A Point of Reference

Years ago, in my earliest experiences in hiring new keepers, I came across an application that, to my surprise, listed an old colleague from another facility as a reference.  I hadn't been that interested in the applicant overall, to be honest, but I decided to call the reference - in part, I guess, just to show my old zoo that I'd made it after all.  There had certainly been some doubt among them in those days.  To my surprise, my former co-worker was not happy about the call.  Not because it was me.  Because it was about a reference.

"I never said that he could use me," he said, and I could almost visualize him shaking on the other end of the phone with indignation.  "I never agree to be a reference for anyone.  I'd never put my reputation on the line like that."  That gave me a little pause.  I'd never honestly thought of this guy as having a particularly good reputation to begin with...  Anyway, the applicant didn't get the job.

I'd thought about that experience a lot in recent years, but for different reasons.  A new requirement through AZA requires a vetting process for when we send animals to non-AZA facilities.  There's an application we ask those facilities to fill out, of course, and ask for documentation, such as USDA inspection reports.  Still, there's no substitute for onsite inspections and firsthand accounts.  Ideally, we'd go ourselves to check out a facility, and sometimes that's what we do.  But sometimes it's too far for us to easily get to, in which case we rely upon other folks who have been to or interacted with that facility to provide a reference.

The headache is that, sometimes, like my old colleague, other facilities won't help out.  They're afraid.  They're afraid that if they provide a reference and it's a bad one, the facility in question will hear about it, get angry, and cause trouble.  Or, they're worried that if they provide a positive reference, we move ahead with a transaction, and something bad happens, it'll reflect poorly on them and their judgement.  So they say nothing.

This can be a bit frustrating, because really, there are a lot of great non-AZA facilities out there that it would be good to work with.  Besides some facilities which have, for one reason or another, opted not to join, there's also a lot of facilities (about 4 a year the past few years) which have lost accreditation, though they still may be fine zoos.  Columbus Zoo lost accreditation for one year before being readmitted - it's not like standards of care changed dramatically in that one year that they were out of the organization, but for that year, our zoo would have had to treat them like any other non-AZA zoo.  In that case, at least, references were easy to come by.

Many zoo-managed breeding programs find themselves limited by space and participating members.  Working with additional zoos can be a tremendous boon to the sustainability and viability of a population.  We shouldn't compromise by partnering with facilities with suboptimal animal welfare - but at the same time, it's frustrating to miss out on working with zoos that could be great partners, just because folks don't feel comfortable answering some questions about a place.

Species Fact Profile: Spotted Whistling Duck (Dendrocygna guttata)

                                                         Spotted Whistling Duck

                                           Dendrocygna guttata (Schlegel, 1866)

Range: Indonesia (Sulawesi, Moluccas), Philippines, New Guinea

Habitat: Freshwater Wetlands, Floodplains, Rivers, Streams

Diet: Grasses, Aquatic Plants, Seeds, and Aquatic Invertebrates.  Some small fish

Social Grouping:  Large flocks, breaking into smaller ones when foraging

Reproduction: Monogamous (possibly for life) with strong pair bonds, strengthened with allopreening, vocalizing together with repeated low whistles.  Nest in tree cavities, often near the water, though nesting on the ground has also been documented.  Up to 16 (but usually less than 10) round white eggs (52 x 38 millimeters, weighing 50 grams) incubated by both parents for 28-31 days.  At hatching, ducklings have sharp nails and stiff tails, which allow them to quickly exit the nest cavity.  Fully feathered at 7 weeks, with adult plumage by the end of their first year.  Fledge at 8 weeks. Sexually mature at 2 years

Lifespan: 10 Years

      Conservation Status: IUCN Least Concern

• Body length 43-50 centimeters.  Wingspan 85-95 centimeters.  Average weight 800 grams
• Sexes look alike.  Predominately brown with a pale gray face and throat and a whitish belly, dark stripe on the top of the head.  Upperparts and darker than the underparts, with light red-brown edging to the feathers.  Juveniles tend to be darker than adults and have less-developed spotting.  Several small white spots on the neck, breast, and flanks.  Feet, legs, and beak are dark grey with a pinkish tint.  Eyes dark brown, relatively large
• There is a small dark crest which can be partially raised when the bird is excited
• Often make a whistling or whirring sound when in flight, the result of air passing through the deep notches in the primary flight feathers
• Primarily nocturnal, spend the day roosting in the treetops, often gathering in large numbers.  At dusk, they break off into smaller flocks to feed and forage
• If nestlings are threatened, parents may act aggressively to defend them.  If the threat is too large, they may feign injury to try and lure the predator away from the nest
• Among the most arboreal of whistling ducks, fitting for the genus name Dendrocygna (“Tree Swan”).  Guttata means “spotted”
• Primarily dabble from the surface, but have been observed diving for food
• IUCN Least Concern.  Population is poorly studied in the wild, but estimated at anywhere from 6,500-17,000 mature individuals (overall population 10,000-25,000 birds), population believed to be stable.  In some parts of its range it may be the most common waterfowl species.  In others, it may be in decline
• In recent years has expanded its range; first observed in Australia in 1995, and now regularly seen in northern Queensland on the Cape York Peninsula and later (2011) in the Northern Territory, interspersed with wandering and plumed whistling ducks

... And We're Back

 Excuse the delay, but we're back!  Sabbatical complete, and blog posts resuming tomorrow.  Thank you!