Phoenix Zoo to debut newest expansion, Predator Passage, next month
Oct 17, 2023, 4:15 AM | Updated: 8:18 am
PHOENIX — Predator Passage, Phoenix Zoo’s latest expansion, is set to open next month, bringing new animals to the Valley.
The $8.5 million, six-acre expansion in the zoo’s Africa Trail exhibit will debut Nov. 20. Admission is included with a general zoo ticket.
“We are thrilled to welcome these incredible animals to the Phoenix Zoo and Predator Passage,” Phoenix Zoo President and CEO Bert Castro said in a press release.
“Our goal is to create an immersive experience for our guests, allowing them to connect with these species on a personal level and become inspired and motivated to care for them and their wild counterparts.”
What animals are coming to Phoenix Zoo’s Predator Passage?
Boboo, Phoenix Zoo’s male lion, will be getting some female friends.
Lionesses Kamara and Zuri, who are 5-year-old sisters, will make their way from the Pueblo Zoo in Colorado.
Spotted hyenas Tamu and Taki will come from across the country to Phoenix from Busch Gardens in Tampa, Florida.
Jasper, an Amur leopard, is part of one of the most endangered species of big cats. The two-year-old’s old home is at the Greenville Zoo in South Carolina.
Red river hogs Olive and the aptly-named Pugsley will arrive from the Kansas City Zoo. Olive is a 9-year-old female while Pugsley is a 5-year-old male.
There are also plans to bring a group of meerkats to Predator Passage. A group of three 8-year-old brothers will arrive first before the zoo likely bringing in females.