Nashville families have a delightful new stop to add to their zoo day. Nashville Zoo has opened a brand-new South American multi-species habitat, starring the recently arrived capybara pups Andouille and Brie, alongside one giant anteater, three common rheas and two crested screamers, all living together in one grassland-inspired home.
You will find the habitat just past Flamingo Lagoon, where the former tapir exhibit stood. It was expanded and redesigned to feel like a South American grassland, with open space, grasses and artificial termite mounds that invite natural foraging. Keepers add enrichment and tasty diet items such as fruit and insects to the mounds every day, and the existing pool was modified because both capybaras and anteaters love the water. A remodeled bridge with glass panels makes it easier for everyone — including the smallest visitors — to watch the animals up close.
Capybaras and crested screamers were ready to greet guests first, while the giant anteater and rheas are joining the habitat gradually as they settle in. “By housing compatible species together, we created a more dynamic experience for both the animals and our guests,” said Nashville Zoo President and CEO Rick Schwartz, noting that the habitat shows how species are connected within an ecosystem.
There is a proud conservation story here, too: Nashville Zoo is home to the largest collection of captive giant anteaters in the United States, with 19 born at its breeding facility since 2001. For children, it is a joyful first lesson in how different animals share one home — and for parents, a very happy reason to plan the next family visit.
Photo: Giles Laurent via Wikimedia Commons
