April 28, 2025 – Scovill Zoo held a ribbon cutting Monday to officially open the new mountain lion exhibit and welcome its new residents, Russet and Yukon.
The mountain lions, which are 8 years old, came from the St. Louis Zoo. Russet the male mountain lion and his sister Yukon were born in Idaho, giving them their unique names. The siblings were captured as orphaned cubs, but due to their contact with humans, they were unfit for release.
The pair arrived at Scovill around 2 months ago to undergo a mandatory quarantine before being introduced to their new habitat.
The $1.5 million dollar exhibit, which was made possible by the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, was built by O’Shea builders and features faux stone outcroppings, large logs and a water feature.
In addition, their holding facility, which also serves as a holding facility for their neighbor camels, was made possible thanks to a $200,000 in member initiative funds from State Rep. Sue Scherer.
