An Asian elephant named Lin Wang that served with the Chinese Expeditionary Force during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) and later relocated to Taiwan with the Kuomintang forces was moved to the zoo, and lived out most of his life and was the most popular animal at the zoo, and the most famous animal in Taiwan until it received 2 pandas from China.

Many adults and children alike affectionately called the bull elephant "Grandpa Lin Wang".

Due to a need for expansion and for better conditions for the animals, the zoo was moved to its current site in Muzha on the southeastern suburb of Taipei City in 1986.

[3] The zoo was awarded the Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendation for their contributions to promotion of mutual understanding between Japan and Taiwan on December 1, 2020.

The Children's Zoo also has habitats for some wild animals like meerkats, raccoons and South American coati.

[7] The statue of a stag beetle stands at the entrance of the zoo's insectarium, which contains lots of species of insects and arachnids.

Animals from the rainforests of Southeast Asia are featured here, including Asian elephants, Asian small-clawed otters, Bengal tigers, Bornean orangutans, great hornbills, leopards, Malayan tapirs and siamangs, alongside a few animals from South America like black-capped squirrel monkeys, capybaras and giant anteaters.

More than 130 species of bird are on display, including black-faced spoonbills, cockatoos, eagles, flamingos, parrots, pelicans, pheasants, pigeons, red-crowned cranes, scarlet ibises and other waterfowl.

[15] Multiple temperate species are on display here, these include American bisons, brown bears, gray wolves, Przewalski's horses, pumas, red pandas and tomistoma.