Zoo News

Lily is a 26-year-old American bison who has lived at the Virginia Zoo since 2000. In 2001, Lily gave birth to her only offspring, a female bison named Snoopy, who lived out her life at Maymont in Richmond. Even as an older bison, Lily’s keepers say she has maintained her calm, confident demeanor and sassy personality. She is not easily phased by irregular activity around her habitat, like special events. Some of her favorite enrichment activities are knocking down barrels and laying in her mud wallow during the summer. Despite her enormous size, Lily always amazes her keepers by stealthily navigating her habitat, seeming to appear without so much as the leaves rustling or branches snapping as she moves around.

Lily’s move involved relocating her from the exhibit space across from the Beazley Train Station to a new exhibit in the Flora Point section of the Zoo (Click here to view her new spot on our map). Transferring any large animal to a new space can be a daunting task requiring meticulous preparation and outstanding teamwork. Lily was anesthetized and transferred using a lift, but thanks to all the hard work from our veterinary staff, Lily’s care team, and several other Zoo employees, the careful process was a success! Assistant Curator of ZooFarm, Martha, said “The move took numerous meetings of careful planning, problem solving, and mock move simulations with departments coming together to do what was best for Lily. The reward is seeing her every morning, waiting at the gate for us to greet us and head-butting her barrels and balls around the enclosure.“

Aside from our fantastic veterinary team, this move would not have been possible without the help from all the Virginia Zoo staff especially, zookeepers (Martha, Jake, & Dennis), horticulture staff (Kent, Noah, Telly, & Tim), and facilities staff (Richard & Matt). These staff members went above and beyond their typical responsibilities and provided the much-needed assistance to ensure our bison was cared for during the entire transfer process. We couldn’t be more grateful for their hard work and dedication to our animals!

Once in her new exhibit space, Lily was given a full examination by our vet team including, lead veterinarian Dr. Mary, associate veterinarian Dr. Jess, and vet tech Leah. At the end of the exam, Lily was given a clean bill of health, and she was ready to explore her new space. Dr. Mary said, “Moving Lily to her new home was a team effort involving staff from Animal Care, Horticulture, Marketing, Education, and Veterinary Services. During the move, we conducted a full physical examination and are pleased to report that, despite some typical age-related changes, she is in overall good condition for a geriatric bison. Months of planning paid off when we saw her running around her new home – an impressive feat for a senior bison!“