Philadelphia Zoo

The Philadelphia Zoo today begins a year-long celebration of the 150th anniversary of its birth with exhibits featuring "face to face" meetings between zoogoers and lions - separated by a thick pane of glass - and a new, modern aviary opening in May that will feature more than 100 spectacular birds from around the world, many of them endangered. The birdhouse, the McNeil Avian Center, will replace a zoo birdhouse built in 1916.

Philadelphia Zoo as a leader in wildlife conservation and environmental education. In a written statement, zoo officials said its mission is to “spark young imaginations and inspire the next generation to take the lead and protect animals and environments throughout the world.” A weeklong-long celebration includes a birthday party with entertainment for all ages. Sesquicentennial Weekend also kicks off festivities that are scheduled to run into 2010, as well as new events that include a “hatching” at the McNeil Avian Center that is set to open in this spring.

The Philadelphia Zoological Society was chartered in 1859, the year Charles Darwin published "The Origin of Species." But the Civil War intervened and the zoo didn't actually open its doors until July 1, 1874. The zoo also has seen its share of tragedies, including the deaths of several elephants and the terrible Christmas Eve fire in 1995, sparked by faulty wiring, that killed 23 gorillas and other primates. Although generations of children fondly remember the zoo, and its since torn-down monorail, it is not without its detractors.