The Houston Zoo is a 55-acre (22 ha) zoological park located within Hermann Park in Houston, Texas, United States. The zoo houses over 6,000 animals from more than 900 species. It receives around 2 million visitors each year and is the second most visited zoo in the United States, surpassed only by the San Diego Zoo. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
Houston Zoo entrance
Image: Houston Zoo Stacked
Ankole resting in the shade
Asian elephant enjoying a broccoli treat
Hermann Park is a 445-acre (180-hectare) urban park in Houston, Texas, situated at the southern end of the Museum District. The park is located immediately north of the Texas Medical Center and Brays Bayou, east of Rice University, and slightly west of the Third Ward. Hermann Park is home to numerous cultural institutions including the Houston Zoo, Miller Outdoor Theatre, the Houston Museum of Natural Science, and the Hermann Park Golf Course, which became one of the first desegregated public golf courses in the United States in 1954. The park also features the Mary Gibbs and Jesse H. Jones Reflection Pool, numerous gardens, picnic areas, and McGovern Lake, an 8-acre (32,000 m2) recreational lake.
Sam Houston Monument at the northern end of Hermann Park
A view of the Mary Gibbs and Jesse H. Jones Reflection Pool and monument to Sam Houston.
The Pioneer Memorial obelisk stands at the end of the Mary Gibbs and Jesse H. Jones Reflection Pool. It was erected by the San Jacinto Centennial Association and dedicated on August 30, 1936.
Japanese garden pond in Hermann Park