More than 30,000 attend San Antonio Zoo's Congo Falls grand opening weekend

One of the four male gorillas housed at Congo Falls, Ajari, weighs more than 400 pounds. Credit: Courtesy / San Antonio Zoo

More than 30,000 visitors flocked to the San Antonio Zoo over the weekend for the grand opening of Congo Falls, officials with the wildlife park told the Current.

The new exhibit marks the first time gorillas have called the San Antonio Zoo home in more than 30 years, and Congo Falls has already grabbed national media attention thanks to a feature on NBC’s Today Show last week.

Congo Falls houses seven western lowland gorillas as part of the Association of Zoo & Aquariums Species Survival Plan. The area features three distinct habitats, a waterfall, overhanging trails and a structure zoo officials bill as the world’s tallest gorilla tower.

From now through Dec. 31, San Antonio Zoo members get exclusive access to Congo Falls an hour before the park opens. Tickets to Congo Falls, which is included with general admission, are available at the San Antonio Zoo website.

Although getting gorillas to the Alamo City was no small feat and took a decade of work, San Antonio Zoo CEO Tim Morrow isn’t done yet, telling the San Antonio Report that he’s now eyeing the zoo’s land west of U.S. Highway 281 for an elephant exhibit.

“We are an elephant zoo,” Morrow told the publication. “We want to be engaged with elephant conservation.”

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