The Greenville Zoo is a small zoo

Zoo

A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....

 in Greenville

Greenville, South Carolina

-Law and government:The city of Greenville adopted the Council-Manager form of municipal government in 1976.-History:The area was part of the Cherokee Nation's protected grounds after the Treaty of 1763, which ended the French and Indian War. No White man was allowed to enter, though some families...

, South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The zoo opened in 1960, and is located at 150 Cleveland Park Drive, near Interstate 385

Interstate 385

Interstate 385 starts where it meets the Interstate 26, near Clinton and heads in a northwest direction where it ends with exit 42, near downtown Greenville. After exit 42, I-385 turns into Business Spur 385 that then promptly ends at U.S. 29 near the Bi-Lo Center in downtown Greenville. It is one...

, on a 14 acres (5.7 ha) site within Cleveland Park.

The zoo's official website

Website

A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...

 states: "A typical visit would last from an hour to an hour and 30 minutes." The zoo is next to Cleveland Park, which contains picnic

Picnic

In contemporary usage, a picnic can be defined simply as a pleasure excursion at which a meal is eaten outdoors , ideally taking place in a beautiful landscape such as a park, beside a lake or with an interesting view and possibly at a public event such as before an open air theatre performance,...

 tables throughout the site, and offers bicycle

Bicycle

A bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....

 and walking

Walking

Walking is one of the main gaits of locomotion among legged animals, and is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults over the stiff limb or limbs with each step...

 paths, tennis

Tennis

Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

 and volleyball

Volleyball

Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...

 courts, playground

Playground

A playground or play area is a place with a specific design for children be able to play there. It may be indoors but is typically outdoors...

s for children, and several shelters available by reservation. The zoo is open daily throughout the year except for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the...

, Christmas

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...

, and New Year's Day

New Year's Day

New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...

.

The Greenville Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums

Association of Zoos and Aquariums

The Association of Zoos and Aquariums was founded in 1924 and is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of zoos and public aquariums in the areas of conservation, education, science, and recreation.The AZA headquarters is located in Silver...

 (AZA).

History

The zoo was approved by the Greenville City Council in 1957 and construction was started in 1960. The zoo was opened to the public with mostly indigenous animals including bears, deer, bobcat, foxes, ducks and prairie dogs. A monkey dome was constructed in 1962, and 26 Colobus monkeys were added to the zoos residents. In the latter part of the 1960s, the zoo was fenced, walkways were paved, and chimpanzee

Chimpanzee

Chimpanzee, sometimes colloquially chimp, is the common name for the two extant species of ape in the genus Pan. The Congo River forms the boundary between the native habitat of the two species:...

 building was added to the exhibits. The zoo also added a kangaroo

Kangaroo

A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae . In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, especially those of the genus Macropus, Red Kangaroo, Antilopine Kangaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo and Western Grey Kangaroo. Kangaroos are endemic to the country...

, sea lion

Sea Lion

Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear-flaps, long fore-flippers, the ability to walk on all fours, and short thick hair. Together with the fur seal, they comprise the family Otariidae, or eared seals. There are six extant and one extinct species in five genera...

s, otter

Otter

The Otters are twelve species of semi-aquatic mammals which feed on fish and shellfish, and also other invertebrates, amphibians, birds and small mammals....

s, a macaw

Macaw

Macaws are small to large, often colourful New World parrots. Of the many different Psittacidae genera, six are classified as macaws: Ara, Anodorhynchus, Cyanopsitta, Primolius, Orthopsittaca, and Diopsittaca...

 and two leopards.

In the 1970s, Elephants were brought to the zoo.

By 1981, the zoo was home to 70 animals in 11 display areas, and was expanded from 5 acres (2 ha) to the current 14 acres (5.7 ha). In 1984, the Zoo was closed for major upgrades. It reopened in 1986 with a new education center, reptile building, gift and refreshment center, South American area, and waterfowl lagoon.

In 2002, the zoo opened the Cub Kingdom preschool playground, followed by an Asian Encounter exhibit in 2003. In 2008, the Masai Giraffe

Masai Giraffe

The Masai Giraffe or Maasai Giraffe, also known as the Kilimanjaro Giraffe is the largest subspecies of giraffe and the tallest land mammal. It is found in Kenya and Tanzania.-Description:...

 exhibit, featuring Autumn and Walter, was opened to the public.

Exhibits

The zoo features two African elephants, several primate

Primate

A primate is a mammal of the order Primates , which contains prosimians and simians. Primates arose from ancestors that lived in the trees of tropical forests; many primate characteristics represent adaptations to life in this challenging three-dimensional environment...

s, and other African animals. In addition to the wild animal exhibits, the zoo contains a farm exhibit which features domestic animals and a reptile house featuring lizards, frogs, reptiles, and snakes.

The Greenville Zoo has seen several recent animal births

Vivipary

Vivipary has two different meanings. In animals, it means development of the embryo inside the body of the mother, eventually leading to live birth, as opposed to laying eggs...

. "Triplet" baby red panda

Red Panda

The red panda , is a small arboreal mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China. It is the only species of the genus Ailurus. Slightly larger than a domestic cat, it has reddish-brown fur, a long, shaggy tail, and a waddling gait due to its shorter front legs...

s were born on June 6, 2006. A male Bornean orangutan

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean orangutan, Pongo pygmaeus, is a species of orangutan native to the island of Borneo. Together with the slightly smaller Sumatran orangutan, it belongs to the only genus of great apes native to Asia....

was born on January 23, 2006.