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The Staten Island Zoo is a small urban zoo in northern Staten Island in New York City in the United States.
The zoo opened in 1936 in Barret Park. But zoo construction commenced in 1933 as part of the Federal Government’s works program on an eight-acre estate willed to New York City. The land was willed to the City of New York by Mrs. Edward E. Hardin and reconstructed into a zoological park during the Great Depression by the Work Projects Administration. It was considered the first "educational zoo" in the nation when it opened, a status that it has maintained with an active outreach program.
Initially the focus of the zoo was reptiles, in particular including the collection of snakes housed in the zoo's Serpentarium. Although the focus of the zoo has broadened, the zoo's collection of rattlesnakes is still regarded as among the largest and most complete in North America. The current collection comprises over 858 animals of over 222 different species. Among the zoo's current exhibits is the African Savannah at Twilight. The zoo is also the home of Staten Island Chuck, a groundhog who is the official Groundhog Day forecaster for New York City.
The zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
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Zoos, aquaria and aviaries |
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