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SAMANTHA’S LEGACY OF HOPE
Our lowland gorilla Samantha died in March, 2020 at age
50. She was loved by staff and visitors alike, and played
a giant role in steering our focus toward animal care ex-
cellence. Because of her, we built America’s first outdoor,
barless, naturalistic gorilla habitat in 1978. She inspired
the trajectory toward animal care excellence we are still
on today, and so it is fair to say Gorilla World is part of
Samantha’s legacy at our Zoo.
ACCESS FOR ALL DAY
CELEBRATES INCLUSION
In June of 2019, more than 6,500 visitors came to check
out what the Zoo has done to make sure people of all
abilities feel welcome. In partnership with Cincinnati
Children’s Hospital Medical Center, our commitment to
“Access for All” created significant upgrades to programs
and facilities, including staff inclusion training, family re- tion Partnership, a program designed to rescue and treat
strooms with adult changing tables, sensory maps, skip-
the-line access pass, visual supports, and sensory bags
filled with fidgets, noise canceling headphones, sunglass-
es, etc. New sensory gardens were installed to give vis-
itors a place to sit when feeling overwhelmed, and we
are particularly proud of two new calming rooms – one
on either side of the zoo. Access for All day also included
booths hosted by 40 other community organizations that
focus on families and individuals with disabilities. It’s all
part of our commitment to being the most welcoming zoo
in the nation!
We are the best zoo in the nation. We
will show the world what a zoo can be.
We will save species, inspire guests and
celebrate all that we have accomplished
– together.
FIONA AND FRIENDS HELP
AUSTRALIAN WILDLIFE
In February 2020, the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden
raised $207,000 to help care for koalas, kangaroos and
other animals in Australia that were suffering as a result
of bushfires raging through their homes. The gift to Zoos
Victoria came from private donations, a $5K donation
from the Zoo and, primarily, proceeds from the sale of
a Cincy Shirts t-shirt designed by local artist Loren Long,
featuring the Zoo’s famous hippo Fiona and her friends
down under. Just one way our Zoo is contributing to wild-
life conservation around the world.
MOVING MANATEES
In a single day in 2019, we transferred two manatees to
Florida and brought one back to the Cincinnati Zoo as part
of our participation in the Manatee Rescue & Rehabilita-
sick, injured and orphaned manatees and then release
them back into the wild. On October 15, Miles and Mat-
thew were accompanied by two Zoo staff members on a
flight from Cincinnati to SeaWorld Orlando. Hours later,
another rescued orphan, Truffleshuffle, began his journey
back to Cincinnati to be rehabilitated. It takes planning,
cooperation, and plenty of muscle power to move mul-
tiple manatees between facilities that are hundreds of
miles apart, but the Cincinnati Zoo has been doing just
that for the last 20 years.
CULTIVATING MORE THAN A GARDEN
With a total of 112 acres of garden beds, habitat landscap-
ing and off-site properties at Bowyer and Mast Farms that
include wetlands, prairies and nursery areas, the Zoo’s
gardens are spectacular. It’s a lot of work – from design
and plant propagation to installation and maintenance –
but our horticulture team doesn’t stop there. They share
their expertise with hundreds of people each year through
presentations and symposiums, and in 2019, through a
new Plants for Pollinators Challenge to the community.
With 50 like-minded partner organizations, the Zoo chal-
lenged folks in the Tri-State to increase habitat for pollina-
tors in their yards or on their patios. Over 1,160 pollinator
gardens were registered last year, exceeding the original
goal by over 100%! Pollinators play a crucial role in the hu-
man food chain and including important pollinator plants
in the Zoo’s gardens and encouraging our community to
do the same is a way we can cultivate a healthier planet.
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