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A zoological society
The New York Zoological Society was founded in 1895 and opened the Bronx Zoo in Bronx Park on 8 November 1899. The society, now called the Wildlife Conservation Society, still runs the zoo today.


Buildings of the first years
The zoo’s original permanent buildings, designed by Heins and LaFarge, stand in Astor Court. Among them are the Monkey House of 1901 and the domed Elephant House of 1908, now the Zoo Center. Their carved animals can still be seen, and the buildings became a New York City landmark in 2000.
From buildings to habitats
Later decades brought large habitats: African Plains in 1941, World of Birds in 1972, Wild Asia and its monorail in 1977, JungleWorld in 1985, Congo Gorilla Forest in 1999, Tiger Mountain in 2003 and Madagascar! in 2008. Today about 4,000 animals of some 650 species live across 265 acres.



