Zoo Idaho is a

zoo A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for Conservation biology, conservation purposes. The term ''zoological g ...

Pocatello, Idaho Pocatello () is the county seat of and largest city in Bannock County, with a small portion on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in neighboring Power County, in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Idaho. It is the principal city of the ...

, that features animals native to the Intermountain West and has been open since 1932. The zoo has more than 100 animals representing about 40 different

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

. "It is one of two zoos in the United States specializing in animals native to the Intermountain West." Zoo Idaho is the only zoo to incorporate the

Shoshone The Shoshone or Shoshoni ( or ) are a Native American tribe with four large cultural/linguistic divisions: * Eastern Shoshone: Wyoming * Northern Shoshone: southern Idaho * Western Shoshone: Nevada, northern Utah * Goshute: western Utah, easter ...

Bannock Bannock may mean: * Bannock (food), a kind of bread, cooked on a stone or griddle * Bannock (Indigenous American), various types of bread, usually prepared by pan-frying * Bannock people, a Native American people of what is now southeastern Oregon ...

tribal culture into its program and design. The zoo itself sits on a natural landscape covering in Ross Park. For many of the exhibits there is a high

lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...

cliff as a backdrop. The cliff divides the zoo into two levels known as Upper and Lower Ross Park. It also offers

tree house A tree house, tree fort or treeshed is a platform or building constructed around, next to or among the trunk or branches of one or more mature trees while above ground level. Tree houses can be used for recreation, work space, habitation, a han ...

, high teepee, and a petting zoo area of barnyard animals. During the school year the zoo has established the Zoo Outreach Program, where employees bring a "piece of the zoo" into the classrooms of 3,000 school children each year. An additional 3,000 students visit the zoo on field trips in April and May alone. Zoo Idaho holds spring and summer programs and camps, which it holds in an outdoor classroom called the Tall Tales Tent.

Expansion plans

The zoo's 15-year plan estimates a cost of $15–$20 million. The total of Phase One will cost $2.5 million. 'Charlies' Place' will be a minimum of $1.9 million. The rest will go to the walkways, entrance, restrooms, gift shop, patio and a snack bar. Proceeds from the snack bar and gift shop will cover operation and maintenance costs associated with new and enhanced exhibits. The new

Lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, Ontar ...

exhibit is being funded by donations from the community."Pocatello Zoo." 75 Years 1932-2007 06sept2007: pg 4.

References

External links

* {{authority control Zoos in Idaho Pocatello, Idaho Buildings and structures in Bannock County, Idaho Tourist attractions in Bannock County, Idaho 1932 establishments in Idaho