I LOVE NY 28 of 28 Places to Visit

The Bronx Zoo is a zoo located within the Bronx Park in the Bronx borough of New York City. The largest metropolitan zoo in the United States, it comprises 265 acres (107 ha) of park lands and naturalistic habitats, through which the Bronx River flows. The Bronx Zoo is south of the New York Botanical Garden.

Fordham University owned most of the land which became the Bronx Zoo and New York Botanical Garden. Fordham sold it to the City of New York for only $1,000 under the condition that the lands be used for a zoo and garden; this was in order to create a natural buffer between the university grounds and the urban expansion that was nearing. In the 1880s, New York State set aside the land for future development as parks. In 1895, New York State chartered the New York Zoological Society (later renamed to Wildlife Conservation Society) for the purpose of founding a zoo.

The zoo (originally called the New York Zoological Park) opened its doors to the public on November 8, 1899, featuring 843 animals in 22 exhibits. The first zoo director was William Temple Hornaday. Heins & LaFarge designed the original permanent buildings as a series of Beaux-Arts pavilions grouped around the large circular sea lion pool. Many exhibits, for example World of Birds and World of Reptiles, maintain the original taxonomical arrangement, while others are arranged geographically, such as African Plains and Wild Asia.

In 2006, the Bronx Zoo is home to more than 4,000 animals, many of which are endangered or threatened species.