The recent arrival of panda twins in Atlanta got us thinking about other zoo and aquarium superstars. Click through the gallery to meet some of the United States' most ooohed-and-ahhed-over animals. Here, giant panda Lun Lun is shown shortly after giving birth to twins on July 15. The 15-year-old giant panda is caring for one of her cubs but she's not letting the photographer see it.
Courtesy Zoo Atlanta
Zoo Atlanta —
The first twin arrived on July 15 at 6:21 p.m., and its twin arrived two minutes later. They're both male. They are the first giant pandas to be born in the United States this year and the first panda twins to be born in the United States since 1987.
Courtesy Atlanta zoo
Zoo Atlanta —
If you can't wait until the fall, when the babies are expected to go on exhibit, you can still enjoy the sight of giant pandas at Zoo Atlanta. The twins' father, Yang Yang, shown here, and their older brothers, Xi Lan, 4, and Po, 2, are on exhibit at the zoo.
Courtesy Zoo Atlanta
Zoo Atlanta —
If you're lucky, you might also spot Pongo, a Sumatran orangutan born on January 10 via cesarean section. First-time mom Blaze initially needed round-the-clock help from zoo staff and volunteer nurses from the local (human) children's hospital to learn to care for Pongo. Mother and son have been living together full-time since late March.
Courtesy Zoo Atlanta
National Aquarium, Baltimore, Maryland —
Calypso the green sea turtle was suffering from an infected fin and other maladies when she was rescued off Long Island in 2000. She was brought to the National Aquarium's Baltimore location. When the fin was amputated, officials feared she would not survive in the wild, so the aquarium adopted her.
Courtesy National Aquarium
National Aquarium —
A school of 20 blacktip reef sharks will soon be introduced into the National Aquarium's new $12.5 million Blacktip Reef exhibit, a reproduction of an Indo-Pacific reef system that includes a 13,500 square-foot marine habitat. The sharks are expected to enter the exhibit, where Calypso the green sea turtle already lives, by month's end.
Courtesy National Aquarium
San Diego Zoo, California —
A leader in the koala conservation movement, the San Diego Zoo has the largest breeding colony of Queensland koalas outside of Australia. The California zoo opened its latest "Australian Outback" koala exhibit in May.
Courtesy San Diego Zoo
San Diego Zoo —
Penelope the giraffe was born at the San Diego Zoo on May 9 and was held in a restricted "playpen" until she joined the herd on May 17. About six feet tall at birth, Penelope is a Masai giraffe. The species is native to Africa and is threatened in some areas.
Courtesy San Diego Zoo
Fort Worth Zoo, Texas —
Asha, a greater one-horned rhino calf, was born on August 16, 2012, and is still with her mom in the Fort Worth Zoo's Asian Falls exhibit. The birth of this endangered species was the first at the Texas zoo.
Courtesy Fort Worth Zoo
Fort Worth Zoo —
This Asian elephant calf was born at the Fort Worth Zoo on July 7, weighing in at 330 pounds and measuring 38 inches tall. Rasha, a 40-year-old Asian elephant, gave birth to her second calf after a 22-month pregnancy. Mother and daughter can occasionally be seen at the zoo's Asian Falls exhibit. Voting on the calf's name is taking place until July 25 on the zoo's Facebook page.
Courtesy Fort Worth Zoo
Riverbanks Zoo and Garden, South Carolina —
Ajari the gorilla, age 12, was transferred to Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia, South Carolina, earlier this year to join Chaka, 28, and Mike, 21. He's a western lowland gorilla who was born at the San Diego Zoo and had been living at the zoo in Knoxville, Tennessee. These gorillas usually live in packs of five to 30 individuals in the tropical rainforests of West Africa.
Courtesy Riverbanks Zoo and Garden
Riverbanks Zoo and Garden —
The baby babirusa born in March to first-time parents Wilma and Bertello was the first of its species to be born at Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia, South Carolina. "Babirusa" is Malaysian for "deer-pig." These swine run swiftly like deer and are also known to be good swimmers.
Courtesy Riverbanks Zoo and Garden
South Florida Museum, Bradenton, Florida —
Although most Florida manatees live about eight years, Snooty the manatee just turned 65. The South Florida Museum in Bradenton feted its elderly resident on July 20 with a birthday bash and arts and wildlife festival. Manatee County's official mascot lives in a 60,000-gallon freshwater pool at the museum's Parker Manatee Aquarium.
Courtesy South Florida Museum
South Florida Museum —
Although Snooty is the star of the South Florida Museum's Parker Manatee Aquarium, the site also features a live coral tank, shown here with a clownfish; an invasive species tank; and a touch tank with sea stars, sea urchins and hermit crabs.
Courtesy South Florida Museum
Nashville Zoo, Tennessee —
A leader in the clouded leopard conservation program, the Nashville Zoo in Tennessee has already had five clouded leopard cub births so far this year. Since 2009, 20 cubs have been born at the zoo. Because males can sometimes attack and kill potential female partners, the zoo hand-raises cubs and introduces them to mates at a young age.They are native to Southeast Asia and China.
Christian Sperka/Courtesy Nashville Zoo
Nashville Zoo —
Unlike the clouded leopards, these red river hogs like company and often live in small families of three to six hogs. Those families join other families to form groups of 11 to 15 hogs. They are native to West and central sub-Saharan Africa.
Courtesy Nashville zoo
Monterey Bay Aquarium, California —
The leafy sea dragons won't be at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey, California, for long. They're part of "The Secret Lives of Seahorses" exhibition, which closes after Labor Day. Cousins to seahorses, leafy sea dragons live off South and Western Australia's rocky reefs. Their appearance helps them blend in with sea plant life.
Randy Wilder/Courtesy Monterey Bay Aquarium
Monterey Bay Aquarium —
These spotted jellies are part of the "Jellies Experience" special exhibition at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which shows the magic and beauty of jellyfish and corals in the water. The 7,000-foot exhibition featuring 16 species of jellies and corals opened March 31, 2012, at the aquarium and will remain until September 2014.
Randy Wilder/Courtesy Monterey Bay Aquarium
Oregon Zoo, Portland, Oregon —
The Oregon Zoo wouldn't be complete without the beaver, the state animal and the largest rodent in North America. Admire them and their dens at the zoo's Cascade Stream and Pond habitat.
Courtesy Oregon Zoo
Oregon Zoo —
Four black crakes that hatched at the Oregon Zoo on July 8 are being hand-raised for now. They will reside in the zoo's Vollum Aviary once they're old and strong enough to not be considered lunch by some of the aviary's other residents. These fluffy creatures are native to sub-Saharan Africa.
Courtesy Oregon Zoo
Buffalo Zoo, New York —
After an adult female polar bear was shot in Alaska in March, her orphaned cub was rescued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and placed in the temporary care of the Alaska Zoo. In May, the cub, now named Kali, shown here, was transported to the Buffalo Zoo in upstate New York to keep company with Luna, a female cub already living in Buffalo.
Eric Lee/Courtesy Buffalo Zoo
Buffalo Zoo —
When Kali, right, first arrived at the Buffalo Zoo, he was pretty shy. Now, he and Luna have become friends. Visitors to the Buffalo Zoo enjoy watching them roll and play together in their exhibit every day. They have been keeping cool this summer by swimming in their pool.
