Copyright MassLive
SPRINGFIELD — The sign inside The Zoo at Forest Park for its annual Spooky Safari should read “Don’t spook the animals.” “As long as they’re getting their food on time, the animals don’t seem to mind how our guests or staff are dressed,” said Gabry Tyson, assistant executive director of The Zoo at Forest Park. “We encourage everyone to dress up for this event. You will find that almost everyone, including parents and grandparents, come in a costume or festive attire, including our zoo staff,” she added. Spooky Safari, set to run on Saturday, Oct. 25, from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., is a family-friendly Halloween event suitable for all ages. It’s also one of the last chances to visit The Zoo at Forest Park before it closes for the 2025 season. The event features a trick-or-treat trail, face painting and crafts for kids as well as a scavenger hunt, animal encounters and a virtual costume contest that the entire family can participate in together. Many of the animals at the zoo are native species, familiar with the region’s temperatures and able to stay outside all year. However, some animals, including macaws and cockatoos, which are native to Central and South America, are more likely to be found in their indoor heated enclosures this time of year. “Although our turtles won’t be in their outdoor pond this time of year, guests can still visit with a plethora of cold-blooded creatures inside The Education Center, which houses many of the zoo’s reptiles and amphibians,” Tyson said. The trick-or-treat trail is set up around the zoo’s loop, so as guests are venturing through, they will come along various stations to stop for treats. Kids aren’t just trick-or-treating for candy, but they will also find toys, sticker sheets, bubbles, free books from the zoo’s friends at Link to Libraries and more along the trail. For the scavenger hunt, six paper pumpkins will be hidden inside enclosures around the zoo. A pumpkin on an animal’s sign indicates that one is hidden in their enclosure. To participate, guests must find at least three pumpkins, snap a photo of each and submit their photos via a Google Form. One random winner will be selected for a prize on Oct. 31 and contacted via email. To inspire the creativity in young guests, there will be a paper bat craft and coloring sheets that feature The Zoo at Forest Park’s own animals available under the blue and white tent located in the center of the zoo. “Animal ambassadors are always chosen the morning of an event based on various factors including temperature, health, behavior and demeanor. In the past, encounters at Spooky Safari have included our lion head rabbits, leghorn rooster, California king snake, reticulated python, Madagascar hissing cockroaches and green iguana,” Tyson said. The Virtual Costume Contest will take place simultaneously on the zoo’s Facebook page. Attendees are encouraged to take a photo of their costume inside the zoo on the day of the event and will be able to post it as a comment on the designated Facebook post until Oct. 30. A panel of judges, comprised of zoo staff, will select winners for “funniest,” “most creative” and “best group” costumes, which will then be announced on Halloween. “We’ve seen a lot of imaginative costumes over the years, of course, many are animal-themed costumes, as one would hope and expect at a zoo’s Halloween event... One of my personal favorites from over the years wasn’t an animal, but a child that dressed up like a garbage truck,” Tyson said. The Zoo at Forest Park will be open for one more weekend on Nov. 1 and 2. There are also two opportunities to visit the zoo during Bright Nights on Dec. 10 and 17 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Although The Zoo is closed to visitors for a portion of the year, it remains fully staffed and operational every day. “The animals still need to be fed, watered and cared for even when we are closed to the public. This fundraiser comes at the end of our open season, right before admission sales stop for the year. By attending this event, guests not only get to participate in a fun and interactive experience, but they help us raise crucial funds as we head into the off season,” Tyson said.
