Sacramento Zoo to get white rhinoceros in preview of animals for potential facility in Elk Grove
A white rhinoceros will be arriving at the Sacramento Zoo sometime next year as a preview of the rare and endangered species to be housed in a new facility as zoo officials continue working on plans for a potential move to Elk Grove.
The process of planning for the animal residents of the new zoo takes years, zoo officials said Tuesday in a newsletter. It’s been a year since the zoo announced a partnership with the city of Elk Grove to pursue the potential move out of Sacramento’s Land Park location.
Information sessions were held in Elk Grove for residents and city staff to discuss the proposed zoo, its design, transportation plans and other updates.
Zoo and city staff worked with SHR Studios, a zoo design firm, to develop a conceptual plan for the new zoo with a phased approach to build the facility with a series of “expansive, modern animal habitats and a variety of unique guest experiences,” zoo officials said in the newsletter.
The conceptual plan with artist renderings is expected to be released on the zoo’s website toward the end of this month. Zoo officials said the overall project is still several years away from a potential opening, and the next step will be an extensive environmental review.
The new zoo will focus on caring for several populations of rare and endangered species that are good candidates for the new zoo based on the climate and the site’s topography.
Zoo officials said one of the species selected for the new zoo is the white rhinoceros, a species facing challenges within Africa due to poaching for their horns. The white rhinoceros is the largest of the five species of rhinoceros and has an adult population of slightly more than 10,000 in Africa.
Zoo staff is currently working with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to determine which white rhinoceros will be moving to the Sacramento Zoo next year. The rhinoceros will be housed in the habitat that most recently housed the Eastern bongos that have moved to other institutions as part of Species Survival Plan recommendations.
“The Sacramento Zoo has never housed a rhinoceros before, and we look forward to welcoming one to Sacramento,” zoo officials said in the newsletter. “Our facilities department has already started work on the rhino habitat, but we do not have a definitive schedule as to when the animal will arrive, and the exhibit will open.”
