ZooTampa relocating most animals ahead of Milton

Image via ZooTampa.

ZooTampa, one of Florida’s largest zoos, is closed as most animals were being moved from their regular enclosures into night houses, barns and ancillary buildings to withstand hurricane-force winds, said Sandra Torres, a zoo spokeswoman.

Because of Hurricane Milton’s intensity, Torres said some animals may be required to share shelters.

“The primates have a night house, for example, that is hurricane-proof. There may be some birds in kennels that are also sharing that space, which obviously wouldn’t normally happen during operations,” Torres said.

Veterinarians are monitoring animals after the move, Torres said.

A group of about 12 staff members will be on site as Hurricane Milton makes landfall to handle any emergencies throughout the storm.

ZooTampa at Lowry Park had nearly finished recovering from Hurricane Helene, which disrupted its manatee care center, Torres said. As late as Monday, she said, their manatee rescue team was still locating manatees that were washed into retention canals due to the high storm surge.

“Being a zoo in Florida,” she said, “we’ve been actually preparing year round.”

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This story was produced by Fresh Take Florida, a news service of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. The reporter can be reached at [email protected]. You can donate to support our students here.