Zoo Review Updates

The rapidly-growing Turtle Back Zoo has been busy this year.  Their African Adventure exhibit unveiled habitats for Africa's two largest carnivores - lions and spotted hyenas - occupying the ruins of a North African fort.  Elsewhere in the zoo, exhibits of maned wolf, Andean condor, and giant anteater have opened.

The Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium has opened its new Jungle Odyssey trail, with habitats for capybara, giant anteater, fossa, ocelot, and pygmy hippopotamus.  The new loop includes a zipline adventure.

Elmwood Park Zoo unveiled its excellent new jaguar habitat... just in time for cubs!

The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore completed its new bobcat exhibit.

The Salisbury Zoo opened a new habitat for red-necked wallabies, along with an adjacent aviary for kookaburras and tawny frogmouths.  Construction continues on a new reptile house.

The Smithsonian National Zoo opened its new electric fishes lab, starring electric eels, in Amazonia.  Construction is underway for the new Bird House, Experience Migration.  The zoo has recently announced plans to completely renovate its habitat for naked mole rats.

Virginia Zoo is continuing to work on its new reptile house.  The newly renovated complex will star Siamese crocodiles in a habitat with underwater viewing.

The Jacksonville Zoo is undergoing renovations of its primate exhibits, including the habitats for gorillas and bonobos, to be known as African Forest.

The saga of everyone's new obsession, Fiona the hippo, dominated the news at the Cincinnati Zoo, but other developments occurred there as well.  Most notable was the construction of an indoor habitat for the gorilla troop.

Fresh off the success of its new African Plains, Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo is plugging along with its next project - Asia.  The final project will include habitats for tigers, snow leopards, takin, and Indian one-horned rhinos, among other species.  The zoo is set to shutter its Cat Complex, with species being sent out to other facilities.

Probably the biggest exhibit opening of the year, the World Famous San Diego Zoo unveiled Africa Rocks!  A walk down the length of the continent, the trail goes from North Africa, where gelada and hamadryas baboons scramble over rock mounds, while ibex are stalked by leopards all the way down to the Cape of Good Hope, where African penguins swim.  Also featured are dwarf crocodiles, the lemurs (and fossas) of Madagascar, and rarely-exhibited ratels, also known as honey badgers.  This exhibit also marks the first time ever that sharks - leopard sharks, in this case - have been displayed at the zoo.

National Visit a Zoo Day

Beautiful artwork from Peppermint Narwhal Creative, and a great message, but seriously - who was the rocket scientist who picked December 27 at "National Visit a Zoo Day"?  Obviously someone from Florida or Arizona.  Erie, Pennsylvania (home to a fine zoo) is buried under five feet of snow today.  I doubt that they are getting too many visitors...

Species Fact Profile: Bonobo (Pan paniscus)

Bonobo (Pygmy Chimpanzee)

Pan paniscus (Schwarz, 1929)

Range: Democratic Republic of Congo
Habitat: Lowland Rainforest
Diet: Fruits, Nuts, Stems, Shoots, Leaves, Roots, Tubers
Social Grouping: Mixed-sex groups of up to 150, usually splitting into smaller groups for feeding and foraging of about 5-10 individuals
Reproduction: Polyandrous, females will mate with any male in the group except for their sons.  Gestation period 240 days.  Single infant weaned for four years.  Independent at 7-9 years old.  Sexually mature at 10-15 years old.
Lifespan: 35-45 Years
Conservation Status: IUCN Endangered, CITES Appendix I

• Body length 70-84 centimeters, weight 30-45 kilograms.  Males are larger than females.  Despite alternative common name, bonobos are not particularly smaller than chimpanzees, though they tend to be more slender
• Skin and fur are black, though the later tends to turn grey with age
• Males have a loose dominance hierarchy and stay with their natal group for life.  Females generally disperse during adolescence
• Most famous for their use of sexual intercourse in non-reproductive social contact.  Have sex (heterosexual or homosexual, anal or genital) for purposes of conflict resolution or group bonding.
• Very arboreal, climb searching for food, rest in nests in the trees.  When on the ground primarily walk on their knuckles, but can walk bipedally for a short distance
• Primarily herbivorous, but will eat meat when it is available.  Have been observed hunting squirrels and other small vertebrates, up to the size of duikers
• Humans are the only known predators, although it has been speculated that leopards and pythons will also prey upon bonobos
• Along with the chimpanzee, the bonobo is believed to be the closest living relative to modern humans
• Very intelligent.  Are known to utilize tools and to be able to recognize themselves in mirrors
• Name "pygmy chimpanzee" is thought to be associated with the "pygmy" people of the Congo, who share territory with the species.  The name "bonobo" is believed to come from a corruption of the name of a town on the Congo River, near where the first specimen was found
• Threatened by habitat loss and degradation (having a very small natural range to begin with), compounded by ongoing war in the Congo region of Africa.  Also threatened by the bushmeat trade, though historically was protected by cultural taboos

Christmas Morning at the Zoo

"Twas the morning of Christmas and all through the zoo,

The keepers were bustling with too much to do."

That's as far as I've gotten, so far.  I've been a bit too busy for writing poetry.  In fact, the morning of December 25th every year becomes a frantic effort to see how quickly I can fulfill my morning animal care and get on with the holiday, while at the same time not neglecting or shirking any animal's needs or comforts.  It's a time for being extra careful and cautious, as no one wants their quick Christmas run in to be confounded with, say, an animal escape that takes three hours to recapture, or some similar misfortune.

To that end, I usually spend the evening of December 24th every year doing the Bob Cratchett routine - make sure all the pools are clean, all of the feed bins topped off, extra enrichment provided, and all in all doing such a thorough job that there will (theoretically) be that much less work to do on the day itself.  Does it always work out?  No - with the end result that I'll have put in a marathon day on the 24th, followed by a crazy sprint on the 25th.  As long as the animals are all cared for and I get out the door at a reasonable time on Christmas, I suppose it's all fine.

Merry Christmas, especially to those who worked for their animals today!

A Winter on Fire

Within the last week, the zoo community has had to cope with two tragic fires at two different facilities.  Bright's Zoo, a privately owned zoo in Tennessee, had a barn catch on fire, costing the zoo the lives of several birds.  Then, the London Zoo suffered a fire that claimed the life of an aardvark; four meerkats are also presumed to have perished in the blaze.  Each fire was tragic, a zookeeper's nightmare.  Still, as terrible as each was, they could have been even worse.

Some members of our community have been muttering darkly on social media, hinting that these fires are not accidental, or that there is an international conspiracy of terrorists seeking to bring down zoos.  Never say impossible, but I kind of doubt it.

Even without imagining boogeyman, fires in winter are a very real - and very terrifying - threat.  Heat lamps and heaters can be strung haphazardly, sometimes in old buildings where the wiring is poor and dust and cobwebs, both flammable, festoon the corners.  Smaller, tropical animals are inside, sometimes in high concentrations, so a single burning building can claim many lives.  It's not even the fire that you really have to worry about - it's the smoke.  For evidence, look no further than the fire at the Philadelphia Zoo several years ago, which killed every single gorilla, orangutan, and other occupant of their primate house.

I've never had to deal with a major fire at a zoo where I've worked, but I have put out a few minor ones, one of which required us to race into the smoke-filled building and carry out animals, some in cages, most by hand, into the fresh air.  I've also had to visit the charred wreckage of a friend's home, listening to her describe, numbly, the pets that had been inside and couldn't be saved.  It was horrible.

I'm so sorry for the losses that these zoos have suffered.  I hope that the keepers afflicted by these tragedies can find some peace over the holidays.

Satire: USDA Issues Permit for Santa's Reindeer

Zoo History: Only a Hippopotamus Will Do

"I want a hippopotamus for Christmas,

Only a hippopotamus will do.

No crocodiles, no rhinoceroses,

I only likes hippopotamuses!"

The week before Thanksgiving, I made the decision to shut off my car radio, and keep it off through the end of the year.  If I have a CD handy, I play it on long drives, but for short jaunts around town... silence.  Silence is beautiful.  Silences is serene.  And silence is a hell of a lot better than 8,428 renditions of "Winter Wonderland."  Every radio station I listen to is now 24/7 Christmas music, and my ears are about ready to mutiny and give themselves the Van Gogh treatment.

There is one Christmas song that  realized the other day that I almost never hear during my (frequent) involuntary exposure to the songs of the season.  And that little ditty is John Rox's "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas", best known for its performance by Gayla Peevey.

As any hippo-loving child would (and in particular as one who did, according to family lore, request a pet hippo as a kid), I heard that song growing up.  A lot.  Mostly (well, always) from one or the other of my parents.  I inherited my musical ability from them, so needless to say, it was not a pleasant experience.

What would have made it more bearable is if they had told me the story behind the song - the little Gayla did, in fact, get her hippopotamus... sort of.

Peevey's hometown was Oklahoma City, and though she moved a bit to the north as a child, it was still the closest real city.  Based on the popularity of her song, a local promoter decided that this kid was getting her hippo - care of the city zoo, of course.  The story is often gotten backwards - that Ms Peevey performed the song in order to raise funds for the Oklahoma City Zoo to purchase a hippo.  In fact, they ended up with a hippo because she sang the song.  One can only wonder how different it would be if she's sang, "I Want a Duck-Billed Platypus for Christmas."  Such penny-drives for zoo animals weren't uncommon back in the day, when most animals were obtained through purchase.  It's how my hometown zoo received its first elephant, back in the day. 

Anyway, Oklahoma City Zoo got its hippo i n 1953.  Mathilda was a proud resident of the zoo for fifty years.

History doesn't often repeat itself, but it has been known to rhyme now and then.  Earlier this December, the Oklahoma City Zoo welcomed a new pygmy hippopotamus (Mathilda, the original hippo of song and story, was a Nile hippo).  This one was not purchased through donations - instead, it was a transfer from the San Diego Zoo, fulfilling a recommendation by the Species Survival Plan.

I don't suppose I need to say who the guest of honor at the unveiling was.

Happy Hippo Holidays!

The Fires of Santa Barbara

It's been kind of a rough year for the AZA community, disaster-wise.  There have been hurricanes, early heavy snowfall, and America's deadliest mass-shooting to date, located in the same building as an aquarium.  Through it all, our animals and staff have remained safe.  Let's hope that trend continues as we face our latest challenge.

The fires that are raging across California have now begun to menace the Santa Barbara Zoo.  After a period of careful watching-and-waiting, the zoo has begun some evacuations.  Critically endangered animals have been moved to other facilities (namely Los Angeles Zoo).  The Fresno Chaffee Zoo has offered to care for a baby giant anteater zoo staff have been handrearing.  Other animals are being distributed to nearby care centers.  Now, it's just a question of seeing what happens next.

The California wildfires have already done a tremendous amount of damage this year.  I hope that Santa Barbara Zoo isn't added to that damage.

The Price is Right

Like many zookeepers, the thought of owning my own zoo (preferably designing and building it, but settling for buying a preexisting one) has long been a dream.  Needless to say, the news of a zoo for sale in Texas was an intriguing - if impossible - concept.  There was a tremendous amount of discussion about it in the zookeeper groups on line - a few people suggested that we all pull our resources and buy the place.  Bad idea, in my opinion.  As opinionated as zookeepers tend to be, I think we'd all kill each other within a week.

As entertaining as the article was, there was one line which rubbed some of my colleagues - especially those who have never worked in the private, non-AZA sector.  "[Wolston] can rattle off how much the animals are worth like they are cars or bottles of wine."

Historically, all zoos bought and sold and traded their animals, working through brokers like Carl Hagenbeck and Frank Buck.  They bought animals that they wanted, bred them when they could, and sold or traded offspring for other specimens.  As it was, each animal had a known price.  Specimens that were hard to obtain, rare, and popular with the public commanded the highest prices.

With the rise of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and its Species Survival Plans, there has been much less focus on buying and selling of animals.  Instead, animals are moved around the country as part of carefully coordinated breeding programs, working to maintain the genetic and demographic welfare of the populations.  Even species that are not managed by SSPs are typically exchanged free of charge within AZA, sometimes as donations, sometimes as loans.

That doesn't change the fact that AZA-accredited facilities represent only a fraction of the zoos and aquariums in this country.  For the rest, especially those that are not managed by governments or nonprofits, sales of surplus animals represent a crucial part of their income, or represent trading stock needed to maintain their collections.

Working at a non-AZA facility at my last position, I, like Mr. Wolston, knew the financial value of each specimen in the collection (mostly so I could judge how mad the owner would be whenever something died).  I've never been comfortable with the idea of putting a price tag on a zoo animal - in my opinion, they are priceless.  Also, no sum of money is worth the decision to lace the animal in a sub par home, as even a wealthy buyer may prove to be.

From the News: Want to buy a zoo?

Want to buy a zoo?  Bayou Wildlife Zoo in Texas for sale

It's one thing to find a souvenir from the zoo under your Christmas tree... it's another to find the zoo (or at least a deed to one) itself.  Seriously, didn't Matt Damon make a movie about this or something?

The Bayou Wildlife Zoo in Texas is for sale by its owner, one Clint Wolston, yours for the sum of $6,000,000.  That seems a bit on the high side for me, especially considering what some first hand visitors have told me about the facilities... not that I even have one million to drop on a new zoo anytime in the near future.

Still, it's nice to hope that someone will swoop in and purchase the place, giving it lots of attention and energy and enable it to grow and flourish.  I just don't think it'll be me...

Clint Wolston, owner of Bayou Wildlife Zoo, feeds "Pee Wee" a white rhino, Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2017, in Galveston County, Texas. Owned and operated by Wolston since 1985, the zoo is currently for sale for the princely sum of $6 million. (Steve Gonzales/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Book Review: Where the Wild Things Were

"Talk after talk, northern seas to tropical jungles, the conclusions rang in accord, as with a gavel: Big predators were not just missing; they were sorely missed.  It brought to mind a medical phenomenon haunting many amputees; the phantom pains of a missing limb.  These top predators - these missing limbs - were still deeply felt."

The apex predators - big cats and bears, wolves and crocodilians, sharks and eagles - have long been a source of inspiration, wonder, and, yes, terror to our species.  They've been venerated in our art, and folklore, displayed in our zoos and aquariums, sometimes treated as rivals or enemies, other times treated as gods or ancestors.  But what do they mean in the greater scheme of things?  How do they really fit into the natural world?  Are they simply parasites living off of the suffering of their prey, or do they serve a greater purpose?

Wildlife journalist William Stolzenburg analyzes that question, and his answer is a definite vote for the essential role of apex predators.  In Where the Wild Things Were, Stolzenburg travels the globe and meets with scientists to explore how predators don't just fit into their ecosystems, but how they shape them.  Using examples as varied as the wolf of Yellowstone National Park to the starfish of a tidal pool in Puget's Sound, it is demonstrated that the presence of top predators benefits an ecosystem by keeping other species in check.  Remove the predator and some prey species will flourish, but at the expense of others, out-competing them and possibly even driving their neighbors (and themselves) to local extinction.  Similarly, removing a top predator can allow smaller, subordinate predators to explode in numbers, which in turn impacts the species that those animals prey upon.

Science isn't science without experimentation, and Stolzenburg is able to draw upon many case studies to support his position.  Some are created in laboratory or controlled settings, sometimes under a microscope lens, sometimes in less-conventional surroundings (picture a college professor traveling several hours twice a month, just to throw some starfish - literally - out of his research pool and back into the sea).  Others are the experiments that we create ourselves... albeit unintentionally.  Consider, for example, Barro Colorado Island, created with the formation of the Panama Canal.  In the absence of jaguar, harpy eagle, and other predators, some species were able to increase their numbers dramatically, and the forests are suffering as a result.

Of course, no examination of the impacts of an absent predator restored would be complete without the most famous of case studies, the return of the wolves to Yellowstone.  Stolzenburg describes how wolves do more than kill and eat elk - there are a lot of elk in Yellowstone, after all, too many for all the wolves to even make a dent in their numbers.  Instead, the returning predators, by the very presence, change the behavior of the prey species, forcing them to act in a manner that, while making them less vulnerable to predation, lessens their negative role on the environment.  Instead of sitting in one spot and eating every last scrap of greenery, for example, the elk keep on the move constantly so as not to attract the attention of the hunters.

Where the Wild Things Were portrays apex predators not as they are often depicted, as killers lusting after hot blood and fresh meat, but as the gardeners of Eden, who through their actions preserve the diversity and species richness of their environments.  They need not be giant or fierce (at least to our eyes) - some are tiny, some are obscure.  All, however, have a role to play in maintaining biodiversity.  The question is, are we wise enough to allow them to carry out that role?

Our failure to do so may have terrible consequences for nature.  As Stolzenburg says, "The biggest and scariest of carnivores may be more dangerous bu their absence."

Where the Wild Things Were: Life, Death, and Ecological Wreckage in a Land of Vanish Predators, at Amazon.com

The Zoo Under the Christmas Tree

I meant to have more of a profound, interesting, and, ultimately, labor-intensive post tonight... and then I realized that Christmas is two weeks from today... and 95% of those days, I work.  So I had to get shopping done... first online... then at actual stores because I feel back about shopping online and thereby contributing to the decline of actual stores... than back online about an hour later, after I remembered why those stores were in decline in the first place.

One place I have not gone shopping yet is the zoo... emphasis on the "yet."

A zoo or aquarium can be a fantastic resource for holiday shopping for an animal lover, and I don't just mean red panda plushes.  There are several unique, exciting, animal-themed gifts that are available.  Many zoos sell paintings produced by zoo animals, often accompanied by a photo or fun facts about the artist.  Others may sell bookmarks of laminated feathers or snake shed, or perhaps Christmas ornaments that contain feathers or fur.  For the gardener in your family or circle of friends, you may even be able to acquire a bag of zoo-produced compost.

If it's not an animal-item per se that you are interested it, there are other options, as well.  Many zoos and aquariums sell free-trade items produced in communities around the world.  Among the most popular is snare-ware, jewelry or artwork made from actual wire snares pulled from the African bush.  These snares are a major cause of mortality for many African species, as they indiscriminately kill or maim a wide range of animals for the bushmeat trade.  The snares are collected, removed from the bush so they can do no harm to wildlife, then turned over to African villages, who fashion items for sale abroad.  By purchasing them, you are providing funds to impoverished rural villages, while at the same time supporting the removal of deadly snares.  That wire probably looks better on your best friend's wrist as a bracelet than it would around a cheetahs leg.

And lastly, if you are looking to cut down on consumerism, you could always opt out of possessions and into... experiences.  Go diving with whale sharks at the Georgia Aquarium.   Meet a rhinoceros at the Lowry Park Zoo.  Paint with African penguins at the Newport Aquarium.  Be a zookeeper for a day with a guided tour behind-the-scenes.  Heck, just buy a friend a membership and give their family something to do year-round.

Purchasing some of your Christmas gifts at your local zoo and aquarium is a great way to support a local conservation organization.  And, because many items are specially sold or priced to benefit conservation programs, domestically or internationally, you can be sure that your gift isn't just a gift to the recipient, but to wildlife in need, as well.

Hippo of the Year

Earlier this week, Time Magazine announced its person of the year - people of the year, in this case, as they chose to honor the women who have spoken out against sexual assault as part of the #metoo movement.  Prior to that, there was a lot of speculation over who should receive the honor, fueled mostly in part by President Trump's announcement that he would "probably" be Man of the Year, but wasn't interested.

Cincinnati Zoo decided to get ahead of the drama and through a hat of their own into the ring.



It's tongue-in-cheek and very cute, but it did make me wonder.  Why isn't there an Animal of the Year Award?  Just like people, animals have the power to make the news and change the world.  For example, in 2015 the world was gripped by the story of Cecil, the Zimbawean lion who was killed by an American trophy hunter.  Cecil's death started an enormous conversation on the ethics and value of sport hunting, and he became a rallying cry for those opposed to the practice.

In 2016, of course, there was Harambe.  Like Cecil, Harambe's death stirred a tremendous amount of attention and debate.  Unlike Cecil, his death largely denigrated to a series of tasteless memes and jokes.  Any chance to turn it into a force for good for gorilla conservation seems to have been lost.

Which brings us to Fiona...

2017 has not, taken as a whole, been a positive year in the eyes of many.   Besides the sexual assault scandals detailed by Time, there have been rampant mass-shootings, natural disasters, terrorism, political unrest, and, oh yeah, the prospect of nuclear holocaust.  And in the midst of that mess, a premature baby hippo is born.  Fiona's story did what no politician or celebrity has been able to do - give people something to root for as her story played out in the public eye.  It didn't matter who you were - everyone wanted that little hippo to make it.  And, despite tremendous odds, she did, and is now a thriving star.

If there is any animal that made 2017 bearable for the world at large, it would have to be Fiona.

Species Fact Profile: Andean Bear (Tremarctos ornatus)

Andean Bear (Spectacled Bear)

Tremarctos ornatus (Cuvier, 1825)

Range: Northwestern South America (Andes Mountains)
Habitat: Cloud Forest, Dry Forest, Scrub
Diet: Fruit, Bromeliads, Cacti, Bamboo, Small Vertebrates, Carrion
Social Grouping: Solitary
Reproduction: Breeding April-June.  1-3 cubs born between December and February.  Gestation period 5.5 - 8.5 months (variation due to delayed implantation).  Cubs stay with mother for over 1 year, become sexually mature at 4-6 years old.
Lifespan: 20 Years (Average, Wild)
Conservation Status: IUCN Vulnerable, CITES Appendix I

• Largest carnivore in South America. 1.2-2 meters, 70-90 centimeters at the shoulder.  Tail 7 centimeters long.  Short muzzle and ears.  Males weigh 100-175 kilograms, females weigh 60-80 kilograms
• Coat is black or brown, sometimes with a reddish tinge.  Highly variable white or cream-colored marks around the eyes (hence the other common name of "spectacled bear"), sometimes extending onto the neck or chest.  These markings may be absent in some individuals.
• Active by day.  Excellent climbers.  Make nests in trees for foraging or for resting and sleeping.
• Adults have no predators.  Cubs may be threatened by pumas, jaguars (though the two overlap little in the wild due to habitat preferences), and adult male Andean bears.
• Make seasonal movements up and down mountains, traveling to lowlands in cooler weather and back up the mountain during warm.
• Only bear species in South America, and the last remaining member of the genus Tremarctos, the prehistoric short-faced bears once found in North and South America
• Threatened by habitat loss, hunted for skin, meat, fat, and claws.  Sometimes persecuted as an agricultural pest, as it occasionally raids crops or takes livestock

From the News: Visitors dumbfounded by balloon penguins at Chinese pop-up 'zoo'

Visitors dumbfounded by balloon penguins at Chinese pop-up 'zoo'

And now, from the same country that brought you a dog and tried to pass it off as a lion, we proudly present, the amazing penguin balloon!  Seriously, did they think that no one was going to notice?

It's the #selfiepolice!

An ongoing source of frustration for zoo and aquarium professionals has been the enormous popularity of wild animal selfies.  These usually come in two forms.

In one, an actual wild animal is captured by people for a spur-of-the-moment photo-op.  Sometimes, the animal in question is in obvious distress, such as a dolphin that has become beached and, instead of doing anything useful, everyone grabs their iPhone.  In other cases, it can be less obvious.  Suppose that you and some friends are out hiking and you spot a desert tortoise.  Everyone picks it up and passes it around for pictures - and the tortoise unloads its bladder, which is kind of what tortoises do.  Everyone laughs, it's gross, finishes with their pictures, and puts the tortoise down to go on its merry way, right?  Well, maybe not really "right" - because that tortoise just shed its water stores... and it's the desert.

The second scenario involves animals that are held in captivity for the express purpose of selling photo opportunities to tourists.  Maybe it's a sloth, or a monkey, or a declawed tiger cub.  Most of us inherently feel these are wrong.



Recently, instagram made it its policy to post a warning for searches of pictures of people posing with animals (i.e. - #slothselfie) on the grounds that these pictures promote unsafe or harmful conditions for animals (similar to how posts that seem to advocate, say, suicide might be barred)..  It's a step that shows a lot of initiative in slowing the craze of wildlife selfies...

Though I do feel like I have to play devil's advocate here for a moment.  We have a lot of ambassador animals with our zoo's education collection, and some of them are touchable by members of the public, under the direct supervision and control of zoo staff.  If a parent takes a pictures of little Billy petting a ball python and posts it, is that in violation of this policy.  I have a ton of pictures of myself with animals accumulated over the years, though I tend not to post those on social media.  I also, however, have a few pictures of myself in field conservation work - say, holding hellbenders for measurements, or displaying snakes that I've caught as part of a field survey.  Do those count as "harmful" wildlife selfies?  Sure, those were taken as part of legitimate scientific work... but what if it was just me out herping with some friends?  What if we display pictures of what we found before releasing it?

These are all things we'll have to be wary of as this new policy sets in, and it may be necessary for some corrections to be made.  We've done it in the past - MasterCard said at one point that they would no longer support animal attractions (mostly with exploitative photo-ops in mind), but when it was brought to their attention that this impacted zoos and aquariums, they reversed course.  For now, let's hope that this is simply a positive step in limiting the spread of images that encourage people to treat exotic animals as toys rather than living things.

Sporcle Quiz - Sporcle at the Zoo: Polar Bear

It's time for another Sporcle at the Zoo quiz, and with Christmas coming and the weather starting to turn, what better species to highlight than the polar bear?  Enjoy!

Sporcle at the Zoo - Polar Bear

True Facts About Erik

When I was a kid, one of the most popular joke series was "True Facts About Chuck Norris" - such as "Chuck Norris is the reason that Waldo is hiding" and "Chuck Norris knows Victoria's Secret" (or, for a zookeeper twist - "Chuck Norris once kicked a horse in the chin and created the first giraffe.")  Recently, a zookeeper I follow on social media started a series of facts about him, the tongue-in-cheek (I assume?) world's greatest zookeeper.  And so, I present, credits to their creater...

TRUE FACTS ABOUT ERIK

Erik litter box trained a fish.

Erik had a breeding colony of rubber ducks.

Erik grows the fake plants for his exhibits.

Erik files a report on the USDA inspector.

Erik thaws frozen locks with just a smile.

Erik doesn't use rubber boots because his feet are waterproof.

Erik created the first okapi by breeding a giraffe with a velour pillow.

Erik's love gives flamingoes their pink color.

Lions spray to mark Erik's territory.

Erik freed Willy.

Zoo sponsors pay for the right to name things after him.

He once blow darted an animal with a pill.

Dangerous animals have Erik drills.

Erik once caught a snake by its leg.

All drains slope towards Erik.

Erik once recorded a number one album using only his Leatherman.

He once gave a naked mole rat a haircut.

He told Simon and Garfunkel what was happening at the zoo.

Chuck Norris tells Erik Heinonen jokes.

And there are many, many more, as well as many contributed by other keepers joining the thread (some were a little to esoteric for a general audience).  Thank you Erik Heinonen.  I actually cried reading some of these.