Woodland Park Zoo
A community resource for more than 100 years

For more than 100 years, Woodland Park Zoo has been a cherished community resource and a unique urban oasis. Generations of Puget Sound families have come to the zoo to marvel at the animals and be inspired by the peaceful and beautiful surroundings.

Woodland Park Zoo encompasses 92 acres and features more than 1,090 individual animals representing nearly 300 species. The grounds are divided into what are known as bioclimatic zones, the unique habitats around the world, from tropical rain forests to the frigid climes of the Far North.

Establishment
Among its distinctions, Woodland Park Zoo is one of the oldest zoos on the West Coast. In the late 1880s, Guy Phinney, a wealthy sawmill owner, purchased a large tract of forest land about six miles north of downtown Seattle. On December 28, 1899, several years after Phinney’s death, the City of Seattle purchased the estate for $100,000. For more detailed information on the zoo's history, visit the History Section of our site.

Collection
The zoo manages the largest live animal collection in Washington state, with approximately 1,100 specimens representing nearly 300 species including invertebrates. The zoo provides a home for 35 endangered and five threatened animal species. The zoo’s botanical collection includes 7,000 trees and more than 50,000 shrubs and herbs representing more than 1,000 species. For more information about our animals, visit the Animal Facts section.

Woodland Park Zoo Management
In 2002, the City of Seattle transferred management and financial responsibility of Woodland Park Zoo to the Woodland Park Zoological Society. Founded in 1965, the nonprofit Society initially served as the zoo’s fundraising partner, but over the years has taken on an increasing number of responsibilities, such as marketing and membership. A 49-person volunteer Board of Directors governs the Zoo Society with with 10 Board committees providing forums for information sharing between the Board and staff for various areas of zoo administration. The President and CEO reports to the Board and supervises all zoo staff. The City of Seattle continues to own the zoo grounds exhibits and buildings.

Membership
Since 1985, the zoo’s membership has grown exponentially—by over 300% —and in just the last four years, by over 21%. With about 37,000 member households, the zoo boasts one of the highest membership base among Puget Sound area attractions and museums. Membership dues support top-notch animal care, operations, exhibit improvements, conservation projects around the world and education programs. For more information about zoo membership, visit the Membership Section.

Attendance
The zoo serves a large regional audience and is a major Washington state attraction, drawing more than a million visitors annually. Attendance in 2009: 1.2 million visitors (peak months are May through September).

Community Access Programs
Woodland Park Zoo annually provides 40,000 complimentary tickets to more than 300 King County social service organizations for individuals that may be limited in their ability to pay admission fees through our Community Access program. These agencies serve homeless shelters, food banks, senior centers and homes, minority programs, disabled and mental health facilities, low-income youth centers and more. We also bring thousands of school children to the zoo each year through our School-to-Zoo program.

Conservation
Through funding provided by the zoo's Wildlife Conservation Fund-Grants Program and the contributions of zoo members and donors, the zoo is supporting conservation of wildlife, preserving fragile habitats, and increasing public awareness for wildlife and environmental issues. The zoo currently partners with 38 field conservation projects taking place in more than 50 countries. These include some of the smallest life forms--the endangered Oregon silverspot butterfly--to the largest mammals on land, the African elephant. For more information, visit our Conservation Section.

Education
With a mission of education and conservation, the zoo is a platform for educational purposes and participation in global efforts to understand and protect the world’s animals and their habitats. As a vital resource, the zoo serves tens of thousands of students and teachers across the state each year. In 2008, more than 400,000 visitors participated in the zoo’s public programs and nearly 70,000 students, teachers and chaperones visited the zoo in school groups. The many educational elements at the zoo--camps, visitor experiences, school programs, interpretive signage, volunteer activities and Zoomazium programs--serve to illustrate the importance that conservation plays in our mission. For more information on zoo programs, please go to the Education and Programs section.

Financial
Woodland Park Zoological Society manages the daily operations of the zoo while the land and facilities are owned by the City of Seattle. The City of Seattle (including the Pro Parks Levy) provides 36% of the zoo's support; admissions, enterprise sales and private contributions provide the remainder. The zoo also continually raises additional funds to improve exhibits and buildings. 

Staff
There are approximately 253 year-round, full- and part-time employees plus 82 seasonal full and part-time employees in departments such as administration, admissions, animal health, animal management, commissary, creative services, education, exhibits improvement, horticulture, maintenance, planning and development, marketing, membership, public relations and guest services.

Volunteers
In 2008, more than 750 zoo volunteers donated more than 72,000 hours of service to the zoo, valued at more than $1 million dollars as an in-kind donation. In addition, 12 community and corporate groups (800+ individuals) contributed more than 4,300 hours to the zoo, resulting in the annual contribution of more than 76,000 volunteer hours.

Award-winning Exhibits and Programs
The zoo has garnered six major exhibit awards by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (formerly the American Association of Zoos & Aquariums): Jaguar Cove, Trail of Vines, Northern Trail, Tropical Rain Forest, Elephant Forest and African Savanna. In addition, we have numerous awards for our breeding programs.

In education, our Wild Wise statewide schools program and our Maasai Cultural Interpreter program have both won awards from AZA.