August 11, 2007
Atlanta, Georgia
Photographer states :: Hot Weather
Zoos
Mill Mountain Zoo welcomes a pair of rare foxes (08/10)
There are two new reasons to visit Mill Mountain Zoo, and their names are Sage and Rosemary.
However, if you want to catch a glimpse of them in action, you're going to have to check them out early in the morning or late in the evening. That's because the corsac foxes love to sleep.
The animals are the latest addition to the zoo family. They came from the San Diego Zoo. Mill Mountain Zoo is the second zoo in the country to have these rare animals. "It gives [people] the opportunity to see animals that they wouldn't see anywhere else," says Dave Orndorff, the zoo's general curator. "So few zoos display small carnivores in captivity. It's a species or a type of animal that are very difficult to maintain."
There are only five of these animals on display in the United States.
http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=6915156
Red pandas, Asian elephant born in Alberta zoos
Last Updated: Friday, August 10, 2007 1:15 PM MT
CBC News
Two Alberta zoos are celebrating baby news, with Edmonton's Valley Zoo saying two red pandas have survived the critical first month and the Calgary Zoo announcing the birth of an Asian elephant calf.
Both species are endangered.
The yet-to-be-named pandas were born on June 26, but the first month is critical because that's when they are most likely to become sick and die.
Sandy Helliker, an animal health technician, has been with the pandas day and night and believes they'll survive. They were taken from their mother after concerns she was over-grooming them.
"I think their chances are very good now that they are older and getting more mobile," she said.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/edmonton/story/2007/08/10/zoo-babies.html
Star treatment
Last Updated: 12:01am BST 11/08/2007
Page 1 of 3
Shocked at the conditions endured by animals on film sets and in zoos, Pat Derby, herself a trainer in Hollywood, set out to improve their lot. Thirty years on, her work for elephants in particular has transformed their lives. Martin Pearson visits her sanctuary in California
A nine-ton African elephant was silhouetted against a hazy horizon, partly hidden by billowing plumes of dust. It lumbered across the landscape towards a small woman dressed in a pink silk blouse, khakis and a crushed cowboy hat on top of her red pigtails, who nestled beneath its swaying trunk and cooed as if it were an overgrown pussycat.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2007/08/11/sm_elephants11.xml
Elephants not 'thriving'
By Times-Herald readers
Article Launched: 08/10/2007 07:50:58 AM PDT
I read the opinion of Kristin Vehrs, Director of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), ("These elephants are thriving," Aug. 3) about Six Flags' care of elephants with disbelief. She claims that, despite seven elephant deaths in the last 10 years, the elephants are "thriving." As proof, she states that the park is a member of the AZA, which has "rigorous standards."
These rigorous standards permit elephants to be chained 12 hours per day and allow keepers to shock elephants with electric prods and to hit them with bullhooks.
Citizens concerned for Six Flags' elephants obtained the medical records of four of the elephants that actually belonged to the city of Vallejo. Of those four, one is on high doses of pain killers for severe arthritis and another has a fractured toe and chronic bone infection in her foot; yet both of these elephants are still giving rides and lifting heavy logs in shows. A third elephant has hives and a constricted throat from stress. Six Flags won't release the records of the three elephants it owns. We can guess why.
http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_6591989
Last of The True Wild Horses
Thirty-five years ago, the people of Mongolia caught what they thought was their final glimpse of a wild takh, the world’s last remaining species of untamed horse.
Mongolia has been the land of the horse for longer than anyone can remember.
Distinguished from domestic horses in part by their thicker necks, shorter legs, and zebra-like erect mane, takhi were last seen in the wild during the 1960s in the Gobi, which accounts for roughly the southern third of Mongolia.
http://simplymarvelous.wordpress.com/2007/08/10/last-of-the-true-wild-horses/
Bear escaped pen at Zooz by burrowing beneath fence
RAY SPITERI
Local News - Saturday, August 11, 2007 @ 07:00
Willy managed to burrow his way under his pen - a special enclosure surrounded by a three-metre-high chain-link fence that has a strand of electrified wire running around it, says Zooz co-owner Marianne Tykolis-Casey.
"The potential factors that led to his escape are still being investigated," she told The Review Friday.
The 135-kilogram Syrian brown bear took a tour of the backfields in Stevensville after his disappearance from the popular tourist attraction around midnight Tuesday. He was captured about 15 hours later less than 500 metres from his home at the park.
Although Zooz opened the day after the fiasco, Tykolis-Casey said the back end of the park - which contains two bear exhibits housing four bears including Willy - has been closed as the company looks into ways of providing more security in the area.
The area could be back open to the public this weekend if the security improvements are complete.
http://www.niagarafallsreview.ca/webapp/sitepages/content.asp?contentid=648687&catname=Local%20News&classif=
Missing Wallaby Found
Aug 13, 2007 12:33 AM EDT
Updated: Skippy the Wallaby has been found. Joe Freed call the Eyewitness Newsroom late Sunday night to tell us that someone found Skippy while feeding ducks not far from Freed's home. We're told Skippy is fine but seems glad to be home.
A Wichita man needs your help to find his missing pet. Joe Freed has a 9-month-old wallaby that got away Saturday night near 27th and Oak Streets in Southwest Wichita. The wallaby is named Skippy and looks like a small kangaroo. He's four pounds and about a foot tall.
It is not dangerous but may startle easily. If you see the animal, don't try and catch it. Freed says Skippy is very fast and will likely run away. He asks that you call him so he can come and catch him. Freed is offering a $500 reward.
Freed says Skippy may still be in the area and is likely curled up in a flower pot or another object that feels like a "pouch." The animal is known to sleep during the day but may move around at night.
Freed is the owner of Petiatric.com, a company that manufactures intensive care units for animals. He ships them to zoos, veterinarians and breeders all over the world.
If you see Skippy, please call Joe Freed at (316) 831-9500 or Janet Nottingham at (316) 214-2006.
http://www.kbsd6.com/Global/story.asp?S=6921269
‘Productive’ addition of white tigers
Bindu Shajan Perappadan
Photo: Sushil Kumar Verma
Keeping a watch: Tigress Kaveri with her cubs at Delhi Zoo.
NEW DELHI: Brought to the Delhi Zoo from Nandankanan National Park, the white tiger Laxman has been a very “productive” addition. Thanks to his new wild bloodline, the zoo now not only boasts a healthy litter of six white tiger cubs, but will also help out zoos across the country by sending them white tigers.
http://www.hindu.com/2007/08/13/stories/2007081357400400.htm
South Bend to Offer Help to Potawatomi Zoo
InsideINdianaBusiness.com Report
The South Bend City Council will hear a proposal from Mayor Stephen Luecke to provide $1.4 million to the Potawatomi Zoo. The zoo has said it needs the funds to address maintenance problems it hasn't fixed since its last accreditation three years ago, including substandard air conditioning, lighting and cramped living quarters for animals.
http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/newsitem.asp?ID=24920
Pets and zoos: Pooches: 'Dog days' are for the birds
By Jean Gordon
jmgordon@clarionledger.com
These are the dog days of summer.
But dogs don't want anything to do with them.
"Normally they love to go outside and play and chase each other," Jackson receptionist Jennifer Hawkins said of her stocky boxer and fluffy Pomeranian. "But here you open the door, and they don't want to go out."
She has been helping her dogs cope with the heat with plenty of water. "We're just taking them out to go to the bathroom," she said, adding she now gets up at 5:30 a.m. to let the dogs out.
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070814/NEWS/708140381/1001
Zoo inspires exhibition
Childhood visits to one of the Black Country’s most popular tourist attractions have been the inspiration behind a major exhibition at Wolverhampton Art Gallery, which is opening on September 19.
Zoo is a solo exhibition of video works and photographs by West Midlander Richard Billingham.
Filmed in zoos across the UK, Europe and South America, the project explores the impact of confined spaces on animal behaviour.
But the idea for the exhibition came from nostalgic memories, as the artist was initially inspired by his trips Dudley Zoo in the 1970s.
The project also looks at the complexities of the relationship between the animals and their audience.
The public zoo came into existence when animals began to disappear from social life in England during the process of urban industrialisation in the nineteenth century.
The exhibition features both rare and more commonplace animals and questions the paradox at work in the loss of the animal’s natural habitat, with its simultaneous preservation in an artificial environment.
Richard Billingham was born in Birmingham in 1970 and achieved international recognition after a series of his photographs depicting his family were published in the book Ray’s a Laugh in 1996. In 1997, he won the Citibank Photography Prize and his work was also included in Sensation: Young British Artists from the Saatchi Collection at the Royal Academy.
http://www.expressandstar.co.uk/2007/08/14/zoo-inspires-exhibition/
Zoos cleared of cruelty
THE RSPCA has refused to release the results of its investigation into animal deaths at Taronga and Western Plains zoos.
The investigation was ordered in June, after the deaths of a greater one-horned rhinoceros and a female African elephant.
The RSPCA's chief inspector, David O'Shannessy, said yesterday that no action would be taken against the zoos because no evidence of cruelty had been found in the animals' veterinary records or in keeping standards.
"There were no breaches [of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act]," he said.
But he declined to release the report to the Herald.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/zoos-cleared-of-cruelty/2007/08/14/1186857512042.html
Moonridge zoo is stop for bearkeepers
Moonridge Animal Park has earned another honor. The local zoo will be a stop for the BIERZS 2007 conference on Aug. 25.
BIERZS, or the Bear Information Exchange for Rehabilitators, Zoos and Sanctuaries, is an organization that furthers knowledge of bear caretaking and brings together zoos to study bear behavior, husbandry, enrichment, training and preventative care.
Zoo curator Don Richardson said zoos from all over the world will visit Moonridge Zoo on the second day of the symposium. He said there will be between 80 and 85 zoo representatives in attendance.
http://www.bigbeargrizzly.net/articles/2007/08/14/news/zoo.txt
Vilas Zoo introduces new giraffes
Sandra Kallio
608-252-6181
skallio@madison.com
Vilas Zoo grew taller Tuesday with the introduction of the first two of three male giraffes the zoo is adding this summer: 5-year-old half-brothers Zawadi (Swahili for gift) and Sweta (sweater or jersey).
Standing water and spongy ground on the renovated outdoor exhibit meant they debuted at their indoor exhibit, although the two -- who come to Madison from Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs, Colo. -- may be outside today.
A class of Zoo Scouts were among the children getting the first looks at Sweta, who was just as curious about his visitors as they were about him, and Zawadi, who sat as photographers hustled for prime spots, children chattered and zoo director Jim Hubing and Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk offered crackers but failed to tempt either giraffe closer.
http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/local/index.php?ntid=205589&ntpid=1
Better laws are needed to protect animals in zoos
Editorial & Opinion - Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Updated @ 6:44:00 AM
WHILE ZOOZ FARED well in the World Society for the Protection of Animals' 2005 report, its passing grade was based on an assessment of just five exhibits at the facility.
Had the auditor seen it the way I see it, they would have seen giraffes that are still kept in a small, barren exhibit with no shade or shelter; raptors that are tethered by their water dishes; reindeer that pace back and forth on stones; or the red kangaroo that has little room for full speed hopping.
http://www.niagarafallsreview.ca/webapp/sitepages/content.asp?contentid=653119&catname=Editorial+%26+Opinion&classif=
Dated
Zoo Matchmaker
This interactive teaches the principles of breeding to conserve genetic diversity
versus the trade-offs in breeding for a specific trait.
http://www.mnzoo.com/education/games/matchmaker/index.html
Big snake joins couple in bed
(China Daily)
Updated: 2006-09-28 08:56
A rare Myanmar python snuck into a seventh-floor apartment in Quanzhou of Fujian Province on Monday and awakened the male dweller with three kisses on the face.
The 4-metre-long python awakened You and his wife at about 3 am. Judging by its appearance, You was relieved as he knew it was not poisonous. He boldly touched the python, which lay on the ground and seemed to enjoy his stroking.
About two hours later, police came and took the 30-kilogram python away. However, they were puzzled as to where the python was from, as it was worth at least 100,000 yuan (US$12,500) and is rarely seen even in zoos.
The Straits Metropolis News
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2006-09/28/content_698526.htm
Vets harvest eggs of a black-footed cat at the zoo
Web Posted: 09/27/2006 11:08 PM CDT
Scott Huddleston
Express-News Staff Writer
Buffy doesn't know it — she's sound asleep, after all — but she might just be helping save her species.
In an in vitro procedure that's been around for only two years, zoo veterinarians removed eggs from her ovaries Wednesday in a procedure aimed at helping protect black-footed cats like Buffy. Only about 30 of the little cats live in U.S. zoos, and many others in their native habitat in southern Africa are endangered by habitat destruction.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA092806.01B.catoperation.319d1f2.html
Editorial: The little zoo that can?
In asking for community support -- lots of it -- Mill Mountain Zoo must articulate a vision for a showcase that will make Roanoke proud.
As zoo experiences go, Mill Mountain Zoo rates barely a so-so on its best day. So it comes as little surprise that the zoo received notice this week that unless it makes major improvements -- some that have been put off for years -- it will lose its accreditation through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
The Mill Mountain Zoo has but a year to pull off a turn-around. Without a tremendous boost of community support, the chances of the zoo doing so are about as forlorn as the picture in Tuesday's edition of a little boy gazing into a barren old prairie dog pit.
The animals don't know or care whether the zoo keeps its accreditation. Perhaps even the 70,000 yearly visitors don't think about it either.
http://www.roanoke.com/editorials/wb/wb/xp-84610
Before ‘Jungle' became his first name, Jack Hanna was just a kid from Tennessee
by Mary Childress
Daily Mail staff
Jack Hanna and I are old friends -- I mean really old friends.
I knew him before there was a "Jungle" in front of his name, back when we both attended the same elementary school in Knoxville, Tenn. My first crush was on his big brother Ross, who is my age. And Jack took piano lessons from my mother.
Boy, is it a small world.
Little did we know back then that this animal-loving, boy wonder would end up taming the world of wild animals and become a leader in the field of wild-animal conservation.
When Jack and his family lived down the street, we had no idea that dreams of being a zoo director and traveling the world filled his head.
He was just a cute kid from the neighborhood.
http://www.dailymail.com/story/Life/+/200609285/Before+%91Jungle'+became+his+first+name,+Jack+Hanna+was+just+a+kid+from+Tennessee/
Elephant delivers healthy male calf
Wire Report
HOUSTON - An Asian elephant at the Houston Zoo gave birth Sunday to a healthy 384-pound male calf that zoo officials say is a big baby, even for an elephant.
Zoo officials believe the calf, born to Shanti, is the largest ever delivered at a facility accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Newborn Asian elephants normally weigh 150 to 340 pounds.
http://www.theeagle.com/stories/100206/texas_20061002001.php
Animals in zoos need space
Press Packer Hannah thinks zoos are good, as long as the animals have plenty of space to move around.
"I believe that many zoos are great places.
I live near a zoo and all the animals have big enclosures and are treated well.
However I have visited other, less spacious zoos where animals are in cramped environments and look unwell.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_5350000/newsid_5359400/5359444.stm
Houston elephant delivers record-size calf
Shanti, the Houston Zoo's 15-year-old Asian elephant, is in good condition after a smooth delivery of a male calf early Sunday morning. The calf weighed in at 384 lbs, which is remarkably large, even by elephant standards. That's the largest elephant ever delivered in an Association of Zoos and Aquariums zoo. A typical elephant calf weighs anywhere from 150 to 340 lbs. at birth. The calf's size is attributed to the fact that Shanti was more than three weeks overdue. The zoo staff is thus far happy with the progress of the calf and its mother. Shanti's last calf, Bella, suffered from complications early in her life. Shanti rejected Bella and she had to be hand-fed by zookeepers instead of nursed by her mother. Eventually, Bella fell and broke her leg, and was subsequently euthanized after veterinarians could not repair her leg through surgery. Zoo staff said Shanti has a much different attitude towards her new calf, and they have high hopes for a continued good relationship between the two.
Shanti and the calf will likely be available for public viewing by this weekend, which should coincide nicely with the cool front we promised. Houstonist is already working on ideas for the naming contest. Details will be posted on the Houston Zoo's blog, a good site for more extensive updates on the elephants and other zoo news.
http://houstonist.com/2006/10/03/houston_elephan.php
Posted: Tuesday, October 3rd, 2006 5:19 AM HST
Sea Life Park earns accreditation
By Associated Press
HONOLULU (AP) _ The Association of Zoos and Aquariums announced Monday that it has granted accreditation to Sea Life Park.
The A-Z-A requires zoos and aquariums to become accredited in order to be members of the association.
The organization says accreditation is granted for five years.
Then the institution must undergo another rigorous investigation to ensure it meets rising industry standards.
(Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved)
http://www.kpua.net/news.php?id=9529
Accreditation Acquired, Zoo Looks Forward
On the heels of re-accreditation by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, officials at the Great Plains Zoo are already focusing on how to keep that status for years. The zoo's AZA accreditation only lasts for five years. That's why zoo officials are already planning ahead to make sure its facilities, finances and management will meet the criteria for the next inspection team visit.
When leaders at the Great Plains Zoo announced they had re-earned national accreditation, they took time to revel in their past accomplishments. But the achievement also marks the start of another project: developing a master plan for the facility.
http://www.keloland.com/News/NewsDetail6371.cfm?Id=0,51473
Pittsburgh Zoo Introduces New Tiger Cubs - video
(KDKA) PITTSBURGH The new Amur tiger cubs at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium were taken out of their den and shown to a small group of visitors today - their first outing since they were born almost two months ago.
The cubs - Mara and Petya - are reportedly doing very well: Mara is 14 pounds 9 ounces; Petya is 14 pounds 1 ounce.
They're currently the size of small, but a male tiger can grow to 400 pounds.
http://kdka.com/local/local_story_276201750.html
When work is a zoo
BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Zookeeper Lauren Pulz gets the wart hogs, gazelles and spiral-horned kudus up and ready for the day with the enthusiasm of a soccer mom.
To the sounds of growling lions, Pulz is responsible for setting up the exhibits, feeding the African animals and cleaning their barns at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore.
“You never know what’s going to happen,” Pulz said while giving a head rub to Frasier, a male wart hog. “I’m petting him, but he is very dangerous and could make a sudden move. I’m always aware of the animal’s normal personality so I can detect if he’s a little off.
“It’s important to be able to tell if there is anything different,” Pulz said, in case the animals need to see the vet. “For instance, it’s a big sign if one of the wart hogs, Frasier or Kumari, isn’t eating.”
http://www.examiner.com/a-323824~When_work_is_a_zoo.html
Terri Irwin to return to zoo's stage
October 03, 2006 08:05pm
Article from: AAP
STEVE Irwin's widow Terri will return to the stage at Australia Zoo by Christmas, the Crocodile Hunter's best friend says.
Wes Mannion, the zoo's director, said Mrs Irwin would once again help stage shows at the Crocoseum – the venue for live crocodile shows and one of her husband's favourite places.
"For Terri, she's really keen to spread the word about conservation and come Christmas both me and Terri will be getting in the Crocoseum and doing the shows," Mr Mannion said to the Nine Network tonight.
"We have to do that because if we didn't he'd (Irwin) be quite upset about that, I'm sure."
Irwin, 44, was killed when a stingray barb pierced his chest in a freak accident off the north Queensland coast on September 4.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20519814-1702,00.html
Sprint coup for zoo
By NICK COOK
Junior World Orienteering Championships organiser Paul Prudhoe and Western Plains Zoo’s Maria Finnigan with an orienteering marker. Photo: BELINDA SOOLE.
"The sport's always been about fast-paced decision-making on the run, but now it's going to be even more exciting because there's the chance you could take a wrong turn and come face-to-face with a lion or tiger." Those were the words of Junior World Orienteering Championships marketing manager Paul Prudoe when he made the announcement that Western Plains Zoo would be the venue for the sprint leg of the orienteering championships which will be held in Dubbo in July next year. "We chose Dubbo as host city because we felt the surrounding terrain really suited the more traditional orienteering events," Mr Prudoe said. "We chose the zoo for the sprint component because we felt it would provide a truly unique challenge for the competitors. The zoo is a very different setting for the sprint event. In fact, 2007 will be the first time a World Championship event (at any level) has been held within a zoo."
http://dubbo.yourguide.com.au/detail.asp?class=news&subclass=general&story_id=514313&category=General&m=10&y=2006
Riverbanks Zoo's Rare White Alligator Dies
(Columbia) - The Riverbanks Zoo's rare white alligator has died, zoo officials announced Tuesday.
Officials say the animal died from an apparent intestinal infection.
"Throughout the past few weeks our veterinary staff has administered antibiotics to the white alligator," said Satch Krantz, the Zoo's Executive Director. "We were optimistic that he would survive and continue as he originally did while on exhibit with the other juvenile alligators."
http://www.wltx.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=42586
County guarantees zoo would get revenues from entertainment complex
By Eric Kalis
Miami-Dade County commissioners last week reaffirmed their support of a $1 billion entertainment district near the Miami MetroZoo with a measure guaranteeing that revenues from the complex would go directly to the zoo's expansion.
Commissioner Dennis Moss, a proponent of building an adventure theme park, water park and 300-room hotel next to the zoo, sponsored the measure, which passed unanimously Sept. 26. Voters will decide Nov. 7 whether to allow the county to request proposals to hire a private developer for the complex.
http://www.miamitodaynews.com/news/061005/story4.shtml
Jacksonville Zoo to Relocate Chimpanzees
By Associated Press
JACKSONVILLE, FL (AP) -- The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens will be without chimpanzees for the first time in 60 years. Zoo officials have decided to relocate the three chimps and focus on gorillas and bonobos, two other popular types of apes at the zoo. But the move likely won't happen for at least a year and a new zoo home hasn't been found for the chimps.
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/local/news-article.aspx?storyid=66217
Group re-accredits Emporia’s city zoo
By Scott Rochat (Contact)
Tuesday, October 3, 2006
The David Traylor Zoo of Emporia has been re-accredited by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums.
The zoo has to pass the AZA’s muster every five years in areas ranging from animal care to public relations. The process takes about six months and is topped off with an inspection and then a hearing at the national convention.
“I knew once I got past this, I could take a breath and enjoy the first part of my employment,” said Zoo Director Steve Trebilcock, who took over the zoo just this year. “The pressure isn’t off — but it is less.”
About 210 zoos and aquariums, most of them located in North America, belong to the AZA.
http://www.emporiagazette.com/news/2006/oct/03/group_reaccredits_emporias_city_zoo/
Steve Irwin's Family To Start Back In Zoo By Christmas
Claims zoo director...
By: Lowri Williams on 10/4/2006
A friend of Steve Irwin?s and director of the
Australia
Zoo, Wes Mannion has claimed that Irwin?s widow Terri will be back continuing Steve?s work as soon as possible.
Irwin was killed last month when he was struck through the heart by a stingray?s barb, he died instantly.
Although Irwin?s wife and two young children are still mourning his loss, by
Christmas they hope to be back working in the
Zoo.
Mannion said to FemaleFirst: "Come
Christmas, both me and Terri will be getting in the Crocoseum and doing the shows. We have to do that because if we didn't Steve would be quite upset about that, I'm sure."
However, Mannion also believes that Irwin?s eight year old daughter Bindi will start back working at the
zoo when she is ready, he said: "She's her own little girl and she makes her own decisions up to a point."
"I've just been amazed at just how great everyone has been that's been coming to the
zoo.
"They're really embracing the man that he was, even though he's no longer here in person, just here in spirit."
http://www.entertainmentwise.com/news?id=23129
continued...
