Living Desert Zoo & Gardens, NM

If you’re ever close to Carlsbad, New Mexico, make sure to plan a visit to the Living Desert Zoo & Gardens! All of the animals are either rescued or have been born into captivity so they cannot be released. What makes this place so neat is the fact that ALL the animals & plants are native to North America’s largest desert, the Chihuahuan Desert. You can find elk, bison, javelin, bobcats, Mexican wolves, roadrunners, eagles, hawks & more!

The javelinas, which are often confused with wild pigs, have poor vision but as you can see, their sense of smell is spot on! She came right up to me after I finally called her out of her bed lol. They are only found in North & South America & can live up to 15 years. To help them defend their selves in the desert they have sharp canine like teeth & also efficient kidneys which help them retain water.

The Golden Eagle in the video below is North Americas largest bird of prey. While the California Condor is the largest [scavenger] bird in North America with an average wing span of 10 feet!! The Golden Eagle can live up to 23 years & don’t mate until they are 4-7 years old. A neat fact about them is they will line their nests with aromatic desert plants, such as sage, to deter insect parasites!

Also in the cage with the Golden Eagle was a Native ground squirrel just digging away! Obviously he made his own way in and you would think the eagle would have eaten him, but somehow they are co-existing, at least while we were there. This thing is huge compared to our squirrels back in Alabama!

Meet Maggie, the 13 year old painting black bear, who retired this year! We were fortunate enough to get to purchase one of her paintings as a souvenir when we visited.

They even have a whole exhibit of native succulents, which I was drooling over!

If you like zoos and learning about native species then you should make sure to visit! Also the fact that the entry fee is only $5 per adult, $3 for kids 7-12 & free for kids 6 & under make it a very affordable stop! We thoroughly enjoyed it!