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With more than a million species in danger of extinction worldwide, many due to devastating habitat loss, zoo-based conservation has become an essential component of long-term species survival. As an Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA)-accredited institution, Denver Zoo has long participated in the Species Survival Plan (SSP) to ensure genetic diversity in wildlife bred under human care. But as an urban campus with a finite 80-acre geographic footprint, the space we can utilize to make a significant impact has been historically limited—until now.

Spanning 570 acres in Weld County, Colorado, the Lembke Family Preserve will allow Denver Zoo to dramatically evolve both our animal care and conservation breeding practices. “The Lembke Family Preserve represents the dawn of a new era for Denver Zoo and will dramatically expand our capabilities for our animals and Colorado wildlife as we build it out in the coming years,” said Bert Vescolani, President and CEO of Denver Zoo. “We are deeply grateful to the Lembke family for their generosity and mutual understanding that saving wildlife for future generations requires a dedicated community of donors, members, partners and neighbors.”

AZA Accreditation is the ultimate stamp of approval for our profession, and assures our guests and members that we’re providing the best possible care for our animals and creating a safe, enjoyable experience for our community. We’re beyond proud to be among the very few zoos and aquariums in the world that maintains such a high standard across our programs and operations.”  


-Bert Vescolani,
President & CEO of Denver Zoo. 

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“Classic Portrait” aspect ratio.

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Silverback gorilla photo caption.
The East African Crowned Crane

“Classic” aspect ratio.

Silverback gorilla photo alt text.
Silverback gorilla photo caption.
The East African Crowned Crane

Phase 1: Holding + Breeding

A recognized industry leader in both animal care and conservation breeding, Denver Zoo is already doing important work on our main campus; imagine what we can do with nearly 7X the space! In PHASE 1 of the Lembke Family Preserve, we’ll be able to expand our current SSP efforts, with more space for our growing animal families as well as the potential to add new species to our program. We’ll also gain greater holding capacity as well as temporary relocations for habitat maintenance or renovation.

Phase 2: Research + Reintroduction

In phase two, the Zoo plans to transform the facility into a conservation center focused on conservation breeding and wild reintroduction of species that are threatened or endangered in Colorado and beyond. The center, both a physical satellite campus and the philosophical heart of present and future conservation collaborations, will allow Denver Zoo to make a more meaningful impact on the future of regionally Threatened and Endangered species in our home state.

Celebrating 125 Years of Love at Denver Zoo

The Lembke Family Preserve will allow Denver Zoo to advance the science of conservation breeding and reintroduction. This critical field of research is a rapidly evolving space

Celebrating 125 Years of Love at Denver Zoo

The Lembke Family Preserve will allow Denver Zoo to advance the science of conservation breeding and reintroduction. This critical field of research is a rapidly evolving space

Celebrating 125 Years

With your help, the Lembke Family Preserve will enable Denver Zoo to scale our leadership in two vital ways. First, our world-class animal care experts will have a spacious secondary campus on which to foster continued health and well-being for our animal family—many of whose species are Threatened or Endangered. Second, in partnership with other organizations.

Celebrating 125 Years

With your help, the Lembke Family Preserve will enable Denver Zoo to scale our leadership in two vital ways. First, our world-class animal care experts will have a spacious secondary campus on which to foster continued health and well-being for our animal family—many of whose species are Threatened or Endangered. Second, in partnership with other organizations.

Celebrating 125 Years

With your help, the Lembke Family Preserve will enable Denver Zoo to scale our leadership in two vital ways. First, our world-class animal care experts will have a spacious secondary campus on which to foster continued health and well-being for our animal family—many of whose species are Threatened or Endangered. Second, in partnership with other organizations.

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Zoo Policies

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  1. Long established fact that a reader will be distracted.
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two elephants walking down a path
asian elephant skin texture
two elephants walking down a path
asian elephant skin texture

Adaptations

  • Asian elephants’ trunks have no bones or cartilage but consist of 100,000 or more muscles and ligaments that allow extreme flexibility.
  • They use their trunks to eat, drink, dust themselves, smell, touch, manipulate objects, communicate, and as a weapon in addition to breathing and serving as a snorkel while swimming.
  • Asian elephants have a single “finger” at the end of their trunks enables them to pick up small objects.
  • Asian elephants’ brains are large, contributing to learned behaviors and control of motor functions.
  • Their leg bones are like pillars providing stability and allowing them to stand for long periods of time and to sleep and take naps standing up. When comfortable with their surroundings they will lay down to sleep at night up to about 6 hours.
  • They walk on their toes with a large fibrous pad providing a cushion at the base of the heel on each foot.
  • The tusks of male Asian elephants allow them to dig for water, uproot and remove bark from trees and are used as levers while moving heavy objects; they are right-tusked or left-tusked.
  • Elephants tusks grow continuously through their lifetime and through use they chip and break pieces off to keep them at a length they prefer to use them.

@DenverZoo in the Wild

Great hornbill populations have declined 30-40% over the last 50 years, due to loss of their old growth forest habitat, estimated at 26% over the same period of time.  These forests are often converted to housing and urban developments and croplands or logged for wood production.  The birds are intolerant of forest disturbance, severely threatened by hunting and require extensive tracts of undisturbed forest due to their large home ranges.  They are also captured for the pet trade.   Predictable behavior when regularly visiting feeding sites makes it easy for hunters to find them.

Classification

CLASS:Mammalia
ORDER:Proboscidea
FAMILY:Elephantidae
GENUS:Elephantidae
SPECIES:maximus

Habitat & Range

Asian elephants are considered forest animals, but are found in a variety of habitats including tropical grasslands and forests, preferring areas with open grassy glades within the forest. Most live below 10,000 feet (3,000m) elevation although elephants living near the Himalayas will move higher into the mountains to escape hot weather

Most Asian elephants live in India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand with small populations in Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, China, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, Sumatra, and Borneo

Location

group of bighorn sheep
group of bighorn sheep

Adaptations

  • Asian elephants’ trunks have no bones or cartilage but consist of 100,000 or more muscles and ligaments that allow extreme flexibility.
  • They use their trunks to eat, drink, dust themselves, smell, touch, manipulate objects, communicate, and as a weapon in addition to breathing and serving as a snorkel while swimming.
  • Asian elephants have a single “finger” at the end of their trunks enables them to pick up small objects.
  • Asian elephants’ brains are large, contributing to learned behaviors and control of motor functions.
  • Their leg bones are like pillars providing stability and allowing them to stand for long periods of time and to sleep and take naps standing up. When comfortable with their surroundings they will lay down to sleep at night up to about 6 hours.
  • They walk on their toes with a large fibrous pad providing a cushion at the base of the heel on each foot.
  • The tusks of male Asian elephants allow them to dig for water, uproot and remove bark from trees and are used as levers while moving heavy objects; they are right-tusked or left-tusked.
  • Elephants tusks grow continuously through their lifetime and through use they chip and break pieces off to keep them at a length they prefer to use them.

Physical Description

  • Asian elephants’ trunks have no bones or cartilage but consist of 100,000 or more muscles and ligaments that allow extreme flexibility.
  • They use their trunks to eat, drink, dust themselves, smell, touch, manipulate objects, communicate, and as a weapon in addition to breathing and serving as a snorkel while swimming.
  • Asian elephants have a single “finger” at the end of their trunks enables them to pick up small objects.
  • Asian elephants’ brains are large, contributing to learned behaviors and control of motor functions.
  • Their leg bones are like pillars providing stability and allowing them to stand for long periods of time and to sleep and take naps standing up. When comfortable with their surroundings they will lay down to sleep at night up to about 6 hours.
  • They walk on their toes with a large fibrous pad providing a cushion at the base of the heel on each foot.
  • The tusks of male Asian elephants allow them to dig for water, uproot and remove bark from trees and are used as levers while moving heavy objects; they are right-tusked or left-tusked.
  • Elephants tusks grow continuously through their lifetime and through use they chip and break pieces off to keep them at a length they prefer to use them.

Diet

What Does It Eat?

In the wild:
Asian elephants are herbivores who eat a wide variety of plants including grasses, bamboo, sugarcane, flowers, fruit, seeds, grains, and the roots and bark of trees.

At the zoo:
Grass hay, textured grain, alfalfa, greens (spinach, kale and lettuces), apples, carrots, corn and sweet potatoes. Supplements include Vitamin E and mineral salts. Treats include horse candy and ice treats. Browse is provided when available.

What Eats It?
Asian elephant calves are subject to predation by tigers. Adult Asian elephants have no known predator other than humans.

Social Organization

Asian elephants have a matriarchal social system.  Several generations of related females and their juvenile offspring live in herds of five to 20 led by the oldest female.  Males leave their maternal herds when they begin maturity typically around the ages of 5-9. They frequently live in small loose bachelor groups, spending some time together and sometimes solitary, and will typically include an older bull who serves as a mentor to younger males.  Asian elephants communicate in numerous ways, using a variety of vocalizations, sound, chemical signals and touching.  Different vocalizations carry short or long distances and include use of the infrasound range, a low-frequency range that humans cannot hear.

Life Cycle

The only time adult male and female Asian elephants interact is to mate. Males in musth, a hormonal period of high levels of testosterone accompanied by increased aggression, are especially attractive to receptive females.  Asian elephant gestation lasts approximately 22 months, the longest of any species.  Usually one calf is born weighing an average of 220 pounds (100kg).  Calves nurse for as long as four years although they begin eating vegetation at about six months. Young elephants become independent at about five years.  In their natural habitat, they become sexually mature between ten and fifteen years old.  In human care, maturity is somewhat earlier, possibly due to consistent nutrition and the absence of competition between males.  Life span in nature is difficult to determine.  In human care, the median life expectancy for female Asian elephants is 46.9 years.  The oldest Asian elephant in human care lived to be 86 years old.

Conservation Spotlight

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Learn More

Denver Zoo Hours

Online timed ticket reservations are required for entry. You will be asked to select a timed entry window during the online ticketing process.
 
The Zoo is open daily from 10:00am – 5:00pm. 
Entry gates close at 4:00pm.

Seasonal member hours: April 8 – May 14, 2024
 Monday – Friday
Members only from 8:30-9:30am

Field trips only from 10:00am- 11:30am

General Admission opens at 11:30am

Weekends
Members only from 8:30am-10:00am
General admission opens at 10:00am

May 15 – October 31, 2024

Members only from 8:30am-10:00am

General admission opens at 10:00am

  • Closing hours may vary by day but are 1 hour and 30 minutes after the last ticket entry time.
  • Denver Zoo is closed on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.


Ticket Pricing

IN SEASON – (March 11th through October 31st)

Adults (Ages 16-64):$25.20
Seniors (Ages 65+):$22.05
Youth (Ages 3-15):$18.90
Youth 2 and Under:Free

OFF SEASON – (November 1st through March 10th)

Adults (Ages 16-64):$25.20
Seniors (Ages 65+):$22.05
Youth (Ages 3-15):$18.90
Youth 2 and Under:Free
  • Member tickets go on sale 15 days in advance.
  • General Admission tickets go on sale 10 days in advance.
  • General Admission tickets are non-refundable.
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We will be closing at 4PM on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for Boo at the Zoo. Available tickets HERE.
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