Washington’s National Zoo is about to welcome one of the rarest cats on Earth! The Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute and the Royal Commission for AlUla broke ground on September 15 on the “Saudi Arabia: Arabian Leopard” exhibit — the first exhibit anywhere outside the Arabian Peninsula dedicated to the critically endangered Arabian leopard.
With fewer than 120 of these big cats believed to remain in the wild, every leopard counts. The new habitat, set to open in winter 2029 near the Zoo’s Asia Trail, will give visitors a front-row seat to a world-class conservation success story. A breeding pair from the Arabian Leopard Conservation Breeding Centre in Taif, Saudi Arabia, is expected to arrive in fall 2028, and any cubs born in D.C. will one day return to Saudi Arabia to help rebuild wild populations.
The exhibit itself will be a little piece of Arabia on the National Mall’s doorstep: rugged rocky outcrops inspired by AlUla’s dramatic landscapes, an overhead animal crossing that lets the leopards roam above visitors’ heads, and a live webcam so people everywhere can watch these magnificent cats. A replica of an ancient leopard petroglyph, thousands of years old, will be permanently displayed at the exhibit.
Backed by a $51.6 million gift from the Royal Commission for AlUla, the project is part of a 15-year partnership bringing together scientists, Saudi students and the Zoo’s expert keepers. Best of all? Like the entire Zoo, the new exhibit will be completely free.
Photo: Saudi Press Agency via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
