Displaying items by tag: where to see hellbender

The Chattanooga Zoo will soon open an exhibit to hellbenders, such as the one seen here in a tank at the zoo.  Courtesy Chattanooga Zoo

New hellbender exhibit at Chattanooga Zoo will serve as a hub for cooperative research

Thanks to grants from two generous organizations, some oft-elusive hellbenders have a new home at the Chattanooga Zoo. The Hiwassee Education and Research Facility is nearly complete, and it features hellbender exhibits and a classroom. The exhibit includes juvenile hellbenders hatched from eggs collected from the Duck River in central Tennessee in 2015.  

The zoo is also fabricating a stream environment exhibit that will house nine larger sub-adult hellbenders, each about 10 years old and 14.5 inches long. Visitors can observe hellbenders feeding in the completed exhibit, but it will be open only during limited hours. After the project’s completion, the zoo plans to partner with researchers who hope to learn more about hellbenders. 

“The Chattanooga Zoo is thrilled at the introduction of its new Hiwassee Hellbender Research Facility,” zoo officials said in a statement to Hellbender Press. 

“We believe that this new facility will open rare opportunities for guests to be educated on this otherwise elusive native species, and that the project would lead to important strides made in hellbender research. 

“From all of this, our hope is for more conservation efforts made in our local waterways, also known as the eastern hellbender’s home.”