Animal Park NC

05/28/2026

Bear Dingo loves to get outside and make the most of sunny days.

Honestly, same, buddy.

Who's with us? Saturday is looking sunny, 70s, and so perfect for visit to the Animal Park!

Choose the tour type that's right for you: Family Adventure, Adult Adventure, Twilight Tour, or our brand-new Big Cat Express.

Learn more and book your time now at https://animalparknc.org/tours.

Experience all the Animal Park has to offer!

05/26/2026

Spotted (and striped): two very special sets of siblings celebrating birthdays this week!

Mojo, Obi, and William Servals (pictured with late brother Sammy) turn 18 today, and Parker, Hobbes, and Kaia Tigers will be 5 years old tomorrow.

Across their years at the Park, they've helped thousands of guests learn about—and make a stronger connection with—wild species. We're grateful for each day with these beautiful brothers and sister! 🥳🎉💛

05/22/2026

It's World Goth Day … and it's Friday, and we're in love with our goth-coded melanistic residents!

OK, so maybe we had to back into that one a bit, and we're open to debate on the finer points of goth vs emo. But really, every day at the Animal Park is a day to honor our beautiful black-coated creatures, including those with the genetic mutation of melanism: (clockwise from top left) Geoffroy's cats Vitor and Tango and leopards Bagheera and Violet.

One of the most common questions we get during tours is "Are Bagheera and Violet black panthers?" Well, yes and no. A "black panther" isn't a distinct species but rather a colloquial name for a melanistic leopard or jaguar.

Whatever you call these strange and unusual animals, come visit them soon on a tour of the Park!

05/20/2026

Hobbes Tiger takes life at his own relaxed pace, but sometimes humans are in a hurry.

Are you short on time … or tolerance for hot weather? Starting this weekend, you can still see several of our most iconic species with a Big Cat Express tour!

This new summer-only experience introduces you to our lions, tigers, and leopards—plus a few cool canid species—in around 45 minutes. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for kids 3+, and $10 for seniors.

Big Cat Express is just a taste of our full Adventure or Twilight tours, so you'll have plenty more animals to admire (and fascinating facts to learn) on a future visit.

Book now at https://animalparknc.org/tours/.

05/19/2026

Can you spot Mr. Hiss?

Even the Animal Park's smallest residents, like our charismatic western hognose snake, need enrichment! Mr. Hiss seemed pretty pleased with the new sensory experience provided by honeycomb packing paper.

H**p lovers: What's your favorite enrichment for reptilian friends?

05/14/2026

We appreciate the guesses from yesterday's "Whose snoot?" pop quiz!

Tapir, capybara, grizzly bear ... all reasonable proposals. But if you guessed leopard—our beloved melanistic Bagheera, to be precise—you were right on the nose!

Visit Bagheera and our other residents on a tour this weekend. Book now at https://animalparknc.org/tours/.

05/13/2026

Who's the proud owner of this supremely boop-able snoot? Guess the species—and for bonus points, the animal! Creative answers welcome.

Stuck? Check back tomorrow for the ID.

05/12/2026

🛠If you've visited us lately, you've likely seen all the maintenance and improvements our facilities team and other staff and volunteers have been working on—for animal and human spaces alike. That's a lot of lumber, tools, and supplies to haul around the Park and pick up from other locations when needed.

So, moving to the No. 1 slot on our wish list is ... a truck! If you or someone you know have a used pickup in good, safe running condition (age and appearance not important) that you'd consider donating, we'd be so grateful to hear from you! Can you help us spread the word? 🙏

05/06/2026

What animal is one of only two carnivores with a prehensile tail, helps regenerate rainforests in Southeast Asia—and, oh yeah, smells just like buttered popcorn? 🍿

Meet the binturong!

On behalf of our beloved Sash (and all the other members of this fascinating species we've been grateful to provide a home for over the years), we join with ABConservation - Arctictis binturong Conservation to honor World Binturong Day this Saturday.

Visit ABConservation's website or join us for a tour to learn more about binturongs, their important role as a keystone species, and what we all can do to help protect them. https://animalparknc.org/tours/

05/03/2026

This International Leopard Day, we honor Bagheera (left) and Violet (right) as well as their wild counterparts, listed as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Leopards may be the smallest of the four big cats (after tigers, lions, and jaguars), but as apex predators, they play an outsized role in maintaining biodiversity in their native habitats.

Learn more about the why's—and how's—of protecting leopards through the work of organizations like .