Tag archives: zoo

Our tony town’s party animals were out en masse for Santa Barbara Zoo’s sold-out 38th annual Zoofari “Jungle After Dark” with more than 750 guests converging on the 30-acre hilltop menagerie housing more than 600 animal inhabitants and raising around $700,000. Like fireflies in the night, the creatively costumed guests – covert camouflage, jungle jewels, […]

Four new members have joined the board of directors of Santa Barbara Zoo. Mitch Avila, Sarah Berkus Gower, Bob Looney, and Robyn Parker are the Fab Four who work together to serve and support the 30-acre menagerie’s mission and dedication – to preservation, conservation and enhancement of the natural world and its myriad treasures through […]

Long serving Santa Barbara Zoo President and CEO Rich Block is retiring in January after 27 years leading the 30-acre menagerie through the most transformative period in its history. Rich is the zoo’s second director succeeding the late Ted McToldridge, who retired in 1997. The zoo’s board of directors has formed a transition committee, and […]

Our tony town’s party animals were out en masse for Santa Barbara Zoo’s sold-out 37th annual Zoofari “Sparkle & Shine” gala with more than 800 guests converging on the 30-acre hilltop menagerie housing more than 600 animal inhabitants and raising more than $400,000. Like fireflies in the night, the creatively costumed guests unleashed their inner […]

The party animals were out in force for one of Fiesta’s most popular parties, Celebration de Los Dignatarios, when a record 1,600 guests converged on Santa Barbara Zoo to raise more than $100,000 split equally between Old Spanish Days and the charming 30-acre menagerie. KEYT-TV weather anchor Christa Kurkjian was on hand to do a […]

Santa Barbara Zoo has added four new members to its board of directors – Yvette Birch Giller, Angela Sanchez, Bradley Vernon, and Karen Wintringham. Giller is president of the Mosher Foundation, which supports nonprofit organizations in our Eden by the Beach within the areas of education, healthcare and the performing arts. She has also served […]

On honeymoon in March 2022 with his partner Patrick, photographer-musician Andrew Antone’s safari journey turned into a project to bring awareness to the natural world and wildlife he encountered through his camera lens. After pooling through 11,094 images, he selected 500 images for his book, and 32 photos for his exhibit at the Santa Barbara […]

The party animals were out in force when Santa Barbara Zoo held its 36th annual sold-out Zoofari gala with an Enchanted Forest theme, with the 712 guests taking the theme to heart with colorful, creative costumes more befitting Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings, and the Harry Potter novels as they converged on the […]

Melissa Walker is Santa Barbara Zoo’s new Director of Advancement. With more than 15 years of fundraising experience, Melissa brings extensive expertise in nonprofit leadership to the 30-acre menagerie. “As a zoo member with a young son, my visits have been a favorite weekly activity for my family,” says Melissa. “I’m overjoyed to be part […]

The animals must have been wondering what was going on when the air filled with bubbles at the Santa Barbara Zoo. Not to worry! The Zoo had loaned part of their grounds to benefit Gwendolyn’s Playground. That is something to look forward to in the next year or two. It’s an all-inclusive playground built for […]

If you visit the Zoo and blink your eyes, you may think you’re “down under” in Australia. Our Santa Barbara Zoo has some new critters in the new Australian Walkabout Habitat: Bennett’s wallabies, western gray kangaroos, and emus. The grand opening was in January, 2022 and the exhibit is 15,000 square feet where you can […]

Click. Click. Click. My wife is normally annoyed by my obsession with my Nikon camera, but this time she was shushing me for good reason. I was in Max’s crosshairs. He knew I was taking photos of his absolute adorableness. So, he calmly turned around and seemingly posed. I was soooooo hoppy. (Listen, I live […]

Pardon the dad joke, but it’s not every day that kangaroos move into one’s backyard — but the bouncy beasts have arrived at the Santa Barbara Zoo. Three male Western grey kangaroos — Max, Aspen, and Coolibah — complete the new inhabitants of the 15,000-square-foot Australian Walkabout at the Zoo, slated to open on January […]

Ellie Cullip didn’t hide her emotions as she peeked at the nine Western snowy plovers getting acclimated to their new environment at the Coal Oil Point Reserve near UCSB’s campus. The Santa Barbara Zookeeper was just moments away from seeing this gaggle of plovers released by fellow keepers Stephen Haug and Katie Kranda, both taking […]

Lions and tigers and zebras, oh my! Yes, the Santa Barbara Zoo was back, wilder than ever for the XXXV Zoofari ball. This year’s theme was “Return to Basecamp” and all the safari clothes and animal prints came out of the closet. Rincon Events was back serving up a spread at “camp” along with sunset […]

Just weeks after announcing the addition of a rare baby Amur leopard named Marta, the Santa Barbara Zoo has announced that both of its endangered female giraffes are pregnant. Adia is due in January 2022 and Audrey is expected to give birth in July 2022. Michael, the Zoo’s adult male, is the sire of both. […]

The party animals were out in force, vaccination passports in hand, when the Santa Barbara Zoo hosted Zoofari Ball XXXV Return to Basecamp, attended by more than 630 supporters and raising nearly $200,000 for the popular menagerie. Guests in their safari gear and Harrison Ford lookalikes joined the party on the hilltop for sunset cocktails, […]

Less than a year since the Santa Barbara Zoo welcomed a baby lion, the nonprofit has added a new member to the family, Marta, a 517-gram Amur leopard born on August 6 — the first birth for this endangered species in more than 20 years at the zoo. Much like Pauline the lion, Marta will […]

So, who’s throwing the baby shower? The Santa Barbara Zoo announced that Ajax, a female Amur leopard, is pregnant — the first time for the critically endangered species in more than 20 years for the Zoo. As the most endangered of all big cats, the conservation efforts are critical, so this news sent positive shockwaves […]

It’s not too big of a stretch to suggest that a lot of people probably felt like they might never get out from under the “new reality,” what with several surges and multiple levels of lockdown over the past 15 months. But the folks over at the Santa Barbara Zoo are emerging from the COVID […]