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Confirmed avian flu case at Woodland Park Zoo means immediate safety precautions are in effect to protect our birds

Posted by Woodland Park Zoo Communications Staff Woodland Park Zoo is home to a flock of red-breasted geese as well as many other species of birds. Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo A red-breasted goose at Woodland Park Zoo has died and is the first suspected case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) at the zoo. The goose passed away earlier this week and the zoo received preliminary positive HPAI test results today, Nov. 14. Health and safety precautions had already been enacted at the zoo in response to increased HPAI cases being reported across the state and region. For the wellbeing of our animals, staff and guests, additional and increased measures will be implemented immediately. Background HPAI, or highly pathogenic avian influenza, is a viral infection that is carried by wild birds, especially mallards and other waterfowl, and is spread primarily through respiratory secretions and bird-to-bird contact. In addition to posing a threat to birds, HPAI can also
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A loving farewell to Shila: Treasured gray wolf made history and stole hearts

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Gray wolf, Shila, was a treasure and we will deeply miss her. Woodland Park Zoo is deeply saddened by the loss of its sole gray wolf, Shila (SHY-lah), who has passed away. Animal keepers found the 14-year-old, female wolf deceased this morning in her habitat. In human care, the median life expectancy for gray wolves is 11 to 12 years old. At 14, Shila was a geriatric wolf. As a standard procedure, the zoo’s animal health team will perform a postmortem exam to further diagnose factors that may have contributed to Shila’s death. Shila was born in April 2010 at New York State Zoo at Thompson Park and moved to Woodland Park Zoo in the fall that year with her three sisters who have all since passed away. Woodland Park Zoo made groundbreaking medical headway for wolves when in June this year its veterinary team partnered with an external veterinary cardiologist to implant a pacemaker in Shila to treat a
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New Stripes in Town: Zoo Welcomes New Malayan Tiger

Posted by Craig Newberry, Communications Photos by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Woodland Park Zoo is welcoming a new tiger to its naturalistic Banyan Wilds habitat. Male tiger Angin (ON-yin), 14, arrived from Ellen Trout Zoo in Texas and is now roaming the zoo’s Malayan tiger habitat. Angin, which means wind in Indonesian, is the brother of Woodland Park Zoo’s other male Malayan tiger, 14-year-old Bumi (Boo-mee), which means earth in Indonesian. Tigers are solitary animals, so guests won’t see the brothers or 8-year-old Azul, the zoo’s female Malayan tiger, roaming the habitat together. All three big cats will be on a rotational schedule in the habitat. Angin weighs about 260 pounds and has been spending the last couple of weeks getting to know his new home and animal keepers. While Angin’s animal keepers have only known him for a short time, he’s already made a big impression and has a similar personality to his brother Bumi and is more reserved; he also enjoys playing in t
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Goodbye beautiful Nayla: Zoo mourns the loss of its geriatric jaguar

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Woodland Park Zoo is mourning the loss of its only female jaguar, Nayla. The big cat was humanely euthanized due to age-related degenerative decline in mobility. Nayla in 2021. Photo by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo Nayla, who celebrated her 19th birthday last week, was born at Akron Zoo in Ohio and lived at Woodland Park Zoo since 2006. The life expectancy of jaguars in zoos is 18 years. Nayla in 2019. Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo As a geriatric big cat, Nayla’s welfare and chronic medical conditions, including degenerative joint disease, have been closely managed by her animal caregivers and veterinary staff. This summer Nayla had an episode of neurologic deficits that caused a severe head tilt and loss of balance. After diagnostics, including an MRI and treatment, Nayla recovered from this neurologic episode and returned to the habitat, Jaguar Cove. “Recently Nayla began to display increased weakness and incoordination of h
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First-time expectant orangutan, Batu, on 24-hour birth watch as she nears end of pregnancy

Posted by Gigi Allianic, Communications Editors note November 13, 2024:  Hello friends. A lot of you have been asking about our Sumatran orangutan Batu and the status of her pregnancy. Here's an update. You haven’t missed a birth announcement. Admittedly, our projected birth window was quite off. While we don’t have a clear new window for her delivery, all other indicators are good: Batu remains healthy, the fetus appears healthy, and Batu is getting regular pre-natal check-ups by our veterinary staff and weekly checks by an OBGYN. We continue to send Batu positive vibes while she remains on track. We know you are excited for her baby to arrive and we are too! Again, thank you for checking in and we hope to share some positive baby news very soon! An orangutan at Woodland Park Zoo, 14-year-old Batu, is expected to give birth soon and is nearing the end of her pregnancy, which for orangutans is nearly nine months. The birth will mark the first orangutan born at the zoo in 35 years
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Get to know our toco toucans—A fun Q & A with our amazing animal keepers!

Posted by Hattie Potter, Development Editor's Note: Thank you to animal keepers Erin and Kayla for answering our questions and helping us get to know Woodland Park Zoo's toucans. Photo: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo How much do you know about toucans other than they have big beaks and are often "associated" with a fruity, sugary cereal? These beautiful and colorful birds are native to the tropical rain forests of Central and South America. They spend most of their lives high up in the trees where they nest in tree cavities and find many of their food sources. Woodland Park Zoo's toco toucans—one of the larger of the many species of this bird—can be found in our Tropical Rain Forest exhibit and their long, vibrant bills make them almost impossible to miss! Let's get to know more, with the help of animal keepers Erin and Kayla:   What are the names and ages of our toucans? There are currently two toucans living at the zoo – one male and a female. Our m
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Baby gorilla is accepted by foster mom at Louisville Zoo: Baby Abeo makes his debut to the public

 Post by Gigi Allianic, Communications Woodland Park Zoo is overjoyed to share the heartwarming news about baby boy gorilla Abeo (ah-BAY-oh), who was born at the zoo in June. To ensure his long-term benefits of growing as a gorilla, the zoo made a critical decision and moved him last month to Louisville Zoo in Kentucky where he could be socialized with a foster gorilla mom and multigenerational family of gorillas. Abeo with Kewli, Photo by Kyle Shepherd/Louisville Zoo Today, Abeo and his foster mom, Kweli (kway-lee), made their public debut together in Louisville Zoo’s award-winning Gorilla Forest. Kweli, 40 years old, was selected due to her successful experience fostering Kindi, Louisville Zoo’s now 8-year-old female gorilla, who was orphaned shortly after birth. Abeo was born June 28 at Woodland Park Zoo to Akenji, a first-time mom, and dad Kwame. Because Akenji hadn’t shown any interest in caring for her newborn, Abeo was placed under round-the-clock care; moreover, progress wasn’
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