A red wolf pup at Lincoln Park Zoo (Christopher Bijalba / Lincoln Park Zoo)

From rare blind salamanders to adorable red wolf pups, here’s our guide to the newest and most unique animals to visit in and around Chicago. 

A critically endangered black rhino calf made its first public appearance Tuesday, June 18, 2019 at the Lincoln Park Zoo. (Christopher Bijalba / Lincoln Park Zoo)

“Our new rhino calf is thriving. He is exceeding all of our expectations,” said Mike Murray of Lincoln Park Zoo. “He’s a pretty incredible little guy that, just behaviorally, is doing everything a rhino calf should.”

A monarch butterfly (Pixnio)

It’s a colorful sign of summer: brightly colored butterflies floating on the wind. From nature museums to forest preserves to beachfront parks, Chicago has plenty of spots to see these beautiful insects. Here are 10 of the best. 

A newborn rhino calf at Lincoln Park Zoo stood on all four legs just 53 minutes after birth. (Courtesy Lincoln Park Zoo)

After 15 months of pregnancy, Lincoln Park Zoo rhinoceros Kapuki gave birth to a new calf Sunday. And just 53 minutes after birth, it was able to stand up on all four legs.

Rollie, a western lowland gorilla at Lincoln Park Zoo, with her male infant, who was born May 12. (Christopher Bijalba / Lincoln Park Zoo)

Mother’s Day was extra special for Rollie, a western lowland gorilla at Lincoln Park Zoo who gave birth to a male last weekend. 

A graphic rendering of the new Kovler Lion House planned for Lincoln Park Zoo (Courtesy Lincoln Park Zoo)

The new habitat will also bring a new pride of lions, with the zoo’s current group set to depart for a Kansas zoo in the coming weeks. 

A red fox in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska (Katherine Belcher / U.S. National Park Service)

Lincoln Park Zoo and DryHop Brewers are teaming up again in support of conservation. The new fruited sour beer will be made with a blueberry purée complimented by a lemon and citrus tartness, according to DryHop.

The cubs’ arrival – the first litter born at the zoo since 2010 – is a bright spot for one of the world’s most endangered wolf species.

(U.S. Tourist Attractions / Flickr)

It’s home to more than animals: More than 330 species of trees, shrubs and plants live on zoo grounds, including the historic canopy of oak trees whose roots predate the city’s founding.

Lincoln Park Zoo’s new Searle Visitor Center (Courtesy Lincoln Park Zoo)

The zoo is no longer offering a program that allowed visitors to touch or interact with a handful of different animals, citing research showing that some animals display signs of stress after being handled by humans. 

Kapuki, a 13-year-old female eastern black rhinoceros at Lincoln Park Zoo (Courtesy Lincoln Park Zoo)

Kapuki, a 13-year-old eastern black rhinoceros, is expected to give birth to a baby calf in May. 

A gorilla at Kahuzi-Biega National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Joe McKenna / Wikimedia Commons)

Mining for coltan, a mineral compound used to make cellphones and other small electronics, has displaced large numbers of Eastern gorillas in the Democratic Republic of Congo. 

A chimpanzee in the Goualougo Triangle, part of the Nouabale-Ndoki National Park in the Republic of Congo. (Kyle de Nobrega / Wildlife Conservation Society)

The complex and relatively advanced cultures of chimpanzees are disappearing as human beings encroach on previously undisturbed areas of African forest, according to a new study involving researchers from Lincoln Park Zoo.

Kristin Dvorak, an assistant lead bird keeper at Lincoln Park Zoo, recently traveled to South Africa as part of an international effort to rehabilitate 1,800 abandoned flamingo hatchlings. (Courtesy Lincoln Park Zoo)

A severe drought earlier this year forced a large group of flamingos to flee a nesting site in South Africa. That’s when Lincoln Park Zoo and other wildlife conservation groups from around the world stepped in.

Hudson, a polar bear at Brookfield Zoo (Courtesy Chicago Zoological Society)

Brookfield Zoo and Lincoln Park Zoo plan to close for parts of the week as record-breaking lows are expected to move into the area.

(Courtesy Landmark Pest Management)

Chicago’s recent designation as the country’s “rat capital” can be attributed in large part, a new study finds, to a particular type of home: rental units.