Press Releases

The North Carolina Zoo is deeply saddened to announce the loss of male polar bear Payton on Oct. 25. The North Carolina Zoo staff and animal care team are devastated by the loss of this beloved polar bear.Payton was being transferred to the Louisville Zoo in Kentucky as part of a polar bear breeding partnership. The transfer was recommended by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Payton was accompanied by an experienced care team during the planned transfer operation.

Take a wagon ride around the historic Harper farm at Bentonville Battlefield’s annual fall festival on Oct. 28. The program will include historic trades demonstrations, displays from community organizations, and an “old timey” festival atmosphere featuring wagon rides, kid’s games, an inflatable, food trucks, live music, and more!

The N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation and The Conservation Fund will host a ribbon-cutting event Friday, Oct. 27 at 10:30 a.m. to mark the addition of land acreage to Bakers Lake State Natural Area. This summer, the Division acquired 1,156 acres from The Conservation Fund, a national land conservation and environmental nonprofit organization.Bakers Lake is one of the Carolina bays, a series of oval depressions along the East Coast, with a large concentration in the Carolinas. Prior to the state’s acquisition, it was the largest unprotected Carolina bay lake in North Carolina.

The state’s highest civilian honor, the North Carolina Award, will be presented to six distinguished North Carolinians Thursday, Nov. 9, at the North Carolina Museum of Art. Governor Roy Cooper will present the awards.The award was created by the General Assembly in 1961 to recognize significant contributions to the state and nation in the fields of fine arts, literature, public service and science.

Bryan Wilder has been promoted to park superintendent at Elk Knob State Park in Watauga County, the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation announced. Wilder succeeds Tracy Minton, who transferred to New River State Park earlier this year. Wilder has been serving as the acting superintendent for the park since Minton’s departure.A park superintendent leads operations and administration at a park with wide-ranging responsibilities that include staffing, training, law enforcement, planning, resource management, education, and visitor services.

A school in western North Carolina founded in the late 1880s that provided educational opportunities to underserved populations, including African American women, soon will be recognized with a North Carolina Highway Historical Marker.

Fort Dobbs State Historic Site will begin hosting an artisan farmer’s market on the first and third Tuesday of each month beginning Oct. 17. Local farmers, crafters and artists, all with unique and delicious goods, will offer them for sale.Betty Williams, of Homespun by Betty, approached the site with the idea of a relaxed market away from the bustle of downtown. Vendors must pre-register and meet Department of Revenue qualifications for doing business.Event hours are 3-6 p.m., first and third Tuesday of each month.

A new N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources policy will bring more native plants to state parks and historic sites across North Carolina, just in time for Native Plants Week 2023. To celebrate the policy and our state’s amazing native flora, First Lady Kristin Cooper is joining Audubon North Carolina and N.C. Department of Cultural and Natural Resources Secretary Reid Wilson at Jockey’s Ridge State Park at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 18. Brief remarks will be followed by a celebratory planting and tour of the park, including the native plants garden.

A North Carolina Highway Historical Marker soon will recognize an African American woman who revolutionized entertainment as one of the founders of stand-up comedy in the United States.The marker commemorating the life of Loretta Mary Aiken, who was known as Jackie “Moms” Mabley, will be placed in Brevard near the site of her childhood home Friday, Oct. 20.

A North Carolina business that by 1890 was the largest herbarium in the world soon will be recognized with a North Carolina Highway Historical Marker.