Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Karen Stevenson, docent; Susan Burchardt, raptor keeper; and Anna Martin, docent When you saw “Vulture” in the title, what came to mind? Did you think of the Marvel® comic book character? Of big, red-headed black birds pecking around fresh road kill? Important members of almost every continent’s cleaning crew? A featured friend of raptor fans at the zoo? How about “all of the above”? Vulture in flight. Photo: Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo. The cartoon version is property of Marvel comics and we’ll let Marvel speak for him, but living, breathing, feathered vultures are represented at Woodland Park Zoo by Modoc, the zoo’s turkey vulture ( Cathartes aura ). Mo is a member of the Raptor Center’s educational team. He is the zoo’s ambassador for all vultures around the Old World (Europe, Asia and Africa) and the New World (the Americas). Susan Burchardt, one of the zoo’s raptor keepers says, “Vultures are easy to ignore or vilify, but they are a cornerstone in so many ...

Posted by: Karen Stevenson, Woodland Park Zoo Volunteer; additional contributions by Gretchen Albrecht, Zookeeper and Anna Martin, WPZ Volunteer Photo by Gretchen Albrecht/WPZ. Just a few weeks back, the memo came through. It read only, “They’re back!” “They” are barn swallows, Hirundo rustica , and we’re celebrating their return. Here in the Pacific Northwest, barn swallows are harbingers of spring’s longer, warmer days. Warmer days awaken long-dormant insects, and barn swallows—like most little insectivores—follow their food (mostly flies and mosquitos, but also beetles, bees, wasps and so on). They summer here, then when “summer” moves south, they do too, following available food all the way to northeastern South America and the Caribbean basin. Barn swallows are comfortable in our big cities, small towns, neighborhoods and farms. While other swallow species prefer to nest in natural structures hidden from view, such as cliffs or tree cavities, barn swallows build mud nes...