ANIMAL PLANET GREENLIGHTS SECOND SEASON OF "THE ZOO"

Animal Planet announces today the greenlight of a second season of its popular series THE ZOO which begins production this month on location from the Wildlife Conservation Society's Bronx Zoo in New York. The series, which is the first to go behind the scenes at the world-famous zoo, focuses on the powerful and compelling stories of animals and their keepers, and the zoo's mission to conserve wildlife around the globe. THE ZOO also features the people who work at the zoo and how their expertise and varied skills come together to provide the highest quality care for the animals. THE ZOO will return to Animal Planet in early 2018.

During the first season of THE ZOO, stories included zookeepers and veterinarians helping Ntondo, a silverback gorilla diagnosed with glaucoma; two keeper-raised Malayan tiger cubs preparing to be introduced to their exhibit; and the hatching of a little blue penguin, the first of her species to be hatched at the Bronx Zoo. Viewers followed the Bronx Zoo's staff as they journeyed to East Africa to reintroduce 1000 extinct-in-the-wild spray toads to the Kihansi Gorge; performed a root canal on a snow leopard that was rescued as a cub from a remote region in Pakistan; and the history of the Bronx Zoo's efforts to save the American bison from extinction.

THE ZOO premiered in Feb. to 1.1 million Total Viewers and pushed Animal Planet into ad-supported cable's Top 10 in the timeslot among viewers. Throughout the season, every episode of THE ZOO averaged more than one million viewers making it Animal Planet's most watched freshman series since July 2015.

"Our series, with its unvarnished look at the Bronx Zoo, its animals and the people dedicated to their well-being, has helped define what a Saturday night on Animal Planet is today: a network with heart, and inspirational characters who protect and care for animals," said Patrice Andrews, General Manager of Animal Planet.

"We are excited to shoot another season of The Zoo with Animal Planet," said Jim Breheny, Director of the Bronx Zoo and EVP of Zoos and Aquarium at the Wildlife Conservation Society. "The show gave viewers an opportunity to see what happens every day at the zoo, presenting an uncontrived and unscripted look at how we go about caring for the animals and linking our work at the zoo to preserving species in the wild. It was great to receive all the positive feedback from viewers and guests on the relationship between the animals and the people who care for them and the important role that the Association of Zoos and Aquariums members play in conserving species in the wild."

THE ZOO is produced for Animal Planet by Left/Right Productions and Copper Pot. Ken Druckerman and Banks Tarver are executive producers for Left/Right Productions and Dave LaMattina and Chad Walker are executive producers for Copper Pot. For Animal Planet, Lisa Lucas is executive producer with Patrick Keegan as supervising producer.