Paws for a Moment

We recently hosted a conversation on the Indian River Lagoon with our CEO Keith Winsten and Dr. Duane De Freese, the executive director of the IRL Council and National Estuary Program . Dr. De Freese is widely regarded as a leading expert and advocate for the conservation of the Indian River Lagoon, so what came from this talk was a really interesting look at the state of the lagoon and insights on the work being done to help this incredibly important waterway. This conversation took place over Zoom, and if you want to see some of the slides and images shared by Keith and Duane – head to our YouTube channel!

Our Ambassador Animal care team has transformed a habitat in our Rainforest Revealed loop into a comfortable, natural habitat for our skunk trio, Shelley the prehensile-tailed porcupine, and Higgins the two-toed sloth.

Dr. Brian Ogle, Director of Conservation Learning & Audience Impact, walks us through all the incredible new changes coming to this department - including new camps and classes that you can join in on right now! 

In honor of #FebruBEARy, we're re-sharing our "Bringing Up Bears" episode from February 2023! Brevard Zoo's director of animal programs Lauren Hinson and Wild Florida Area Supervisor Marc Franzen shared the stories of our three Florida black bears and how our Zoo helps them live their best lives with us. 

BREAKING NEWS: Sasquatch spotted monkeying around Brevard Zoo! Word is that the creature with the big feet has been camping out in Wild Florida. Explore his campsite - or enjoy one of our Education team's fun programs!

Is it a racoon? Is it a monkey? No it's a white-nosed coati! Get to know our five-member coati band from two members of their animal care team. 

Dive into one of our best pods yet! We're "shore" you'll be enthralled as we "rays" the bar for all future episodes. 

Podcast hosts Lauren Delgado and Clarice Knelly chat over some of the top stories of 2023 at Brevard Zoo and what to look forward to in 2024. 

Learn all about our turkey flock from Wild Florida keepers Marc Franzen and Christen Carrillo!

We're joined by senior keeper and enrichment specialist Michele Quinn as we learn about ways our keepers enrich our animal residents. 

We have a new host for our podcast as Bri moves to our philanthropy department! Get to know our new communications specialist and podcast host, Clarice. 

Our Rainforest Revealed loop is home to two big cats: Masaya the jaguar and Pepper the cheetah! Yes, you read that right - a cheetah. Listen to two of our keepers share their experiences working with these incredible animals - and learn why there's a cheetah in the Rainforest!

Learn more about native gardening - at Brevard Zoo and beyond! We talk about our Restore Our Shores plant programs, orchid conservation at the Zoo, and our bees!

Brevard Zoo has been accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums since 1997. This accreditation needs to be updated about every 5 years - and we've begun the re-accreditation! Learn more about this process from our director of animal programs Lauren Hinson and curator of animals Mack Ralbovsky. 

In this week's podcast episode, we chatted with members of our DEAI - diversity, equity, accessibility and inclusion - committee. In response to society’s growing awareness of social justice issues, we established this employee-driven committee in 2020 to create positive change at the Zoo and in our community. Our work has only just begun!

Brevard Zoo is home to animal residents who could not be released back to their native range due to injuries or a connection with people. Many of those animal residents live in our Wild Florida loop, so we chatted with two Wild Florida keepers about these special animals. 

Learn all about our incredible volunteering opportunities with our director and manager of volunteer programs and internships. 

Learn more about our ever-growing  Grévy's zebra herd and their lives at our Zoo from Curator of Animals Kim Castrucci and Area Supervisor Alyssa Simon. 

With nearly 200 animal residents, our free-flight aviaries are always a fun place to visit! Join us as we learn more about all of the species that call this habitat home - and the work of their animal care staff in this week's podcast episode. 

To mark World Oceans Day (June 8) and World Sea Turtle Day (June 16), we chat with our Sustainability Manager Amy Reaume and Sea Turtle Healing Center Manager Shanon Gann about how we can protect our oceans and the creatures that call it home.