SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Zoo is hosting a ribbon-cutting for the newly renovated aviary on Tuesday.
The ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. and it will be the first time zoo guests can see the newly renovated exhibit.
The F.C. Hixon Bird House was completed in 1966, and is now getting a much-needed facelift to the façade highlighting the zoo’s bird community, now one of the world’s largest. Colonel F.C. Hixon originally funded the construction of the unique bird aviary “built-in-the-round” to house tropical birds from around the world. After it was built, Edward Marshall Boehm of Boehm Birdsceramics gave 100 of his rare birds to the zoo to join the community in the new indoor aviary.
The center of the building features an open-air simulated tropical rain forest with live vegetation and free-flying birds. Some of the bird species in the central open aviary have included Indian rollers, Rothschild’s mynahs, cock of the rock, pekin robins, whydahs, and several species of touraco. Around the central rain forest are 14 unique individual habitats.
“The F.C. Hixon Bird House was named for my husband’s uncle, a generous supporter of the San Antonio Zoo, and opened in 1966,” said Karen Hixon. “Though it has been a landmark at the zoo since that time and houses an amazing array of birdlife, in recent years, it has been more of a well-kept secret destination. We are so pleased and excited to lend our support to the revitalization of the entire building but especially the vibrant additions to the facade that will make it a true destination for all the visitors to the zoo. This is yet another example of the incredible work being done by the San Antonio Zoo."
The Hixon family has been supporting of the zoo for the last 50 plus years.
“The F.C. Hixon Bird House is one of the most unique avian exhibits in the country, both in architectural design and species diversity,” said Tim Morrow, President & CEO of San Antonio Zoo. “The storied and continued support of the Hixon family has made this and many of the wonderful things at our zoo possible - we are truly grateful for their support.”
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