Seal harvesting a Chinook Salmon at Bonneville Dam in Idaho. Currently zoos across the country are seeking to place the seals rather than have them destroyed. When fisheries collapse there is a cascading effect across THE ECOSYSTEM, and while seals have been an issue for some time at the dams with 'fish ladders,' so has the depleted status of Salmon.
The failure of the Chinook Salmon fisheries didn't happen overnight and where there is failure of one fishery there will be others.
...Any animals that are captured may be euthanized if no permanent holding facility can be found for them. NOAA’s Fisheries Service and representatives of zoos and aquariums are compiling a list of pre-approved permanent holding facilities interested in receiving a limited number of captured sea lions as an alternative to euthanasia. NOAA has authorized the states to remove as many as 85 animals annually, but estimates that only about 30 animals will be removed each year, given the conditions in its authorization....
Zoos
Orphan cougar kittens arrive at Wahpeton zoo from Wyoming
The Associated Press - Saturday, March 22, 2008
WAHPETON, N.D.
Three cougar kittens captured in Wyoming after their mother died are making themselves at home in North Dakota.
The young orphans, two females and a male, arrived at the Wahpeton zoo late Thursday night. They will be on exhibit with the Chahinkapa Zoo's female cougar, Sasha, when the zoo opens April 26.
Officials from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, looking to place the orphan cougars, had learned that the Wahpeton zoo had lost its male cougar, Charlie, to injuries.
http://www.in-forum.com/ap/index.cfm?page=view&id=D8VI32LO1
Twin monkeys a double delight for Canberra Zoo
Posted Sat Mar 22, 2008 9:38am AEDT
Among the the smallest of primates, the South American cotton-top tamarins habitat in the Amazonian region of South America is threatened by logging and the clearing of the forests for farming [File photo]. (Reuters: David Gray )
Map: Canberra 2600
Twin baby cotton top tamarins - an endangered monkey species native to South America - have been born at the National Zoo in Canberra.
While they are endangered in the wild due to deforestation, a regional zoo breeding program has been successful.
The baby monkeys were born at the zoo eight weeks ago.
Zookeeper Shontelle Lorenzo says the tiny monkeys are a favourite with the crowds.
"Because these guys are so active they're very entertaining," she said.
"It's never boring to watch a little cotton top tamarin, they're very inquisitive and they're always checking out kids and people that are going by."
She says the captive breeding program is vital to the species' survival.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/22/2196589.htm
Spot in the centre
By Adrienne Brady
Published: March 20, 2008, 23:54
"I was born in a mokoro," boasts Mothupi with a wide smile, before launching into another fascinating story about his life in the bush. As the chief guide at Khwai River Lodge, he adds star quality to a safari lodge that offers the ultimate in luxury in a perfect wilderness setting overlooking the floodplain of the Khwai River.
One of the oldest of Botswana's hunting lodges, Khwai River was opened in 1969 by Sir Seretse Khama. King of the baTawana tribe; first president of independent Botswana, knighted by Queen Elizabeth. This was our second visit to the lodge and to have Mothupi as our guide once again was the bonus we had hoped for.
Mothupi may not have been born in a mokoro (dug-out canoe) but he is a member of the baYei tribe whose ancestors, in the 18th century, travelled down connecting waterways from Zambia to settle in the delta.
http://www.gulfnews.com/friday/Travel/10198951.html
Impending cuts to KCs zoo grab attention all over town
By MATT CAMPBELL
The Kansas City Star
In Kansas City’s current budget wars, there has been no greater lightning rod than the zoo.
After Mayor Mark Funkhouser proposed weaning the zoo completely from public support, he and council members have been bombarded by pleas from zoo supporters afraid the zoo would close.
Now a compromise proposal would reduce the subsidy from $4.6 million to $4 million. That would keep the Kansas City Zoo open, but it probably would make it less affordable and less enjoyable for visitors, said director Randy Wisthoff.
http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/541808.html
Zoo statues recall lives of children killed in plane crash
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/18/08
The bronze images capture a good time in their young lives, which ended on the same day 17 years ago.
He's smiling, a snake curling around his forearm. She holds a fluffy cat in her lap. Brother and sister, their bronzed images invite you to linger at Zoo Atlanta. And so you do, in the shadows where children whoop and tumble at the playground. You run your hand over their heads, shiny from the caresses of other strangers. You read the inscription:
Dedicated in loving memory of Brian and Laura Birdsong
Their spirit and love of animals will live on through the joy that all children find in nature.
Brian: June 2, 1981 - April 5, 1991
Laura: May 30, 1984 - April 5, 1991
Laura and Brian Birdsong were Decatur kids. They loved visiting the zoo, where Brian invariably headed to the World of Reptiles, dragging mom Isabelle Birdsong behind. Then they'd head downhill to the spot where the lions sunned themselves, their tails flicking at flies. Laura liked that.
The trio always wound up at the playground, hard against the tiny tracks where Zoo Atlanta's train has been making the circuit for decades. Mom would take a break while her kids ran and jumped like young animals. No surprise there: In the last year of their lives, Brian was 9, a third-grader; Laura, a beaming first-grader, was 6.
http://www.ajc.com/living/content/living/stories/2008/03/17/statues_0318.html
Big cat spotted near Winnipeg Zoo
Last Updated: Monday, March 17, 2008
3:52 PM CT
Winnipeg's Assiniboine Park Zoo closed its doors noon Monday so zookeepers could investigate reports they might have one extra-big cat on the prowl.
Zoo officials received reports Sunday night of a large cat seen near the south perimeter of the zoo.
Animal tracks, perhaps those of a cougar or lynx, were found near one of the zoo's perimeter fences, and there is concern the animal may have jumped the fence and entered the zoo.
"If an animal came in from the outside, we just want to determine what it is," said zoo curator Bob Wrigley.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2008/03/17/wpg-cougar.html
Originally posted: March 17, 2008
Weight Watchers for zoo animals?
Is this a good thing? What Mullen didn't have space to mention is that in addition to suffering from increasingly difficult humanlike geriatric problems--allergies, osteoperosis, arthritis, glaucoma--zoo animals are also fighting obesity because their natural diet often can't be replicated.
It has gotten so bad that at the Brookfield Zoo, staff nutritionist Jennifer Watts is "hatching a Weight Watchers-style plan for the beasts," reported AP medical writer Lindsey Tanner. "The idea is to assign points to food and allow the animals a limited number of extra points a week.
"For example, molasses is a favorite treat of the bears and gorillas. Keepers often spread it around their enclosures to get them moving. Under Watts' plan, two cups of molasses might be worth two points, and granola bars — a favorite bear treat — would be worth one."
Polar bears at the Indianapolis Zoo get sugar-free Jell-O. And some zoos give giraffes low-salt crackers and specially prepared alfalfa biscuits, according to veterinarian Chris Hanley from the Toledo Zoo, Tanner wrote.
http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/features_julieshealthclub/2008/03/weight-watchers.html
Earth Day Party for the Planet at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo
One Conservation Place
Syracuse NY 13204
(315) 435-8511
April 19, 2008 from 10 am till 4:30 pm
Come celebrate Earth Day and see how easy it really is to be green. Event festivities include environmentally frriendly activities for the kids. Free with Admission to the Zoo.http://www.rosamondgiffordzoo.org
http://www.skaneatelessuites.com/2664/earth-day-party-for-the-planet-at-the-rosamond-gifford-zoo/
Rare spot-nosed guenon born at Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Orlando area
Tammie Wersinger
Winnipeg's Assiniboine Park Zoo closed its doors noon Monday so zookeepers could investigate reports they might have one extra-big cat on the prowl.
Zoo officials received reports Sunday night of a large cat seen near the south perimeter of the zoo.
Animal tracks, perhaps those of a cougar or lynx, were found near one of the zoo's perimeter fences, and there is concern the animal may have jumped the fence and entered the zoo.
"If an animal came in from the outside, we just want to determine what it is," said zoo curator Bob Wrigley.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2008/03/17/wpg-cougar.html
Originally posted: March 17, 2008
Weight Watchers for zoo animals?
Is this a good thing? What Mullen didn't have space to mention is that in addition to suffering from increasingly difficult humanlike geriatric problems--allergies, osteoperosis, arthritis, glaucoma--zoo animals are also fighting obesity because their natural diet often can't be replicated.
It has gotten so bad that at the Brookfield Zoo, staff nutritionist Jennifer Watts is "hatching a Weight Watchers-style plan for the beasts," reported AP medical writer Lindsey Tanner. "The idea is to assign points to food and allow the animals a limited number of extra points a week.
"For example, molasses is a favorite treat of the bears and gorillas. Keepers often spread it around their enclosures to get them moving. Under Watts' plan, two cups of molasses might be worth two points, and granola bars — a favorite bear treat — would be worth one."
Polar bears at the Indianapolis Zoo get sugar-free Jell-O. And some zoos give giraffes low-salt crackers and specially prepared alfalfa biscuits, according to veterinarian Chris Hanley from the Toledo Zoo, Tanner wrote.
http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/features_julieshealthclub/2008/03/weight-watchers.html
Earth Day Party for the Planet at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo
One Conservation Place
Syracuse NY 13204
(315) 435-8511
April 19, 2008 from 10 am till 4:30 pm
Come celebrate Earth Day and see how easy it really is to be green. Event festivities include environmentally frriendly activities for the kids. Free with Admission to the Zoo.http://www.rosamondgiffordzoo.org
http://www.skaneatelessuites.com/2664/earth-day-party-for-the-planet-at-the-rosamond-gifford-zoo/
Rare spot-nosed guenon born at Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Orlando area
Tammie Wersinger
Sentinel Staff Writer
March 18, 2008
Barely 5 weeks old, Makena is already taking baby steps.
In an enclosure at the Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens, the baby lesser spot-nosed guenon ventured inches out onto a branch, before jumping back and nuzzling into the warmth of its mother's belly.
"Mom and baby are doing well," zoo curator Bonnie Breitbeil said recently. "In fact, the keepers have determined that the baby guenon is adventurous and already attempting to experience its surroundings."
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/lake/orl-lzoo1808mar18,0,1537286.story
Terri denies plans to change Australia Zoo focus
March 18, 2008 - 7:42PM
The wife of the late Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin has denied rumours she plans to sell Queensland's Australia Zoo and relocate to her homeland, the US.
Rumours are rife about the future of Australia Zoo amid media reports Terri Irwin plans to do a deal with US-based investors to turn the wildlife conservation site into some kind of theme park.
"I'll never leave. I love Australia and I'm doing my best to be a fair dinkum Aussie sheila and honour all of Steve's work and yeah, I'll be here the rest of my life," Terri told Seven Network's Today Tonight.
"There have been so many rumours about so many things and I have no idea where they all come from but I can assure everyone that the conservation work that we're doing in Australia will continue and will certainly have a global impact but we're not leaving and we love Australia and everybody here."
http://www.smh.com.au/news/people/terri-irwin-denies-plans-to-move-to-us/2008/03/18/1205602379447.html
Ardastra Gardens and Zoo a lovely little zoo!
Mar 21, 2008
My favorite day on a cruise was spent on my own at the zoo. I didn't pay for a tour or taxi there, just asked the locals directions to the bus stop and picked up the Jitney bus. I think it cost $1 or $2. The bus won't move till it's full however. We took the bus to Arawak Cay/The Fish fry as the locals call it.
It's a lovely area where the locals dine, very laid back open air restaurants, way better prices on sea food then downtown, not crowded or toursity when I was there.It's pretty too reminds me of Key West colorful little eatery's on the water. A local girl on the bus who got off at our stop even walked us there as she worked at one of the sea food places. She was so nice we decided to eat at the place she worked at. I had a Conch salad it was very tasty.
http://www.travbuddy.com/Ardastra-Gardens-and-Zoo-Nassau-Bahamas-v191677
Terri has Disney vision for Zoo
Glenis Green March 20, 2008 11:55am
STEVE Irwin's dream to turn Australia Zoo into a world tourist destination rivalling Disneyland could now become a reality within five years with staff numbers expected to jump from 500 to 2000.
The late Crocodile Hunter's widow and zoo director Terri Irwin said at the attractions annual VIP breakfast today that planning was well underway for the zoo to become a tourist jump-off point for the rest of Australia with luxury accommodation on site and safari-style experiences.
"Everything at Australia Zoo has ended up quicker and bigger than I anticipated and Steve's sense of urgency is something I'm taking up now and trying to achieve things as quickly as possible," she said.
About 350 intimate-style eco-themed accommodation villas were being proposed where visitors could become part of the wildlife experience.
http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/money/story/0,26844,23407737-3102,00.html
New animals move into the Dallas Zoo
08:45 PM CDT on Thursday, March 20, 2008
By ERIC AASEN / The Dallas Morning News
eaasen@dallasnews.com
The Dallas Zoo is welcoming a menagerie of new animals – a baby colobus monkey, a burnt red fossa, frogs, tortoises, African porcupines and even a cat that fishes – to attract first-time visitors and entice veterans.
"People come out here to have a good time and want to see new things," said zoo spokesman Sean Greene.
Zoo officials feel they have their groove back since Jabari, a 350-pound western lowland gorilla, was killed in 2004 after escaping from his enclosure.
In 2006, Dallas voters approved $25 million in bond funds for zoo improvements. In 2007, zoo attendance increased 16 percent from the previous year.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/032108dnmetzoo.311dc6f.html
Death has a field day at city zoo
Tuesday March 18 2008 12:18 IST
Express News Service
THE last five years could be the worst in the history of the city zoo, for it lost 259 animals to death. In 2007, there were 65 deaths and in 2008 the toll has already crossed the half-century mark. These figures were revealed by Minister for Education and Culture M.A. Baby in the Assembly in answer to an unstarred question raised by G. Karthikeyan. The reasons for the deaths have been cited as old-age, diseases and infighting among the animals. As many as 22 animals died soon after birth. In 2008 itself, three bear cubs, four tiger cubs and one fawn died in the months of January and February. Most of these deaths have been attributed to genetic defects resulting out of inbreeding of animals in captivity. Another reason cited is the lack of maternal care. Unlike the animals living in the wild, the animals in captivity seem to lack the capacity to take care of their young ones. The lack of space is supposedly a limiting factor.
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEO20080318015634&Page=O&Title=Thiruvananthapuram&Topic=0
Wildlife advocates, zoo, school employees build new habitats
By Darren Meritz
March 18, 2008
Barely 5 weeks old, Makena is already taking baby steps.
In an enclosure at the Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens, the baby lesser spot-nosed guenon ventured inches out onto a branch, before jumping back and nuzzling into the warmth of its mother's belly.
"Mom and baby are doing well," zoo curator Bonnie Breitbeil said recently. "In fact, the keepers have determined that the baby guenon is adventurous and already attempting to experience its surroundings."
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/lake/orl-lzoo1808mar18,0,1537286.story
Terri denies plans to change Australia Zoo focus
March 18, 2008 - 7:42PM
The wife of the late Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin has denied rumours she plans to sell Queensland's Australia Zoo and relocate to her homeland, the US.
Rumours are rife about the future of Australia Zoo amid media reports Terri Irwin plans to do a deal with US-based investors to turn the wildlife conservation site into some kind of theme park.
"I'll never leave. I love Australia and I'm doing my best to be a fair dinkum Aussie sheila and honour all of Steve's work and yeah, I'll be here the rest of my life," Terri told Seven Network's Today Tonight.
"There have been so many rumours about so many things and I have no idea where they all come from but I can assure everyone that the conservation work that we're doing in Australia will continue and will certainly have a global impact but we're not leaving and we love Australia and everybody here."
http://www.smh.com.au/news/people/terri-irwin-denies-plans-to-move-to-us/2008/03/18/1205602379447.html
Ardastra Gardens and Zoo a lovely little zoo!
Mar 21, 2008
My favorite day on a cruise was spent on my own at the zoo. I didn't pay for a tour or taxi there, just asked the locals directions to the bus stop and picked up the Jitney bus. I think it cost $1 or $2. The bus won't move till it's full however. We took the bus to Arawak Cay/The Fish fry as the locals call it.
It's a lovely area where the locals dine, very laid back open air restaurants, way better prices on sea food then downtown, not crowded or toursity when I was there.It's pretty too reminds me of Key West colorful little eatery's on the water. A local girl on the bus who got off at our stop even walked us there as she worked at one of the sea food places. She was so nice we decided to eat at the place she worked at. I had a Conch salad it was very tasty.
http://www.travbuddy.com/Ardastra-Gardens-and-Zoo-Nassau-Bahamas-v191677
Terri has Disney vision for Zoo
Glenis Green March 20, 2008 11:55am
STEVE Irwin's dream to turn Australia Zoo into a world tourist destination rivalling Disneyland could now become a reality within five years with staff numbers expected to jump from 500 to 2000.
The late Crocodile Hunter's widow and zoo director Terri Irwin said at the attractions annual VIP breakfast today that planning was well underway for the zoo to become a tourist jump-off point for the rest of Australia with luxury accommodation on site and safari-style experiences.
"Everything at Australia Zoo has ended up quicker and bigger than I anticipated and Steve's sense of urgency is something I'm taking up now and trying to achieve things as quickly as possible," she said.
About 350 intimate-style eco-themed accommodation villas were being proposed where visitors could become part of the wildlife experience.
http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/money/story/0,26844,23407737-3102,00.html
New animals move into the Dallas Zoo
08:45 PM CDT on Thursday, March 20, 2008
By ERIC AASEN / The Dallas Morning News
eaasen@dallasnews.com
The Dallas Zoo is welcoming a menagerie of new animals – a baby colobus monkey, a burnt red fossa, frogs, tortoises, African porcupines and even a cat that fishes – to attract first-time visitors and entice veterans.
"People come out here to have a good time and want to see new things," said zoo spokesman Sean Greene.
Zoo officials feel they have their groove back since Jabari, a 350-pound western lowland gorilla, was killed in 2004 after escaping from his enclosure.
In 2006, Dallas voters approved $25 million in bond funds for zoo improvements. In 2007, zoo attendance increased 16 percent from the previous year.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/032108dnmetzoo.311dc6f.html
Death has a field day at city zoo
Tuesday March 18 2008 12:18 IST
Express News Service
THE last five years could be the worst in the history of the city zoo, for it lost 259 animals to death. In 2007, there were 65 deaths and in 2008 the toll has already crossed the half-century mark. These figures were revealed by Minister for Education and Culture M.A. Baby in the Assembly in answer to an unstarred question raised by G. Karthikeyan. The reasons for the deaths have been cited as old-age, diseases and infighting among the animals. As many as 22 animals died soon after birth. In 2008 itself, three bear cubs, four tiger cubs and one fawn died in the months of January and February. Most of these deaths have been attributed to genetic defects resulting out of inbreeding of animals in captivity. Another reason cited is the lack of maternal care. Unlike the animals living in the wild, the animals in captivity seem to lack the capacity to take care of their young ones. The lack of space is supposedly a limiting factor.
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEO20080318015634&Page=O&Title=Thiruvananthapuram&Topic=0
Wildlife advocates, zoo, school employees build new habitats
By Darren Meritz
El Paso Times
Article Launched: 03/18/2008 12:00:00 AM MDT
Some employees who work at the San Elizario Independent School District have taken a special liking to a few feathered friends who have made a home out of the grounds of the district's administration building.
The school district enlisted the help of wildlife experts after finding that the threatened burrowing owls, native to the Southwest, had been nesting in precarious locations at the district building that place their lives and their chick offspring in danger.
After heavy rains last year, Nancy Swanson, director of instructional programs for the district, couldn't bear to see eggs washed out of drainage pipes and landing in the parking lot, getting killed by unsuspecting motorists.
"It would just be so sad because those were the babies," Swanson said.
So Swanson first called the Chihuahuan Desert Wildlife Rescue, which in turn contacted El Paso Zoo officials and the Texas Parks and Wildlife. Texas Parks and Wildlife and the El Paso Zoo put together a plan to flush the nesting owls out of drains in the parking lot and build adequate, safe nests for them at an adjacent ponding area next to the San Elizario school district building.
http://www.elpasotimes.com/education/ci_8606970
Buffalo Zoo's baby rhino to go on public display this spring
March 18, 2008
BUFFALO, N.Y. - An Indian rhinoceros born at the Buffalo Zoo earlier this month is being put on public display this spring.
The 135-pound female rhino was born on March 1 and was named Clover by zookeepers because of St. Patrick's Day.
The one-horned Indian rhino is among the world's most endangered animals, with a population of about 2,500. The rhinos are native to India and Nepal.
Clover is the second calf produced by the zoo's pair of adult rhinos, Tashi and Henry, since a breeding program was begun in 2000. Another of their offspring, 4-year-old Ashakiran, now lives at the Toronto Zoo.
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--zoo-babyrhino0318mar18,0,4495800.story
Zoo Gives Away Swan's Plastic Ex-Boyfriend
The plastic pedal boat once loved by a swan named Petra has been given away. A zoo in Münster, where Petra had been spending winters with the boat before falling for a real-life swan named Paul, has given it to a nearby rental service.
A fowl love triangle: Petra, Paul and a surplus-to-requirements boat.
Nothing is quite so cathartic as discarding the mementos of a bygone romance. But what if the offending objects are not photos and mix tapes, but a giant, swan-shaped pedal boat?
A zoo in the western German city of Münster helped its most famous part-time resident address that issue last Thursday, when it gave away the plastic pedal boat formerly adored by Petra, a female black swan.
Petra found a new flame in December (more...), a real-life swan that shares the pond in the Münster Zoo where she had spent the last two winters beside her beloved plastic vessel. Because she's so enamoured with Paul, as a local paper dubbed the white mute swan, zoo officials decided they could now get rid of the clunky pedal boat.
http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,542208,00.html
Zoo encourages amphibian adoptions
The Edmond Sun
EDMOND — Local residents can help protect endangered amphibians by “adopting” an amphibian, and taking part in other “toad”ally fun festivities at the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden.
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums has designated 2008 as the “Year of the Frog” to mark a major conservation effort and address the dire extinction crisis of amphibians worldwide. The Oklahoma City Zoo & Botanical Garden and The Oklahoma Zoological Society, often called ZooFriends, are bringing Oklahoma City several ways to get involved in “Year of the Frog” conservation efforts.
http://www.edmondsun.com/local/local_story_078131239.html
New monkey at Folsom Zoo
By Mary Chou
Ferguson, an 11-year-old male macaque, is the newest addition to the Folsom Zoo.
The Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary welcomed its newest member, an 11-year-old macaque named Fergu-son, to its family of monkeys early March.
Ferguson came from the Performing Animal Welfare Society, a sanctuary in Galt. PAWS originally rescued him after he was found locked in a crate, abandoned by his owner.
“That’s the problem when people take on exotic animals as pets,” said Roberta Radcliff, spokesperson for the Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary. “They don’t realize the high level of commitment required.”
Housed next to Darwin and Wallace, two younger macaques of the zoo, Ferguson spends most of his time basking in the sun and settling into his new environment.
“I really like him, but he’s shy because he’s new to the zoo,” said Haley Webb, an 8-year-old visitor. “He’s really cute.”
http://folsomtelegraph.com/detail/79644.html
Maryland Zoo operator racks up $500K in unpaid water bills
Baltimore Business Journal - by Daniel J. Sernovitz Staff
The Maryland Zoological Society Inc. has amassed nearly $500,000 in unpaid water bills dating back to 2002, a tab the city's public works department views as 'uncollectible' amid the organization's efforts to shore up its finances.
The circumstances surrounding that debt are unclear, but the Baltimore City Board of Estimates is scheduled to vote Wednesday morning on whether to wipe the slate clean while the nonprofit seeks to resolve its financial problems, according to city documents. The debt dates back to the period from 2002 to 2005, according to the city.
Interim CEO Donald P. Hutchinson, who took over the post in January following the resignation of former chief executive Elizabeth Grieb, is scheduled to appear before the city spending board Wednesday morning to address the situation.
http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/03/17/daily19.html
Franciscana Dolphins - Tracking Day #15 (March 18)
Dolphins Remain Inside Protected Area
Nahuel and Kona remain to the northeast of San Blas, and appear to continue to move together. Kure and Tunken remain in Bahia San Blas. Early this morning they appeared to be together, but Kure does not have a position from the same time as Tunken's most recent position at the mouth of the bay, so I can't say if they remain together. According to Pablo, the movements of both sets of animals remain inside the marine protected area. The photo-ID team photographed dolphins yesterday, including a resighting of one seen earlier in this session, but did not find any of the tagged dolphins. They will remain in San Blas for several more days.
Posted by Brookfield Zoo at 5:14 PM
http://czsdolphins.blogspot.com/2008/03/franciscana-dolphins-tracking-day-15.html
New report: Zoo understaffed, unprepared day of fatal tiger attack
Audrey Cooper, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
(03-18) 16:58 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- The San Francisco Zoo was dangerously short-staffed and generally unprepared for an emergency on Christmas Day when a tiger escaped and killed a 17-year-old visitor, according to a report by the independent group that accredits zoos.
The report was released today by zoo officials, who said the Association of Zoos and Aquariums was impressed by the zoo's actions after a 243-pound tiger named Tatiana escaped, killing Carlos Sousa Jr. and injuring two of his friends. The survivors - San Jose brothers Kulbir and Paul Dhaliwal - have said they will sue over the attack.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/18/BAL8VM6RR.DTL&tsp=1
The zoo's long, slow climb back
Joey McLeister, Star Tribune
Lee Ehmke, director of the Minnesota Zoo, sat in Bear Meadow. This spring, as the result of what Ehmke calls “the first major state investment in the zoo in many, many years, a huge show of support,” visitors will discover an elaborate and showy new $30 million exhibit.
By DAVID PETERSON, Star Tribune
Last update: March 19, 2008 - 6:41 AM
THEY'RE BACK!
Attendance at the Minnesota Zoo soared past 1.2 million in the late 1990s, but then sagged, slipping below the 1 million mark in 2003 and staying below it for years. Thanks in part to renovations such as a new Minnesota Trail, attendance climbed back over 1 million, officials say. And it should keep rising as the zoo this year unveils its most significant new exhibit ever.
When he makes his pitch for what it will take to lift the Minnesota Zoo into the uppermost ranks of American zoos, Lee Ehmke starts off reminding people what the San Diego zoo has done to draw crowds to that city.
But the director of the zoo in Apple Valley is also being reminded, during the current session of the Legislature, of how vulnerable a zoo can be as it seeks to assemble the money to create such a place.
In the aftermath of the bridge collapse in Minneapolis, even Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a stout supporter of a zoo that is located in what was once his own legislative district, was unwilling to recommend any of the $15 million the zoo wanted to pursue Ehmke's ambitious master plan for a makeover of the state-owned facility.
http://www.startribune.com/local/south/16716071.html
Alpaca first birth of the year for zoo
Published 3/18/2008
By RACHEL DAVIS
rdavis@gctelegram.com
Lee Richardson Zoo's first animal birth of the year came in the form of a baby male alpaca, who arrived Friday, Kathy Sexson, zoo director, said.
Sexson said no one on the zoo staff witnessed the birth of the alpaca, on display at the South American pampas exhibit, but a zookeeper noticed the addition in the yard Friday afternoon.
Sexson said while the baby, who joins three males and three female alpacas, is the latest zoo addition, zoo staff are expecting another baby alpaca due at any time and a third in May.
Sexson, who noted alpacas are born after an 11-month gestation, said the leggy, dark-brown baby weighed 19 pounds at birth and baby and mother are doing well.
http://www.gctelegram.com/News/alpaca-birth-3-18-08
Animal rights group hits out against Limassol zoo plans
By Anna Hassapi
RESPONDING to recent press reports on developments regarding the relocation of Limassol Zoo, animal rights group Animal Responsibility Cyprus (ARC/ Kivotos) yesterday attacked the authorities for their failure to implement legislation and address the problems of the zoo.
“Why are animal welfare organisations not being consulted? Why is there no transparency? Why are these backward decisions being made behind closed doors? Why are taxpaying citizens being deprived of their rights? Why is the World Society for the Protection of Animals’ proposal being ignored? What kind of democracy is this?” Patricia Kyriakou, President of ARC told the Cyprus Mail.
According to Kyriakou, ARC, in co-operation with international animal rights organisations, has for years been lobbying local and state authorities with the objective of transforming Limassol Zoo into an eco-zoo with no animals, equipped with interactive and educational facilities, thus ending the suffering of animals presently kept in cages.
http://www.cyprus-mail.com/news/main.php?id=38203&cat_id=1
Commission wants S.F. Zoo to be rescue center
Heather Knight, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
San Francisco's Animal Control and Welfare Commission on Tuesday unanimously agreed to send a proposal to the Board of Supervisors to convert the San Francisco Zoo to an animal rescue center - and the group might have a champion in Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi.
The commission, an advisory council to the board on animal-related issues, wants the supervisors to hold hearings on animal welfare at the zoo, including the idea of making the facility into a sanctuary for exotic species owned privately and kept in inhumane conditions.
The commission has no power to effect any changes and would need Mirkarimi or another supervisor to call for hearings and submit legislation.
Mirkarimi said he hadn't seen the proposal from the commission, but said he likes the notion of converting the zoo to a rescue center.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/19/MNERVM27K.DTL
City poised to offer zoo $1.5 million
March 19, 2008
Baltimore is prepared to forgive nearly a half-million dollars in unpaid water bills for the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore and give its management $1 million more to fix aging infrastructure.
Local and state governments have increased funding for the zoo, which is located in Druid Hill Park, after zoo officials called attention to a $3 million budget deficit in 2006.
The Board of Estimates is expected to vote on the measures today. According to its agenda, the unpaid bills amount to $473,541 and date from 2002 through 2005. The agenda cites the zoo's "ongoing financial difficulties" and describes the money as "uncollectible."
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_city/bal-md.ci.zoo19mar19,0,1119016.story
Baghdad Zoo Rebounding With Help from U.S. Vets
In better times, the Baghdad Zoo had more than 500 animals, including giraffes, elephants and exotic birds. But its location, inside Zawra Park in the city's center, put it in the middle of heavy fighting between invading U.S. troops and Saddam Hussein's forces in 2003. U.S. shells damaged the compound and inadvertently freed some animals; looting that followed the fall of Baghdad stripped away everything else.
Veterinarians, students and animal researchers across the state are leading the effort to help the Baghdad Zoo -- once the Middle East's largest -- return to its pre-war glory days.
http://www.huliq.com/54162/baghdad-zoo-rebounding-help-us-vets
March 24, 2008
African American Family Celebration at the National Zoo
10 a.m.–4 p.m.
Free admission
The African American Family Celebration has been a Washington-area multicultural tradition for many years. Visitors enjoy a variety of special family activities, including an Easter egg roll and hunt, crafts, and entertainment ranging from children's dance troupes to costumed characters and storytellers. In addition, we offer an array of delicious food.
This year's live entertainment includes:
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/ActivitiesAndEvents/Celebrations/Easter/
Not Doing What Comes Naturally
Mei Xiang and Tian Tian Fail to Mate, So Scientists Step In for a Third Time
By Paul Duggan
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, March 20, 2008; Page B02
Scientists at the National Zoo said they artificially inseminated the giant panda Mei Xiang yesterday after she and her partner, Tian Tian, unsuccessfully tried to mate Tuesday.
Whether the procedure will result in a panda birth won't be known for a few months. Mei Xiang gave birth to a cub, Tai Shan, in 2005 after being artificially inseminated. But a similar procedure last year was unsuccessful.
The yearly breeding period for pandas lasts only a day or two, and for Mei Xiang, 9, and Tian Tian, 10, it began Tuesday, specialists said at a news conference.
After monitoring Mei Xiang's hormones and waiting for the big moment, "we saw the earliest onset of very strong estrous behavior" Tuesday, said Suzan Murray, the zoo's chief veterinarian.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/19/AR2008031902362.html
Polar Bear Webcam at the Memphis Zoo
http://www.memphiszoo.org/polarbear.aspx
Panda cub at National Zoo injures keeper
Associated Press
Published on: 03/19/08
WASHINGTON — The 170-pound giant panda cub at the National Zoo grabbed a worker while trying to play, sending her to the hospital with a small leg laceration, zoo officials said Wednesday.
The panda apparently entered his yard through an unsecured door Tuesday during a routine feeding, zoo spokesman John Gibbons said.
The keeper was treated at a hospital and released. The incident is being investigated.
The keeper took 2-year-old Tai Shan indoors before placing food in his yard, Gibbons said in a statement. The panda re-entered the yard and approached the keeper from behind, playfully grabbing her with his mouth, Gibbons said. Pandas have sharp teeth, used for chewing bamboo.
"The keeper was able to radio for help, and other animal care staff distracted Tai Shan with food as they also safely assisted the keeper out of the yard," Gibbons said.
Keepers stopped entering the panda cub's yard with him for safety reasons when he reached about 70 pounds, Gibbons said.
Tai Shan, whose name means peaceful mountain, was born July 9, 2005. He is the first giant panda born at the National Zoo to survive more than a few weeks. The mother, Mei Xiang, and the father, Tian Tian, are on a 10-year loan from China. The cub will remain at the zoo at least until 2009.
Only about 1,600 giant pandas remain in the wild, and fewer than 180 live in captivity.
http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/stories/2008/03/19/panda_0319.html
Chickens, ducks and geese not welcome at Cohanzick Zoo
By JOHN MARTINS Staff Writer, 856-794-5114
Published: Thursday, March 20, 2008
BRIDGETON - Zoo curator Kelly Shaw is not a big fan of counting chickens. Or ducks. Or geese.
If she wanted to, Shaw could probably spend days taking inventory of all the waterfowl that roam the city's Cohanzick Zoo.
The problem, quite frankly, is that she doesn't want to know.
"I'm afraid to count," Shaw said.
The number of animals that either quack, honk or cluck has reached critical mass at the Cohanzick Zoo, which - quite literally - is bursting at the seams with them. And it's not because zookeepers are hoarding them. It's because people with unwanted animals drop them off at the zoo hoping the staff will offer sanctuary.
http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/182/story/111311.html
SF Zoo's male penguin pair returns
NEWS
Published 03/20/2008
by Matthew S. Bajko
m.bajko@ebar.com
Harry and Pepper, the San Francisco Zoo's male penguin pair, are once again canoodling at home after a nine-month star turn at the Sacramento Zoo. Their foray up north did little to break their now three-year-long bond.
Upon their return in January, "they were attached, just like the old times," said Quinn Brown, their keeper in San Francisco.
The lovebirds departed shortly after Valentine's Day last year to help christen a new temporary penguin exhibit at the zoo in the state capital. Along with two other Magellanic penguin pairs from the SF Zoo's Penguin Island exhibit, Harry and Pepper made quite a splash as the Sacramento Zoo celebrated its 80th year.
http://www.ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=2806
Nuremberg's zoo readies for mass interest in polar bear cub Flocke's debut
The Associated Press
Published: March 21, 2008
BERLIN: The Nuremberg Zoo is preparing for an influx of ursine enthusiasts when polar bear cub Flocke makes her public debut next month.
The fluffy white cub — now 3 months old — has become as famous in Germany as her hand-raised predecessor, Knut.
The zoo, which receives thousands of visitors a week, said Friday it was expecting up to 25,000 a day after Flocke goes public on April 9.
To accommodate the people, the zoo will build a stage in front of Flocke's enclosure to allow up to 500 people watch her frolic for up to 15 minutes at a time, said Dag Encke, director of the Bavarian city's zoo.
Flocke, or Flake — as in snowflake — was born in mid-December and was taken Jan. 8 from her mother, Vera, after the elder bear was seen carrying and tossing the cub around her enclosure, prompting concerns she could harm or even kill the newborn.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/03/21/europe/EU-GEN-Germany-Polar-Bear-Debut.php
The art of making the new flamingo exhibit
http://woodlandparkzblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/art-of-making-new-flamingo-exhibit.html
Arna and Gigi settling into retirement at Western Plains Zoo
By Saffron Howden, Environment Reporter
March 22, 2008 12:00am
IT may not look like fun but it's the only way former circus elephant Gigi can get used to her regular pedicure.
Since moving to Dubbo to live out their twilight years, Arna and Gigi have adjusted to a slower pace at Western Plains Zoo.
Handlers are having to retrain the enormous new residents in how to co-operate with their daily health checks, with the help of a giant contraption designed to keep them still.
"It's been a very significant upheaval for them," Western Plains senior veterinarian Benn Bryant said.
"It's like a person undergoing retirement. As circus animals they were required to undertake a number of behaviours. They had to be good at travelling and getting on and off transportation. And none of that changed much over many, many years," Dr Bryant said.
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,23413625-5006009,00.html
Red Ruffed Lemur Euthanized At Woodland Park Zoo
A 20-year-old red ruffed lemur has been euthanized at Woodland Park Zoo following an illness due to kidney failure.
Tromi arrived at the zoo in 1999 from the Duke University Primate Center. He lived in Woodland Park's tropical rain forest and was euthanized on Tuesday.
Red ruffed lemurs can live 15 to 20 years in the wild and up to 19 years in zoos. Dr. Kelly Helmick, Woodland Park's interim director of animal health, says the post-mortem exam confirmed conditions of a geriatric lemur, including a mottled liver, small dark kidneys and a thickened heart.
http://monkeydaynews.blogspot.com/2008/03/red-ruffed-lemur-euthanized-at-woodland.html
National Zoo Zebras' New Digs
20 Mar 2008 at 18:53
Two Grevy's zebras, 2-year-old Dante, left, and 4-year-old Gumu, explore their new yard in the Cheetah Conservation Station at the National Zoo.
Photo Credit: By Mehgan Murphy -- Smithsonian Institution Photo
http://xtine562.vox.com/library/post/national-zoo-zebras-new-digs.html?_c=feed-atom
Refurbished aviary at London Zoo allows birds and humans to get up close and personal
Lewis Smith, Environment Reporter
Close encounters with toucans, hummingbirds and a dove that has already died out in the wild are bringing the public closer to nature.
The Victorian tropical bird house at London Zoo has undergone a £2.5 million refurbishment to allow people and birds to mix instead of being separated by glass and wire.
Among the birds that will fly freely in the aviary as visitors amble through are the critically endangered Montserrat oriole and the Socorro dove, which disappeared from its natural habitat in the 1970s and survives only in captivity. The zoo, run by the Zoological Society of London, is involved in a project that conservationists hope will allow the return of Socorro doves into the wild in their native Mexico. As part of the captive breeding programme, keepers were last year able to celebrate the first hatching at the zoo of a Socorro dove chick.
Several species of hummingbird are also expected to make their home within the pavilion during the next couple of years, as the birds become a focus for conservation work at the zoo.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article3593945.ece
Zoo's mongoose pack enjoy Easter treats
By Howard Pankratz
The mongoose pack may not have known what an Easter egg hunt is.
But early today, they knew the brightly colored eggs placed in their habitat exhibit were food.
Shortly after 10 this morning, as zoo keeper Christina Seeley let them out into their exhibit, the 15 members of the Denver Zoo's banded mongoose pack went dashing madly across the dirt to the eggs.
There were yellow, purple, green, lime, pink and orange eggs.
Tiki, Magwai, Evanrude, Tavi, Chama, Iggy, Gobo, Sprocket, Doozer, Wembley, Red, Mokey, Zoe, Elmo and Dang quickly pounced on them.
In some cases, the mongooses were attracted to the same eggs, especially the bright yellow ones, and little wrestling matches broke out.
http://origin.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_8639818
March 21, 2008
Refurbished aviary at London Zoo allows birds and humans to get up close and personal
Lewis Smith, Environment Reporter
Close encounters with toucans, hummingbirds and a dove that has already died out in the wild are bringing the public closer to nature.
The Victorian tropical bird house at London Zoo has undergone a £2.5 million refurbishment to allow people and birds to mix instead of being separated by glass and wire.
Among the birds that will fly freely in the aviary as visitors amble through are the critically endangered Montserrat oriole and the Socorro dove, which disappeared from its natural habitat in the 1970s and survives only in captivity. The zoo, run by the Zoological Society of London, is involved in a project that conservationists hope will allow the return of Socorro doves into the wild in their native Mexico. As part of the captive breeding programme, keepers were last year able to celebrate the first hatching at the zoo of a Socorro dove chick.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article3593945.ece
London Zoo's new bird enclosure
Some of the world's most beautiful - and rare - birds are flying free among visitors to a new enclosure at London Zoo.
The attraction has been renovated at a cost of £2.5m to showcase the central London zoo's exotic birds.
The Victorian Blackburn Pavilion has been modernised to involve visitors with up to 200 tropical birds.
It includes the UK's only collection of hummingbirds and Socorro doves - a species extinct in the wild.
The Blackburn Pavilion was originally built in 1883 to house reptiles.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/7306169.stm
March 20, 2008...11:08 am
5 New Blackfooted Penguin Chicks at Pueblo Zoo
The Pueblo Zoo’s African penguin population has been steadily growing–five penguin babies were born over the winter. They’ll soon be on display.
At birth an baby African penguin is only about the size of a golf ball. Now they weigh close to five pounds.
The chicks were recently separated from their parents to make sure they’re getting enough good and aren’t hurt by the older, larger penguins.
“Another oil spill could pretty much devastate the African penguin population, so to know that we’re doing something that could help bring them back–if anything did happen, it’s very exciting to feel like I’m a part of that, ” said zoo keeper Stephanie Pyles.
The Pueblo Zoo is having continued success at raising penguins. Last year six babies were born. They’re now considered “teenagers” and will soon be moved to other zoos.
http://penguingeek.wordpress.com/2008/03/20/5-newblackfooted-penguin-chicks-at-pueblo-zoo/
Dated
Crikey, the Crocodile Hunter lives on!”
After bidding boring Brizzie adieu, we headed north to Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo. Crikey, the Crocodile Hunter lives on! Here, you realize how much effort Steve put into conservation and education and how much he will be missed. His daughter Bindi has become quite a celebrity though, and seems poised to carry on his work. Overall, we rate Currumbin sanctuary, cheaper, less busy, more intimate and better overall, but we still saw some pretty cool stuff here.
http://realtravel.com/beerwah-journals-j2955730.html
County decides to refinance zoo loan
Daily News staff
6:38 p.m., Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Collier County commissioners agreed Tuesday to refinance a short-term loan used to purchase the land under and around the Naple Zoo.
Nearly a year ago, the county purchased the land to save the landmark zoo and keep it out of the hands of developers.
Commissioners voted 3-0 in favor of refinancing the $35.9 million loan and there was no discussion. Voting in favor were
commissioners Fred Coyle, Donna Fiala and Tom Henning.
A balloon payment on the original loan is due Dec. 5, and theloan will be refinanced before then so the county won't have to make that payment.
The new loan will be for no more than $32.9 million.
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2006/nov/28/county_decides_refinance_zoo_loan/?latest
Birthday boy Irwin
November 29, 2006 12:00am
BOB Irwin will celebrate his third birthday on Friday at Australia Zoo, despite concerns that he is not coping with the death of his father Steve.
The Zoo will have free entry for kids, along with prizes, cake and rides.
The Crocodile Hunter's manager John Stainton has defended the party.
"He's a little boy and every little child deserves to have their birthday," he said.
"It's something Steve would have wanted him to celebrate. There's no reason why it wouldn't go ahead as planned."
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,20838342-28957,00.html
Beastly weather puts demands on zoo
Jeff Holubitsky, The Edmonton Journal
Published: Wednesday, November 29 2006
EDMONTON - For the Valley Zoo's rare snow leopards, there are few things more romantic than a roll in the snow.
The mating season for the endangered Himalayan carnivores begins in December, but if Dimitri and Sherri are to do their part to keep the species alive, they have to be warm and healthy.
Their thick, multi-layered spotted coats do part of the job, but zoo staff must work hard to ensure the animals are getting enough food.
Sherri, one of the two rare snow leopards at the Valley Zoo, ventures outside her heated shed.
Chris Schwarz, The Journal
"In order for a carnivore to shiver and keep warm, it will eat more in colder weather, so we feed them more," zookeeper Brenda McComb says.
http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/cityplus/story.html?id=353849c4-5938-4319-811e-a672ee260b94&k=21916
Polar bears help to attract record crowds at zoo
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
By Linda Wilson Fuoco, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Daily and yearly attendance records were shattered last weekend at the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium, aided, no doubt, by two playful polar bears, rain-free skies and unseasonably warm weather.
Slideshow: See what the fuss is all about in this presentation showing the zoo's large and furry stars.
A total of 12,027 people visited the zoo Friday and 12,642, on Saturday. The average daily attendance in November is about 6,000 on weekends and 1,000 to 1,500 on weekdays.
By the end of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, the year-to-date zoo attendance totaled 802,140. The previous annual record was 801,071 in 2000, the year the PPG Aquarium opened.
The state-of-the-art polar bear exhibit opened last Wednesday and special activities were held Friday to celebrate the 2nd birthday of the bear brothers born at the Denver Zoo.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06333/741964-85.stm
Taronga rejects claims it's struggling
Wednesday Nov 29 21:40 AEDT
Taronga Zoo has denied claims it is struggling to attract visitors and will have trouble repaying a loan to build its new Asian elephant enclosure.
NSW opposition environment spokesman Michael Richardson claimed figures from the auditor-general showed paid attendance numbers were down almost 30,000 on 2004 figures and running six per cent below budget.
Four new Asian elephants arrived at the zoo last month, after two years of court battles, animal rights protests and lengthy quarantine.
Mr Richardson said it was clear the pachyderms would have to perform to help repay a $30 million loan for their enclosure.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=166973
Reggae night at The Zoo
Kilkenny music fans can look forward to the first monthly Reggae night in the Zoo Club, 40 Parliament Street, on Friday night.
Local reggae band Ghost Town will make a long anticipated return to the music scene and they are making this show special, as it is their first gig with a new singer.
The Ghost Town crew are known among local musicians for being musical perfectionists with their style and technique. They like to focus on their performance and have been searching for a singer for quite some time.
http://www.kilkennyadvertiser.ie/index.php?aid=3725
Rare frog gets new jump-start
By Tony Perry
Los Angeles Times
SAN DIEGO — The mountain yellow-legged frog may have yet another chance to avoid extinction.
Already imperiled by modernity, the sweet-voiced croaker was devastated by forest fires in 2003 that ravaged its native habitat in Southern California.
Then 11 were found in the San Bernardino Mountains and brought to the San Diego Zoo for a captive-breeding experiment. Despite around-the-clock attention, they succumbed to a condition akin to tuberculosis.
Amphibian-lovers were close to saying farewell to the yellow-legged frog.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003454422_frogs30.html
Zoo exhibits damaged
The Capital-Journal
Police were investigating an incident at the Topeka Zoo in which several animals were freed from their pens after someone cut locks off the exhibits.
According to police reports, the incident occurred sometime between 5 p.m. Sunday and 7 a.m. Monday.
Police said an unknown person gained entry to the zoo and cut the chain off a goat's pen, a chain-link section of the arctic fox pen and fabric at the bald eagle's exhibit.
All animals were found uninjured on park grounds, police said.
Damage to the exhibits was listed at $1,500, according to police reports.
http://cjonline.com/stories/113006/loc_zoovandals.shtml
Our Hometown: Elmwood Park Zoo
by Susan Barnett
NORRISTOWN (CBS 3) ― You know the big zoos, but some zoos come in smaller packages. CBS 3's Susan Barnett found one off the beaten path right here in our hometown.
A day at the zoo doesn't have to mean fighting traffic into the city. You can safari in the suburbs at Elmwood Park Zoo.
David Wood, curator of the zoo, said, "We get one of two comments -- either, 'Elmwood Park Zoo! Love it! We're members! We come all the time!' or, 'There's a zoo in Norristown?'"
There sure is. In fact, Wood says it's been in Norristown for more than 80 years, and it has everything from big cats to bison to bald eagles.
"These are birds that were injured in the wild and were at a rehabilitation center, and, because of the extent of their injuries, can't be re-released into the wild," said Wood. "So zoos can provide homes for them and give them a nice place to live."
This zoo is a great place to visit: it's intimate, easy to get around, and you can really get up close to the animals.
http://cbs3.com/specialreports/Elmwood.Park.Zoo.2.305894.html
Name that panda: Zoo announces nominees
By Tom Sabulis Thursday, November 30, 2006, 08:55 AM
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sorry, “Bling Bling” did not make the final cut. Nor did any of the other tongue-in-cheek names suggested for the new panda cub by internet bloggers in recent weeks.
Zoo Atlanta announced the 10 finalist names for Lun Lun’s nearly 3-month-old baby on Thursday, and all have a traditional Chinese ring to them. Their English translations emphasize tranquility, simplicity and harmony. A few reflect her Georgia birthplace.
http://www.ajc.com/living/content/shared-blogs/ajc/pandas/entries/2006/11/30/name_that_panda_zoo_announces.html
Fires threaten NSW koalas
Fears are held for the biggest koala population in New South Wales, which is under threat from bushfires in the state's north-west.
The state's new wildlife rescue service will today travel to the Pilliga region to assess the koalas.
Taronga Zoo spokesman Mark Williams says koalas cannot move quickly enough to escape the flames, unlike other native species.
"Tragically, the speed and power of bushfires in Australia tend to incinerate animals if they are trapped, so there is little evidence after such a severe bushfire such as this one," he said.
"I believe one of the fires in the Pilliga region moved 40 kilometres over the previous night."
He says vets from the Taronga and Western Plains zoos will attempt a rescue mission and the zoos are on stand-by to accept any injured animals.
"It's just great to see the cooperation between agencies that's available these days," he said.
"And with the expertise that zoos have, being able to take that into the field and apply it directly to wildlife populations, this is increasingly becoming a vital role for zoos."
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200612/s1801672.htm
Giraffe Dies at Zoo
by Associated Press
A young female giraffe at the Garden City Zoo has died after breaking its neck. Zoo officials say the year-old giraffe, named Makena, wedged her head into a small opening inside a barn and panicked, breaking her neck as she tried to escape.
The accident occurred in a newer section of the barn. It had two housed two previous calves and no prior incidents had occurred. Zoo director Kathy Sexson says the staff is devastated by the loss of Makena and counseling is being offered to help them cope with the loss one of the zoo's favorite animals.
http://www.kwch.com/Global/story.asp?S=5755811
Kimble: New zoo center to be Earth-friendly
MARK KIMBLE
Tucson Citizen
If you're like me, you probably feel environmentally aware if you check the bottom of plastic bottles for the triangular recycling symbol before buying a product.
If we're really good, we'll make sure to throw the plastic bottles in the blue bins instead of in the trash.
Maybe we'll even take canvas totes to the grocery store instead of amassing an ever-larger collection of those horrible plastic bags.
Those all are important steps to take for the future of our planet. But take a look at a new building that soon will be going up at the Reid Park Zoo, and your home recycling efforts will seem puny.
The building - the Conservation Learning Center - will take recycling and environmentalism to levels not seen before in Arizona and rarely seen anywhere.
It's going to be expensive - about $3.5 million. But over the life of the building, it will save a lot of money that would be sucked up by a conventional building.
It will put a broader spin on the zoo's message of conserving the resources of Earth, not only for us, but also for the animals with whom we share the planet.
It sounds lofty - and it will be.
"It is clearly aligned with the zoo's missions of education, conservation, research and recreation," said Vivian VanPeenen, curator of education at the zoo. "This is all of those in one."
And it will start to come together Jan. 28 when a groundbreaking ceremony is held.
When the center is completed, the zoo hopes to achieve a platinum rating - the highest possible - from the U.S. Green Building Council. The United States has only 20 platinum buildings - none in Arizona.
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/opinion/34209.php
Article Launched: 03/18/2008 12:00:00 AM MDT
Some employees who work at the San Elizario Independent School District have taken a special liking to a few feathered friends who have made a home out of the grounds of the district's administration building.
The school district enlisted the help of wildlife experts after finding that the threatened burrowing owls, native to the Southwest, had been nesting in precarious locations at the district building that place their lives and their chick offspring in danger.
After heavy rains last year, Nancy Swanson, director of instructional programs for the district, couldn't bear to see eggs washed out of drainage pipes and landing in the parking lot, getting killed by unsuspecting motorists.
"It would just be so sad because those were the babies," Swanson said.
So Swanson first called the Chihuahuan Desert Wildlife Rescue, which in turn contacted El Paso Zoo officials and the Texas Parks and Wildlife. Texas Parks and Wildlife and the El Paso Zoo put together a plan to flush the nesting owls out of drains in the parking lot and build adequate, safe nests for them at an adjacent ponding area next to the San Elizario school district building.
http://www.elpasotimes.com/education/ci_8606970
Buffalo Zoo's baby rhino to go on public display this spring
March 18, 2008
BUFFALO, N.Y. - An Indian rhinoceros born at the Buffalo Zoo earlier this month is being put on public display this spring.
The 135-pound female rhino was born on March 1 and was named Clover by zookeepers because of St. Patrick's Day.
The one-horned Indian rhino is among the world's most endangered animals, with a population of about 2,500. The rhinos are native to India and Nepal.
Clover is the second calf produced by the zoo's pair of adult rhinos, Tashi and Henry, since a breeding program was begun in 2000. Another of their offspring, 4-year-old Ashakiran, now lives at the Toronto Zoo.
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--zoo-babyrhino0318mar18,0,4495800.story
Zoo Gives Away Swan's Plastic Ex-Boyfriend
The plastic pedal boat once loved by a swan named Petra has been given away. A zoo in Münster, where Petra had been spending winters with the boat before falling for a real-life swan named Paul, has given it to a nearby rental service.
A fowl love triangle: Petra, Paul and a surplus-to-requirements boat.
Nothing is quite so cathartic as discarding the mementos of a bygone romance. But what if the offending objects are not photos and mix tapes, but a giant, swan-shaped pedal boat?
A zoo in the western German city of Münster helped its most famous part-time resident address that issue last Thursday, when it gave away the plastic pedal boat formerly adored by Petra, a female black swan.
Petra found a new flame in December (more...), a real-life swan that shares the pond in the Münster Zoo where she had spent the last two winters beside her beloved plastic vessel. Because she's so enamoured with Paul, as a local paper dubbed the white mute swan, zoo officials decided they could now get rid of the clunky pedal boat.
http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,542208,00.html
Zoo encourages amphibian adoptions
The Edmond Sun
EDMOND — Local residents can help protect endangered amphibians by “adopting” an amphibian, and taking part in other “toad”ally fun festivities at the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden.
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums has designated 2008 as the “Year of the Frog” to mark a major conservation effort and address the dire extinction crisis of amphibians worldwide. The Oklahoma City Zoo & Botanical Garden and The Oklahoma Zoological Society, often called ZooFriends, are bringing Oklahoma City several ways to get involved in “Year of the Frog” conservation efforts.
http://www.edmondsun.com/local/local_story_078131239.html
New monkey at Folsom Zoo
By Mary Chou
Ferguson, an 11-year-old male macaque, is the newest addition to the Folsom Zoo.
The Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary welcomed its newest member, an 11-year-old macaque named Fergu-son, to its family of monkeys early March.
Ferguson came from the Performing Animal Welfare Society, a sanctuary in Galt. PAWS originally rescued him after he was found locked in a crate, abandoned by his owner.
“That’s the problem when people take on exotic animals as pets,” said Roberta Radcliff, spokesperson for the Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary. “They don’t realize the high level of commitment required.”
Housed next to Darwin and Wallace, two younger macaques of the zoo, Ferguson spends most of his time basking in the sun and settling into his new environment.
“I really like him, but he’s shy because he’s new to the zoo,” said Haley Webb, an 8-year-old visitor. “He’s really cute.”
http://folsomtelegraph.com/detail/79644.html
Maryland Zoo operator racks up $500K in unpaid water bills
Baltimore Business Journal - by Daniel J. Sernovitz Staff
The Maryland Zoological Society Inc. has amassed nearly $500,000 in unpaid water bills dating back to 2002, a tab the city's public works department views as 'uncollectible' amid the organization's efforts to shore up its finances.
The circumstances surrounding that debt are unclear, but the Baltimore City Board of Estimates is scheduled to vote Wednesday morning on whether to wipe the slate clean while the nonprofit seeks to resolve its financial problems, according to city documents. The debt dates back to the period from 2002 to 2005, according to the city.
Interim CEO Donald P. Hutchinson, who took over the post in January following the resignation of former chief executive Elizabeth Grieb, is scheduled to appear before the city spending board Wednesday morning to address the situation.
http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/03/17/daily19.html
Franciscana Dolphins - Tracking Day #15 (March 18)
Dolphins Remain Inside Protected Area
Nahuel and Kona remain to the northeast of San Blas, and appear to continue to move together. Kure and Tunken remain in Bahia San Blas. Early this morning they appeared to be together, but Kure does not have a position from the same time as Tunken's most recent position at the mouth of the bay, so I can't say if they remain together. According to Pablo, the movements of both sets of animals remain inside the marine protected area. The photo-ID team photographed dolphins yesterday, including a resighting of one seen earlier in this session, but did not find any of the tagged dolphins. They will remain in San Blas for several more days.
Posted by Brookfield Zoo at 5:14 PM
http://czsdolphins.blogspot.com/2008/03/franciscana-dolphins-tracking-day-15.html
New report: Zoo understaffed, unprepared day of fatal tiger attack
Audrey Cooper, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
(03-18) 16:58 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- The San Francisco Zoo was dangerously short-staffed and generally unprepared for an emergency on Christmas Day when a tiger escaped and killed a 17-year-old visitor, according to a report by the independent group that accredits zoos.
The report was released today by zoo officials, who said the Association of Zoos and Aquariums was impressed by the zoo's actions after a 243-pound tiger named Tatiana escaped, killing Carlos Sousa Jr. and injuring two of his friends. The survivors - San Jose brothers Kulbir and Paul Dhaliwal - have said they will sue over the attack.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/18/BAL8VM6RR.DTL&tsp=1
The zoo's long, slow climb back
Joey McLeister, Star Tribune
Lee Ehmke, director of the Minnesota Zoo, sat in Bear Meadow. This spring, as the result of what Ehmke calls “the first major state investment in the zoo in many, many years, a huge show of support,” visitors will discover an elaborate and showy new $30 million exhibit.
By DAVID PETERSON, Star Tribune
Last update: March 19, 2008 - 6:41 AM
THEY'RE BACK!
Attendance at the Minnesota Zoo soared past 1.2 million in the late 1990s, but then sagged, slipping below the 1 million mark in 2003 and staying below it for years. Thanks in part to renovations such as a new Minnesota Trail, attendance climbed back over 1 million, officials say. And it should keep rising as the zoo this year unveils its most significant new exhibit ever.
When he makes his pitch for what it will take to lift the Minnesota Zoo into the uppermost ranks of American zoos, Lee Ehmke starts off reminding people what the San Diego zoo has done to draw crowds to that city.
But the director of the zoo in Apple Valley is also being reminded, during the current session of the Legislature, of how vulnerable a zoo can be as it seeks to assemble the money to create such a place.
In the aftermath of the bridge collapse in Minneapolis, even Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a stout supporter of a zoo that is located in what was once his own legislative district, was unwilling to recommend any of the $15 million the zoo wanted to pursue Ehmke's ambitious master plan for a makeover of the state-owned facility.
http://www.startribune.com/local/south/16716071.html
Alpaca first birth of the year for zoo
Published 3/18/2008
By RACHEL DAVIS
rdavis@gctelegram.com
Lee Richardson Zoo's first animal birth of the year came in the form of a baby male alpaca, who arrived Friday, Kathy Sexson, zoo director, said.
Sexson said no one on the zoo staff witnessed the birth of the alpaca, on display at the South American pampas exhibit, but a zookeeper noticed the addition in the yard Friday afternoon.
Sexson said while the baby, who joins three males and three female alpacas, is the latest zoo addition, zoo staff are expecting another baby alpaca due at any time and a third in May.
Sexson, who noted alpacas are born after an 11-month gestation, said the leggy, dark-brown baby weighed 19 pounds at birth and baby and mother are doing well.
http://www.gctelegram.com/News/alpaca-birth-3-18-08
Animal rights group hits out against Limassol zoo plans
By Anna Hassapi
RESPONDING to recent press reports on developments regarding the relocation of Limassol Zoo, animal rights group Animal Responsibility Cyprus (ARC/ Kivotos) yesterday attacked the authorities for their failure to implement legislation and address the problems of the zoo.
“Why are animal welfare organisations not being consulted? Why is there no transparency? Why are these backward decisions being made behind closed doors? Why are taxpaying citizens being deprived of their rights? Why is the World Society for the Protection of Animals’ proposal being ignored? What kind of democracy is this?” Patricia Kyriakou, President of ARC told the Cyprus Mail.
According to Kyriakou, ARC, in co-operation with international animal rights organisations, has for years been lobbying local and state authorities with the objective of transforming Limassol Zoo into an eco-zoo with no animals, equipped with interactive and educational facilities, thus ending the suffering of animals presently kept in cages.
http://www.cyprus-mail.com/news/main.php?id=38203&cat_id=1
Commission wants S.F. Zoo to be rescue center
Heather Knight, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
San Francisco's Animal Control and Welfare Commission on Tuesday unanimously agreed to send a proposal to the Board of Supervisors to convert the San Francisco Zoo to an animal rescue center - and the group might have a champion in Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi.
The commission, an advisory council to the board on animal-related issues, wants the supervisors to hold hearings on animal welfare at the zoo, including the idea of making the facility into a sanctuary for exotic species owned privately and kept in inhumane conditions.
The commission has no power to effect any changes and would need Mirkarimi or another supervisor to call for hearings and submit legislation.
Mirkarimi said he hadn't seen the proposal from the commission, but said he likes the notion of converting the zoo to a rescue center.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/19/MNERVM27K.DTL
City poised to offer zoo $1.5 million
March 19, 2008
Baltimore is prepared to forgive nearly a half-million dollars in unpaid water bills for the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore and give its management $1 million more to fix aging infrastructure.
Local and state governments have increased funding for the zoo, which is located in Druid Hill Park, after zoo officials called attention to a $3 million budget deficit in 2006.
The Board of Estimates is expected to vote on the measures today. According to its agenda, the unpaid bills amount to $473,541 and date from 2002 through 2005. The agenda cites the zoo's "ongoing financial difficulties" and describes the money as "uncollectible."
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_city/bal-md.ci.zoo19mar19,0,1119016.story
Baghdad Zoo Rebounding With Help from U.S. Vets
In better times, the Baghdad Zoo had more than 500 animals, including giraffes, elephants and exotic birds. But its location, inside Zawra Park in the city's center, put it in the middle of heavy fighting between invading U.S. troops and Saddam Hussein's forces in 2003. U.S. shells damaged the compound and inadvertently freed some animals; looting that followed the fall of Baghdad stripped away everything else.
Veterinarians, students and animal researchers across the state are leading the effort to help the Baghdad Zoo -- once the Middle East's largest -- return to its pre-war glory days.
http://www.huliq.com/54162/baghdad-zoo-rebounding-help-us-vets
March 24, 2008
African American Family Celebration at the National Zoo
10 a.m.–4 p.m.
Free admission
The African American Family Celebration has been a Washington-area multicultural tradition for many years. Visitors enjoy a variety of special family activities, including an Easter egg roll and hunt, crafts, and entertainment ranging from children's dance troupes to costumed characters and storytellers. In addition, we offer an array of delicious food.
This year's live entertainment includes:
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/ActivitiesAndEvents/Celebrations/Easter/
Not Doing What Comes Naturally
Mei Xiang and Tian Tian Fail to Mate, So Scientists Step In for a Third Time
By Paul Duggan
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, March 20, 2008; Page B02
Scientists at the National Zoo said they artificially inseminated the giant panda Mei Xiang yesterday after she and her partner, Tian Tian, unsuccessfully tried to mate Tuesday.
Whether the procedure will result in a panda birth won't be known for a few months. Mei Xiang gave birth to a cub, Tai Shan, in 2005 after being artificially inseminated. But a similar procedure last year was unsuccessful.
The yearly breeding period for pandas lasts only a day or two, and for Mei Xiang, 9, and Tian Tian, 10, it began Tuesday, specialists said at a news conference.
After monitoring Mei Xiang's hormones and waiting for the big moment, "we saw the earliest onset of very strong estrous behavior" Tuesday, said Suzan Murray, the zoo's chief veterinarian.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/19/AR2008031902362.html
Polar Bear Webcam at the Memphis Zoo
http://www.memphiszoo.org/polarbear.aspx
Panda cub at National Zoo injures keeper
Associated Press
Published on: 03/19/08
WASHINGTON — The 170-pound giant panda cub at the National Zoo grabbed a worker while trying to play, sending her to the hospital with a small leg laceration, zoo officials said Wednesday.
The panda apparently entered his yard through an unsecured door Tuesday during a routine feeding, zoo spokesman John Gibbons said.
The keeper was treated at a hospital and released. The incident is being investigated.
The keeper took 2-year-old Tai Shan indoors before placing food in his yard, Gibbons said in a statement. The panda re-entered the yard and approached the keeper from behind, playfully grabbing her with his mouth, Gibbons said. Pandas have sharp teeth, used for chewing bamboo.
"The keeper was able to radio for help, and other animal care staff distracted Tai Shan with food as they also safely assisted the keeper out of the yard," Gibbons said.
Keepers stopped entering the panda cub's yard with him for safety reasons when he reached about 70 pounds, Gibbons said.
Tai Shan, whose name means peaceful mountain, was born July 9, 2005. He is the first giant panda born at the National Zoo to survive more than a few weeks. The mother, Mei Xiang, and the father, Tian Tian, are on a 10-year loan from China. The cub will remain at the zoo at least until 2009.
Only about 1,600 giant pandas remain in the wild, and fewer than 180 live in captivity.
http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/stories/2008/03/19/panda_0319.html
Chickens, ducks and geese not welcome at Cohanzick Zoo
By JOHN MARTINS Staff Writer, 856-794-5114
Published: Thursday, March 20, 2008
BRIDGETON - Zoo curator Kelly Shaw is not a big fan of counting chickens. Or ducks. Or geese.
If she wanted to, Shaw could probably spend days taking inventory of all the waterfowl that roam the city's Cohanzick Zoo.
The problem, quite frankly, is that she doesn't want to know.
"I'm afraid to count," Shaw said.
The number of animals that either quack, honk or cluck has reached critical mass at the Cohanzick Zoo, which - quite literally - is bursting at the seams with them. And it's not because zookeepers are hoarding them. It's because people with unwanted animals drop them off at the zoo hoping the staff will offer sanctuary.
http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/182/story/111311.html
SF Zoo's male penguin pair returns
NEWS
Published 03/20/2008
by Matthew S. Bajko
m.bajko@ebar.com
Harry and Pepper, the San Francisco Zoo's male penguin pair, are once again canoodling at home after a nine-month star turn at the Sacramento Zoo. Their foray up north did little to break their now three-year-long bond.
Upon their return in January, "they were attached, just like the old times," said Quinn Brown, their keeper in San Francisco.
The lovebirds departed shortly after Valentine's Day last year to help christen a new temporary penguin exhibit at the zoo in the state capital. Along with two other Magellanic penguin pairs from the SF Zoo's Penguin Island exhibit, Harry and Pepper made quite a splash as the Sacramento Zoo celebrated its 80th year.
http://www.ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=2806
Nuremberg's zoo readies for mass interest in polar bear cub Flocke's debut
The Associated Press
Published: March 21, 2008
BERLIN: The Nuremberg Zoo is preparing for an influx of ursine enthusiasts when polar bear cub Flocke makes her public debut next month.
The fluffy white cub — now 3 months old — has become as famous in Germany as her hand-raised predecessor, Knut.
The zoo, which receives thousands of visitors a week, said Friday it was expecting up to 25,000 a day after Flocke goes public on April 9.
To accommodate the people, the zoo will build a stage in front of Flocke's enclosure to allow up to 500 people watch her frolic for up to 15 minutes at a time, said Dag Encke, director of the Bavarian city's zoo.
Flocke, or Flake — as in snowflake — was born in mid-December and was taken Jan. 8 from her mother, Vera, after the elder bear was seen carrying and tossing the cub around her enclosure, prompting concerns she could harm or even kill the newborn.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/03/21/europe/EU-GEN-Germany-Polar-Bear-Debut.php
The art of making the new flamingo exhibit
http://woodlandparkzblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/art-of-making-new-flamingo-exhibit.html
Arna and Gigi settling into retirement at Western Plains Zoo
By Saffron Howden, Environment Reporter
March 22, 2008 12:00am
IT may not look like fun but it's the only way former circus elephant Gigi can get used to her regular pedicure.
Since moving to Dubbo to live out their twilight years, Arna and Gigi have adjusted to a slower pace at Western Plains Zoo.
Handlers are having to retrain the enormous new residents in how to co-operate with their daily health checks, with the help of a giant contraption designed to keep them still.
"It's been a very significant upheaval for them," Western Plains senior veterinarian Benn Bryant said.
"It's like a person undergoing retirement. As circus animals they were required to undertake a number of behaviours. They had to be good at travelling and getting on and off transportation. And none of that changed much over many, many years," Dr Bryant said.
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,23413625-5006009,00.html
Red Ruffed Lemur Euthanized At Woodland Park Zoo
A 20-year-old red ruffed lemur has been euthanized at Woodland Park Zoo following an illness due to kidney failure.
Tromi arrived at the zoo in 1999 from the Duke University Primate Center. He lived in Woodland Park's tropical rain forest and was euthanized on Tuesday.
Red ruffed lemurs can live 15 to 20 years in the wild and up to 19 years in zoos. Dr. Kelly Helmick, Woodland Park's interim director of animal health, says the post-mortem exam confirmed conditions of a geriatric lemur, including a mottled liver, small dark kidneys and a thickened heart.
http://monkeydaynews.blogspot.com/2008/03/red-ruffed-lemur-euthanized-at-woodland.html
National Zoo Zebras' New Digs
20 Mar 2008 at 18:53
Two Grevy's zebras, 2-year-old Dante, left, and 4-year-old Gumu, explore their new yard in the Cheetah Conservation Station at the National Zoo.
Photo Credit: By Mehgan Murphy -- Smithsonian Institution Photo
http://xtine562.vox.com/library/post/national-zoo-zebras-new-digs.html?_c=feed-atom
Refurbished aviary at London Zoo allows birds and humans to get up close and personal
Lewis Smith, Environment Reporter
Close encounters with toucans, hummingbirds and a dove that has already died out in the wild are bringing the public closer to nature.
The Victorian tropical bird house at London Zoo has undergone a £2.5 million refurbishment to allow people and birds to mix instead of being separated by glass and wire.
Among the birds that will fly freely in the aviary as visitors amble through are the critically endangered Montserrat oriole and the Socorro dove, which disappeared from its natural habitat in the 1970s and survives only in captivity. The zoo, run by the Zoological Society of London, is involved in a project that conservationists hope will allow the return of Socorro doves into the wild in their native Mexico. As part of the captive breeding programme, keepers were last year able to celebrate the first hatching at the zoo of a Socorro dove chick.
Several species of hummingbird are also expected to make their home within the pavilion during the next couple of years, as the birds become a focus for conservation work at the zoo.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article3593945.ece
Zoo's mongoose pack enjoy Easter treats
By Howard Pankratz
The mongoose pack may not have known what an Easter egg hunt is.
But early today, they knew the brightly colored eggs placed in their habitat exhibit were food.
Shortly after 10 this morning, as zoo keeper Christina Seeley let them out into their exhibit, the 15 members of the Denver Zoo's banded mongoose pack went dashing madly across the dirt to the eggs.
There were yellow, purple, green, lime, pink and orange eggs.
Tiki, Magwai, Evanrude, Tavi, Chama, Iggy, Gobo, Sprocket, Doozer, Wembley, Red, Mokey, Zoe, Elmo and Dang quickly pounced on them.
In some cases, the mongooses were attracted to the same eggs, especially the bright yellow ones, and little wrestling matches broke out.
http://origin.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_8639818
March 21, 2008
Refurbished aviary at London Zoo allows birds and humans to get up close and personal
Lewis Smith, Environment Reporter
Close encounters with toucans, hummingbirds and a dove that has already died out in the wild are bringing the public closer to nature.
The Victorian tropical bird house at London Zoo has undergone a £2.5 million refurbishment to allow people and birds to mix instead of being separated by glass and wire.
Among the birds that will fly freely in the aviary as visitors amble through are the critically endangered Montserrat oriole and the Socorro dove, which disappeared from its natural habitat in the 1970s and survives only in captivity. The zoo, run by the Zoological Society of London, is involved in a project that conservationists hope will allow the return of Socorro doves into the wild in their native Mexico. As part of the captive breeding programme, keepers were last year able to celebrate the first hatching at the zoo of a Socorro dove chick.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article3593945.ece
London Zoo's new bird enclosure
Some of the world's most beautiful - and rare - birds are flying free among visitors to a new enclosure at London Zoo.
The attraction has been renovated at a cost of £2.5m to showcase the central London zoo's exotic birds.
The Victorian Blackburn Pavilion has been modernised to involve visitors with up to 200 tropical birds.
It includes the UK's only collection of hummingbirds and Socorro doves - a species extinct in the wild.
The Blackburn Pavilion was originally built in 1883 to house reptiles.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/7306169.stm
March 20, 2008...11:08 am
5 New Blackfooted Penguin Chicks at Pueblo Zoo
The Pueblo Zoo’s African penguin population has been steadily growing–five penguin babies were born over the winter. They’ll soon be on display.
At birth an baby African penguin is only about the size of a golf ball. Now they weigh close to five pounds.
The chicks were recently separated from their parents to make sure they’re getting enough good and aren’t hurt by the older, larger penguins.
“Another oil spill could pretty much devastate the African penguin population, so to know that we’re doing something that could help bring them back–if anything did happen, it’s very exciting to feel like I’m a part of that, ” said zoo keeper Stephanie Pyles.
The Pueblo Zoo is having continued success at raising penguins. Last year six babies were born. They’re now considered “teenagers” and will soon be moved to other zoos.
http://penguingeek.wordpress.com/2008/03/20/5-newblackfooted-penguin-chicks-at-pueblo-zoo/
Dated
Crikey, the Crocodile Hunter lives on!”
After bidding boring Brizzie adieu, we headed north to Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo. Crikey, the Crocodile Hunter lives on! Here, you realize how much effort Steve put into conservation and education and how much he will be missed. His daughter Bindi has become quite a celebrity though, and seems poised to carry on his work. Overall, we rate Currumbin sanctuary, cheaper, less busy, more intimate and better overall, but we still saw some pretty cool stuff here.
http://realtravel.com/beerwah-journals-j2955730.html
County decides to refinance zoo loan
Daily News staff
6:38 p.m., Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Collier County commissioners agreed Tuesday to refinance a short-term loan used to purchase the land under and around the Naple Zoo.
Nearly a year ago, the county purchased the land to save the landmark zoo and keep it out of the hands of developers.
Commissioners voted 3-0 in favor of refinancing the $35.9 million loan and there was no discussion. Voting in favor were
commissioners Fred Coyle, Donna Fiala and Tom Henning.
A balloon payment on the original loan is due Dec. 5, and theloan will be refinanced before then so the county won't have to make that payment.
The new loan will be for no more than $32.9 million.
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2006/nov/28/county_decides_refinance_zoo_loan/?latest
Birthday boy Irwin
November 29, 2006 12:00am
BOB Irwin will celebrate his third birthday on Friday at Australia Zoo, despite concerns that he is not coping with the death of his father Steve.
The Zoo will have free entry for kids, along with prizes, cake and rides.
The Crocodile Hunter's manager John Stainton has defended the party.
"He's a little boy and every little child deserves to have their birthday," he said.
"It's something Steve would have wanted him to celebrate. There's no reason why it wouldn't go ahead as planned."
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,20838342-28957,00.html
Beastly weather puts demands on zoo
Jeff Holubitsky, The Edmonton Journal
Published: Wednesday, November 29 2006
EDMONTON - For the Valley Zoo's rare snow leopards, there are few things more romantic than a roll in the snow.
The mating season for the endangered Himalayan carnivores begins in December, but if Dimitri and Sherri are to do their part to keep the species alive, they have to be warm and healthy.
Their thick, multi-layered spotted coats do part of the job, but zoo staff must work hard to ensure the animals are getting enough food.
Sherri, one of the two rare snow leopards at the Valley Zoo, ventures outside her heated shed.
Chris Schwarz, The Journal
"In order for a carnivore to shiver and keep warm, it will eat more in colder weather, so we feed them more," zookeeper Brenda McComb says.
http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/cityplus/story.html?id=353849c4-5938-4319-811e-a672ee260b94&k=21916
Polar bears help to attract record crowds at zoo
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
By Linda Wilson Fuoco, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Daily and yearly attendance records were shattered last weekend at the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium, aided, no doubt, by two playful polar bears, rain-free skies and unseasonably warm weather.
Slideshow: See what the fuss is all about in this presentation showing the zoo's large and furry stars.
A total of 12,027 people visited the zoo Friday and 12,642, on Saturday. The average daily attendance in November is about 6,000 on weekends and 1,000 to 1,500 on weekdays.
By the end of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, the year-to-date zoo attendance totaled 802,140. The previous annual record was 801,071 in 2000, the year the PPG Aquarium opened.
The state-of-the-art polar bear exhibit opened last Wednesday and special activities were held Friday to celebrate the 2nd birthday of the bear brothers born at the Denver Zoo.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06333/741964-85.stm
Taronga rejects claims it's struggling
Wednesday Nov 29 21:40 AEDT
Taronga Zoo has denied claims it is struggling to attract visitors and will have trouble repaying a loan to build its new Asian elephant enclosure.
NSW opposition environment spokesman Michael Richardson claimed figures from the auditor-general showed paid attendance numbers were down almost 30,000 on 2004 figures and running six per cent below budget.
Four new Asian elephants arrived at the zoo last month, after two years of court battles, animal rights protests and lengthy quarantine.
Mr Richardson said it was clear the pachyderms would have to perform to help repay a $30 million loan for their enclosure.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=166973
Reggae night at The Zoo
Kilkenny music fans can look forward to the first monthly Reggae night in the Zoo Club, 40 Parliament Street, on Friday night.
Local reggae band Ghost Town will make a long anticipated return to the music scene and they are making this show special, as it is their first gig with a new singer.
The Ghost Town crew are known among local musicians for being musical perfectionists with their style and technique. They like to focus on their performance and have been searching for a singer for quite some time.
http://www.kilkennyadvertiser.ie/index.php?aid=3725
Rare frog gets new jump-start
By Tony Perry
Los Angeles Times
SAN DIEGO — The mountain yellow-legged frog may have yet another chance to avoid extinction.
Already imperiled by modernity, the sweet-voiced croaker was devastated by forest fires in 2003 that ravaged its native habitat in Southern California.
Then 11 were found in the San Bernardino Mountains and brought to the San Diego Zoo for a captive-breeding experiment. Despite around-the-clock attention, they succumbed to a condition akin to tuberculosis.
Amphibian-lovers were close to saying farewell to the yellow-legged frog.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003454422_frogs30.html
Zoo exhibits damaged
The Capital-Journal
Police were investigating an incident at the Topeka Zoo in which several animals were freed from their pens after someone cut locks off the exhibits.
According to police reports, the incident occurred sometime between 5 p.m. Sunday and 7 a.m. Monday.
Police said an unknown person gained entry to the zoo and cut the chain off a goat's pen, a chain-link section of the arctic fox pen and fabric at the bald eagle's exhibit.
All animals were found uninjured on park grounds, police said.
Damage to the exhibits was listed at $1,500, according to police reports.
http://cjonline.com/stories/113006/loc_zoovandals.shtml
Our Hometown: Elmwood Park Zoo
by Susan Barnett
NORRISTOWN (CBS 3) ― You know the big zoos, but some zoos come in smaller packages. CBS 3's Susan Barnett found one off the beaten path right here in our hometown.
A day at the zoo doesn't have to mean fighting traffic into the city. You can safari in the suburbs at Elmwood Park Zoo.
David Wood, curator of the zoo, said, "We get one of two comments -- either, 'Elmwood Park Zoo! Love it! We're members! We come all the time!' or, 'There's a zoo in Norristown?'"
There sure is. In fact, Wood says it's been in Norristown for more than 80 years, and it has everything from big cats to bison to bald eagles.
"These are birds that were injured in the wild and were at a rehabilitation center, and, because of the extent of their injuries, can't be re-released into the wild," said Wood. "So zoos can provide homes for them and give them a nice place to live."
This zoo is a great place to visit: it's intimate, easy to get around, and you can really get up close to the animals.
http://cbs3.com/specialreports/Elmwood.Park.Zoo.2.305894.html
Name that panda: Zoo announces nominees
By Tom Sabulis Thursday, November 30, 2006, 08:55 AM
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sorry, “Bling Bling” did not make the final cut. Nor did any of the other tongue-in-cheek names suggested for the new panda cub by internet bloggers in recent weeks.
Zoo Atlanta announced the 10 finalist names for Lun Lun’s nearly 3-month-old baby on Thursday, and all have a traditional Chinese ring to them. Their English translations emphasize tranquility, simplicity and harmony. A few reflect her Georgia birthplace.
http://www.ajc.com/living/content/shared-blogs/ajc/pandas/entries/2006/11/30/name_that_panda_zoo_announces.html
Fires threaten NSW koalas
Fears are held for the biggest koala population in New South Wales, which is under threat from bushfires in the state's north-west.
The state's new wildlife rescue service will today travel to the Pilliga region to assess the koalas.
Taronga Zoo spokesman Mark Williams says koalas cannot move quickly enough to escape the flames, unlike other native species.
"Tragically, the speed and power of bushfires in Australia tend to incinerate animals if they are trapped, so there is little evidence after such a severe bushfire such as this one," he said.
"I believe one of the fires in the Pilliga region moved 40 kilometres over the previous night."
He says vets from the Taronga and Western Plains zoos will attempt a rescue mission and the zoos are on stand-by to accept any injured animals.
"It's just great to see the cooperation between agencies that's available these days," he said.
"And with the expertise that zoos have, being able to take that into the field and apply it directly to wildlife populations, this is increasingly becoming a vital role for zoos."
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200612/s1801672.htm
Giraffe Dies at Zoo
by Associated Press
A young female giraffe at the Garden City Zoo has died after breaking its neck. Zoo officials say the year-old giraffe, named Makena, wedged her head into a small opening inside a barn and panicked, breaking her neck as she tried to escape.
The accident occurred in a newer section of the barn. It had two housed two previous calves and no prior incidents had occurred. Zoo director Kathy Sexson says the staff is devastated by the loss of Makena and counseling is being offered to help them cope with the loss one of the zoo's favorite animals.
http://www.kwch.com/Global/story.asp?S=5755811
Kimble: New zoo center to be Earth-friendly
MARK KIMBLE
Tucson Citizen
If you're like me, you probably feel environmentally aware if you check the bottom of plastic bottles for the triangular recycling symbol before buying a product.
If we're really good, we'll make sure to throw the plastic bottles in the blue bins instead of in the trash.
Maybe we'll even take canvas totes to the grocery store instead of amassing an ever-larger collection of those horrible plastic bags.
Those all are important steps to take for the future of our planet. But take a look at a new building that soon will be going up at the Reid Park Zoo, and your home recycling efforts will seem puny.
The building - the Conservation Learning Center - will take recycling and environmentalism to levels not seen before in Arizona and rarely seen anywhere.
It's going to be expensive - about $3.5 million. But over the life of the building, it will save a lot of money that would be sucked up by a conventional building.
It will put a broader spin on the zoo's message of conserving the resources of Earth, not only for us, but also for the animals with whom we share the planet.
It sounds lofty - and it will be.
"It is clearly aligned with the zoo's missions of education, conservation, research and recreation," said Vivian VanPeenen, curator of education at the zoo. "This is all of those in one."
And it will start to come together Jan. 28 when a groundbreaking ceremony is held.
When the center is completed, the zoo hopes to achieve a platinum rating - the highest possible - from the U.S. Green Building Council. The United States has only 20 platinum buildings - none in Arizona.
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/opinion/34209.php
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