User:ABBryant/SFCTZ edit

The Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo is a 10 acre zoo in Gainesville, Florida. As part of Santa Fe College, It is the only zookeeper training facility in the United States with its own AZA-accredited zoo on grounds, and has been accredited since 2000.

Guided tours led by zookeepers and students are available at the teaching zoo for a fee.

History
The Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo was established in 1970. It comprises 10 acre of forested land on the west side of the Santa Fe College main campus.

Animals
The zoo is home to over 220 individual animals representing more thatn 75 species, including mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and birds. The collection includes lar gibbons (Hylobates lar), Matschie's tree-kangaroo (Dendrolagus matschiei), and bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus).

The zoo participates in several AZA Species Survival Plan (SSP) programs, for Lar Gibbons and Matschie's Tree-kangaroo as well as Oriental Small-clawed Otter (Aonyx cinereus), red ruffed lemur (Varecia rubra), and ocelots (Leopardus pardalis). The programs have been successful with, most recently, the birth of a red ruffed lemur.

The Zoo Animal Technology Program
Students spend 18 months learning about animal husbandry, breeding, nutrition, medical care, physiology, taxonomic relationships, conservation, enclosure construction, proper zoo sanitation, and other topics through classwork and actual work as keepers in the zoo.

Students of the Zoo Animal Technology Program are known as Zooies.

Events
The zoo is a popular destination for both local residents and tourists. The zoo hosts several events open to the public throughout the year, including S.T.A.R.S (Sea Turtles At Risk).

The annual "Boo at the Zoo" (BATZ) Halloween festival features a trick-or-treat and extended hours. The 2011 "Boo at the Zoo" attracted over 6000 guests. Admission cost only a can of food.