Baby Rhino!

Found link to a June blog that features a great photo of Dublin Zoo's baby southern white rhino running. Much cute.

Bonus YouTube video of its birth also posted.

We want a baby southern white at NC Zoo. Fingers crossed.

Face-to-Face Beats "Panda Cam"

ZooAtlanta is dropping "panda cam", but now you can see its little giant panda in person.

Little Frog Program

Chicago's Brookfield Zoo is rightly proud of its little program to try to help Panamanian golden frogs as the Year of the Frog comes to an end.

The NC Zoo is proud of its Panamanian golden frog exhibit and its efforts on behalf of the amphibian crisis too.

One-Sided "Game"

The "Daily Mail" offers series of photos of man trying to avoid polar bear bent on mauling him. (Note: Attempts at humor at expense of badly injured man, but at least no pictures of damage done.)

"They are the world's largest land predator, and are the only animals that actively hunt humans."

"They are predominantly carnivores, eating seals, fish, reindeer, seabirds and even whales and baby walruses.

"Environmentalists have warned that there could be as few as 22,000 left in the wild, and that they face extinction because the ice they live on is melting.

"The wildlife group Polar Bears International says only one person has been killed by a polar bear in the U.S. in the past 30 years.

"A spokesman said: 'In all instances in which a human was killed by a polar bear, the animal in question was undernourished or had been provoked.'

"Wildlife groups have warned that increasing numbers of the giant bears have been spotted near towns and villages because they are trying to scavenge food."

Save Ribbon...Save the Earth?

"each year, 38,000 miles of ribbon is thrown out, enough to tie a bow around the Earth, according to the California Integrated Waste Management Board."

Tip of the Hat to Ann Lynch, who is busy cleaning up during our holiday.

Sure some habitat and, therefore, wildlife are saved by recycling ribbon. ("Use less stuff" is generally good advice.)

It's the Economy...

Zoo Atlanta drops panda cam.

Yummmm, leftovers!

Yummmm, leftovers!
Originally uploaded by ucumari

Holiday title, photo of NC Zoo red wolf by ucumari.

Fringe-eared in Place

Fringe-eared oryx now join southern white rhinos, other antelope and African plains birds on the Watani Grasslands at the NC Zoo.

The correct name seems to be fringe-eared despite the extra "d" at the link.

Other new antelope are coming soon.

Brown-eared bulbul

Brown-eared bulbul
Originally uploaded by floridapfe

Photo and title by floridapfe of the great Everland Zoo (Korea) pix.

Enrichment Dreidel

DigTriad (NC) has story of Monkeys' Park (Israel) squirrel monkeys given dreidels Monday.

"So Ugly It's Cute"

You've heard it before. But the photo of the Detroit Zoo baby aardvark shows it's true again.

"Hideously cute" "earth pig".

Handsome Additions

Handsome waterfowl have been recently added to the NC Zoo's Cypress Swamp exhibit: three wood ducks, two buffleheads and two hooded mergansers.

Taipei Zoo Website Crashes

They call it pandamania.

China has made a gift of two giant pandas to Taiwan. The Taiwanese are very interested.

The zoo's server has been upgraded. The website is back up. The panda pages take a little while to download. ("Diet characteristics: 99% of the primary food source the giant panda feeds on is bamboo, a diet that's high in specialization.")

[Note: my current diet is high in chocolatization!]

Recycle Old Phone

Just heard NPR Chapel Hill rerun this NC Zoo Society release today.

Get a new phone for Christmas? Recycle the old one. Help Ma Earth and send a dollar to aid education in Uganda.

Famous Bear Opts for Prepared Meal

Famous Polar bear Knut chose a piece of meat offered by his keepers over trying to make a meal out of an intruder.

The intruder "then ignored the zookeepers' orders to leave after Knut was lured into his cage with the meat and the man did not get out until police arrived 20 minutes later. He refused medical treatment for suspected hypothermia and was released."

Happy News

Four Javan rhino youngsters have been spotted.

With the known total of these large animals down to half a hundred, this is happy news indeed

Ohio Elephants Live Long?

Columbus (OH) Dispatch runs article triggered by European elephant study.

""If you look at the U.S. zoo populations, right now over 60 percent of the female African elephants are over 25 years old, so it's kind of hard then to believe that study's conclusions," said Anne Baker, executive director of the Toledo Zoo, which has two elephants."

"... a February 2008 study of Asian elephants in North American zoos pegged the average age for females at 45. That study included animals that entered the zoo population after 1970; stillborn births were not included.

"The oldest captive elephant on record lived to be 86, but the norm seems to be in the 40s and 50s..."

Maybe Its the Economy

The San Diego Zoo was paying China $1 million a year for each adult giant panda it exhibits. It has renegotiated that down to $500,000 per annum.

ZooFileZ Wins Award

The NC Zoo Society has funded ZooFileZ throughout its 11-year run.

Remembering Amy Otter

"It is with great sadness that I tell you that Amy Otter died on Sunday. Amy was hand reared by Joan McMurray and had been at the Zoo for 15 years. She had been battling many health problems the last few years and she was not doing well on Sunday. Despite the efforts of the veterinarian and keeper staffs, she lost her battle. Amy was one of the first animals at the Streamside exhibits and she will be missed." Laura Valadez, Animal Management Supervisor, NC Zoo.

AZA Lauds Obama Choice

The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) has announced its pleasure in learning of the US President-elect's choice for head of the Cabinet-level Department of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

""AZA-accredited aquariums have worked closely with Dr. [Jane] Lubchenco and have tremendous respect for her scientific achievements.""

The NC Zoo and the North Carolina Zoological Society are both AZA members.

Rarest N.A. Snake?

Texas zoo (Ellen Trout, Lufkin, TX.) tries to conserve Louisiana Pine Snake.

"The snakes live in areas populated with long leaf pines, sandy soil and a high pocket gopher population. They live underground.

"Scientists do not know for sure what caused the decrease in population. One theory is that wildfires at one time kept forests perfect for the snakes. But recent forest conservation efforts discouraged wildfires. Less fires led to fewer gophers, and in turn less of the snakes."

Good Investment

The Association of Zoo's and Aquariums (AZA) argues that the better North American zoos and aquariums (the NC Zoo is accredited by the AZA) have planned projects which are perfect for US stimulus investments. Job creation is part of the argument, but so is environmental education.

Help the environment while helping the economy - the NC Zoo has a polar bear project, an addition/replacement in its African region and a children's nature zoo on the "drawing boards" which could use stimulus package dollars to meet those good purposes.

Baby Hippo a Hit

A German zoo gives the media a first look at its baby hippo. There's a whole lotta camera clickin' goin' on in this one-minute video.

Goose Egg Solution?

A diet of goose eggs might meet the needs of polar bears as the ice "platforms" from which they capture their favorite meals (seals) melt.

A polar bear would need to "consume the eggs of 43 nests to replace the energy gained from the average day of hunting seals, but Rockwell and his colleagues figure that while many polar bears may starve in coming years, the resourceful animals just might survive extinction." [LiveScience]

Bear with Me

Had shoulder surgery Tuesday.

On pain meds. Doing fine. (Making sense?)

My dominant shoulder. One hand, lefty blog typing.

Youthful energy!

Youthful energy!
Originally uploaded by ucumari

Ucumari's recent capture of one of the NC Zoo's young males.

"It was so much fun watching this young giraffe playfully romping around the exhibit!"

Elephant Study

A recent study on the life spans of elephants in the wild and in European zoos is getting much attention.

While there is a difference between how European and how US zoos treat elephants, my biggest concern about the study is that it looks back as far as 1960 for zoo elephant data. There were major improvements in how the better North American zoos dealt with elephants in the 1990's (a big move to positive reinforcement). I expect much better recent results.

At the NC Zoo now, African elephants have seven acres on exhibit, excellent night quarters and off-exhibit exercise areas and a meaningful social grouping. Small spaces, little exercise, poor diets and lack of companion animals certainly was the norm for zoo elephants in the past. Not so now here.

Experienced New NC Zoo Keeper

From recent e-mail: "Please join us in welcoming new Watani [Grasslands] Keeper II, Jade Tuttle. Jade comes to us with 6.5 years experience at the Caldwell Zoo, working with antelope, rhinos, elephants and other exotic hoofed mammals, including zebra and giraffe. She also did an internship at Fossil Rim, a renowned center for breeding rhinos and antelope. Jade has a Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Management and has attended two international rhino workshops and one international elephant research symposium."

Guy Lichty
Curator of Mammals
North Carolina Zoological Park

Sumatran Tiger ; bathing

Sumatran Tiger ; bathing
Originally uploaded by tropicaLiving - busy

Captured early this year, in water, at Bali Safari & Marine Park, by tropicaLiving - busy.

Zoo Experts on Nutrition

I read with much interest the AP article titled "Experts Weigh in on Zoo Animal Diets" in my News & Record (Greensboro, NC) this morning. Of the three experts cited, I count two as friends.

The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) offered the initiating story, about a two-day symposium on how to keep zoo animals from the ill effects of being overweight.

My irregular car pool partner Dr. Rich Bergl, curator of conservation and research at the NC Zoo, explains a fix being tried here.

"Bergl spoke about four gorillas at the zoo that have been on a no-biscuit diet heavy in vegetables such as kale, cabbage and carrots for a few months. For some of the gorillas, this meant a change from about 30 pounds of high-calorie food a day to more than 100 pounds of low-calorie chow.

"It's too early to evaluate the health aspects, but their behavior has improved, he said. They're more active now..."

"This is good not only for the gorillas, Bergl said, but also visitors to the zoo, who get a chance to see gorillas acting more normally.

""You do worry about the psychological well-being of the animals," he said. "But also from the public's standpoint, when people see animals sitting around looking bored, it's hard to empathize with them.""

NC State professor Dr. Michael Stoskopf explains that diets and exercise are vital to the solution. Michael and his wife, Dr. Suzanne Kennedy-Stoskopf, have tried to find me during their most recent NC Zoo visits, they are generous patrons of the NC Zoo Society and professors within the successful NC Zoo/NC Zoo Society/NC State veterinary residency in exotic animal medicine.

"The basic cause of chubbiness is no different for moray eels and wildebeests than for humans: "If the energy going in exceeds the energy going out, you're going to get fat," said Karen Lisi, a nutritionist at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park."

aalscholver

aalscholver
Originally uploaded by belgianchocolate

Antwerp Zoo photo of cormorant by belgianchocolate. His title.

Impressive Introduction Effort

I'm impressed by SF Zoo efforts to get a mother gorilla to accept her newborn. Like many zoo primates, the mother was rejecting her baby.

First they tried anesthesia to attempt to bond the mother by introducing the baby to her breast.

When all failed and human-hand-rearing of the young gorilla was the final option, they improved upon that by restricting that to settings within sight of the gorilla troop. It should next be easier to get the troop to accept the youngster and vice versa, than if the baby were raised in isolation with humans.

""It's a vital time for the infant and he will receive all his nourishment needs from us, by hand, but we also must stay quiet -- let him hear, smell and see the troop, as we want to minimize any potential human imprint.""

Immigrant Elelphants

Study shows the social intelligence of African elephants. They prefer elephants they know but realize they need "advice" from the "locals".

Zero's Just Chillin"

The Milwaukee Zoo polar bear who fell off exhibit earlier this year is enjoying the winter weather.

Sweet Confusion

"Leopard has a pet" is what greenmon called this as he sent the 5-minute leopard/baboon video to me:


Amazing Animals - For more funny videos, click here

Morning light

Morning light
Originally uploaded by ucumari

Wonderful capture in the NC Zoo/RJReynolds Forest Aviary this week by ucumari: "Wompoo pigeon from Australia. Listed as Threatened." Her title too.

Funny Zoo Training Video

The editing and music are perfect! Tip of the hat to Bora Zivkovic.

Really Bad Idea

Man goes out of his way to enter the rhino exhibit at the San Francisco Zoo. He is cited, but not skewered.

Rainy days and Mondays always get me down

Rainy days and Mondays always get me down
Originally uploaded by ucumari

Ucumari took this last Monday at the NC Zoo. Her title too.

Tactile Safari

For the visually impaired. But enjoyed by all.

"Tactile Safari is the result of a collaboration between Nashville Zoo and local girl scouts Lizzie Waldo and Sara Jane Johnston."

Year of the Gorilla

After the Year of the Frog (amphibian crisis) and Year of the Polar Bear, the United Nations Environmental Programme and the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, along with support from the Jane Goodall Institute, have declared 2009 the Year of the Gorilla.

The campaign seeks to conserve gorillas and their environments, while bringing development and jobs to local communities that live near the gorillas.

Four types of gorillas require protection for survival. The Western Lowland Gorilla, Cross River Gorilla, and Mountain Gorilla are labeled critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, while the Eastern Lowland Gorilla is endangered.

Tampa Zoo Dropped by AZA

North American zoos and aquariums value their AZA accreditation. Just one in ten earns the Association of Zoos and Aquariums' listing. All the bigger, better zoos belong, including North Carolina, San Diego, Omaha, Bronx, Tacoma, San Antonio, Riverbanks, etc. etc.

So it is a big deal when Lowery Park Zoo (Tampa, FL) was dropped after a special review, outside of the AZA's regular, periodic review process.

The AZA "no longer sanctions the zoo's animal practices, so it cannot exchange animals with other members of the association.

"The suspension also jeopardizes the zoo's lease with the city, which requires the complex to carry the endorsement of the association."

New Development: "The Association of Zoos and Aquariums temporarily revoked the memberships of [Lowery Park] zoo President Lex Salisbury and collections director Larry Killmar for "intentionally failing to abide" by the association's policies when they acquired and transferred animals.""

fingers

fingers
Originally uploaded by belgianchocolate

From the very talented belgianchocolate and his Antwerp Zoo, this green gecko macro.

Truth in Advertising

If you Google "largest elephant ever" you get 3,360 distinct results. The first, Wikipedia result is on elephants in general and notes that the largest was an African elephant which totaled 26,000 pounds and stood 4.2 meters at the shoulder, a full yard taller than the average male African elephant. A "monster", twice as heavy as a very large male African elephant, the largest land animal.

The next three Google results are of articles on NC Zoo head veterinarian Dr. Mike Loomis and his most recent collaring of an African forest elephant in Cameroon. (Forest elephants tend to be smaller than other African elephants.) The story is accurate. It simply reports that Dr. Loomis has determined this most recent elephant to be the largest forest elephant he and his team have tagged in Cameroon. But those who put the titles on these publishings of that story have offered headings like "Cameroon: Largest Elephant Ever Tagged".

When "Dr. Mike" came into his first management staff meeting this week since his return from Cameroon, he was congratulated on the "record-setting" tagging. He quickly made it clear it was only their own record they had exceeded. (Still significant and more excitement than this old man could stand; it took much longer than usual to get the collar around this big fellow and he was moving before "Dr. Mike" was quite through.)

Don't believe everything you read or, at least, be aware that there are more than one way to interpret "Largest Elephant Ever Tagged in Southeast Cameroon."

No, YOU have bear breath!

No, YOU have bear breath!
Originally uploaded by ucumari

Grizzly bear photo and fun title by ucumari. Riverbanks Zoo bears.

Zoo Chew Toy

African wild dogs have very strong jaws but durable rubber balls are giving them good enrichment at the Kansas City Zoo thanks to toy company donations.

Embarrassing but...

Slate explains why it really is quite difficult to tell a male from female polar bear in the wake of a Japanese zoo's efforts to mate two females. (Click here for the lengthy, detailed and graphic explanation, if you wish.)

"...after a harvest in the southern Beaufort, Chukchi, and Bering seas of Alaska by native hunters, "sex was incorrectly determined" for 19 of 139 bears."

Zookeepers are also hard-pressed to tell bird genders as well as those of some rodents.

Found: 125,000 Gorillas?

More "new" western lowland gorillas were reported found in the huge African country of the Democratic Republic of Congo this summer than had been thought to exist in the whole world, a recent Zoo Tales, sponsored by the NC Zoo and written by Tom Gillespie advises.

"It is extraordinary that in this day and age there could be a population of a hundred thousand or more gorillas that were essentially unknown to science," Dr. Richard Bergl, curator of research at the NC Zoo told National Geographic. ["In general, the ... findings demonstrate that our intensely observed planet still has its biological secrets, added ... Bergl ..."]

As we car-pooled to Greensboro this evening I asked "Dr. Rich" about this. Because gorilla "nests" (the beds gorillas make each evening) were counted, he noted that the number might be smaller than 125,000 but remains very significant, when not more than 100,000 were believed to exist in total prior to this report.

He noted that some gorilla experts (Rich specializes in the Cross River gorillas, the most rare of all) might be torn by this news. Some might want "to have their cake and eat it too" by being thrilled with this happy find but still wanting the western lowland gorilla to be considered very much threatened with extinction.

Regardless, you can find four western lowland gorillas (three females and one large male) in the Forest Glade at the North Carolina Zoo.

Twice the Tails

Another ringtail will soon join the NC Zoo's sole ringtail on exhibit in the "Sonora Desert". ("After quarantine", it was announced in last Wednesday's management staff meeting while I was away.)

Proud of Dr. Tchamba

Dr. Martin Tchamba, who came to the NC Zoo in April to help dedicate the new Watani Grasslands (African elephant, southern white rhino, antelope) exhibits, has been promoted to head the World Wildlife Fund's efforts in Cameroon, reports his friend and colleague, NC Zoo chief veterinarian Dr. Mike Loomis.

Clam Digging on Grandfather Mt.

It can be done! Tiny fingernail clams.

Swamp Thangs

New ducks on exhibit at the NC Zoo Cypress Swamp: 3 Wood, 2 Bufflehead, 2 Hooded Merganser.

"Tag, You're Big"

Full article on NC Zoo veterinarian's recent tagging of Cameroonian forest elephant. The biggest tagged by Dr. Mike and his team so far.

"According to Dr. Leonard Usongo, WWF Jengi Regional Coordinator, this tagging exploit rekindles hope for better documentation and protection of elephants that have been a target of ivory traffickers over the years in Southeast Cameroon in particular and the Central African sub region in general."