The North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro has broken ground on its newest expansion plan: a 10-acre Asia Continent exhibit.
The new exhibit will highlight species such as tigers, Komodo dragons, Visayan warty pigs, white-cheeked gibbons, Asian small-clawed otters, red-crowned cranes, wrinkled hornbills, king cobras and Chinese giant salamanders in natural habitat settings.
“The most exciting animal is the warty pig,” said Jennifer Ireland, the zoo’s curator of mammals. “This is a critically endangered animal from the southeastern areas of Asia. There are very few left in the wild, so this is going to be a very important conservation species for us.”
Asia will be the first new continent exhibit to be added to the zoo since its North American wing opened in 1994. It’s expected to open in 2026. That gives enough time for construction of the exhibits and for the animals to get used to their new environment.
Zoo officials say one of the highlights of the new area will be a 300-seat indoor café overlooking the tiger habitat and an overhead “tiger walk.”
Patricia Simmons, the zoo’s director and CEO, says the exhibit will add new experiences for visitors.
“We’re going to be displaying tigers in a really fun way. They’ll be literally walking over your head as you walk underneath them,” said Simmons. “In the new restaurant area, you’ll be able to sit down at a table and eat right next to a tiger on the other side of the glass.”
State lawmakers gave the zoo $75 million over the next two years to begin construction of the new exhibit. The state funding combined with donations will build out the Asia exhibit as well as upgrade the zoo’s aging tram system and expand the parking lot.
The North Carolina Zoo is the world’s largest natural habitat zoo. More than 1,700 animals call it home. The zoo employs 225 full-time workers and more than 400 during the peak visitor season. State officials estimate the zoo generates more than $184 million in economic activity.
The Asia Continent exhibit is phase 1 of a long-term expansion plan to add new exhibits and wildlife to the zoo. Planning is already in the works for future Australia and Amazonian exhibits once the Asia expansion is completed.
