Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park
Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park is a world-class safari park and conservation center set to open in 2027 on 425 acres near the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. Thanks to our donors, supporters and the taxpayers of St. Louis County, the Zoo is building a destination where guests can connect to wildlife in new ways alongside a conservation center dedicated to supporting some of the most endangered species in the world.
Planned guest experiences
-
Woodland and Savanna Safaris
WildCare Park will feature two 30-minute guided tours in safari vehicles bringing guests right into the habitats of white rhinos, giraffes, zebras, antelope and other species.
-
Zoo museum
This interactive, indoor museum will be a mix of a zoo and a science center and will use technology like virtual reality to show how animals experience the world.
-
Nature play area
The northern and central areas of WildCare Park are designated for education programs, 1.5 miles of nature trails and playgrounds that will immerse children and adults into the surrounding landscape.
-
Observation tower
In the center of WildCare Park, a planned observation tower will lift guests 11 stories high to get a 360-degree view of WildCare Park, the cityscape and the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers.
-
Walking safari
Guests can walk on a path right through a habitat featuring species like the red kangaroo and wallaby with no barrier between them and the animals.
-
Public giraffe feeding
This unique animal experience will have guests at head height to giraffes. Guests can purchase greens to offer to the giraffes, getting up close to their 18-inch tongues.
The Kent Family Conservation and Animal Science Center
The Kent Family Conservation and Animal Science Center is where conservationists will work to sustain populations of endangered species, conduct research and engage in applied conservation programs. The Zoo has a long history of bringing species back from the brink of extinction, and having a facility dedicated to assuring their survival, both in human care and in the wild, is important now more than ever. This area will feature five barns and 61 acres dedicated to breeding endangered and critically endangered hoofed mammals like the Grevy's zebra, addax, Somali wild ass and mountain bongo.
WildCare Park news and announcements
September 2024: WildCare Park announces first two addax born on site
Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park reached another exciting milestone this summer when it welcomed its first two addax calves born on site less than a month apart.
Addax are a critically endangered antelope species endemic to the Sahara Desert. As few as 100 remain in the wild today.
A male, Atlas, was born Aug. 16, 2024, to parents Arwen and Arlo. In his first two months of life, he's been very adventurous. He toddled along behind mom and tried to keep up with the herd from a very early age.
Less than three weeks later Sept. 3, a female calf, Poppy, was born to Penny and Arlo. Poppy was more skilled as a “hider” calf during her first week of life, but within a few weeks became a little shadow to her big brother.
Atlas and Poppy represent an early success for the section of WildCare Park dedicated to conservation breeding of some of the world's most endangered species, The Kent Family Conservation and Animal Science Center. The Saint Louis Zoo's Saharan Wildlife Recovery Center is also actively working on addax reintroduction efforts and protecting critical addax habitats in the wild.
Both calves are healthy and thriving as the youngest members of WildCare Park's growing herd. After these births, WildCare Park is home to 14 addax, three banteng, six Grevy’s zebra and one Somali wild ass with many more species on the way.
June 2024: WildCare Park releases economic impact report
The Zoo released a new fly-through rendering of Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park and an economic impact report estimating the project will generate over $660 million in economic activity in the St. Louis region over the next decade.
Combined with the Saint Louis Zoo in Forest Park, the impact comes to more than $2.5 billion over the next 10 years.
“We are creating a place where endangered and threatened animals can thrive,” said Dwight Scott, Dana Brown President & CEO, Saint Louis Zoo. “But this report makes it clear WildCare Park will help the regional economy thrive too."
April 2024: First animal born at WildCare Park
A female Grevy’s zebra foal was born at the Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park on April 16, 2024. This foal makes history as the first animal ever born at WildCare Park!
The foal, Roxie, weighed 95.8 pounds at birth. She is doing well and bonding with her mother, Gemma, and another female zebra, Laila, in the Kent Family Conservation and Animal Science Center, a facility within WildCare Park dedicated to sustaining endangered and threatened species. Roxie’s parents are 7-year-old Gemma and 11-year-old Presley who were originally paired together at the Saint Louis Zoo in Forest Park as part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums Species Survival Plan for endangered Grevy’s zebras, a program to manage a genetically healthy population of this species in North American zoos.
January 2024: Zoo Names WildCare Park Director
Following the completion of a national search, the Saint Louis Zoo has named Sabarras George its next WildCare Park Director. He will assume the role on February 5, 2024.
“I believe that our staff, supporters and the community will really like Sabarras,” said Dwight Scott, Dana Brown President & CEO, Saint Louis Zoo. “I’m confident that he will help grow our conservation efforts and successfully lead the development of WildCare Park that will open in 2027 with amazing guest experiences.”
December 2023: Animal arrivals announced
Four critically endangered addax and two endangered Grevy's zebras now reside at Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park located in north St. Louis County. These animals are within the Dana Brown Conservation Pasture, a large natural space dedicated for breeding and conservation efforts, which is part of the Kent Family Conservation and Animal Science Center at WildCare Park. The transition area helps the animals acclimate to their new space. The two species each will have access to 10 acres of pasture once they are fully acclimated.
The zebras and addax came to WildCare Park in fall 2023 from the Saint Louis Zoo in Forest Park and from other Association of Zoos and Aquariums-accredited zoos. When WildCare Park opens to the public in 2027, more than 250 animals are expected to be living there. Acquiring animals from other accredited facilities and building appropriate animal social groups takes time. For the public opening, the focus is on endangered ungulates – hoofed mammals – as well as birds and other threatened species.
Over the last year and a half, construction at WildCare Park has consisted of demolition of a few older buildings, fence installation and grading around the perimeter of the property, restoration of 260 acres back to native grasses, construction of barns and a utility building, and renovation of the headquarters building with a new observation deck.
July 2022: Project updates
In July 2022, several updates were announced:
- Development of WildCare Park estimated to cost $230 million
- Building demolitions nearing completion and perimeter fence installation is underway
- Animals to begin arriving in 2023 for pilot pasture
- Targeting public opening for 2027
December 2020: Names unveiled
In December 2020, the Zoo unveiled the name for its 425-acre north St. Louis County property – Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park. Next, the Zoo announced a leadership gift from longtime Zoo supporters, the Kent family, to name the Kent Family Conservation and Animal Science Center located within Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park. In addition, the Zoo shared information on biodiversity studies underway in and around the Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park.
