Philly Zoo to expand Bear Country exhibit with largest renovation in over a decade

The Philadelphia Zoo will have a new home for its bears when it completes its biggest renovation in over a decade.

The Bear Country exhibit is receiving a massive transformation as part of a $20 million project — the zoo's largest since the $32 million KidZooU opened in 2013. Construction will begin in early 2025 and the exhibit will open in spring 2026.

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Dr. Jo-Elle Mogerman, president and CEO of the Philadelphia Zoo, said in a Thursday news conference that the expansion will be designed with "contemporary natural spaces that will allow the bears to thrive and engage in a greater range of natural behaviors, just like they would in the wild."

A new see-through mesh trail will allow bears to rotate through the zoo's habitats as part of the Zoo360 experience.

Rachel Metz, the vice president of animal well-being at the Philadelphia Zoo, said the added space to the exhibit will help with the breeding program

The project will involve building a "cubbing-friendly yard that will allow new baby bears to learn how to be bears in a safe and comfortable way with their mother," she said.

Provided Image/Aversa PR

The updated Bear Country exhibit at the Philadelphia Zoo will add a new habitat for the bears and a trail for its Zoo360 experience. Above, a rendering of the entrance of the exhibit.

The removal of moats will also provide more space, and new glass viewing areas will give visitors a closer look at the bears.

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Once construction begins, the zoo will move its three bears — sloth bears Bhalu and Kayla, and Andean bear Sinchi — off-site to a facility that's accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Bhalu and Kayla will return to Philadelphia when construction finishes, but Sinchi will remain at the other zoo.

The Philadelphia Zoo will also temporarily send its Humboldt penguins to another zoo, and its flamingos will move on-site to a habitat south of the McNeil Avian Center.

Funding comes from a combination of the city, state, fundraising and donors, with a $5 million gift from the W. P. Carey Foundation sparking the project's inception.