Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by Elizabeth Bacher, Communications Editor's note: Elizabeth works in the content and creative team here at Woodland Park Zoo, so you've probably read her work in MyZoo magazine, on this very blog and many places between. She is a self-described bird nerd, a passionate animal protector and she holds an M.A. in Biology from our Advanced Inquiry Program (AIP ) with Miami University. Elizabeth recently traveled to Kenya with several zoo colleagues to witness firsthand the conservation work she so loves. We are eager to share her experience: A male lion in Kenya's Maasai Mara reserve. Photo: Elizabeth Bacher When people ask why I work at Woodland Park Zoo, the answer is easy. It’s the mission. I’m passionate about conservation and I’m fortunate to work at a place where that view is widely valued, supported and shared. Recently, I was lucky enough to travel to Kenya with several zoo colleagues who share a passion for that mission—animal keepers, educators, do...

Posted by: Alissa Wolken, Communications Photo: Dennis Dow. Imagine coming face to face with a giraffe, waking up to a lion pride right outside your bedroom, or watching as a skilled veterinary team heals an injured rhino out in the field. Kenya’s Lewa Wildlife Conservancy—one of the beneficiaries of the American Association of Zoo Keepers’ (AAZK) upcoming Bowling for Rhinos event—is home to many life-changing experiences that have strengthened the resolve of AAZK members to keep fighting for wildlife. An injured rhino gets a helping hand thanks to the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy field team. Photo: Dennis Dow. Bowling for Rhinos offers an opportunity for you to join that fight. All funds raised from the event go directly to rhino conservation in four locations: Lewa Wildlife Conservancy (LWC) in Kenya; and Ujung Kulon, Bukit Barisan Selatan, and Way Kambas National Parks in Indonesia through the International Rhino Foundation. Open to all to attend, this year’s Bowli...

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Editor If "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" is your holiday jam, brace yourself: this is as close as it gets! This Fri., Nov. 20, head to the Zookeepers' Holiday Silent Auction to bid on a chance to go behind the scenes with 15-year-old female hippo Guadalupe to create your very own hippo-kiss painting. Photos: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo. With a mouth that can open to a massive 150 degrees and lips that are 2 feet wide, a hippo's kiss is unforgettable. As you can imagine, it's not always easy to make a hippo-kiss painting. But don't worry, we've got a how-to guide for that: Video: How to make hippo kisses (the definitive how-to guide) The silent auction is held by the Puget Sound Chapter of the American Association of Zoo Keepers. Along with the hippo kiss painting experience, this year’s auction will feature extraordinary experiences found only at the zoo, including opportunities to pa...

Posted by: Puget Sound Chapter of the American Association of Zoo Keepers Photo by Jodi Shaw. It’s almost time for the American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK) annual rhino conservation fundraiser, Bowling for Rhinos. But this year, the Puget Sound chapter of AAZK is going to try something a little different. We’ll be curling for rhinos! WHEN: Sat., June 7, 4:30 – 9:30 p.m. We will have two shifts for curling; 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. (choose one or the other) WHERE: Granite Curling Club of Seattle , 1440 N 128th Street, Seattle, WA. COST: $20 just to eat/hang out (party only) and watch the fun or $30 to curl and eat (plus a small online registration fee) This is your opportunity to demonstrate your support for endangered rhinos and the worldwide effort to conserve endangered species. Please remember that when these animals are gone, it's forever; there is no bringing them back. You can help the Puget Sound AAZK achieve its goal of raising $13,...

Posted by: Pattie Beaven, Zookeeper and Member of Puget Sound Chapter – American Association of Zoo Keepers Zookeeper Pattie Beaven gives an elephant-sized shout out to American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK).  This week is a special week for many of us at the zoo. This week is National Zoo Keeper Week celebrated by the American Association of Zoo Keepers . So what's it mean to be a zookeeper? Words aren't enough to describe this amazing job and the amazing animals. You know that feeling you get when your dog wags its tail in greeting when you come home? Imagine having a pack of wolves greet you in a similar manner! Wolf greetings. Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo. Cats purr when they are content, and it can give us great pleasure to have our kitties sit in our laps, eyes closed, purring away. Now imagine having an 8,000-pound elephant purr with contentment upon seeing you. These are the joys of being a zookeeper. An elephant gets a scrub from a z...

Posted by: Wendy Gardner, Zookeeper Photos by Wendy Gardner/Woodland Park Zoo Who weighs nearly 100 pounds, belongs to a family of mammals (Macropodidae) whose name means “big feet,” has a long, muscular tail that helps with balance, turning and support while resting, and cannot walk backwards? Harry gets a food reward for cooperating with his treatment. That would be Harry, our male wallaroo who lives in the zoo’s Australasia zone. Harry came to Woodland Park Zoo in October 2008 as 2.5-year-old sub-adult, a term we use to describe juveniles that have not yet reached sexual maturity. In December of 2008 he weighed about 62 lb (28 kg), but as of June 2013, the now adult wallaroo weighs just shy of 100 lb (44 kg). That’s a good weight for him, but that size and strength means we do not want to have to hand catch him if he were to ever need medical attention, both for our own safety and to prevent stress for him. We decided using operant conditioning to get Harry not o...

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Happy National Zoo Keeper Week! If you've been enjoying the baby boom at the zoo this past year, then you have our dedicated keepers to thank. It’s their hard work in matching up animal mates, caring for growing families, and keeping babies healthy that makes it all possible. Next time you see a zookeeper, let them know what their work means to you and your family! Video: Celebrating zookeepers at Woodland Park Zoo. Video by VIA Creatives. The late Dana Payne, a Woodland Park Zoo curator, poignantly summed up the work of the zookeeper in an end note he wrote for local artist Catherine Eaton Skinner’s book, Unleashed : “Those of us who have chosen a life with animals know we have chosen well. Having a conversation with a lion is a fine way to start one’s day. For that matter, so is tossing tidbits to a toucan, or medicating a cobra. There’s something there, in the lion’s luminous eyes, in the gaudy splendor of the toucan...

Posted by: Matt Mills, Zookeeper Were you aware that without serious action it is estimated that rhinos will disappear from the wild by 2030? Organized crime syndicates have spread into wildlife crime; bringing technological advancements, networks of smugglers, and high powered weaponry with them. Rhino horn is more valuable than gold in certain markert, and because of this an average of two rhinos are lost every day. White rhino at Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, Kenya. Photo by Matt Mills. Why is rhino horn so valuable? In parts of the world people have been lead to believe that rhino horn is a cure for everything from the common cold to cancer. Science has disproved this belief. In fact, rhino horn is made of tightly compacted hair. Does that sound like a cure-all to you?  It's not too late to stop the disappearance of these magnificent creatures from our planet. There are an estimated 30,000 rhinos still left in the wild, many of which live in conservancies ded...