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Creature Creations

Creature Creations

by | Sep 19, 2023 | Education, Events, Family

Boo at the Zoo logo with pumpkin to look like a red panda. Listing dates and times of the event.

Creature Creations (Ages 3+)

Saturday, November 11th

 12:30 – 1:30 pm & 2:30 – 3:30 pm

Featured Animal: Bald Eagle

Join us for Creature Creations, an indoor painting class led by instructor Kathleen Patrick and a zoo educator. This fun program will introduce your child to a featured animal, either inside the classroom or at an animal habitat.

 

Members: $16 per ticket

Non-Members: $27 per ticket

 

One ticket includes admission for one child and one accompanying adult. Only registered children can participate in the program. Additional admission tickets are available at the door.

Children must be accompanied by an adult. Unregistered children (including siblings) can not attend.

Purchase Tickets

Important Safety Guidelines For Creature Creations:

  • Programs will be limited to 20 participants with 1 Art Teacher and 1 Zoo Educator.
  • Participants will be seated 2 per table with additional chairs available nearby for guardians/parents.
  • All materials will be provided.
  • Out of consideration for all of our BPZOO guests, if a participant is experiencing any of the following symptoms (fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea), please do not allow them to attend this program. You will be granted a full refund as a sign of our appreciation.

Questions? Contact the Education Department at (508) 991- 4556 ext.110 or email svanwormer@bpzoo.org.

Party for the Planet

Party for the Planet

by | Mar 8, 2023 | Conservation, Education, Family

Funded by:

Saturday, April 22nd, 2023

10:30 am – 2:30 pm

Free with Zoo Admission!

It’s a party for the planet, come celebrate with us!

Party for the Planet is the largest combined Earth Day celebration in North America! More than 100 AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums across the country celebrate with activities, giveaways, and special events.

Join us at the Buttonwood Park Zoo on Saturday, April 22nd from 10:30 am to 2:30 pm, when we will offer our visitors the opportunity to explore, learn, and play with us during this free-with-admission event. Over 20 local organizations and businesses are coming together to celebrate green, sustainable living, and teach us how to make choices that will ensure the health of our planet for generations to come. Don’t forget to bring in any unwanted electronics (see details below).
 
The Zoo will have live music, a raffle, fun games, face painting, an ambulance on site, Earth Day-inspired enrichment demonstrations with our animals, and so much more!

Spring into Action by tracking the monarch butterfly migration north from their overwintering grounds in Mexico to coastal California through the United States and Canada. To capture how monarchs recolonize the breeding areas, report the first sightings of adults, milkweeds, and eggs and larvae to Journey North. Already seen your “first” spring observations? No problem! Please report all observations after these “firsts” to Journey North as well. Tag AZA during registration by adding AZA Party for the Planet in the comment section of your report.

Create Pollinator Spaces in your backyard! AZA is partnering with The National Wildlife Federation to expand native habitats across AZA-accredited facilities and their members. NWF’s Certified Wildlife Habitat® program helps to create and restore habitat and wildlife populations. Turning your yard, balcony container garden, work landscape, or roadside greenspace into a Certified Wildlife Habitat® is fun, easy, and can make a lasting difference for wildlife. Spring into Action with AZA and NWF in creating native habitats near you!

Electronic Waste Drop-off

Members of the community can also bring in any unwanted electronic items to drop off with the amazing team from UMass Dartmouth during Party for the Planet hours, regardless of whether or not they choose to then enter the Zoo. All E-Waste donations will receive one free child admission per party/family into Party for the Planet! Items that can be dropped off include:
  • Batteries (alkaline, car, boat [lead-acid], and rechargeable)
  • Printers
  • Computer or TV monitors ($20 fee for a tube [non-flat] variety)
  • Desktop computers
  • Laptop computers
  • Phones
  • Tablets
  • Scanners
  • Fax machines
  • Cellphones, Blackberries, Palm Pilots
  • Stereo equipment (receivers, turntables, amplifiers, speakers)
  • Household appliances (toasters, toaster ovens, microwaves, blenders, clock radios, mixers, George Forman Grilles, etc)
  • Other consumer electronics
Soiree at the Zoo

Soiree at the Zoo

by | Feb 3, 2023 | Animals, Conservation, Education

Have a Wild Night at BPZOO

July 6, 2023

6:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Pictured: Mike Benjamin and the Keepers

Join us on Thursday, July 6th from 6:00 pm until 9:00 pm at the Buttonwood Park Zoo for a magically wild evening of delectable bites, cocktails, encounters with animal residents, our annual “Zoolala” auction, live music and dancing with Mike Benjamin and the Keepers.

Your support of this event helps us provide high-quality educational programs to the community, as well as helps BPZOO maintain a high standard of animal care.

Purchase Tickets

“Take a bid on the wild side” and support the Buttonwood Park Zoological Society as you explore one-of-a-kind experiences, artful creations, unique gifts, and much more.

Your contribution provides critical support for New Bedford’s beloved local zoo. By participating, you protect endangered wildlife, connect our community to nature, and safeguard the sustainability of this treasured organization for generations to come.

Auction will go live at 8:00 am, Thursday, July 6th and close at 9:00 pm during the Soiree. 

Browse Auction

Soiree at the Zoo

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Thank You to Our 2023 Sponsors

Wildlife Education Series

Wildlife Education Series

by | May 28, 2022 | Conservation, Education, Family

Wildlife Education Series

Join us on Zoom for an enlightening discussion about beluga whale research and exciting advances in animal science!

Thursday, June 2, 2022 at 6:00pm – Learning from Whale Snot!

Learning from Whale Snot!

In this virtual talk, Dr. Justin Richard, Assistant Professor at University of Rhode Island, will talk about beluga whale research! Specifically, Dr. Richard will share the critical research that occurs at aquariums to develop minimally-invasive tools to study beluga whales, and how we can explore beluga whale biology in new ways by combining behavioral research with physiological research. Learn how exhaled breath samples can be used to study beluga whale genetic relationships, maturity status, and even help detect pregnancy!

Dr. Richard’s interest in marine mammals developed at Mystic Aquarium, where he was a beluga whale trainer for nearly 10 years before entering a PhD program in Integrative and Evolutionary Biology at URI.  Now a member of the faculty in the department of Animal and Veterinary Science, he teaches courses relating to animal behavior, marine mammals, and zoo and aquarium animal care and management.  His research takes an integrative approach to studying behavior in zoos and aquariums to fill knowledge gaps about animals and behaviors that are logistically difficult to study in the wild to advance conservation efforts.  His research program emphasizes undergraduate participation, providing opportunities for interested students to engage in authentic learning experiences in animal science.

This programming is FREE. When registering, please consider making a donation to ensure we can stay connected.

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Nature Connection Activities

Nature Connection Activities

by | Jun 26, 2020 | Education, Family

Our favorite Nature Connection Activities – in one place!

Connecting our community to the natural world – that is what BPZOO strives to do every day. When a global pandemic forced our doors to close in mid-March, we knew we needed to find a way to help our community maintain that connection.

We did that by posting 68 different activities on Facebook and Instagram to inspire families of all ages to engage in the outside world around them – wherever they were. Spending time in nature can help relieve stress and anxiety, improve mood, and boost feelings of happiness and well-being. The natural world is also a powerful educational tool that can stimulate a child’s natural curiosity and creativity through multi-sensory, hands-on exploration and play.

BPZOO Educators have taken their favorite activities and put them in one place!

Nature Connection Activities

Did hear that Charlie’s Nature Play is now open?
Remember, it’s still BYOT- bring your own toys!

 

 

 

BPZOO now has a StoryWalk®!

BPZOO now has a StoryWalk®!

by | Jun 26, 2020 | Education, Family

The Buttonwood Park Zoo, in conjunction with the New Bedford Birth – 3rd Partnership, is now home to a StoryWalk® – in 4 languages!

In July of 2020, guests to the Zoo were able to peruse the pages of the beloved children’s book “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” by Bill Martin Jr and Eric Carle as they strolled the newly opened pathway around the elephant habitat. In August, the StoryWalk® was “Planting a Rainbow” by Lois Ehlert. The StoryWalk®, in addition to English, is also posted in Portuguese, K’iche and Spanish. In September, the StoryWalk® was “From Head to Toe” by Eric Carle. In November, the StoryWalk® was “Pumpkin Eye” by Denise Fleming, including I Spy pages. In January, the StoryWalk® was “Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?” by Bill Martin, Jr. and Eric Carle.

The current StoryWalk® for April 2021 is “Flower Garden” by Eve Bunting. Illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt. Translated in 4 languages: Spanish, Portuguese, K’iche, Haitian Creole.

New Bedford Birth – 3rd Partnership’s vision is that with the support of a collaboration of community partners and families, New Bedford children are prepared to succeed in school, career, and life. They have a variety of resources for parents, caretakers, teachers and organizations – including the local community expectations for children up to age five. For more information on the New Bedford Birth – 3rd Partnership, a community wide early childhood initiative, visit their Facebook page.

Members: ArtWorks/New Bedford Art Museum, BMC Health Plan, Coastline Elderly Services, Early Childhood Consultation, Early Learning Child Care, Inc., Days of Discovery, Family Resource & Development Center (United Way of Greater New Bedford), Greater New Bedford Community Health Center (W.I.C. and Wellness Center), KDC Healthy Families/Early Intervention, Kiddie Kampus, Little People’s College (New Bedford and Fairhaven), Meeting Street Early Head Start, New Bedford Children, New Bedford Free Public Library, New Bedford Housing Authority, New Bedford Public Schools, NorthStar Learning Centers, P.A.C.E. Child Care Works and CFCE family engagement, P.A.C.E. Head Start, Reach Out and Read, Sunshine’s Place, South Coast Coalition for Early Childhood Education, United Way of Greater New Bedford, YMCA Southcoast, and Community Volunteers.

The StoryWalk® Project was created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, VT and developed in collaboration with the Kellogg-Hubbard Library. Storywalk® is a registered service mark owned by Ms. Ferguson.