Aug 23, 2007 11:25 AM
Alexandra Zawadil Reuters
VIENNA – A giant panda gave birth to a cub in an Austrian zoo on Thursday, Europe's first such event in 25 years, officials said.
The cub was born in Vienna's Tiergarten Schoenbrunn zoo, 127 days after mother Yang Yang mated with male Long Hui, both on extended loan to Austria from China.
Caretakers spied the tiny cub, weighing just 100 grams (3.5 ounces) and measuring 10 cm (3.9 inches), on a surveillance camera after hearing tiny whimpering sounds in Yang Yang's den.
http://www.thestar.com/sciencetech/Science/article/249165
Austrian Zoo Finds Dead Panda Sibling
The Associated PressFriday, August 24, 2007; 1:43 PM
VIENNA, Austria -- The giant panda cub born in an Austrian zoo was actually a twin, but its sibling died, the zoo said Friday.
Staff at Vienna's Schoenbrunn Zoo detected the tiny carcass late Thursday while monitoring the mother, Yang Yang, and her newborn through a surveillance camera, zoologist Regina Pfistermueller said.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/24/AR2007082401159.html
Country Club safari gala to benefit zoo
BLOOMINGTON -- Maybe it's the allure of wearing a pith helmet and going safari casual to a gala held at the Bloomington Country Club. Or maybe it's the possibility of enjoying hors d'oeuvres with a meerkat.Either way, organizers say the annual event to support Miller Park Zoo will be a fun time that helps support a community gem.The gala, hosted by the Miller Park Zoological Society, is set for Sept. 8. Tickets are $75 and can be obtained by calling the zoo at (309) 434-2250. Deadline for reservations is 5 p.m. today (Friday).Money raised will go toward equipping the animal hospital under construction at the zoo. The $400,000 hospital is being paid for by the zoo's Operation Roar fundraising campaign. Operation Roar also will renovate the Katthoefer animal building.
http://www.pantagraph.com/articles/2007/08/23/news/doc46cde1ab30ebc949672154.txt
Piglets hog the limelight at ZSL London Zoo
Friday 24 August 2007
The pitter patter of tiny trotters can be heard at ZSL London Zoo this bank holiday, after the long awaited arrival of twin red river hoglets.
The two little piggies are already trotting around their enclosure snuffling for food, and exploring their new home.
The porky pair love giving proud parents Salvador and Bahiti the runaround - but dad Salvador is always happy to give them a snout in the right direction.
The piglets are currently reddy brown in colour with cream spots and stripes which act as excellent camouflage for the youngsters. In around two months these markings will fade and the piglets will develop the distinctive red, brown and white coat which inspires their name.
http://www.zsl.org/zsl-london-zoo/news/piglets,387,NS.html
Go ape at gorilla goodbye party at Zoo
Denver Zoo
7:56 a.m.
Rapunzel, with her 2-year-old daughter, Tinga, born in Denver, will return to the Los Angeles Zoo after living at the Denver Zoo since 2003. Two troops of gorillas are ready to return to California now that construction of their new exhibit is ready to open in November. A going-away party will be held Wednesday
By Rocky Mountain News August 24, 2007
Two troops of gorillas who have been hanging out at the Denver Zoo while their new exhibit is being built in California are preparing to end their Colorado summer.
The zoo will send them off with a wild bon boyage party at 10 a.m. Wednesday. They'll get to scarf down yummy treats, including Jello and Popsicles. Going-away cards from other Denver Zoo residents will be on display at the public event.
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5681545,00.html
CA facility offers to take AK elephant
By JAMES HALPINASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- A proposal is on the table to get Alaska's only elephant out of the state, and for the first time this summer the Alaska Zoo and animal rights groups could have something to agree on.
The Performing Animal Welfare Society, located in Galt, Calif., has offered to take Maggie and pay for her relocation costs, including air transportation, veterinary evaluations and professional training to prepare her for crate travel, zoo officials said Friday.
The facility would also pay for Maggie's keepers to travel with her to her prospective new home - 30 acres where she would live with nine other elephants. PAWS has also offered to fund a $100,000 grant for animal habitat improvements at the Alaska Zoo if an agreement is reached to relocate Maggie to its facility.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_AK_Alaskas_Elephant.html
Butterfly garden at Buttonwood Park Zoo attracts monarchs, swallowtails and plenty of humans, too
By Laura McLean
From the Ground Up
August 25, 2007 6:00 AM
August is here and butterflies are taking up residence at New Bedford's Buttonwood Park Zoo. Unlike the other animals, these winged beauties are free to roam far and wide. They can be seen hovering along stream banks, floating above exhibits and settling on flowers, adding movement and color wherever they go. Instinctively, they will settle among the larger creatures in their new home — the "Garden for the Butterflies," filled with the species of plants they love.
Work on the garden was begun three years ago as a component of the zoo's North American theme, according to Education Curator Gail Janeczek.
"We're seeing a lot of butterfly exhibits and gardens at zoos. They extend the lesson of biodiversity as well as serve an adjunct to our new focus on conservation," she said as we visited the garden on a recent day.
http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070825/LIFE/708250331/1011/TOWN10
Marghazar Zoo sees births of ostriches and peacocks
By Imran Naeem AhmadISLAMABAD: The population at Marghazar Zoo has seen a significant rise in recent months with the birth of three baby ostriches and as many as 13 peacocks.The birds were brought into public view for the first time on Friday as they took their first steps attempting to get familiar with the new surroundings.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C08%5C25%5Cstory_25-8-2007_pg11_7
CA facility offers to take AK elephant
By JAMES HALPINASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- A proposal is on the table to get Alaska's only elephant out of the state, and for the first time this summer the Alaska Zoo and animal rights groups could have something to agree on.
The Performing Animal Welfare Society, located in Galt, Calif., has offered to take Maggie and pay for her relocation costs, including air transportation, veterinary evaluations and professional training to prepare her for crate travel, zoo officials said Friday.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_AK_Alaskas_Elephant.html
Zoo's baby elephant christened
UPDATED: 2007-08-25 02:46:09 MST
By KATIE SCHNEIDER
The Calgary Zoo's latest 308-lb. bundle of joy now has her own name.
A two-week old Asian elephant calf, born at 3:23 a.m. on Aug. 9, has been named Malti.
Zoo donor Nora Libin gave the little one its Hindi name, which means "moonlight," "to be brilliant," or "small fragrant flower," said zoo spokeswoman Laurie Herron.
http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Alberta/2007/08/25/4445254-sun.html
Zoo to offer fun classes for preschoolers
Zoo to offer fun classes for preschoolersThe zoo is the place to be for preschoolers this fall.Mavis Thompson, a preschool teacher with more than 22 years of experience, is holding classes for 3- to 5-year-olds at ZooMontana beginning Sept. 6."I'm so excited," Thompson said. "I'm just going to make it fun. We're going to learn, but we're going to learn the fun way."
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2007/08/25/news/local/29-classes.txt
Python kills three rare parrots at zoo
Snake was apparently smuggled into the Budapest facility
BUDAPEST, Hungry - A python that apparently was smuggled into the Budapest Zoo has killed three rare Kea parrots, officials said Friday.
It was unclear whether a visitor released the tiger python into the Keas' cage or whether someone released the 6-foot, 6-inch snake elsewhere in the zoo and it found the cage by itself, zoo spokesman Zoltan Hanga said.
Hanga said the zoo owned several pythons, but they had implanted microchips and all had been accounted for.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20323269/
Chennai zoo acquires 76 rare birds
From our ANI CorrespondentChennai, Aug 18: The Arignar Anna Zoological Park, located in Vandalur, 30 kilometers from Chennai has acquired 76 rare birds, including parakeets and hybrid pea fowls. The birds were brought from the Gemini birds farm in Tamil Nadu's Kancheepuram District to the Arignar Anna, also known as the Vandalur Zoo, recently to enrich their ongoing breeding programmes.
http://www.dailyindia.com/show/166602.php/Chennai-zoo-acquires-76-rare-birds
Sassy the Pig Sidebar 1
By Rachel Stern Special to the Signal
"A cat will look down on a man. A dog will look up to a man. But a pig will look you straight in the eye and see his equal."
- Sir Winston Churchill.
Potbellied pigs were first imported into the United States from Vietnam in 1985, intended for zoos. However, zoos soon found they had far too many, and they began selling them to pet stores. Owning a pot-belly became a fad, then a craze, and prices went through the roof. Today potbellied pigs still maintain a certain popularity, if not cachet, as pets.
http://www.the-signal.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=50177&format=html
Spy in the Nest Snoops on Bird Moms
Tracy Staedter, Discovery News
Aug. 20, 2007 — Ornithologists have a new way to snoop on bird behavior: an electronic egg that spies from inside the nest.
The egg is helping scientists understand how a large African bird — the kori bustard — and others, including the American flamingo, nurture their broods-to-be. The information should offer insight about the species and also give biologists better data on how to incubate real eggs artificially.
That ability could prove key to the survival of species like the kori bustard, which is in decline.
http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2007/08/20/electronicegg_tec.html?category=technology&guid=20070820093030&dcitc=w19-502-ak-0000
Woodland Park's snow leopard is star of appreciation day
By Steve Shay
Monday, August 20, 2007
Fourteen year-old Nadia, the zoo's only snow leopard, was the star attraction at Woodland Park Zoo's first annual "International Snow Leopard Appreciation Day" Saturday.Nadia pranced around her picturesque enclosure of trees and boulders as if showing off to the crowd of children, stroller-toting parents, and camera buffs. Nearby, experts in booths were on hand to answer questions about the proud cat.The zoo collaborated with the Snow Leopard Trust, an organization that raises awareness of the plight of the snow leopard, an endangered species. The Trust was founded by conservationist, and the zoo's former education director, Helen Freeman, in 1981. It is located about five blocks north of the zoo, in the historic Good Shepherd Center. The Trust, and zoo, hope that by piloting this event, other zoos worldwide will want to participate next year.
http://www.ballardnewstribune.com/articles/2007/08/20/features/features/feature03.txt
Zoo Bloopers
When you mix kids with animals, you get all kinds of funny results.
http://nature.tubelounge.com/147/kids-at-zoos-bloopers/
Two Chimpanzees Swing Into Detroit Zoo
Submitted by ruzik_tuzik on Tue, 2007-08-21 07:11.
Posted under:
Two chimpanzees have joined the Great Apes of Harambee at the Detroit Zoo. Nyani, a 16-year-old female, and Kiri, a 17-year-old male, joined the Zoo from the Henry Vilas Zoo in Madison, Wis. The pair’s arrival expands the Detroit Zoo’s chimpanzee population to 10, including three males and seven females.
http://www.huliq.com/31125/two-chimpanzees-swing-into-detroit-zoo
Waterlogging-a threat to zoo animals
18 Aug 2007, 0222 hrs IST , Sanjeev Kumar Verma , TNN PATNA:
First, it was the turn of city dwellers. Now, it appears to be that of animals living in the Sanjay Gandhi Biological Park here. The all-pervasive problem of waterlogging may pose serious problems to these animals as well. Facing threat are sections that house giraffe, rhino and sanghai deer as some unknown persons broke the zoo boundary wall to clear water accumulated in the adjoining residential areas. "We are trying to divert the water from entering the cage of these animals. The volume of water entering the zoo premises may cause problems if the Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) does not take corrective measures immediately," said zoo director Rakesh Kumar on Friday, adding that the PMC's attention has already been drawn towards the problem.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Patna/Waterlogging-a_threat_to_zoo_animals/articleshow/2289758.cms
Endangered California condor dies of lead poisoning
The Associated Press
Published: August 18, 2007
LOS ANGELES: An endangered California condor that was being treated at the Los Angeles Zoo for lead poisoning has died, a conservation group reported.
Tests showed the bird had 10 times the safe amount of lead in its bloodstream after it was caught at the Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge last month, according to Audubon California, an environmental and conservation group.
Only about 300 California condors remain in the world.
"Lead poisoning is a tremendous threat to these remarkable birds," said Glenn Olson, executive director of Audubon California.
PETA asks USDA to investigate handling of ex-fugitive monkey
The Associated Press
TUPELO — An animal rights group has asked federal inspectors to investigate the treatment of a now-famous escape artist monkey at a Tupelo zoo.
The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals this week filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture against the Tupelo Buffalo Park and Zoo, claiming it provided inadequate confinement for its white-faced capuchin, Oliver.
The 9-year-old monkey escaped its cage twice this summer. It was caught both times and is now back in the park.The USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service regulates the welfare of exotic pets.Park owner Dan Franklin said the allegations were unfounded.
Master plan would keep zoo a vital asset
Pat Quinn
Mike Robertson is a friend of mine and has been a member of The Zoo Northwest Florida for many years, and we appreciate his concerns ("We need a zoo ? but a better one," Viewpoint, Aug. 8). It might be enlightening for Mike to visit The Zoo and review our master plan and any other issues he would like to discuss.Let me address some of Mike's comments:Comment: "Northwest Florida needs a larger population to have a zoo."Response: Many small towns have excellent public and private zoological parks. For example, Springfield, Mo., is much smaller than the Pensacola area and has a wonderful zoo that is supported by the public and also subsidized by local government.Albany, Ga., has a much smaller metropolitan area and is subsidized annually by the city with $1.2 million. The annual attendance is about 60,000 people a year. The Zoo Northwest Florida has an annual attendance of some 150,000.
PETA blames Tupelo zoo for monkey's three escapes
The Associated Press
TUPELO — An animal rights group has asked federal inspectors to investigate the treatment of a now-famous escape artist monkey at a Tupelo zoo.
The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals this week filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture against the Tupelo Buffalo Park and Zoo, claiming it provided inadequate confinement for its white-faced capuchin, Oliver.
Mysore Zoo hosts new inmates
Monday August 20 2007 10:39 IST
MYSORE: A pair of Sarus Cranes and a male zebra arrived from Lucknow zoo to Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens here on Sunday.Though, a young female giraffe and female zebra were expected to arrive along with the newcomers, it was delayed due to unforeseen reasons.Both these animals will be brought to the Mysore zoo in a month or so. The zoo has given a pair of chimpanzees in exchange for the giraffe, Sarus Cranes and a zebra pair.There are three male giraffes in the Mysore zoo and an old female one.
The truth about the zoo
I have to take exception with the recent letter regarding the Binghamton Zoo. I have been visiting the zoo for the 10 years I have lived here, and while there have been some rough patches recently, culminating with the loss of accreditation, I could not disagree more about the current condition.
There are new animals, each exhibit now has a great sign describing the animal's background and habitat, the gardens are beautifully kept, and even the addition of Manley's concessions has improved things.
In our most recent visit, we saw a scheduled feeding of the spectacled bears, we came nose-to-nose with a grey wolf (through the Wolf Woods glass), and witnessed a group of young women volunteering their time to design a landscaping plan for the new upper playground. My son and I had no problem finding the tamarin family and the ball python alive and well in their exhibits.
I encourage families to visit the zoo and decide for themselves.
Michelle Williams
Windsor
Local zoo became classroom for some summer students
Aug. 20, 2007
By Heather Healy
Contributor
It was 8 a.m. and summer vacation, but Adam Reimer was busy tending to the fish at Cameron Park Zoo.
Reimer, a Nacogdoches senior, is an environmental science major and was enrolled in Field School in Environmental Studies, a course held primarily at the zoo.
"My job is to select a specific species in the Cameron Park Zoo and observe its behaviors in a captive environment," Reimer said.
http://www.baylor.edu/Lariat/news.php?action=story&story=46376
continued...
