the actual "savanna". This section included two Cuvier's gazelles, an addax and a springbok. The savanna had two viewing points. One of them looked out onto the savanna, but it did not view the entire savanna. The other viewing point was from on top of an elevated walkway. The walkway was not wheelchair accessible. This viewing point gave you a bird's eye view of the savanna. There were many hiding spots for the animals, so guests were not able to see all the animals.

At the top of the hill was the zebra exhibit. This exhibit featured two Grevy's zebra: Taji and Monty. A gully provided as a natural barrier between the guests and the animals. The zebras had a small water hole in their exhibit. That water hole fed into a waterfall. The waterfall trickled over a ledge into the savanna exhibit below. The zebras were kept at night in around shed. In 2010, both Taji and Monty died unexpectedly. Tests could not give a clear reason why the two zebras died. After the death of Taji and Monty, three ostriches, a father and his two sons, went on display in the old zebra exhibit. Their names were Red, Yellow, and Blue. Two of the same ostriches can be found in the new African Savanna that opened in 2014.

Guinea fowl and two Egyptian geese, Sassy and Yellow, had free range of the north-west end of the zoo. They could often be seen in the zebra or savanna exhibits. More guinea fowl and the same Egyptian geese live in the new African Savanna Exhibit.

In 1969 the unique two-story Giraffe Building was constructed. The giraffe building was not safe. In the early 1990s, two giraffes were euthanized after breaking legs on slippery floors. In 1994, the USDA cited the zoo because it failed to maintain structures in good repair at the Giraffe Building. The zoo was also cited in 1994 after failing to correct previously identified violations of peeling paint that could be ingested by the giraffes. In 2002, Sandile, a 7-year-old male reticulated giraffe, died after getting his neck stuck in a fence. In 2004, Ruth, a 26-year-old female reticulated giraffe, was euthanized after complications of a fractured leg. The zoo could not identify whether the broken leg was related to the building. Several giraffes died at Hogle Zoo, however, not all were building related. The zoo paid in all $50,000 to ensure that the Giraffe Building was USDA approved. After the African Savanna was opened in 2014, all of the zoo's giraffes were moved to a new state-of-art giraffe house. The old Giraffe Building was turned into the zoo's Maintenance Building, and it no longer houses animals.

The Feline Building, which opened in 1970, consisted of a series of concrete cages for big and small cats. The building housed lions, tigers, jaguars, a serval, an Arabian wildcat, ocelots, sand cats, black-footed cats, and other cats. In 1995, the cages were renovated. Renovations included fabricated trees, rock work, and recirculating water. Murals were added in 1996. The renovations cost $1,400. In 2005, construction started on the Asian Highlands, the renovated Feline Building. Asian Highlands features realistic outdoor habitats for cats of Asia.

The Hippo Building was located where the Conservation Carousel is today. It was built in the mid-1970s. The building was home to one male hippo named Moe. Moe had a 30,000-gallon pool. Moe shared the building with a breeding pair of black-footed penguins. On the outside of the building, there were exhibits for the zoo's Siamese crocodiles, Hillary and Bill. The crocodiles were moved to the Small Animal Building in 2003. Moe moved to the Rio Grande Zoo in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Hippo Building was torn down a couple of years later for the construction of the new carousel.

In 1981, for the Hogle Zoo's fiftieth anniversary, the Animal Giants Complex was built. The exhibit was built to house the zoo's elephants, Dari, Kali, Twiggy, Toni, and Toka, and the zoo's white rhinos, Princess and George. Naturalistic outdoor enclosures were not only built for the zoo's pachyderms but for ostriches and tortoises too. The Animal Giants Complex was renovated for Elephant Encounter which opened in 2005.

Central Zone was in between Desert Canyon and the Great Apes Building. Central Zone was home to the zoo's Bactrian camels. During the summer of 2012, the Gobi, an arthritic male camel, was euthanized due to his great pain. He lived with another camel, named Mabel, who was then sent to the San Diego Zoo to be with other camels and so the zoo could start construction on the African Savanna exhibit.

In the late 1980s, construction on Discoveryland began. Discoveryland was the first exhibit built at Hogle Zoo to resemble animals' natural habitats. The exhibit displayed animals of the Americas. The exhibit was constructed in the eastern part of the zoo. It was built in five phases. Discoveryland was torn down in order to build the zoo's, African Savanna.

Woodland Edge

Woodland edge was the first phase of Discoveryland. Woodland Edge consisted of two naturalistic exhibits. One exhibit housed the zoo's bald eagles. Their names were Sam and Betsy. The other exhibit housed a bobcat. When construction on Rocky Shores started, some of the animals from the construction zone had to be moved to Discoveryland. The exhibits in Woodland Edge were renovated to house them. Two orphaned mountain lion siblings moved into where the bobcat used to be, and a family of endangered charcoal peccaries moved into where the bald eagles were. New exhibits were built for the eagles and bobcat on the zoo's south pathway.

Knoll and Burrow

Knoll and Burrow was phase two of Discoveryland. Knoll and Burrow was a very innovative exhibit. The exhibit mimicked a cave on the American prairie. On the outside, visitors could see exhibits for a colony of prairie dogs, a stripped skunk and a rabbit. Inside were exhibits for a cacomistle, short-tailed leaf-nosed bats, a flying squirrel, blind cave fish, and other animals like scorpions. Inside the cave, guests could look through plexiglass to get up-close views of the outside exhibits.

Marsh Aviary

The Marsh Aviary, also known as Woodland Pond, was phase four of Discoveryland. Guests could walk out onto a boardwalk over the pond. In the pond, the zoo kept a group of injured American white pelicans, a breeding pair of mute swans, a greylag goose, and a snow goose. Also in the pond were other North American duck species. Visitors could pay twenty-five cents to feed the birds.

Desert Canyon

Desert Canyon was the fifth and final phase of Discoveryland. Large red stone rocks were constructed of fabricated rock, lath and rebar over three concrete and block buildings. A concrete gun was used to build a reddish-color cement-like compound, which was then hand-troweled for the rock-like appearance. As visitors followed a somewhat narrow path, they saw two exhibits. Originally they were for fennec and kit foxes, but over the years an ocelot and a coati were housed in the exhibits. Next visitors saw an aquarium which housed native Utah fish species like June suckers. On top of a small mesa, angora goats and Navajo sheep lived overlooking an Anasazi cliff dwelling. Before construction on the new African Savanna started, an old angora goat and a few Navajo sheep moved into the old bighorn sheep exhibit on the south pathway. Other small glass exhibits housed Harris antelope squirrels, armadillos, a screech owl, a long-eared owl, an American kestrel, mourning doves, ring-necked pheasants, Bullock's orioles, and ravens. Desert Canyon also housed a small amphitheater. Live animal shows were held there.

Tropical Gardens, the zoo's greenhouse, featured several traveling exhibits each summer. Some of the more famous exhibits include Madagascar! (2009), Ghost of the Bayou (2007 and 2008), and Outback Adventure (2002-2004).

Hogle Zoo has featured several animated dinosaur exhibitions. The two most recent exhibitions were Zoorasic Park (2011) and Zoorasic Park 2 (2015).

Every year during the late winter, the zoo features the World of the Wild Art Show. This indoor exhibition shows animal art by various artists.

The Great Ape and Primate Forest Expansion will be the biggest project Hogle Zoo still has to undertake. The project will modernize the exhibit space for the zoo's gorillas, orangutans, and smaller primates. As part of the plan, the zoo hopes to exhibit different species together. For example, the zoo wishes to introduce its colobus monkeys in with the gorilla troop. Another plan combines the zoo's spider and howler monkeys in with other South American species like tapir and capybara. This idea of mixed-species exhibits will not only stimulate the animals, but it will give guests an idea of how these animals live in the wild. Primates and apes travel long distances in the wild. Therefore, another plan for the expansion is to have overhead chutes connect several exhibits to allow the animals to move to different exhibit spaces. This feature would give the animals choice as they would have in the wild. The Great Ape and Primate Forest Expansion will also allow better viewing opportunities for the guests.

The Diversity of Life and Education building will be the zoo's new Small Animal Building. Located where the old Beastro and RendeZoo building are today, the new exhibit will feature the animals from the Small Animal Building as well as new small animals. The current Small Animal Building was built in the 1970s and is dated. The new building will have better space for both animals and guests.

The building will be three stories high. The first two stories will be dedicated to animals. The third floor will be used by the education staff. On the south side of the building, there will be a three-story rain forest exhibit featuring free-ranging primates and birds. Other possible exhibits may include a Madagascar exhibit. Funding for the exhibit has already begun and the project is scheduled to be done by 2022.

After the current Small Animal Building is demolished, the zoo will build a new building that will feature traveling exhibits. When the new Beastro restaurant was built in 2014, the Tropical Gardens exhibit, which featured the zoo's traveling exhibits, had to be destroyed. The new building will be bigger than Tropical Gardens. This will allow for larger traveling exhibits

The Asia Expansion will include minor renovations to the current Asian Highlands exhibit as well as construction on more exhibits above Asian Highlands. Better exhibits for the zoo's Asian goats as well as exhibits for other Asian species will be a part of the construction. The construction will also include improvements to the South Pathway.