Go Wild! Alabama Wilds Now Open!

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The highly anticipated completion of the Junior League of Birmingham – Hugh Kaul Children’s Zoo is now open to the public. The $4 million project rounds out exhibits dedicated to urban and rural animals of the state and features a total of 20 permanent and rotating animals. Guests can unearth our state fossil, basilosaurus, watch playful river otters and beavers under water and get eye to eye with venomous snakes. They’ll see animals from Alabama back yards including skunks and opossum and the wildest regions of Alabama like bald eagles, bobcat and grey fox and take rides in goat-pulled wagons.

Zoo officials hope guests will walk away with an appreciation of Alabama’s biologically diverse wildlife and a desire to conserve natural resources. Visitors will embark on a journey of discovery, one that passes from the big city to grandma’s country house, and deep into Alabama Wilds. Along the way, they’ll learn that what people do can have a significant impact on the lives of the animals that make Alabama Wilds their home.

This year heralds the Birmingham Zoo’s 50th Anniversary and its 5th as an independent, not-for-profit entity. The Children’s Zoo is the culmination of work that began with the privatization of the Zoo in 1999. Regaining its accreditation in 2001 was the second milestone achievement toward becoming the “New Birmingham Zoo”. As a private entity, Birmingham Zoo, Inc. (BZI) is governed by a Board of Directors that works with the Zoo staff to implement a master plan which includes renovation and expansion of the Zoo, and the fundraising to support it.

“Building a special children’s area was the agreement we made with the Alabama Zoological Society when they turned their assets over to BZI, and this is what people said they wanted at the Birmingham Zoo when we surveyed them,” said Colin Luke, current President of the BZI Board of Directors and a founding member of BZI. “Our partnership with the Junior League of Birmingham and extraordinary commitments from the Hugh Kaul Foundation, the Robert Meyer Foundation, the Alabama Power Foundation, and so many others, made it possible for the Birmingham Zoo to create a world-class Children’s Zoo.”

The Alabama Wilds provides visitors will first-hand natural views of many animals that reside in the wild areas of our state, including river otters and beavers, eagles, Sandhill cranes, bobcats, foxes, opossums, skunks, raccoons, snakes, spiders, turtles, and more. A discovery trail takes visitors along a realistic journey – a footpath with the sights and sounds of animals, birds, and flora of Alabama, where they will discover GiGi Logan’s House (Grandma’s back porch, her garden and chicken coop), the Jane Brock Research Cabin (a trapper’s cabin filled with wildlife specimens and more),The Wachovia Bald Eagle Exhibit, the EBSCO Industries Wetlands area, and the spectacular Alabama Power River Otter Exhibit. Throughout the Alabama Wilds visitors will learn important conservation lessons about the broad and diverse array of wildlife indigenous to our state.

Architects for the entire Children’s Zoo project were Giattina, Fisher, Aycock Architects, and construction management was provided by Hoar Construction; both firms are headquartered in Birmingham. The first phase of the Children’s Zoo won architecture awards after its 2002 opening. This phase provides visitors with an 18-foot high replica of “Red Mountain;” a wooden bridge; a fish-eye view of an Alabama stream; interactive fountains for children to play in; a custom-built endangered species carousel; a Southern yellow pine barn filled with cows, goats, sheep, pigs, geese and many interactive opportunities. When guests are ready to relax and have lunch or a snack, they can rest in the shade of a huge arbor and dine inside or out at the KudZoo Café.

Admission to the Children’s Zoo is included in the regular Zoo admission. Tokens are purchased separately for the Goat Pull, the Carousel or the Zoo train. Zoo Membership provides free daily admission to the Birmingham Zoo, invitations to special Members-only events, and many other benefits throughout the year.

Download the Alabama Wilds brochure (.pdf format).