Calgary Zoo opens Asian Highlands with snow leopards, red pandas, takins

The Wilder Institute's Calgary Zoo officially opened Asian Highlands on Wednesday morning, unveiling three new Himalayan-inspired habitats that bring back snow leopards and red pandas while introducing visitors to the zoo's newest residents—two Sichuan takins, mountain mammals native to forests and alpine slopes across the Eastern Himalayans.

The snow leopards now have access to two interconnected habitats in the new Kingdom Snow Leopard Ridge, designed with more room to roam and climb, plus new viewing areas that bring visitors closer than ever. Red pandas have moved into an expanded habitat featuring climbing structures and overhead log pathways that better reflect the forest canopies they navigate in the wild.

The Sichuan takins, often described as a cross between a goat and an antelope, inhabit a habitat mimicking the high-altitude slopes they would live on. President and CEO Kyle Burks said the new spaces reflect diverse Asian environments and give animals more choice and control. "It gives them a chance to just thrive and really show off what's special about them," he said.

Donor David Kingdon, who supported the project, said it combines his lifelong passions for big cats and animal welfare. "One of the things I admire most about this organization is its commitment to putting animals first," he said.

Asian Highlands is the first phase of the zoo's planned Imagine Asia redevelopment, which will transform the former Exploration Asia area over coming years.