A new promo for the L.A. Zoo shows an adorable, bald-headed orangutan with the tagline: "Let's just be friends." Perhaps the 6-year-old orangutan Berani was looking for a friend when she escaped from the mesh netting that stands between the orangutan and the public at the zoo around noon today. more ›

The Los Angeles Zoo has turned blue. In celebration of the upcoming 3D flick "The Smurfs," the zoo has instated "Smurf Week in Los Angeles." Beginning on Monday, July 25, aka Smurf Day, the family-friendly events series kicks off with a chance to meet and pose for the camera with the Smurfs from 11am-2pm. more ›

The Los Angeles Zoo is struggling to meet its payroll, and with the current state of the city's budget, there isn't likely to be an influx of cash streaming in from the coffers any time soon. One solution on the table is to turn the Zoo over to a private operator who can afford to run the attraction, according to the Press-Telegram. more ›

Shocking revelations today as Maria the world famous Echo Park lake goose is making international headlines as Mario the gander. It took expert examination from professionals at the bird's new home, the L.A. Zoo, to determine that we had it wrong the whole time. more ›

The San Diego Zoo welcomed a lil' hippo baby to their herbivore family on Wednesday morning after a two-hour water birth in front of zoo visitors at the hippopotamus compound, reports ABC Local and the AP. The otherwise reclusive calf is staying close to its mother and doesn't want its art and style to be judged by people quick to gender stereotype. The sex has yet to be determined and the hippo, preferring anonymity and aliases, has not yet been named. The hippo's parents Funani and Otis were brought to San Diego from the Los Angeles Zoo two years ago, and despite not getting along very well, they began to mate in April. Typical. Welcome, hipster hippo! more ›

A judge has ruled that the L.A. Zoo can move forward with its plan to open a controversial new elephant exhibit scheduled to debut on Dec. 16, reports KTLA. However, the lawsuit to stop the expansion filed by late actor Robert Culp will also move forward. more ›

Next weekend the Los Angeles Zoo is hosting a reception as part of the centennial celebration of Selig Studios, Hollywood’s first film studio, and its founder, movie pioneer “Colonel” William Selig. Presented by the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association (GLAZA) in conjunction with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the evening will include a screening (accompanied by period music) of two jungle-themed 1913 silent films, "The Adventures of Kathlyn" and "Thor - Lord of the Jungle," produced by Selig, whose passion for making these movies led to his collection of a vast animal menagerie which he later opened to the public as the Selig Zoo. more ›

On Saturday morning, a group of animal activists took to the LA Zoo to let patrons know what the city is planning to do with their upcoming elephant exhibit and what the past has held for the elephants. The controversy over Billy, the sole elephant in the zoo, recently came back when City Councilmember Tony Cardenas--at the urging of activists--changed his position on an already under construction $42 million 6-acre pachyderm exhibit. more ›

NETWORKING: There’s an ExecTec dinner tonight at D’Amore’s Pizza Connection in Westwood. For $25, diners not only get food and drink, but the chance to listen to and exchange ideas with execs from the entertainment, media, technology and other related fields. Dinner’s from 7:30-9:30 pm and the topic for discussion is tertiary learning. more ›

Actor and animal activist Robert Culp is demanding an immediate closure of the elephant exhibit at the Los Angeles Zoo and that all work on the expansion of the elephant enclosure be halted. Billy, a 21-year-old Asian elephant, is now the zoo's only pachyderm, after the departure of Ruby last spring. more ›

Last night's powerful rains beat down on Los Angeles, and Southern California in general, with a vengeance. Widespread power outages, mudslides, and flooded roads are just some of the consequences of the overnight downpour. more ›

How do you tactfully say "watch out for bird poo overhead"? The LA Zoo has it down. Even those "poo prints" on the sign look like decor, not the real deal. Photo by Just chaos via Flickr... more ›

Last night I was casually checking out what various travel websites had to say about the neighborhoods of Los Angeles. Most of the summaries in Frommers sounded like this: Silver Lake, a residential neighborhood just north of Downtown and adjacent to Los Feliz (home to the Los Angeles Zoo and Griffith Park), just to the west, has arty areas with unique cafes, theaters, graffiti, and art galleries -- all in equally plentiful proportions. The... more ›

Consolation Prize of a Lifetime - Al Gore is a man of peace and gets the homepage of Apple.com all to himself -- should we expect the iAl to come out by the holidays? The Catalina Island Avalon city employee who beheaded a deer and left it in a soccer net is definitely not getting any peace prize. There was another suspicious package today left around City Hall, forcing street closures and the evacuation... more ›

No doubt you have already heard about Reggie the alligator, who for two years lived in Machado Lake in Harbor City. He was captured a few months ago, and hauled to the Los Angeles Zoo. And NOW Reggie the gator is ready to make his grand debut, and strut his stuff in his newly adapted environment at the LA City Zoo. more ›

While it may be getting even colder here in Los Angeles and many of you find yourselves huddled around your fireplaces, drinking more than usual to stay warm, and arguing over the merits of still wearing Uggs (in/out, cold weather shoe/warm weather shoe, does it really matter when it’s this cold shoe?), some Los Angeles residents are finally saying: “It’s about damn time!” more ›

The source of the shower is asteroid 3200 Phaethon. There's a cloud of dust trailing the asteroid and Earth plows through it every year in mid-December. Bits of dust traveling 80,000 mph hit our atmosphere and turn into glowing meteors. more ›