Zoos
Baltimore won't be new home for Philly's elephants
Associated Press
Posted Wednesday, March 21, 2007 at 8:30 am
PHILADELPHIA — The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore will not be able to accept three African elephants from the Philadelphia Zoo this spring as the two zoos had planned.
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums is helping to locate another home for the elephants, Philadelphia Zoo officials said.
The Philadelphia Zoo dropped plans last year for a $22 million expansion of its elephant exhibit, citing rising costs and fundraising difficulties. The zoo announced Oct. 5 it would close its elephant exhibit and transfer three animals to Baltimore and one to The Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, Tenn.
The Maryland Zoo announced Tuesday that due to financial problems it has delayed a planned $16 million expansion of its own elephant habitat, however, and will not be able to accept the Philadelphia elephants. Baltimore keepers had been making visits to get acquainted with Petal, Kallie and Bette.
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070321/NEWS/70321012
Why would anyone want to kill a baby Polar Bear??
Mar 21, 2007 at 12:38 PM
BERLIN, March 20, 2007 — An adorable polar bear cub who has won the hearts of Berliners has just about escaped the death sentence that animal rights activists had imposed on him
Knut is the first baby polar bear to survive in the Berlin zoo in 30 years. His mother, Tosca, a grumpy 20-year-old former circus bear, abandoned him and his brother to die on a rock in the bear pit after they were born on Dec. 5, 2006.
Keepers scooped the cubs out of the compound with fishing net and placed both bear babies in an incubator.
Only Knut survived, and he was brought up as a pampered baby, fed with human milk and cod-liver oil every half hour. Now that he's almost 4 months old, he is fed chicken puree, sleeps with a teddy bear, plays with a football and his keeper strums Elvis Presley songs to improve his mood.
That treatment, however, has brought complaints from animal rights campaigners. They claimed it is inappropriate to raise a polar bear baby by a human hand. One group even considered it a blatant violation of animal welfare laws and threatened to take the zoo to court.
http://kathrynstakelin.vox.com/library/post/why-would-anyone-want-to-kill-a-baby-polar-bear.html
I ACTUALLY believe this reaction from activist organizations reflects the 'Noah's Arch' issue that has manifested under Republican Leadership in DC.
In other words there has been a 'Push by Bush' to count animals in zoos and any domestic setting when considering endangered and threatened species.
It is vital when placing a species into the category of endangered that the habitat is considered, otherwise there is no sense to attempt to save the species as the Chinese have with the Panda and California is with the Condor if there is no viable habitat to return them to.
Those organizations see the folly in backing zoos as a conservation effort for education of the public while, allowing safe enjoyment of animals any society would not normally have access, also see the 'intent' by DC to victimize the very species we love to keep near us.
I believe there is some validity to that arguement but needs to be conducted differently. Certainly any society will not be euthanizing animals in captivity any time soon. We have learned that domesticated animals no matter how wild they are in that captivity are not easily returned to the wild. It was tried with a killer whale that did not end well.
Zoos are important institutions for societies as well as a place to take the family on days when nothing else seems to be of interest. Children absolutely love watching animals. It expands their imaginations and allows them to realize not all forms of life on Earth look like them, hence, the characteristic 'benevolence' starts at a very early age.
If these organizations truly intend to make changes in regard to the treatment of zoo animals and circus animals they are more than welcome, however, to attack the institutions we all love out of fear of a greater issue is the wrong approach. Simply put, species protection laws have to be bolstered. The Polar Bear and it's threatened/endangered status is a prime example. We need to classify the Polar Bear and get on with the business of protecting it's habitat by being the country we should and stop the polluting of carbon dioxide emissions. Barring animals from zoos or euthanizing 'the ambassadors of the wild' where they stand is not the best message to the issue.
...And the little bastard contributes to global warming
You know all those polar bears that are supposedly in peril because of global warming? Thank goodness they weren't raised by humans, because if they were, these animal rights activists would be in the Arctic melting the ice by hand.
http://jiblog.blogspot.com/2007/03/and-little-bastard-contributes-to.html
The California Condor–Snatched From the Brink
The California condor is critically endangered. By 1982 only 20 remained in the wild, and efforts were made to establish a captive breeding flock in zoos. However, excessive mortality from lead poisoning and shooting continued to reduce the wild population, and in 1987 the last free-flying survivor was trapped and taken into protective captivity. The first successful captive breeding occurred in 1988, and numerous captive progeny were released to the wild beginning in 1992. These conservation efforts enabled the total California condor population to surpass 280, including more than 130 birds reintroduced to the wild. Wild California condors live in Arizona, California, and Baja California, and captive birds in Idaho, California, and Oregon. In 2002 the first eggs to be laid in the wild by captive-raised condors hatched.
http://blogs.britannica.com/blog/main/2007/03/the-california-condor-snatched-from-the-brink-of-extinction/
Shed No Tears For The Crocodile
TAMPA - About 30 years ago, the American crocodile teetered on the edge of extinction with just 200 to 300 of the reptiles left hiding in South Florida swamps.
Since then, the species has rebounded. Now there are an estimated 1,400 to 2,000 crocodiles in Florida, not including hatchlings. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recognized the crocodile's recovery Tuesday by removing it from the federal endangered species list.
"Today we can celebrate their comeback as a result of the recovery efforts by numerous dedicated professionals who are helping sustain a vital part of Florida's natural and cultural history," said Sam Hamilton, Fish and Wildlife's Southeast regional director, in a news release. The crocodile will still be protected as a threatened species.
As with other endangered species in Florida, the crocodile's natural habitat was squeezed by development and agricultural conversion. Sport shooting, accidental killing by fishermen and capture for private and public zoos also took a toll.
After the crocodile was placed on the endangered species list in 1975, government agencies began purchasing what was left of its habitat. About 95 percent of the crocodiles' remaining habitat in South Florida is now preserved, according to Fish and Wildlife.
http://www.tbo.com/news/metro/MGB0W6J7JZE.html
Zoo with a twist
The Amazing Ten Animal Kingdom houses some pretty neat creatures that you probably won’t find in other zoos in the country. SHANTI GUNARATNAM is thrilled.
THEY are definitely the laziest creature in the animal kingdom. These nocturnal animals can take a whole day to just eat an apple. They are sloths, after which one of the Seven Deadly Sins of the Roman Catholic Church was named. (The other six are pride, envy, gluttony, lust, anger and greed). Sloths are so lazy they can’t be bothered to look after their offsprings. This often results in the death of babies. A sloth baby clings to the mother as she hangs upside down from a tree. But if one should fall off, the mother is reluctant to retrieve it, preferring to continue to sleep instead. It would also rather have a shut eye instead of getting cosy with a male or female partner to mate. In the sloth’s world, sleeping rules and it has turned doing nothing into an art. The slow-moving sloth spends all its life hanging upside down from trees and a meal of leaves can take up to one month to digest as its metabolism rate is slow, just like the animal itself. To learn more about the two-toed sloth, visit the Amazing Ten Animal Kingdom in Gohtong Jaya which is the only zoo in the country that has this animal (from America) in its collection.
http://www.nst.com.my/Weekly/Travel/article/FeatureStory/20070320105330/Article/
Wildlife Parks in North America - Starting a Thread
After an amazing trip to Northwest Trek last weekend, I went online to find out if there are other similar parks in my area. Alas, there doesn't seem to be any kind of comprehensive list. There are plenty of lists for "zoos" and stuff like that, but nothing that lists the best places for wildlife photography.
Near Seattle - Eatonville WA - about 1.5 hours from Seattle
1) Northwest Trek Wildlife Park: This park has a free-roaming area where you can see grazing animals (bison, elk, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, moose, etc.) all running free. You visit via a tram and stick your camera out the window. This lessens the impact humans have on these animals but it also means you can see them roaming around in their natural environment. Animals have mostly been rescued and you can get very cageless shots of even the predators (which are, unfortunately, in enclosures).
For Photographers: There is a photographer's tour every month or so. It costs $40 and you pretty much get the bus for three hours, a seat for yourself and your tripod and the guide will stop as long as the group wants to take pictures.
http://www.nwtrek.org/
http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?p=509887#post509887
The 2007 Spring Frag Swap & NanoConference
Sunday April 15th 2007
http://www.manhattanreefs.com/forum/view.php?pg=frag_swap_rsvp
Berlin Zoo readies for polar bear cub's public debut
By Melissa Eddy
ASSOCIATED PRESS
4:18 a.m. March 21, 2007
BERLIN – He's only 15 weeks old, but the Berlin Zoo's impossibly cute polar bear cub Knut already has become a sought-after media star in his home city with his own TV show and video podcast, a photo shoot with Annie Leibovitz and a long-awaited public debut scheduled in the coming days.
Zoo officials were meeting Wednesday to discuss when the button-eyed cub, who has endeared himself by snuggling up to his own teddy bear and wrestling with a toilet brush, will be put on public view after building a following through the zoo's Internet site and daily pictures in newspapers.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/20070321-0418-germany-polarbear.html
Homeless Stuffed Animals Find Shelter in 'The Zoo' -- An Innovative New Product
"The Zoo" is an innovative new product for storing stuffed animals.
(PRWeb) March 21, 2007 -- Another influx of bunnies and other cuddly toys will take place again this Easter. For parents this presents a storage and organizational challenge as each animal acquires a name and maybe a unique association with an event or person and are consequently almost impossible to dispose of. It is not unusual for kids to accumulate over a hundred cuddly toys in their first few years.
Until the creation of "The Zoo," the only practical solution was to sneak the animals into plastic bags and store them in the basement or have them strewn from one end of the house to the other. Nets or hammocks are a partial cure but kids are unable to reach their
toys and many parents not good enough at basket ball to get them up there in the first place.
"The Zoo" is a wooden cage with flexible bars that stands 5 feet tall and 2 feet wide and stands out 11 inches from the wall to which it is designed to attach to prevent tipping. Parents can now store about ninety stuffed animals in a floor area of less than two square feet.
Apart from corralling the animals into this small space, "The Zoo" allows kids to play with their toys which are easily popped in and out between the flexible bars. Clearing up is a breeze too.
The Zoo was invented by John Chisholm of Beaver Works who manufactures the zoo in Michigan, selling to parents all over the country and overseas via the Internet. The web-site also includes an on-line gallery of "Zoo Keepers" featuring pictures of kids with their "Zoo" collection and testimonials from relieved parents.
Contact:
John Chisholm
Beaver Works
214 Gladwin Ave.
Clawson, MI
Tel: 248-588-0844
http://www.emediawire.com/releases/2007/3/emw512641.htm
Monkey business: Zoo gets $200K donation for macaque house
Press-Gazette
SUAMICO — A $200,000 donation will help the NEW Zoo begin construction of a new habitat for its 11 Japanese snow macaques.
“We are simply elated at the prospect of being able to move forward with construction of this much-needed exhbit,” zoo director Neil Anderson said in a press release.
The zoo’s existing monkey habitat is more than 20 years old and in need of replacement, according to the press release. The new habitat will have a waterfall and a pond outside and improved housing and veterinary facilities inside. It also will reflect Japanese design.
“Renovations have been made over the years to care for and accommodate the snow macaques but the new exhibit will give the zoo an opportunity to upgrade its macaque facility to industry and zoo standards” Anderson said in the press release.
The zoo's 11 snow macaques range in age from 2 to 24. Found in the wild only on Japanese islands and considered a threatened species, their numbers are carefully managed, with 146 snow macaques at 12 institutions.
Rhonda Jenquine of Green Bay made the donation from the estate of her parents, the late Marvin and Elsie Jenquine. The family also has supported Bay Beach Park in Green Bay, donating $65,000 for a new train depot in 1995.
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070321/GPG0101/70321023/1207/GPGnews
Emporia's Zoo Cashes In with Coin Collection
There have been 1 comments posted about this story
11:06 AM Mar 21, 2007
EMPORIA, Kan. (AP) _ The David Traylor Zoo in Emporia is thousands of dollars richer, thanks to a collection of rare coins and currency brought in by an anonymous donor.
Zoo officials of said a man delivered the cash to the zoo in a Rubbermaid container and left without giving his name. Auctions are planned for April 21st and June 9th at the zoo's education center.
The value of the collection is not known, but it's estimated to be worth up to $15,000. Among the coins in the collection is a 1937 three-legged buffalo nickel, which is worth $200 to $12,000 if uncirculated.
The zoo says the collection is made up of more than 700 items.
http://www.wibw.com/home/headlines/6614017.html
MEMBER EXCHANGE: Zoo exec makes time for family after kidnapping
MATT TULLIS
The Columbus Dispatch
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Perched on a shelf in Manny Gonzalez's office at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is a framed crayon drawing. A brown head bobs in a sea of orange and green scribbles. A bright yellow sun punctuates a blue sky.
The drawing was a gift nine years ago from his then-3-year-old daughter, Natalia. The drawing, along with two family portraits, reminds Gonzalez of what's really important.
Six years ago, he had no personal effects in his Six Flags office in Mexico City. Back then, work was his true love for 12 hours a day, seven days a week. He rarely saw his wife, Yolanda, Natalia or his younger daughter, Paula. He never ate dinner at home.
"I even missed my little one's baptism," he said.
Then, on May 17, 2001, Yolanda, Natalia and Paula were kidnapped. It would change Manny Gonzalez's life and ultimately bring him to the Columbus Zoo, where he is helping to lead a period of unprecedented growth as its chief operating officer.
http://www.ohio.com/mld/beaconjournal/news/state/16947287.htm
Denver Zoo Moves Animals Outside For Spring
(CBS4) DENVER The Denver Zoo said several zoo residents were moving into the new season on the first day of Spring by moving outdoors Wednesday. Lemurs and bat-eared foxes have just recently moved from their indoor winter habitats outside for the season.
Zookeepers recently filled the water moat around Lemur Island so the seven ring-tailed lemurs and one white-collared brown lemur can be out on the island during daytime hours.
Zoo officials said the primates have been enjoying being outdoors and can be seen climbing through the trees and sunning themselves.
Lemurs are found only on the island of Madagascar and are threatened by habitat destruction.
The zoo's two resident bat-eared foxes, male Vinning and female Hasstig, can now be seen in their outdoor exhibit on the east side of the zoo near the camels.
Visitors can see these foxes, as well as the lemurs, outside daily, weather permitting.
Spring also means the zoo's hours will be changing soon. Starting April 1, zoo hours will be extended to 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., opening an hour earlier and staying open an hour later.
http://cbs4denver.com/pets/local_story_080141040.html
Asian Heritage Festiavil to bring Dragon Boat to the Zoo
Posted by kmarszal March 21, 2007 14:34PM
Categories: Festivals, Off the beaten path, Outdoor
The Asian/Pacific American Society will feature a new addition to this year's festival with the arrival of a real Dragon Boat all the way from Lafayette, LA!
This 41-foot long wooden boat is painted in bright colors-from the majestic dragon head to its fiery tail. Dragon boat racing has been a tradition in Asia for hundreds of years, and now this dynamic festivity has made its way from far away exotic lands to the city of New Orleans, where APAS will hold an inaugural race in 2008!
The Asian Pacific American Society of New Orleans (APAS) is proud to announce the 2007 Asian Heritage Festival in "Celebrating Decades of Pride, Partnership and Progress". This year's festivities will be held at the Audubon Zoo on Saturday April 21, 2007 starting at 10:30am
http://blog.nola.com/entertainment/2007/03/asian_heritage_festiavil_to_br.html
Probation for former North zoo keeper
Wednesday, March 21, 2007 3:01 PM EDT
ATTLEBORO - The former zoo keeper at North Attleboro's World War I Memorial Park Wednesday was placed on probation and ordered to pay back the $1,700 in zoo proceeds and fundraising money she admitted stealing.
Debra Hamilton, 36, who resigned in February, was also ordered to pay $590 in court fees after admitting in Attleboro District Court that police had enough evidence to find her guilty of skimming park proceeds.
See tomorrow's Sun Chronicle for the complete story.
- David Linton, Sun Chronicle Staff
The Pachyderm’s death, a combination of cruelty and incompetence.
Gaya, the Elephant, mangled by dogs
Mihnea–Petru Parvu
20 March 2007
Former and present employees of Bucharest Zoo say that Gaya was chased and bitten by Police dogs (German shepherds) that were trying to force her to enter the winter shelter (paddock). Trying to escape, Gaya slipped and broke her leg. The administrators were not able to lift her up even with the crane’s help. She died suffering horribly the day after the accident. Using a chainsaw, they cut Gaya in chunks of 100 kilos, they wrapped her in plastic bags and they incinerated the 48 years old elephant, weighing four tones. Her head stays up until now in a water barrel.
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/03/21/18380606.php
Auckland Zoo seeks local cat owners' cooperation
Thursday, 22 March 2007, 3:22 pm
Press Release: Auckland City Council
22 March 2007
Auckland Zoo seeks local cat owners' cooperation
Auckland Zoo is asking local cat owners for their assistance in helping prevent the spread of toxoplasmosis, a disease caused by a parasite commonly found in domestic and wild cats that can be fatal in other animals.
The zoo has had four healthy wallabies die in the past three weeks, directly as a result of toxoplasmosis, which is spread through the faeces of kittens and cats. The faeces can contain thousands of microscopic eggs which can then disperse over the ground, so even a small amount of faeces can quickly spread the Toxoplasma gondii parasite. Last November, three wallabies at the zoo also died from toxoplasmosis. The zoo's remaining 19 marsupials are all fine, but
being monitored closely.
Auckland Zoo has distributed a flyer asking cat owners in neighbouring streets to ensure their cats have collars, or to collect one for free from the zoo, and to also phone the zoo on 360 3800 with a description of their cat and provide contact details.
The zoo wants to safeguard people's pets, as well as keep its own animals safe. It is also requesting people do not feed wild cats in the area, and spay or neuter pet cats that are not owned for breeding purposes.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK0703/S00262.htm
Catoctin Zoo to double in size
by Jeremy Hauck | Staff Writer
In preparation for today’s opening, zookeepers at the Catoctin Wildlife Preserve and Zoo, located just south of Thurmont, have been sprucing up displays and moving animals from ‘‘winter housing” into ‘‘summer housing.”
The zoo relocates some animals, such as alligators that will appear in the ‘‘bayou” portion of the park, to summer environments only when temperatures are consistently warm, said Whitney Hahn, media liaison.
‘‘It’s a difficult transition time for us, from the winter housing to the summer housing,” Hahn said. ‘‘You can’t ever count on nighttime temperatures being what they were the night or two nights before.”
http://www.gazette.net/stories/032207/middnew210810_32325.shtml
Giant tortoises return to N.C. Zoo
ASHEBORO -- A pair of Galapagos tortoises that were the first animals acquired by the N.C. Zoo in 1973 will be back for a six-month stay starting March 27.
Tort and Retort will be on temporary display through September in the zoo’s new "kidZone" exhibit (formerly the Australia Walkabout).
The tortoises became the first critters to occupy the "Interim Zoo" that contained the zoo’s only exhibits from 1974 until the first African habitats opened in 1979. Their names are legal terms and were suggested by the late Wes Moser, an Asheboro attorney who played a key role in convincing the state to build the zoo in Randolph County.
Both tortoises were hatched in Panama, with female "Retort" born in 1953 and male "Tort" in 1958. They arrived at the N.C. Zoo in May 1973 and were among the main attractions in a small animal collection during the park’s early days.
The pair remained at the zoo until October 1983 when the Interim Zoo was officially closed to the public. Without an appropriate exhibit for them in Asheboro, the tortoises were sent to Disney World in Florida. When the tortoise exhibit there closed in 1999, they were transferred to Florida’s St. Augustine Alligator Farm and Zoological Park. While Tort has remained there since, Retort was moved again in May 2005 to the Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia, S.C.
http://www.news-record.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070321/NEWSREC0101/70321044
Animals will be living free at new Jijabai Bhosale zoo
Smita Deshmukh
Wednesday, March 21, 2007 22:46 IST
Open natural habitat sans cages, protected viewing areas for visitors and animals brought in from other areas in the state and the world are some of the highlights of the proposed modernisation of the 53-acre Jijabai Bhosale Udyan popularly known as the Byculla Zoo.
The Thailand-based HKS Designers and Consultant International Company along its partner — the Portico Group — made a presentation of its master plan for the zoo to the municipal commissioner Johny Joseph on Wednesday for the administration's views and suggestions. On Thursday, a similar presentation would be made to the Group leaders of all political parties in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for their nod. The Central Zoo Authority (CZA) has made it mandatory to the BMC to prepare a master plan by March 2007 in exchange of one year's recognition.
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1086346
Ahmedabad Zoo takes emergency steps to contain bird flu
Malaysia Sun
Thursday 22nd March, 2007
(ANI)
Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Mar 22 : Ahmedabad zoo authorities have taken precautions to avoid the spread of bird flu, following the death of four peacocks and a goose due to the H5N1 strain in Pakistan last month.
"In view of the news that there are cases of bird flu in Pakistan, we have also started taking precautionary measures. We have increased vitamin supplements to the birds. We have taken more cleanliness measures and have sprayed medicine inside and outside the cages. We are routinely conducting checkups monthly more carefully and have conducted disinfection programmes. We had also sent a few cases for investigation, but till now there is no incident of any such case," said N.K. Savdhuriya, the warden of the zoo.
It was the fourth case of the H5N1 strain of bird flu detected in Pakistan this year. The strain was first found in poultry last year, and led to the culling of about 40,000 birds.
http://story.malaysiasun.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/303b19022816233b/id/236030/cs/1/
Love is strange
Heartbreak and hope spring eternal at the zoo
IT'S officially spring, a time when even hardened columnists such as myself feel moved to relate heart-breaking stories of unrequited love.
Click here for video
So grab a few boxes of Kleenex because, fortunately for you, I have just such a heart-rending tale at my fingertips.
It's the story of Quentin, a lonely young fellow from Minnesota who moved to Winnipeg this summer and, as young males will do, immediately began searching for "a little action".
But despite his Fabio-style golden locks and rippling muscles, Quentin just couldn't find that special someone to share his new life in Winnipeg.
Forlorn, he spent his days just kind of grazing and hanging around in the park. His friends and co-workers grew increasingly worried.
And then, as so often happens in stories such as this, it just happened -- romance literally rolled into Quentin's life.
He awoke one recent morning and discovered he was deeply, madly, hopelessly in love -- with a beautiful 45-gallon blue plastic water barrel.
Which is a little bit unusual, even when you consider that Quentin is a 650-pound Sichuan takin (an endangered species of golden-fleeced cattle native to western China) who makes his home at the Assiniboine Park Zoo.
I came across Quentin the Takin (pronounced Talk-inn) and his inanimate love interest Wednesday during a special spring tour of the zoo with its amiable curator Dr. Bob Wrigley.
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/story/3919643p-4530992c.html
Tulsa Zoo: Name the baby: You can help christen chimp
By JEFF BILLINGTON World Staff Writer
4:07 AM
Jodi and Alvin are searching for a name for their newborn, and they need a bit of help.
At question is the name for the newest critter at the Tulsa Zoo, a female chimpanzee, born Feb. 17.
Beginning Thursday, people can vote on five names selected by the zoo's primate keepers by going online to http://chimps.tulsazoo.org.
Voters are eligible to win a behind-the-scenes tour of the Chimpanzee Connection habitat and a free annual Tulsa Zoo Friends membership.
Voting ends April 4, and a decision will be made April 6.
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=070322_238_A9_spanc34435
Toledo Zoo's Polar Bear Cubs Continue to Thrive
TOLEDO, OH -- It's always great news when an animal is born at The Toledo Zoo, so you can imagine the excitement that has been generated by the three polar bear cubs born at the Zoo in late November.
The Zoo is very pleased to report that all three cubs and their mothers, Crystal and Nan, are thriving in their dens and are expected to be on exhibit later this spring. Because the bears have been under the close care of their mothers in off-exhibit dens within the Arctic Encounter® exhibit, the sex of the cubs has not yet been determined and they have not yet been given names.
The Toledo Zoo is home to three of only four newborn polar bear cubs in North American Zoos. The Toledo Zoo's Curator of Mammals, Randi Meyerson is the coordinator of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums' (AZA) polar bear Species Survival Plan (SSP). According to her, "Everyone is doing well-Crystal and Nan are eating every day, which polar bears stop doing once they enter their dens to give birth. The cubs are now starting to nibble on solid foods, although they'll continue to nurse for over a year."
http://www.wtol.com/Global/story.asp?S=6265694
Glacier Run at the Louisville Zoo
A 3-D tour of a planned arctic exhibit at the zoo.
http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061121/VIDEO01/61121057
Zoo's Glacier Run gets $1 million gifts
Glacier Run will offer zoo visitors a chance to see animals, talk to the keepers about conservation and become immersed in life on the Arctic tundra. The exhibit will re-create the natural habitat for some of the zoo’s most popular residents, including polar bears, seals and sea lions.
Animals in the exhibit that will be new to the zoo will include sea otters and bird species like the Steller’s sea eagles and magpies. The Arctic Rim town featured in the exhibit will have a school house, climatology lab, general store and amphitheater.
http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070322/NEWS01/70322022
Buttonwood Zoo to get new carved bear
By Lauren Daley
Standard-Times staff writer
March 23, 2007 6:00 AM
NEW BEDFORD — The Buttonwood Park Zoo soon will have a new bear. It will be about 3 feet tall, it eats nothing, sleeps less and — it's made of wood.
Yesterday, zoo officials officially accepted chain saw artist Ross MacVicar's offer to create a new zoo mascot to replace one that was defaced and stolen earlier this month.
"We have reviewed his artwork, have given it thought and decided it was the logical thing to do to have it replaced. We have to keep tradition going," zoo director Lou Garibaldi said.
Mr. MacVicar, 55, of Plymouth is a former construction worker who now has a private business that specializes in carving animals from wood.
He said a bear like the one he is offering would cost $250 to $450.
"I'll carve it in a week or two. I'll probably bring it down there on May 19, which is Bear Awareness Day, Mr. Garibaldi told me," Mr. MacVicar said. "When I bring it down there, I'll also do a demonstration and do a few carvings. I'll also be selling a few things and half the profits will go to the zoo."
http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070323/NEWS/703230339/1011/TOWN10
PETA Calls For Probe Of Royal, NE Zoo
The director of "Zoo Nebraska" in Royal is speaking out after a national animal rights group asked local county supervisors to inspect the zoo due they're worried about animal welfare.
The request comes after PETA officials reviewed the records of the zoo that, among other things, included cruelty to animals information regarding the shootings of three chimps at the zoo back in September of 2005. Ken "Junior" Schlueter says Zoo Nebraska has nothing to hide and if the county supervisors, PETA or anyone else wants to come and inspect his facility, they are welcome do so at any time. "Yeah, I mean, anybody's welcome to come up and go through," said Ken Schlueter, Zoo Nebraska Director. "I mean, I wish they would."
http://www.ktiv.com/News/index.php?ID=11303
L.A. Zoo's Newest Arrival is Now on Display
LOS ANGELES, Mar. 22, 2007 (KABC-TV) - The Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens presents its newest addition, a young nestling. It is the 15th bird successfully hatched at the L.A. Zoo's managed breeding colony.
The Cape griffon, an old world vulture, is only found today in southern Africa. Like all vultures, the Cape griffon does not kill other animals, but rather is a scavenger that feeds on carcasses of dead animals.
The Cape griffon vulture has cream-colored plumage, straw yellow-colored eyes and a bare head and neck. The lack of feathers on the head and neck help to keep them clean when eating. Known for their powerful beaks, the vultures are able to rapidly consume up to three pounds of meat within minutes.
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=local&id=5137451
Dated
Zoo celebrates birth of wolf cubs
AFTER a barren 20 years, the patter of 20 pairs of little paws can be heard in the wolf enclosure at Colchester Zoo.
Tallulah and Wilfy, a pair of timber wolves, are the proud parents of five cute little cubs, which are the first to be born for 20 years at Colchester Zoo.
Zookeepers think the baby wolves were born on either May 13 or May 14, but they did not venture out of their den until June 3.
http://www.eadt.co.uk/content/eadt/news/story.aspx?brand=EADOnline&category=News&tBrand=EADOnline&tCategory=zNews&itemid=IPED16%20Jun%202006%2017%3A59%3A06%3A447
The big bear twins are heading to Pittsburgh Zoo from Denver
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
By Don Hopey, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
DENVER -- It is mid-week, mid-morning, and Koda and Nuka, twin 500-pound polar bears, are playfully bobbing around in a pond at the Denver Zoo's Northern Shores exhibit area, making the pond look small and attracting a large, cute-cooing crowd of preschoolers, parents and grandparents.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06158/696103-113.stm
Zoo revamp gives birds room to spread wings
The birds on the island in the middle of Johannesburg's Zoo Lake have been feeling the squeeze, but they now have their own jungle gym to play on.
A R40 000 rehabilitation programme was completed in time for World Environment Day, celebrated this week.
The logs for the gym, or roosting towers, as they are called, as well as a large number of trees, were pulled across the lake by boat.
Lucy Taylor, founder of the Zoo Lake Users' Committee, said that for 40 years the island had been one of the most important nesting and roosting sites for herons, egrets, ibises, cormorants and darters in the greater Johannesburg area because of the safety the barrier of water provided them.
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=14&art_id=vn20060607002848826C756304
Zoo plans risky surgery to remove fetus from pregnant elephant
SYRACUSE, N.Y. A special team will assemble today to perform tricky surgery on a pregnant elephant in hopes of helping her deliver her 300-pound calf.
A spokeswoman at Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse says there's still a small chance that the baby is alive. The 29-year-old Asian elephant has been stalled in labor for four days. The main priority is saving the mother at this point.
Last night the elephant, named Romani, still had normal vital signs and was receiving antibiotics and extra fluid. She has remained under 24-hour watch since veterinarians tried to induce labor with shots of drugs Sunday and Monday nights.
Romani had successful births in 1991, 1995 and 2002.
Doctors today will perform an episiotomy to widen the birth canal. The team will be led by Asian elephant reproduction specialist Doctor Dennis Schmitt of Missouri State.
Rosamond Gifford is one of the world's premier breeders of Asian elephants, an endangered species. About 500 Asian elephants live at zoos in North America, but they're dying off faster than they can reproduce.
http://www.wcax.com/Global/story.asp?S=5001906&nav=4QcS
Zoo Atlanta Celebrates Animals from Down Under
During the summer months, Zoo Atlanta takes the opportunity to highlight particular zoogeographic areas, to give our visitors an in-depth experience of the unique animals and fascinating cultural traditions unique to these regions. The first of these evening series focuses on the world Down Under, in our Australian Sunset Safari, Saturday June 17 from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
When you think of a zoo, the first animals that come to mind are usually African or Asian species — lions, tigers, giraffe, and elephants. But the southern continent has an equally amazing variety of unique and specialized animals, with fascinating adaptations, habits, vocalizations, and temperaments. Because Australia has been isolated from the rest of the world’s land masses for millennia, its animal life has developed with little inter-species competition. Unique circumstances make for unique animals, and Australian animals are nothing if not unique!
http://www.the-stories.com/gbase/Expedite/Content?oid=oid%3A6775
Vets Get First Close-Up Look At Zoo's Tiger Cubs
Veterinarians and animal-care staff at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo got their first look at the newest litter of Sumatran tigers Thursday. The two females and one male are the sixth litter of Sumatran tiger cubs born at the National Zoo in its 117-year history, and the third litter for mother, Soyano.
Zoo staff checked the cubs’ sex, weight and general health. National Zoo veterinarians say all the cubs are doing well and report that the male cub is the biggest, weighing 6.8 pounds; the two females weigh 5.8 and 4.8 pounds.
The three cubs, born on May 24, are now two weeks old. National Zoo veterinarians will examine the cubs again in four weeks to give them vaccinations. The cubs have not been named; the public will be asked to vote on the names later this summer.
http://www.wusa9.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=50025
Dakota Zoo alligator dies
By Zachary Franz/Bismarck Tribune
One of Dakota Zoo’s newest residents has died. “Sherman,” a 50-year-old American alligator, died on Tuesday, said assistant zoo director Rod Fried.
Preliminary results from a necropsy performed by veterinarians Amy Reece and Jim Wheeler indicate the alligator’s death was probably age related. Further tests are pending. Alligators’ lifespans are similar to those of humans, and vary widely, Fried said.
Sherman moved to Dakota Zoo on April 13 from Reptile Gardens in South Dakota. Dakota Zoo has one other alligator, a 20-year-old female named Sandra. Based on the nature of the relationships between alligators, zoo personel do not expect Sandra to have psychological problems stemming from the death.
The zoo will likely get another alligator in the near future, as they like all animals to have a companion, Fried said.
'We're going to the zoo, zoo, zoo . . .'
Friday, 9 June 2006, 3:09 pm
Press Release: National Library Of New Zealand
Friday 9 June 2006
'We're going to the zoo, zoo, zoo . . .'
Memories and experiences of Wellington zookeepers, and others who have had strong connections with the Wellington Zoo, will be handed over to the Turnbull Library's Oral History Centre next week.
The Wellington Zoo Centenary Oral History Project was commissioned by the Wellington Zoo Trust, and funded by the Lottery Grants Board, in recognition of the Zoo's centenary, that is being celebrated this year.
The project, consisting of 15 interviews and including stories that reach back as far as the 1930s, was carried out by oral historian Susan Fowke.
'The interviews cover a wide range of experience, from elephant-keeping to breeding kiwi, to watching chimpanzees' tea parties, but the common denominator is always a love of animals,' Ms Fowke said.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0606/S00077.htm
Zoo sticks its neck out for new herd
16 June 2006 07:00
A Norfolk zoo is hoping to get the go-ahead for a £500,000 project which would see giraffes roaming the county's countryside.
Banham Zoo, near Attleborough, has submitted plans to Breckland Council to build a giraffe house as part of a major scheme that would also see the construction of a new house for its existing zebra herd.
Its sister site, Africa Alive at Kessingland, near Lowestoft, has kept giraffes for a number of years and zoo director Martin Goymour said the idea to introduce them at Banham had been three years in the planning.
“This is something we've have been considering for some length of time and giraffes are a particular favourite of mine. We keep them at our sister park and have kept them very successfully for 12 years.
http://new.edp24.co.uk/content/news/story.aspx?brand=EDPOnline&category=News&tBrand=EDPOnline&tCategory=news&itemid=NOED15%20Jun%202006%2018%3A01%3A02%3A720
