The Texas Zoo - Victoria, Texas - small public zoo with 150 animals on 6 acres

The Texas Zoo originated in 1957 when a benefactor contributed a lioness to the Mayor of Victoria. The mayor approached the Lions Club and began the long process of creating a zoo for the city. Over the years, the zoo grew from a single lion in a cage to a small children's zoo to a full-fledged zoo housing over 200 animals. In 1968, the zoo opened a new exhibit, the Animal Kingdom Building, which held over 200 animals of 85 different species. In 1976, the Animal Kingdom Building was rehabilitated and re-opened. The new exhibit included ten naturalized habitats for the animals that were then housed at the zoo. By 1983, the zoo board made the difficult decision to narrow the scope of the zoo and display only animals indigenous to Texas. The decision resulted in a tightly focused zoo that offers high quality care to all the animals currently in residence.

Today, the Texas Zoo is sited on 6 acres in Riverside Park. It houses 150 animals that are native to the state of Texas in outdoor areas enclosed by moats. The zoo exhibits a variety of indigenous animals in completely natural habitats. In addition, the Texas Animal Kingdom Building houses a variety of birds and reptiles indigenous to Texas.

The ten natural habitats encompass the many environments of Texas from humid marshlands to mountainous desert. Animals live in the habitat to which they are most suited, including alligators in the swamplands, pelicans along the coast and black bears in the forested mountains. The Texas Zoo exhibits 23 of the state's 138 indigenous mammals, including two rare cat species, margays and jaguarundis. The Zoo also houses 23 of the 540 bird species indigenous to Texas, including golden and bald eagles, brown pelicans and roseate spoonbills. In addition, the Zoo houses 35 of the state's 225 reptile and amphibian species, most of them located in the Animal Kingdom Building.

Other animals found at the Texas Zoo include armadillo, river otters, prairie dogs and many varieties of snakes. The Zoo is part of conservation efforts in captive breeding and is one of few zoos in the country that house a breeding pair of Red Wolves, which are near to extinction in the wild. The Zoo also houses other endangered species, including ocelots and coati in addition to bald eagles, margays and jaguarondi.

The Texas Zoo is available for special events, including weddings and birthday parties, as well as for group tours by arrangement. The staff is involved in a number of educational opportunities, including live animal programs for schools and lectures for adult continuing education.

The Texas Zoo is open year round. In summer, Memorial Day through Labor Day, the zoo is open from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM. In the winter, the zoo is open from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. For information about group rates, hours and reservations for special events, contact the Zoo at 361-573-7681.