San Diegans Ernest and Evelyn Rady have made a record-setting commitment in support of the San Diego Zoo’s Animal Ambassador program. The Radys have pledged $20 million, of which $15 million will be a challenge grant that must be earned with matching donations from other Zoo supporters.

San Diego Zoo Global researchers have confirmed the presence of rare black leopards living in Laikipia County, Kenya. Sometimes called black panthers, the melanistic leopards were filmed in Lorok, Laikipia County, Kenya on remote cameras that were set up as part of a large-scale study aimed at understanding the population dynamics of leopards in Mpala and Loisaba Conservancies.

San Diego Zoo Global’s horticultural works are in the spotlight this month, with the United States Botanic Garden (USBG) in Washington, D.C. including landscape designs from both the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park in a new exhibit.

Two lactating African elephants—Umngani (pronounced OOM-gah-nee), who gave birth to a healthy female calf, Mkhaya or “Kaia”, on Sept. 26, 2018; and Ndulamitsi, known as Ndula, who gave birth to a healthy male calf, Umzuli-Zuli or “Zuli,” on Aug. 12, 2018—are participating in a nutritional study, allowing researchers to study the content of their milk.