Riverside Discovery Center

The Riverside Discovery Center, formerly named the Riverside Park and Zoo, is a park and zoo complex along the North Platte River in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, United States.

Riverside Discovery Center
LocationScottsbluff, Nebraska, United States
Coordinates41.8552°N 103.6841°W / 41.8552; -103.6841
Land area23 acres (9.3 ha)
No. of animals125+
No. of species50+
MembershipsAZA[1]
Websitewww.riversidediscoverycenter.org

Riverside Park is Scottsbluff's city park, and has the only zoo in western Nebraska. It includes three lakes with camping and recreation areas, and a riverside trail that runs along the banks of the North Platte River. There are also over 30 garden spots. December 16, 2017 two brother grizzly bears went on exhibit. In the spring of 2017 their mother was illegally killed in Wyoming. State and Federal wildlife officials hoped the two orphaned cubs would survive in the wild without their mother. After several months on their own in the wild, the two cubs became increasingly habituated to humans for food. State and Federal wildlife officials were concerned about public safety and the well-being of the grizzly cubs. When it was evident the cubs were not going to survive in the wild on their own, State and Federal wildlife officials made the decision to capture the two cubs and try to find them a home. Riverside Discovery Center offered to assist in the rescue of the two cubs and to provide a new home for these two grizzly bear cubs.

Riverside Discovery Center was directly in the path of the August 21, 2017 total eclipse.

Animals

The Riverside Discovery Center has a collection of over 125 animals representing 50+ different species, in various exhibits.

North American Grasslands

Contains animals once common in the grasslands of North America:

Garden Walk

Slither Inn

mostly education animals behind the scenes

Raptor Row

Contains a collection of various raptors:

Rainforest Discovery Center

An area dedicated to some of the smaller animals of the rainforest

Chimpanzee Building

Home of the areas chimpanzee and other unique creatures:

Cat Complex

Home to various big cats:

  • Siberian Tiger (Panthera tigris tigris)
  • Black leopard (Panthera pardus)
  • Lion (Panthera leo)

Primate Building

Contains a small collection of primates:

Zebra Circle

Children's Zoo
  • Donkey (Equus asinus)
  • Pot-bellied pig
  • Sheep
  • Highland Cattle

Pond
  • Trumpeter Swan
  • Swan Goose

Miscellaneous exhibits

There are other animals that are not included in any of the aforementioned exhibits:

Incidents
  • On December 29, 1994, a leopard attacked a 26-year-old female zookeeper and bit her on the neck. The accident was featured on the television series Rescue 911 in 1995.

Conservation

The Riverside Discovery Center is actively involved in the Survival Species Program for various species of imperiled wildlife on display.

The zoo and park is located a half mile west of Nebraska Highway 71.

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References
  1. "Currently Accredited Zoos and Aquariums". aza.org. AZA. Retrieved 11 August 2011.
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