Zoo scientists record wildlife

Scientific Collaboration

Lincoln Park Zoo’s animals, plants, records, staff, and visitors provide a valuable scientific resource that allows the zoo to initiate and facilitate many basic and applied investigations.

a zoo scientist setting up a motion-activated field camera

The zoo encourages studies that will:

  • advance health, welfare, and management of animals in human care
  • aid conservation and management of species and habitats in the wild
  • improve formal and/or informal education programs and zoo habitat design
  • enhance understanding of human attitudes and behavior related to wildlife, zoo animals, and zoological parks
  • increase basic knowledge of natural history, behavior, and biology
An image from a motion-activated field camera of deer walking through a flooded prairie

Science Centers

The worldwide reach of our Conservation & Science initiatives is reflected in the zoo’s broad array of research centers. By expanding our understanding of animals and the threats they face, zoo scientists are helping improve the lives of individual animals and preserve threatened species. We welcome scientific collaborations aligned with our existing research centers and their priorities.

View Science Centers

Join Our Team

Conservation & Science staff in the field

Careers

Lincoln Park Zoo inspires communities to create environments where wildlife will thrive in our urbanizing world, and our Conservation & Science staff serves on the front line in that fight.

SEE OPEN OPPORTUNITIES

Zoo interns searching for turtles in waist-high water

Internships

Our internships offer practical, real-world opportunities for current college students and recent graduates to hone their research and science outreach skills while supporting ongoing conservation and research projects.

VIEW INTERNSHIPS

A zoo scientists observing a giraffe in exhibit

Graduate and Post-graduate Studies

Our scientific staff have adjunct faculty appointments at universities in Chicago and around the world. Over the past 30 years, they have trained more than 450 interns, graduate students, and post-doctoral fellows. Post-doctoral fellowships, when available, are posted on our Careers page. Graduate students are typically admitted to local university programs and work on topics closely aligned with one of our science centers.

More Information

Outside researchers interested in conducting research at Lincoln Park Zoo or using biomaterial samples collected from zoo animals should contact research@lpzoo.org.

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