Wish List

The Guam kingfisher enjoys snacking on lizards, skinks, and a variety of insects. At Lincoln Park Zoo, Animal Care staff feeds brown anoles to the kingfishers as part of their nutritious diet. Fork over some little lizards for dinner!

Celebrate summer by providing the goats at the zoo with a ball for hours of play. Goats kick, chase, and toss the durable balls through their yard while enjoying the warm summer weather. Don’t miss your chance…you have ‘goat’ to purchase a share of these balls today!

Growing western lowland gorillas Mondika and Djeke love to knock around a Shroom Room—a mushroom-shaped enrichment device—to dislodge delicious hidden treats. Purchase a share of a new Shroom Room and reward the growing gorillas for their efforts!

Animal Care staff use chest-high waders to tend to the swans, ducks, and geese at Hope B. McCormick Swan Pond and Waterfowl Lagoon. Keep the habitat in tip-top shape by providing these waterproof waders today!

In order to welcome back visitors, the zoo has implemented new measures to ensure a safe and fun visit for all, including the purchase of new equipment—from sneeze guards and hand sanitizer stations to ropes and barricades to manage one-way traffic. Contribute to the zoo’s comprehensive health and safety efforts by supplying the necessary equipment to keep your zoo safe and clean!

Hydrangeas are a focal niche of Lincoln Park Zoo…and will be sure to dazzle visitors as the zoo reopens! Throughout zoo grounds there are more than 40 different types of these exquisite flora in shades of pink, purple, and white. Help the Horticulture team add lovely new hydrangeas to the zoo’s landscape this summer!

As you return to Lincoln Park Zoo, you'll notice that zoo employees are wearing personal protective equipment, including face masks, for your—and their—safety. Purchase a face mask today to share some love with zoo employees who work hard to make your zoo amazing!

Lincoln Park Zoo’s growing DeBrazza monkey family will ensure there is plenty of sound this summer with a “Fling-Around” ball! This unique enrichment item features jingle bells within a durable ball, attached to a thick, long rope. Celebrate the joys of playtime with this noisy, projectile enrichment for the entire DeBrazza monkey family!

Lincoln Park Zoo is very pleased to welcome two former chimpanzee ‘actors,’ Eli and Susie, to their new home at the zoo where they can learn to be chimps. What better way for the new chimps to reflect on their new habitat and first time being in chimpanzee troop than with a looky lou mirror? This enrichment will encourage curiosity in their own image and natural investigative behavior. Help Eli and Susie see themselves in a new light with a new looky lou mirror!

Keepers at Regenstein Center for African Apes put frozen juice and sugar-free gelatin inside small boomer balls for the western lowland gorilla bachelor troop. Provide a boomer ball today so Amare, born July 26, can receive a round of delicious treats for the whole troop!

Often mistaken for an owl, the tawny frogmouth is actually a member of the nightjar family and is named for its large mouth. At Lincoln Park Zoo, the tawny frogmouths eat insects and small mammals, like mice. Don’t miss your chance to give these birds the VIP treatment with a delicious meal of mice!

Both in the wild and at the zoo, chimpanzees forage on the ground, in termite mounds, and high up in the trees. Give the chimpanzees a delicious reward for successful foraging with nutritious whole wheat pasta noodles hidden throughout their habitat!

Trout provide polar bears at the zoo with exciting enrichment and tasty nutrition! Polar bears satisfy their natural hunting instincts by “fishing” for live trout in their stream and pool at Walter Family Arctic Tundra. When they make a successful catch, they enhance their diet with the fat and protein they need to flourish. Want to give Siku and Talini a special treat this summer? Go fish!

The hamerkop is a unique bird native to sub-Saharan Africa and known for building and reusing the same nest each year. With each passing year, the nest grows larger and larger, sometimes reaching up to eight feet in size! To satisfy these devoted builders, keepers supply plenty of coarse raffia ribbons, among other twigs and sticks, as nesting material. Supply some raffia to the hamerkops so they can drop into their cozy nest after a long day of flying, foraging, and socializing!

Resident giraffes Finely and Etana were both born on July 25! In honor of these long-necked companions, provide the giraffes with a holey moley feeder—a large, durable feeder that promotes natural foraging behavior. Give a birthday gift that all the giraffes can enjoy!

As Lincoln Park Zoo begins to reopen to the public, the health and safety of our guests and staff, as well as the animals in our care, is our top priority. As a result, we are procuring new equipment—like a forehead temperature scanner—to ensure safety.

In its native habitat of western Mexico, the venomous Rio Fuerte beaded lizard feasts on birds, eggs, other lizards, and small invertebrates. At Lincoln Park Zoo, keepers feed them quail eggs, a savory enrichment item, as part of their specialized diet. A quail egg is a hard treat to beat—help the beaded lizards enjoy this tasty meal today!

In honor of World Snake Day, provide the serpents at the zoo with a buggy bite they’re sure to love. Keepers feed the smooth green snakes black soldier fly larvae, an excellent source of sustainable protein. The bulk of smooth green snakes’ diet is an assortment of insects, which they locate using smell, vision, and ground vibrations. Feed some flavorful fly larvae to the snakes this month!

In the wild, American black bears spend much of their time foraging for fruit, nuts, and vegetation. The black bears at Pritzker Family Children’s Zoo love foraging for items like pasta and raisins. Give the bears a “raisin” to explore the outer reaches of their territory with sweet raisins!

Many of the reptile and amphibian species at Lincoln Park Zoo use shredded coconut husk fiber as bedding material. This eco-friendly, renewable resource is a perfect substrate to create a cozy and naturalistic environment for cold-blooded species. Give these amazing animals some coconut fiber to enjoy all summer long!

To create an exciting challenge for the North American river otters at Pritzker Family Children’s Zoo, keepers put fish and squid inside grape vine balls, challenging the otters to “fish” out their meal with dexterous paws. Make mealtime an enriching experience with the purchase of a fish- and squid-filled grape vine ball!

What do you get a rhino for her birthday? How about oatmeal lotion? At Lincoln Park Zoo, the rhinos stick to a skin care regimen by wallowing—or rolling around in mud—to trap in moisture and keep their thick skin hydrated. To ensure extra hydration, Animal Care staff augment mud wallowing with an oatmeal lotion bath. Keep Kapuki’s skin moisturized with a share of luxurious oatmeal lotion!