DALLAS (WBAP/KLIF News) – The Dallas Zoo is unveiling its Simmons Hippo Outpost Friday morning and it’s sure to be a treat.
It’s a $14 million, 2.1 acre immersive African waterhole habitat that allows guests to come nose to nose with the Zoo’s two new hippos six-year-old Adhama and 10-year-old Boipelo via a 24-foot by 8-foot viewing window.
The Zoo’s Lydia Jennings said the hippos have already settled into their new environment, which boasts 120 thousand gallons of water and 96 tons of sugar sand.
“They’re both extremely smart, catching on to training behaviors and enjoying this new habitat together. They’re swimming constantly together, snuggling up in the water. We know people are going to love them,” she said.
Hippos are on the vulnerable species list and Jennings said the zoo will do everything they can to help them thrive.
“Conservation is a huge part of our mission here at the Dallas Zoo. It’s why we exist. If we are preserving these species that we take care of every day in the wild, then we’re not doing our job,” he said.
It’s the Dallas Zoo’s first major exhibit since the award-winning Giants of the Savanna, which opened in 2010.
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