Following the "big" haul among the giraffes, wolves, sea lions, and orangutans, it is the little penguins that are currently the stars at Schönbrunn Zoo. There are no fewer than ten chicks among the seriously endangered Rockhopper penguins. That makes Schönbrunn one of the world's most successful zoos for the breeding of the little "tailcoat"-wearing birds, with the zoo making a big contribution to species conservation. Certain species of luminous and ribbed jellyfish have also been raised for the first time in Europe. No wonder: Vienna has one of the largest jellyfish breeding stations in the world, with over 70 species. The pelican chick hatched in March will soon no longer number among the little ones as it grows to have a wingspan of 3 meters. A nice surprise was the birth of twins in the short-eared elephant shrew enclosure in the Desert Experience House. Even through they will grow to just 12 centimeters in size, their nearest relatives are actually elephants and manatees, and not, as is assumed, other rodents. In the meantime, however, they are all grown up.

Since the many youngsters born in recent years have quickly grown up, visitors to Schönbrunn are now once again spoiled for choice when it comes to cute baby animals.

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Modern enclosures

Today the Zoo at Schönbrunn is considered one of the best and most modern zoos in the world. In 2022, it was voted Europe's best zoo for the sixth time already: The Zoo therefore beat 126 scientifically managed zoos in 29 European countries to take first place. The animal compounds have a particularly generous and natural design. More than 700 kinds of animal live here - from the Siberian tiger to koalas and rhinoceros. Highlights are the giant rainforest house, the large South American enclosure and the ORANG.erie, home to Vienna's orangutans. The Nature Experience Trail was opened in spring 2010. May 2014 witnessed the return of polar bears to the zoo: The enclosure, called "Franz Josef Land", covers 1,700 m² and provides the white giants with enough space to romp around in.

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The new giraffe park was opened in May 2017: A gallery in the winter enclosure means that visitors can now meet the giraffes face to face. In the new East Africa Building next door, dwarf mongoose, Von der Decken’s hornbills and ground hornbills can be found bustling about. The latter share the 1,770 m² outdoor area with the giraffes. And the new, spacious hippopotamus bathing pond, which opened in summer 2018, makes it possible to watch the animals splashing around outdoors. The bears can also be watched diving for the first time. To mark the zoo's 270th birthday in summer 2022, a new lion enclosure and a new petting zoo were built.

The zoo is part of the Schönbrunn UNESCO world heritage site. In the summer of 1752, Emperor Franz I. Stephan von Lothringen, Maria Theresia's husband, took his royal guests to the newly constructed menagerie in the park at Schönbrunn Palace for the first time. Ever since then, the world's oldest zoo has been operating in Vienna.

Special tours and workshops provide information about the animal kingdom. And the zoo is directly adjacent to the Desert House, where the flora and fauna of the driest regions on earth can be explored.

• Schönbrunn Palace
• The Gloriette
• Trailing Sisi
• The maze at Schönbrunn
• Schönbrunn - Palm House