The oldest structure owned by the Smithsonian, the Holt House, sits on the grounds of the National Zoo - yet you've likely never visited it, nor possibly known of its existence. The house, which can be seen from Adams Mill Road, was built in 1810. The estate was one of many large country estates built on Rock Creek Park during the early years of our Federal city. The house is within the boundaries of an old land grant known as “Pretty Prospects.” Now, the Holt House is one of the few estates that remains, and it's not in great shape. more ›

You'll have to excuse me if I get a little verklempt tomorrow morning while putting together the Morning Roundup -- after all, tomorrow will mark one year to the day from which we published what has to be one of the saddest photosets in this fair blog's history, documenting Butterstick's departure from the National Zoo. So how's our buddy doing? more ›

Panda sex! Now that I have your attention, let's talk about it. It's around this time of the year when we get all excited, Tian Tian and Mei Xiang do their whole "we're really not into this whole intimacy" thing, then Mei gets loaded up with frozen sperm, only to inevitably disappoint us all when, for yet another year, we get no baby pandas. The National Zoo reveals this afternoon, in great detail, that, oh yes, that time has definitely arrived. more ›

This Friday, December 3, the National Zoo kicks off its annual Zoo Lights, which fills the Zoo's exhibits with holiday lights and decorations. As a holiday gift to the city, admission to the event is free (although parking is $8 for FONZ members and $15 for nonmembers). The lights come on between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m., Friday through Sunday until December 12, and daily from December 17-January 1 (except December 24, 25, and 31). more ›

Why yes, we have gotten quite a bit of mileage out of the National Zoo's squeelicious lion cubs recently. (Thanks for noticing!) They're the first new lion cubs at the Zoo in 20 years -- the chance to overwhelm you with this much winsome imagery only comes along every so often. Plus, this is what you get when we don't get any baby pandas to fawn over. more ›

We've got ourselves some new lion cubs! The National Zoo reports that at some point last night between 10:30 p.m. and 2:30 a.m., proud parents Shera and Luke welcomed four lion cubs to their pride. Oh, and get this: "Because it is not uncommon for intervals between births to be several hours long, we will continue to monitor Shera for additional cubs." The Zoo's other lioness, Nababiep, also bred with Luke earlier this summer, and is expected to deliver at some point in September. All this happy news is much appreciated, considering that the Zoo's last lion cub died in May after a freak accident in which a straw awn became lodged in its lung. more ›

On his Slate blog, Tom Scocca notes -- in a post titled "Puny and Decadent American-Bred Panda Is Being Retrained to Chinese Standards," which, by the way, incorrectly attributes the "Butterstick" moniker to Wonkette and not its actual creator -- that after ripping him away from us, the Chinese found our beloved Butterstick to be, well, not up to standard. more ›

Yeah, yesterday was a downer for news from the National Zoo. I've been told by several people that I may or may not have ruined their Thursday afternoons by passing along the news that a red panda cub died. (I'm just the conduit, people.) Add in the fact that our beloved Tai Shan is celebrating his fifth birthday so far away, and one can be excused for feeling a little blue about our current quota of cute. more ›

Aw, man. Very sad news to report from the National Zoo today -- a three-week-old red panda cub has died. A zookeeper found the cub yesterday during an evening inspection. The Zoo's press release indicates that the extreme heat was likely not the reason the cub died; rather, red panda cubs just have a shockingly high mortality rate (50 percent!) in captivity. The cub was the first red panda to be born at the Zoo in 15 years, and the first-born for the Zoo's adult red pandas, Shama and Tate. more ›

Normally, I'd leave the art criticism to Kriston, since he's a bazillion times more qualified to make such broad statements on the aesthetic merits of any new work. more ›

Mei Xiang couldn't have timed it better if she tried. Just as Washingtonians were preparing to wish our final goodbyes to our beloved Butterstick, Tai Shan's mom quite surprisingly went into heat yesterday afternoon, and her and 'Stick's dad, Tian Tian, wasted little time getting to work, as seen above. more ›

As if an anteater pup, a baby gorilla, and fluffy leopard cubs weren't enough: the AP is reporting that the National Zoo is temporarily closing the panda house to determine whether or not Mei Xiang is having a cub. The most recent round of insemination from Tian Tian was in January -- Mei Xiang has been sprucing up the den and doing some cuddling recently, so who knows? Drink from the water fountains at the Zoo at your own risk, people. more ›

DCist got word that the National Zoo discovered a second baby elephant shrew, adding to the birth at the beginning of the month. According to our tipster, zoo attendee Luke Berndt, zookeepers who found the baby animal yesterday were surprised, but that shouldn't be a surprise to you -- elephant shrew births are rare and sometimes elude keepers and moreover here. I count two noses in that picture, one looking quite a lot younger than the other. Apparently, keepers are considering taking the baby out of the exhibit for a bit because the baby is so young. more ›

The National Zoo is a fantastic place. It's one of the best zoos in the country, is free to the public, has nice scenery, tons of great exhibits and interesting animals and of course, is the source of your cute little default avatar. Plus, turns out some zoo animals are a great source of ingredients for area restaurateurs. more ›