Buttonwood Park Zoo in New Bedford, MA

Buttonwood Park Zoo is a small, family-friendly zoo in Massachusetts’ Southcoast area. Benny and I paid a visit the animals being cared for here, and we had a great time. Benny even made a new friend, but more on that later!

---

Benny insisted that before I start writing about our trip to the Buttonwood Park Zoo that I clarify one important point: The zoo is dedicated to conservation and promoting wildlife education. In fact, he pretty much said that if I didn’t add this link explaining the zoo’s education mission, he wouldn’t speak to me for a month. Although I wouldn’t mind the quiet, I completely get his point.

https://www.bpzoo.org/education-and-conservation/

Now, let’s continue with our adventure.

Right off of the bat, Benny had to pose for a picture. In the background, there’s a bison.

No matter how hard we tried to get the bison’s attention, he (or she?) didn’t want to look at the camera.

The New England Farm Exhibit

We made our way to the New England Farm exhibit.

If it’s a New England Farm exhibit, but doesn’t have a covered bridge, is it really a New England Farm exhibit? The answer is no.

Again, Benny wanted to pose. I told him that the horse was out of focus, but did he care? Nope.

There was also this cow that was having a grand old time eating this bag. Seriously. The bag was completely empty.

The Next Stops

Along the way, we met a seal that was swimming around. It reminded me of the time we went on a seal cruise in Cape Cod. Benny wanted to jump in and swim with the seal, but that was against Buttonwood Park Zoo’s policies (and I wouldn’t let him).

We also said hello to the zoo’s longest residents, elephants named Ruth and Emily. One of the elephants was hiding, the other was quite friendly. I wish I could tell you if this was Ruth or Emily, but I honestly have no idea. Benny kept alternating between calling her Ruth and then Emily, so he naturally didn’t help.

Whomever it was, this elephant followed us along the fence for a while.

I told the elephant that Benny was a peanut and that she could eat him. Benny was not happy with me, not because I called him a peanut, but because apparently elephants don’t eat peanuts in the wild, and that their eating peanuts is a stereotype perpetuated by Hollywood and circuses of yesteryear. He really gave it to me.

Our Next Stops

Near Emily and Ruth’s home are the Southern Screamers. They’re birds native to South America that, well, scream. Every time a plane flew overhead, the birds would start screaming at it. Considering there’s an airport in New Bedford, and that the flight path of most of those planes go over the zoo, they must be screaming a lot.

We also visited a red panda, which we learned, thanks to my wife’s pointing out, that it’s not really a panda.

We also stopped by to say hello to the fish and birds in their respective habitats. Pictures can’t do these areas justice. They’re planned out well and have a lot of information on a variety of species.

We saw a lot of jellyfish, just like on our trip to the Cape Cod Natural History Museum.

Benny tries to swim again

Benny just wouldn’t give up on swimming. As we walked by the otter habitat, he tried to jump in with them. I had to hold him back.

It did look like the otter wanted to play, but again I had to remind Benny of the zoo’s policies. I told him we had to be content with just saying hi.

---

There are many other animals being cared for here at the Buttonwood Park Zoo. We weren’t able to take photos of all of them for a couple of reasons: One, because that would be a lot of photos, and two, many kept moving and didn’t want to pose for the camera. We recommend a visit to the zoo for a fun, educational, family-friendly activity.

For more information about the Buttonwood Park Zoo, such as current hours and admission, check out their site.

---

Join us on our adventures!

First name Email Address

Leave this field empty if you’re human:

Check out our map of places we’ve been in New England!