One of the 58 animals on the National Zoo’s new carousel gets ready for its close-up. Photograph courtesy of Carousel Works.
The National Zoo will soon house 58 new animals–from a bald eagle to a naked mole rat–and zoogoers will be able to see them up close, pet them, even ride them. They’ll just be a bit wooden to the touch. Actually, all wooden. The next step in the zoo’s drive to be more modern and more fun is a throwback: a wooden carousel–the second such Smithsonian attraction, whose counterpart on the Mall has been running for decades.
Crafters at Ohio’s Carousel Works, which also created the insect-themed merry-go-round at the Bronx Zoo, are hand-carving the animals from 30 to 70 pieces of basswood each. Hardest to carve? The eight-legged octopus.
When the solar-powered ride opens this fall on the zoo’s Lion/Tiger Hill, kids will be able to climb onto a Maryland blue crab and a Baltimore oriole as well as a cuttlefish and an elephant shrew. With any luck, says zoo director Dennis Kelly, the carousel will pique children’s interest in animals and conservation in a way that pink horses with chartreuse manes probably don’t.
Smithsonian Secretary Wayne Clough has been informally selling animal sponsorships at events around town. Perks mainly involve having the donor’s name on a plaque under the animal and getting exclusive rides before the carousel opens to the public.
Appropriately enough, the alumni club of Georgia Tech, the institution Clough previously headed, swooped up the yellow jacket.
This article appears in the May 2012 issue of The Washingtonian.
Wanna Ride the Zebra?
The National Zoo will soon welcome 58 animals as a part of its new carousel.
The National Zoo will soon house 58 new animals–from a bald eagle to a naked mole rat–and zoogoers will be able to see them up close, pet them, even ride them. They’ll just be a bit wooden to the touch. Actually, all wooden. The next step in the zoo’s drive to be more modern and more fun is a throwback: a wooden carousel–the second such Smithsonian attraction, whose counterpart on the Mall has been running for decades.
Crafters at Ohio’s Carousel Works, which also created the insect-themed merry-go-round at the Bronx Zoo, are hand-carving the animals from 30 to 70 pieces of basswood each. Hardest to carve? The eight-legged octopus.
When the solar-powered ride opens this fall on the zoo’s Lion/Tiger Hill, kids will be able to climb onto a Maryland blue crab and a Baltimore oriole as well as a cuttlefish and an elephant shrew. With any luck, says zoo director Dennis Kelly, the carousel will pique children’s interest in animals and conservation in a way that pink horses with chartreuse manes probably don’t.
Smithsonian Secretary Wayne Clough has been informally selling animal sponsorships at events around town. Perks mainly involve having the donor’s name on a plaque under the animal and getting exclusive rides before the carousel opens to the public.
Appropriately enough, the alumni club of Georgia Tech, the institution Clough previously headed, swooped up the yellow jacket.
This article appears in the May 2012 issue of The Washingtonian.
Most Popular in News & Politics
The Missing Men of Mount Pleasant
Another Mysterious Anti-Trump Statue Has Appeared on the National Mall
Muriel Bowser Defends Her BLM Plaza Decision and Looks Back on a Decade as Mayor
Yet Another Anti-Trump Statue Has Shown Up on the National Mall
8 Takeaways From Usha Vance’s Interview With Meghan McCain
Washingtonian Magazine
July Issue: The "Best Of" Issue
View IssueSubscribe
Follow Us on Social
Follow Us on Social
Related
How Would a New DC Stadium Compare to the Last One?
The Culture of Lacrosse Is More Complex Than People Think
Did Television Begin in Dupont Circle?
Kings Dominion’s Wild New Coaster Takes Flight in Virginia
More from News & Politics
Guest List: 5 People We’d Love to Hang Out With This July
The Washington Nationals Just Fired the Manager and GM Who Led Them to a Championship. Why Has the Team Been so Bad Since?
FBI Building Now on Track to Leave DC After All, Whistleblower Leaks Texts Suggesting Justice Department Planned to Blow Off Federal Court Orders, and NPS Cuts Leave Assateague Island Without Lifeguards
Families of DC Air Disaster Victims Criticize Army’s Response, Trump Settles His Scores Via Tariff, and Police Dog Kicked at Dulles Returns to Work
This DC-Area Lawyer Wants More Americans Betting on Elections
Trump Threatens DC Takeover, Says He’d Run the City “So Good”; Supreme Court OKs Mass Federal Worker Layoffs; and You Should Go Pick Some Sunflowers
Trump Pledges Support for RFK Stadium Plan, Ben’s Chili Bowl Will Strand Us Half-Smokeless for Months, and Pediatricians Are Suing RFK Jr.
Muriel Bowser Defends Her BLM Plaza Decision and Looks Back on a Decade as Mayor