The Racine Zoo is a 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....

 situated on 32 acres (129,499.5 m²) on the shore of Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...

 in Racine, Wisconsin

Racine, Wisconsin

Racine is a city in and the county seat of Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. According to 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city had a population of 82,196...

. With more than 100 species of animals, the zoo's collection focuses on species native to Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

, including a room dedicated to reptiles and amphibians indigenous to the state.

World Animals

• Red kangaroo
  Red Kangaroo
  The Red Kangaroo is the largest of all kangaroos, the largest mammal native to Australia, and the largest surviving marsupial. It is found across mainland Australia, avoiding only the more fertile areas in the south, the east coast, and the northern rainforests.-Description:This species is a very...
  
  
• Common Wallaroo
• Straw-colored Fruit Bat*
• Blue-eyed Black Lemur
• Black-handed Spider Monkey
• White-handed gibbon
• Orangutan
  Orangutan
  Orangutans are the only exclusively Asian genus of extant great ape. The largest living arboreal animals, they have proportionally longer arms than the other, more terrestrial, great apes. They are among the most intelligent primates and use a variety of sophisticated tools, also making sleeping...
  
  
• Hoffmann's Two-toed Sloth
  Hoffmann's Two-toed Sloth
  Hoffmann's two-toed sloth is a species of sloth from Central and South America. It is a solitary nocturnal and arboreal animal, found in mature and secondary rainforests and deciduous forests...
  
  
• Prehensile-tailed porcupine
  Prehensile-tailed porcupine
  The prehensile-tailed porcupines or Coendous are a group of arboreal porcupine found in Central and South America. They are closely related to the other Neotropical tree porcupines and these three are sometimes treated as subgenera of Coendou instead of distinct genera.-Characteristics:Among the...
  
  
• Andean bear
• Brown-nosed coati
  Coati
  Coatis, genera Nasua and Nasuella, also known as the Brazilian aardvark, Mexican tejón, hog-nosed coon, pizotes, crackoons and snookum bears, are members of the raccoon family . They are diurnal mammals native to South America, Central America, and south-western North America...
  
  
• Striped skunk
  Striped Skunk
  The striped skunk, Mephitis mephitis, is an omnivorous mammal of the skunk family Mephitidae. Found over most of the North American continent north of Mexico, it is one of the best-known mammals in Canada and the United States.-Description:...
  
  *
• Slender-tailed meerkat
  Meerkat
  The meerkat or suricate, Suricata suricatta, is a small mammal belonging to the mongoose family. Meerkats live in all parts of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana, in much of the Namib Desert in Namibia and southwestern Angola, and in South Africa. A group of meerkats is called a "mob", "gang" or "clan"...
  
  
• Transvaal Lion
  Transvaal Lion
  The Transvaal Lion , also known as the Southeast African Lion, is a subspecies of the Lion that lives in southern Africa, including Kruger National Park. It is named after the Transvaal region in South Africa. Like all lions , the male has a mane. The lionesses do most of the hunting...
  
  
• Amur Tiger
  Amur Tiger
  The Siberian tiger , also known as the Amur tiger, is a tiger subspecies inhabiting mainly the Sikhote Alin mountain region with a small subpopulation in southwest Primorye province in the Russian Far East. In 2005, there were 331–393 adult-subadult Amur tigers in this region, with a breeding adult...
  
  
• Canada Lynx
  Canada Lynx
  The Canada lynx or Canadian lynx is a North American mammal of the cat family, Felidae. It is a close relative of the Eurasian Lynx . Some authorities regard both as conspecific. However, in some characteristics the Canada lynx is more like the bobcat than the Eurasian Lynx...
  
  
• Eastern Black Rhinoceros
  Eastern Black Rhinoceros
  The Eastern Black Rhinoceros is also known as the East African Black Rhinoceros. It is a subspecies of the Black Rhino...
  
  
• Damara Zebra
  Burchell's Zebra
  Burchell's Zebra is a southern subspecies of the Plains Zebra.-Range:Formerly Burchell's zebra ranged north of the Vaal/Orange river system, extending northwest via southern Botswana to Etosha and the Kaokoveld, southeast to Swaziland and Kwazulu-Natal...
  
  
• Grant's Zebra
  Grant's Zebra
  The Grant's Zebra is the smallest of six subspecies of the Plains Zebra.-Distribution:The distribution of this subspecies is in Zambia west of the Luangwa river and west to Kariba, Shaba Province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, north to the Kibanzao Plateau. In Tanzania north from...
  
  
• 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:...
  
  
• West Caucasian tur
  West Caucasian Tur
  The West Caucasian tur is a mountain dwelling goat antelope found only in the western half of the Caucasus Mountain range....
  
  
• Ankole-Watusi (cattle)
  Ankole-Watusi (cattle)
  The Ankole-Watusi is a breed of cattle originally native to Africa. Its large, distinctive horns, that can reach up to from tip to tip, are used for defense. Ankole-Watusis weigh from . Living in the savannas and open grasslands, their diet consists of grass and leaves...
  
  
• Linne's two-toed sloth*
• Springhaas*
• Fennec Fox
• Fossa
  Fossa (animal)
  The fossa is a cat-like, carnivorous mammal that is endemic to Madagascar. It is a member of the Eupleridae, a family of carnivorans closely related to the mongoose family . Its classification has been controversial because its physical traits resemble those of cats, yet other traits suggest a...
  
  

Amphibians

• Tiger salamander
  Tiger Salamander
  The Tiger Salamander is a species of Mole Salamander. The proper common name is the Eastern Tiger Salamander, to differentiate from other closely related species.-Description:...
  
  *
• Greater Siren
  Greater Siren
  The greater siren is an eel-like amphibian. The largest of the Sirens, they can grow from to in length. They range in color from black to brown, and have a lighter gray or yellow underbelly....
  
  
• American toad
  American toad
  The American Toad is a common species of toad found throughout the eastern United States and Canada. It is divided into three subspecies—the Eastern American Toad , the Dwarf American Toad , and the rare Hudson Bay Toad...
  
  
• Marine toad
• Pickerel frog
  Pickerel Frog
  The Pickerel Frog is a small North American frog, characterized by the appearance of seemingly "hand-drawn" squares on its dorsal surface.-Distinguishing features:...
  
  
• Red-eyed tree frog
• Grey tree frog
  Grey tree frog
  The Gray Treefrog or Gray Tree Frog, is a species of small arboreal frog native to much of the eastern United States and southeastern Canada....
  
  

Fish

• Klunzinger’s wrasse
  Thalassoma rueppellii
  Thalassoma rueppellii, or Klunzinger's wrasse, is a species of fish in the Labridae family....
  
  
• Red Sea sailfin tang
  Red Sea sailfin tang
  The Red Sea sailfin tang or Desjardin's sailfin tang is a marine reef tang in the fish family Acanthuridae. They originate in the lagoons and reefs of the Indian Ocean from the southern Red Sea to KwaZulu-Natal Province in South Africa and as far east as India and Java. They may live at water...
  
  
• Beau Gregory damselfish
  Damselfish
  Damselfish comprise the family Pomacentridae except those of the genera Amphiprion and Premnas. They can grow up to long. While most are marine, a few species inhabit the lower stretches of rivers in freshwater. Damselfish usually have bright colors. in tropical coral reefs, and many of those are...
  
  
• Three-stripe damsel
• Domino damsel
• Heniochus
  Heniochus
  Heniochus is a genus of fish in the family Chaetodontidae. The Moorish idol, Zanclus cornutus is similar in appearance but unrelated.-Species:* Pennant coralfish Heniochus acuminatus Linnaeus, 1758...
  
   butterflyfish
  Butterflyfish
  The butterflyfish are a group of conspicuous tropical marine fish of the family Chaetodontidae; the bannerfish and coralfish are also included in this group. Found mostly on the reefs of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans, there are approximately 120 species in 10 genera...
  
  
• Blonde naso tang
• Miniatus Grouper
• Volitan lionfish
• Odonus niger trigger

Birds

• Ostrich
  Ostrich
  The Ostrich is one or two species of large flightless birds native to Africa, the only living member of the genus Struthio. Some analyses indicate that the Somali Ostrich may be better considered a full species apart from the Common Ostrich, but most taxonomists consider it to be a...
  
  
• Emu
  Emu
  The Emu Dromaius novaehollandiae) is the largest bird native to Australia and the only extant member of the genus Dromaius. It is the second-largest extant bird in the world by height, after its ratite relative, the ostrich. There are three subspecies of Emus in Australia...
  
  
• African penguin
  African Penguin
  The African Penguin , also known as the Black-footed Penguin is a species of penguin, confined to southern African waters. It is known as Brilpikkewyn in Afrikaans, Inguza or Unombombiya in Xhosa, Manchot Du Cap in French and Pingüino Del Cabo in Spanish...
  
  
• White-breasted Cormorant
  White-breasted Cormorant
  The White-breasted Cormorant is a member of the cormorant family Phalacrocoracidae. It is sometimes treated as a subspecies of the Great Cormorant, in which case it is referred to as Phalacrocorax carbo lucidus. However some authorities The White-breasted Cormorant (Phalacrocorax lucidus) is a...
  
  
• American white pelican
  American White Pelican
  The American White Pelican is a large aquatic bird from the order Pelecaniformes. It breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Central America, in winter....
  
  
• Cattle egret
  Cattle Egret
  The Cattle Egret is a cosmopolitan species of heron found in the tropics, subtropics and warm temperate zones. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Bubulcus, although some authorities regard its two subspecies as full species, the Western Cattle Egret and the Eastern Cattle Egret...
  
  
• Lesser Adjutant
  Lesser Adjutant
  The Lesser Adjutant, Leptoptilos javanicus, is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It is a widespread species which is resident breeder in southern Asia from India east to southern China and Java....
  
   stork*
• Marabou stork
  Marabou Stork
  The Marabou Stork, Leptoptilos crumeniferus, is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It breeds in Africa south of the Sahara, occurring in both wet and arid habitats, often near human habitation, especially waste tips...
  
  *
• Black swan
  Black Swan
  The Black Swan is a large waterbird, a species of swan, which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. The species was hunted to extinction in New Zealand, but later reintroduced. Within Australia they are nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon climatic...
  
  
• Helmeted guineafowl
  Helmeted Guineafowl
  The Helmeted Guineafowl is the best known of the guineafowl bird family, Numididae, and the only member of the genus Numida...
  
  
• Indian peafowl
  Indian Peafowl
  The Indian Peafowl or Blue Peafowl is a large and brightly coloured bird of the pheasant family native to South Asia, but introduced and semi-feral in many other parts of the world...
  
  
• Guam Rail
  Guam Rail
  The Guam Rail, Gallirallus owstoni, is a flightless bird, endemic to Guam. The Guam Rail, which is locally known as the Ko'ko' in Chamorro, disappeared from southern Guam in the early 1970s and was extirpated from the entire island by the late 1980s...
  
  *
• White Cockatoo
• Cockatiel
  Cockatiel
  The Cockatiel , also known as the Quarrion and the Weiro, is the smallest cockatoo endemic to Australia. They are prized as a household pet and companion parrot throughout the world and are relatively easy to breed...
  
  
• Yellow-crowned Amazon
  Yellow-crowned Amazon
  The Yellow-crowned Amazon or Yellow-crowned Parrot , is a species of parrot, native to the tropical South America and Panama. The taxonomy is highly complex, and the Yellow-headed and Yellow-naped Amazon are sometimes considered subspecies of the Yellow-crowned Amazon...
  
  
• Western Rosella
  Western Rosella
  The Western Rosella Platycercus icterotis, less commonly known as the Stanley Rosella, Earl of Derby's parakeet or Yellow-cheeked parakeet, is the smallest species of rosella and is found in the South West of Australia. in Eucalypt forests and timbered areas. These are smallish parrots measuring ...
  
  
• Budgerigar
  Budgerigar
  The Budgerigar , also known as Common Pet Parakeet or Shell Parakeet informally nicknamed the budgie, is a small, long-tailed, seed-eating parrot, and the only species in the Australian genus Melopsittacus...
  
  
• Lady Amherst's pheasant
  Lady Amherst's Pheasant
  The Lady Amherst's Pheasant, Chrysolophus amherstiae, is a bird of the order Galliformes and the family Phasianidae.These are native to south western China and Myanmar, but have been introduced elsewhere, and have established a self-supporting, but now declining, feral population in England, the...
  
  
• Golden pheasant
  Golden Pheasant
  The Golden Pheasant or "Chinese Pheasant", is a gamebird of the order Galliformes and the family Phasianidae...
  
  

Reptiles

• American alligator
  American Alligator
  The American alligator , sometimes referred to colloquially as a gator, is a reptile endemic only to the Southeastern United States. It is one of the two living species of alligator, in the genus Alligator, within the family Alligatoridae...
  
  *
• Ornate box turtle
  Ornate box turtle
  The Ornate box turtle is one of only two terrestrial species of turtles native to the Great Plains of the United States. It is one of the two different subspecies of Terrapene ornata. It is the state reptile of Kansas...
  
  
• Blanding's Turtle
  Blanding's Turtle
  Blanding's turtle is a semi-aquatic turtle of the family Emydidae. It is considered to be an endangered species throughout much of its range.-Taxonomy:...
  
  
• Common Musk Turtle
• Desert tortoise
  Desert Tortoise
  The desert tortoise is a species of tortoise native to the Mojave desert and Sonoran desert of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. They can be located in western Arizona, southeastern California, southern Nevada, and southwestern Utah. The species name agassizii is in honor of...
  
  *
• Tokay gecko
  Tokay gecko
  The Tokay Gecko is a nocturnal arboreal gecko, ranging from northeast India and Bangladesh, throughout Southeast Asia, Philippines to Indonesia and western New Guinea. Its native habitat is rainforest trees and cliffs, and it also frequently adapts to rural human habitations, roaming walls and...
  
  
• Bearded dragon*
• New Guinea ground boa*
• Western fox snake
• Kenyan sand boa*
• Andean milk snake
  Lampropeltis triangulum andesiana
  The Andean Milksnake, Lampropeltis triangulum andesiana, is an alpine subspecies of milk snake. These colorful snakes are covered in stripes of red, black, and yellow, often with black speckles on each scale. At up to long, this is one of the two largest subspecies of milk snake.-Range:Milk...
  
  *
• Bullsnake
  Bullsnake
  The bullsnake ' is a large non-venomous colubrid snake, widespread in the central part of the United States, northern Mexico, and southwestern Saskatchewan and Alberta Canada. It is currently considered a subspecies of the gopher snake '...
  
  *
• Timber rattlesnake
• Eastern massasauga
• Columbian red-tailed boa

(*) Denotes education program animals not normally on exhibit

The zoo's grounds are also home to a playground, a children's zoo, and a hands-on discovery center; free Sunday band concerts and the Animal Crackers Jazz Series are held during the summer. The Racine Zoo operated as a free-admission attraction until January 2007, when fiscal needs required the introduction of an admission fee.

External links

• Racine Zoo website