SPRING 2020 UPDATE
Heart of the Oregon Zoo Campaign
C A M PAIGN UPD ATE
A New Zoo Awaits You We’re on our way with the Heart of the Oregon Zoo campaign and looking forward to a strong finish as members, donors and sponsors join in to transform the zoo like never before. Exciting, expanded habitats for chimpanzees, black rhinos and polar bears have already received nearly $3.5 million in donor support. Together, we strive to reach and hopefully exceed our goal of $8.5 million by July 2021. On your next zoo visit, you’ll see the shape of things to come. With enrichment features designed to encourage natural behaviors like waterfalls, streams and mud wallows — people are going to see chimpanzees and rhinos in a new way. At Polar Passage, inspiration awaits guests who will watch polar bears swimming, grooming and napping like they do in the wild. Thanks to the generosity of zoo friends, these innovative new spaces will have a powerful impact on the life of each individual animal. The zoo’s metamorphosis began in 2008, when voters approved a bond measure to improve animal welfare and enhance essential infrastructure. With your help, we can reach the finish line and transform more than 40% of our 64-acre zoo!
We are in the final phase of construction for Primate Forest, an expanded rhino habitat and Polar Passage. Generous donors, members and corporate partners are funding special features that further enrich these innovative habitats.
POLAR PASSAGE
2021
PRIMATE FOREST
2020
RHINO HABITAT
2020
CO MPLETED EDUCATION CENTER ELEPHANT LANDS
2017 2015
CONDORS OF THE COLUMBIA
2014
PENGUINARIUM FILTRATION
2012
VETERINARY MEDICAL CENTER
2012
We’re in the home stretch!
In addition to support for these new habitats, generous donors are investing $5 million in strategic programs.
O U R S TO RY IN NUMBERS
Heart of the Oregon Zoo $8.5 Million Campaign FY18 – FY21
$3,500,000
$2,000,000
$2,000,000
$1,000,000
HABITATS POLAR PASSAGE, PRIMATE FOREST, RHINO HABITAT
EDUCATION PROGRAMS
CONSERVATION LOCAL AND GLOBAL
ANIMAL CARE AND WELFARE
INVESTING IN ANIMAL HABITATS AND STRATEGIC PROGRAMS
D E A R ZO O FRIEND S, As we were putting the finishing touches on this newsletter, the world around us changed. We are all in the midst of a global health crisis. We certainly miss seeing our friends walking through the zoo observing elephants, spotting red pandas, exploring and discovering. During these uncertain times, we can all be assured that the zoo’s dearly loved animals are all doing well, thanks to a team of dedicated, talented people. We hope you and your families are well and taking care of each other — we will get through this together. While our expert care staff tend to the needs of our animals, Oregon Zoo Foundation’s Heart of the Oregon Zoo campaign has received strong early support, and we’re well on our way. Together, we’re building a new zoo for you and for future generations — a place where friends and family gather to learn about the natural world and create lifelong memories. A successful Heart of the Oregon Zoo campaign will provide direct support for programs and experiences that inspire 1.5 million guests each year. Today, a new zoo is nearly a reality because of people like you who believe in our work — people who believe it is possible to inspire and mobilize humanity to love and act for wildlife. We hope you find this campaign update newsletter inspiring. Please stay in touch, and we look forward to seeing you again when our zoo re-opens. With gratitude,
Julie Fitzgerald, Executive Director
Raimond Grube, Chair, Board of Trustees
Polar Passage includes a display honoring the legacy of Conrad and Tasul, remarkable siblings who lived at the Oregon Zoo for 29 years and made amazing contributions to our understanding of their species in the wild. They were the first polar bears to allow voluntary blood draws, which taught us about the species’ nutritional ecology. Conrad and Tasul helped us convince field biologists that the Oregon Zoo had something real to contribute and that we could do it in a way that protected each individual animal’s welfare.
POLAR PASSA GE
A World-Class Home for Polar Bears Takes Shape Imagine a sunny summer day at the Oregon Zoo — the sort of brilliant, blue-sky day that brings thousands of visitors through our gates. All are eager to see a favorite animal or spend time with their family making memories. Imagine stepping through the main entrance and being transported to places near and far.
Cross the suspension bridge along Black Bear Ridge, where Takoda, an American black bear, lazes in a pile of soft straw bedding. Listen to the sounds of water running over rocks; hear the endless stream of questions from child to parent as river otters Tilly, Flora and Hobson frolic and a beaver named Filbert patiently gnaws a branch. Stroll past living dinosaurs, the Pacific lamprey and the California condor. Continue your trek beyond Trillium Creek Family Farm, to the heart of your zoo where an amazing transformation is happening. Foundations have been laid; expanded and enriching spaces are emerging for our animals — sparking exciting visions of the zoo’s full potential in animal welfare, conservation and education. Incredible new habitats, once imagined in architectural renderings, are becoming a reality. In a large field across the path, Asian elephant Samudra forages, much like he would in the wild. Through the earth beneath his feet run 160,000 feet of coiled pipe. This oversized “slinky” is part of an elaborate underground geothermal loop that, when complete, will help keep the elephant herd warm and the polar bears cool.
CENTRAL PLAZA
“This system works the same way as your household refrigerator,” said Jim Mitchell, zoo construction manager. “The condenser that cools the coils in your refrigerator produces heat, which is expelled away from the coils with a fan. Our system has just added another step: capturing that heat for use
Polar Pas
Polar Bear LSS Arctic Science Center
Headland Viewing
Polar Bear Holding
Headland Habitat
Polar Bear Backyard
Meadow Ridge Habitat
Central Plaza Viewing
Stories from the Ice
Chimpanzee Overlook
ssage - Illustrative Site Plan
Meadow Ridge Viewing
Cave
Underwater Viewing
The Oregon Zoo’s efforts on behalf of polar bears offer hope in a time of change. Loss of sea ice is displacing these charismatic marine mammals and threatening biodiversity in fragile ecosystems. With Polar Passage, we’ll all have a unique opportunity to better understand wild polar bears and inspire action.
Polar Passage is designed so keepers can conduct training sessions in places where guests can watch, ask questions and interact. We’re bringing behindthe-scenes experiences out front for our visitors!
Energy Efficient “Slinky” System
elsewhere rather than blowing it all away.” Sustainable innovations abound in your zoo. When Polar Passage opens, a day in the life of the polar bears will include something fundamental for thriving animals: choice. The bears will be able move from pools of varying depths to digging pits, climbing structures and hilltop vistas. Natural substrates designed specifically for bears are everywhere, and saltwater pools will help keep skin and fur healthy. A shaved-ice machine will pump out mounds of snow-like flakes for year-round enrichment. While thriving in their worldclass accommodations, Oregon Zoo polar bears will also play an important role in global efforts to save this species. In the Arctic, scientists and wildlife experts need to understand how bears are
responding to rapidly changing conditions. Since some aspects of polar bear biology are virtually impossible to study in the wild, Oregon Zoo bears — as we know from our past success — can offer important insights field biologists could never gather without our help. With Polar Passage, we will all have a unique opportunity to better understand wild polar bears and inspire action. “A lot of this work has been made possible by donors,” said Amy Cutting, who oversees the zoo’s North America and marine mammal areas. “That was a heartwarming thing for us, to see how many people believe in what we’re doing.” Cutting, like all of us, looks forward to welcoming these charismatic animals back to the Oregon Zoo.
WHAT’S N EX T?
To The Finish Line! “In a space more than twice as big as before, this habitat will let rhinos be rhinos,” said general curator Bob Lee. “With more room to roam and mud wallows to help them cool off and protect their skin from sun and insects.” He added that new viewing spaces will allow guests to have unique encounters with this critically endangered species.
Over at Primate Forest, workers are building up the terrain for a waterfall and stream, and installing climbing structures, all of which are exclusively funded by donors. Indoors, the chimpanzees will enjoy features like termite mounds and another climbing structure with places to nest 30 to 40 feet high, offering opportunities to behave as they would in the wild. Chimps will have choice about where to be and what to do each day. And visitors will be able to observe from several vantage points, creating myriad connections with these remarkable and highly intelligent animals.
For project manager Kate Giraud, a highlight of working on this project is imagining what it will be like for the animals to live in these beautiful habitats. “This is going to be such an unbelievable change for them — it is pretty monumental,” she said.
A financially sustainable zoo begins with you. Community support is critical to our success — your generosity can fuel innovation, build lifelong connections with guests, and make high-impact conservation initiatives possible. Join us and be a champion for wildlife! If you have questions about the Heart of the Oregon Zoo campaign or would like to become more involved in building a vibrant future for the Oregon Zoo, call 503-505-5494 or email do-more@oregonzoo.org.
YOU Are the Heart of the Oregon Zoo! The Heart of the Oregon Zoo Campaign is so important because the campaign bolsters our incredible work caring for all the animals here in our zoo, and our work to save their wild relatives around the world.
Without our help, it’s hard to imagine where chimps in the wild will be in 20 years. The new Primate Forest habitat will mean more people will be inspired to take action to help save this species.
DR. DON MOORE, ZOO DIRECTOR
ASABA MUKOBI, SENIOR KEEPER
Our zoo is a place of learning — a place to inspire change. My heart is with our entire zoo, because it is part of my family’s story!
I am thrilled to be a Polar Passage donor! Our zoo is a community treasure and our impact goes way beyond these walls.
TRACEY CLARK, OREGON ZOO FOUNDATION DONOR & BOARD MEMBER
ROB ERICKSON, OREGON ZOO FOUNDATION DONOR & BOARD MEMBER
In the new habitat, for the first time, our zoo visitors can get up close to the rhinos and keepers at the new training wall area. They’ll see a rhino eating, using the top lip almost like a finger to pull food into its mouth, while big rhino ears are scanning everywhere. Through personal experiences and connections to animals, our guests will be inspired to become tomorrow’s conservation leaders. BOB LEE, GENERAL CURATOR
Save the Date for Zoo Rendezvous! Friday, September 25 at the Oregon Zoo Join us for a fabulous evening and a chance to celebrate the Heart of the Oregon Zoo. Raise your paddle and support the incredible transformation taking place at your zoo. We can’t wait to see you there!