Hellbenders
Columbian Park Zoo is one of four Indiana zoos that are participating in a Purdue conservation program that will help increase the survival rates of hellbenders in the wild. In 2018, we received three three-year old hellbenders, or giant salamanders from Purdue University in hopes of releasing them back into their Southern Indiana habitat to be tracked.
Hellbender populations are decreasing in the wild partly due to habitat degradation, low-quality water and infectious disease. To help with increasing awareness of this declining species we are incorporating hellbender conservation messages into our education programs.