Bouncing back in the city of brotherly love

Eve 1995 was a night of tragedy for the Philadelphia Zoo, when a fire destroyed the facility's primate exhibit, killing 23 animals. But the zoo is on target to open a new, state of the art facility next spring with a city-wide celebration.

Meanwhile, there's plenty to occupy the senses in America's First Zoo, chartered in 1859 and opened to the public in 1874. Inside the 42-acre (17-hectare) park are the only blue-eyed lemurs (who live in an integrated exhibit with other lemurs) and the only giant river otters (currently around 5 feet -- 1.5 meters -- and expected to reach 6 feet, or 1.8 meters) on exhibit in the United States.

Also at the Philly Zoo: a pair of white lions. The two females -- from the Kruger National Park in South Africa -- have a rare genetic mutation. They've been in Philadelphia since 1993, and they both have borne white offspring.

Kids have great opportunities at the Philly Zoo, where the four-story Treehouse gives a bird's eye view of an indoor facility, while a giant beehive offers a bee's eye view -- along with other things to crawl in and out of.

Philadelphia Zoo

3400 West Girard Ave., Philadelphia; (215) 243-1100 Web site: http://www.phillyzoo.org/ FAST FACT: Admission to the Philly Zoo, which opened on July 1, 1874, was a quarter for adults and a dime for children -- for the zoo's first 50 years.

Photos courtesy the Philadelphia Zoo.