Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Mark Myers, Animal Curator A Northern helmeted curassow chick hatched 6/26 with a little assistance from keepers since the chick wasn’t making much progress after 48 hours of effort. It is now located behind the scenes in a brooder box next to its mother in the zoo’s Conservation Aviary in the Temperate Forest zone. By keeping it next to her, the chick should become more properly socialized and have less of a chance of imprinting on humans. To reduce imprinting, staff minimizes talking in the presence of the chick. Like chickens or turkeys, curassow chicks are precocial at hatching—meaning they are born relatively independent—and with guidance, they learn to eat on their own very quickly. To stimulate it to eat, we use objects like tweezers or a long stick with a red tip to point food out to the chick. These chicks are also very arboreal and they like to perch up off the ground. At hatching, their wing feathers are very well developed which allows them to take short flights

Posted by: Katherine Steen, Education Want to join a Woodland Park Zoo team restoring habitat for wildlife at Licton Springs Park? Sign up for a habitat restoration event with us and EarthCorps ! Back on May 16, our zoo team had a great time with EarthCorps and community volunteers restoring habitat at Golden Gardens Park . And now, we’re doing it again! This summer WPZ invites you to share the habitat by taking action to protect and restore wildlife habitat around the world and in our own backyards. On Saturday, July 11th, a team of zoo staff, volunteers, and friends will be joining Earth Corps and the Green Seattle Partnership for a restoration event at Licton Springs Park in north Seattle. Add it to your calendar! Saturday, July 11th, 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. What to expect: You'll be side by side with zoo staff and volunteers planting native trees, shrubs, and ground cover. EarthCorps will provide gloves, tools, water, light refreshments (coffee, tea, water and donuts!) and a ta

Posted by: Bobbi Miller, Field Conservation Did you see today’s Seattle Times cover story about the Cedar Creek Corrections Center inmates helping to raise and reintroduce endangered Oregon spotted frogs to Washington habitats? It’s all part of a great recovery program Woodland Park Zoo has joined with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Northwest Zoo and Aquarium Alliance . Here in our own Northwest backyard, we’ve seen populations of the Oregon spotted frog diminish significantly, all but lost to wetland degradation and chytridiomycosis—a deadly, fast spreading fungus. Add to that the introduction of predators such as the bullfrog, and this native frog has disappeared from much of its original habitat. These factors prompted Washington state to list the species as endangered in 1997. It may also ultimately lead to a federal endangered listing soon. But hope is on the horizon. Woodland Park Zoo has joined a multi-institution recovery project that is pairing cap

Posted by: Walter Dupree, Animal Collections Manager On June 23, Woodland Park Zoo became home to another significant addition…a bouncing eleven-month-old female giraffe named Tufani. She came to us from Dickerson Park Zoo in Springfield, Missouri. For those that remember, this is the same zoo that sent us Olivia, our other female giraffe . In fact, Tufani and Olivia are half sisters. And no, they don’t seem to recognize each other, but with giraffe, you never know. Like Olivia, Tufani is a Rothschild’s giraffe also known as Baringo or Lado giraffe. Although she is not a Reticulated giraffe like our males, the Association of Zoos & Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan manages them as one sub species so we have future breeding recommendations already. But don’t expect to see any infant giraffe running on the savanna anytime soon as our girls are still a bit young. If you’ve never seen a giraffe shipment before, it’s an interesting undertaking. I bet a few of you are wondering how we ge

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications The two endangered snow leopard cubs are one month old today, and we took some new photos this morning to document their growth. Check out the full photo album from this morning's session on Woodland Park Zoo's Facebook fan page . Become our Facebook fan to get automatic zoo updates in your Facebook news feeds. The two cubs remain behind the scenes with their mother while they bond and grow, but stay tuned to the blog for more updates on the duo. Photo by Ryan Hawk.

Posted by: Mark Myers, Curator Woodland Park Zoo’s first ever tawny frogmouth chick is growing up! What first looked like a cottonball is now starting to look more like the adults of its species. At 20 days of age, the chick is doing great and achieving all the expected developmental benchmarks—it has clear eyes, its flight feathers are growing well and its weight is up to 5.9 ounces (it would take six stamps to mail it!). The first-time parents are doing well too. The male, shown here, has been sitting on the nest during the day brooding the chick. The chick has been given the name Nangkita, an aboriginal word inspired by its native Australia meaning “place of little frogs.” It’s a fitting name given the bird’s wide, frog-like mouth. Typically tawny frogmouth chicks leave the nest between anywhere from 25-35 days of age. Photos and video by Ryan Hawk.

Posted by: Peter Miller, Keeper In the last few weeks on the blog, we’ve introduced you to baby bugs , birds , and mammals . So now it’s time for baby reptiles… Meet a newly hatched, endangered black-breasted leaf turtle. When this turtle was born on June 5, it weighed in at 5 grams—about the weight of a quarter—and its shell is about the size of a quarter too! A lot of care goes into preparing for a hatching like this. It took about 2 months to gestate in our incubator which was set at about 78-80 degrees Fahrenheit. One of the most striking and conspicuous features of this unusual turtle is its large and protuberant eyes that give an alert expression. Their diet includes snails, slugs, earthworms and other forest floor invertebrates, although some captive individuals apparently also feed on fruit and vegetables. Like most Asian turtle species, the black-breasted leaf turtle is in grave danger of extinction due to over-collection from the wild for the food, medicine and pet trade. Tu

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Check out this video filmed today with zookeepers Deanna Ramirez and Pat Owen weighing and checking the male and female snow leopard cubs born at the zoo on May 25, 2009. Turn the volume up to hear the sound of the cubs! The cubs are growing at a steady rate and their mother is continuing to provide great care. Right now mom and cubs are behind the scenes in a quiet area where they can bond and develop with minimal disturbance. This birth, part of the Species Survival Plan for this endangered species, is an important step for snow leopard conservation helping to increase genetic diversity. Woodland Park Zoo also helps protect snow leopards in the wild through our work with The Snow Leopard Trust , a Woodland Park Zoo Partner for Wildlife. Video by Ryan Hawk.

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Woodland Park Zoo celebrated a significant achievement on Memorial Day: the birth of snow leopard cubs, a male and a female! We had a chance to take some photos today when zoo veterinarians performed a neonatal examination on the cubs as part of the excellent animal and medical care program at the zoo. They’ve been given a clean bill of health! Dr. Kelly Helmick, Associate Veterinarian, told us that the cubs are healthy and the maternal care appears to be very good. The male weighed in at 4 lbs and the female at 3.6 lbs today. The 3-week-old cubs represent the first offspring for both the 4-year-old mother, Helen, and 3-year-old father, Tom. This is an important achievement for conservation as well—the cubs’ birth is part of our work with the Association of Zoos & Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan to bolster the genetic diversity of this endangered species. Woodland Park Zoo participates in 39 Species Survival Plans, which also involve coll

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Penguins can’t fly, but this one can… And most penguins wear “tuxedos,” but this one sports a robe… Come see dozens of these colorful and inventive penguin artworks unveiled this Friday, when Woodland Park Zoo and The Greenwood Collective launch our community art project— Penguins on the March . Sixty-two artists from across Seattle, ranging in ages 8 to 80, designed and decorated these 22” penguin statues that will migrate across Seattle neighborhoods this summer. But first, they’ll be unveiled at the base of the Space Needle on Friday, June 12 from 10 a.m. to noon, and later that evening at The Greenwood Collective during the Art Walk, from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. Both events are free to the public, so come on by! Then the penguins will migrate to outdoor locations across Ballard, Fremont, Greenwood and Phinney Ridge throughout the summer, spreading art and wildlife awareness. And brightening your day! Inspired by Woodland Park Zoo’s all new Humbol

Posted by: Ric Brewer, Communications This past Saturday we celebrated the fourth Bear Affair, our annual event that provides tons of information about bear species around the world. The centerpiece of the event, and perhaps the most highly anticipated activity by zoo visitors (and maybe the bears!) is the non-safe campground demonstration. This entails recreating a human campsite within the brown bear exhibit in our Northern Trail zone. The campsite is complete, including a tent, barbeque equipment, clothing, sleeping bag and a cooler---basically all the equipment one would take along on a camping trip. The twist is that instead of storing food safely away from bears--in airtight bags 15 feet or more up in a tree, in bear safe containers--everything is left casually around the site. And this is what happened... Julie Hopkins, a field coordinator from our conservation partner, the Grizzly Bear Outreach Project , narrated as the bears were let out to discover the bounty left strewn abou

Posted by: Mette Hanson, Interpretive Exhibits Saturday was a beautiful day to be in the forest, yanking ivy and mulching new native plants. As part of our Share the Habitat summer experience , the zoo has partnered with EarthCorps to connect zoo visitors with family-friendly opportunities to restore forests in our neighborhood parks. Zoo staff and volunteers joined an EarthCorps event last weekend and we were really impressed with how much could be accomplished in just four hours! Seeing the acres of ivy covering trees and blanketing hillsides in our local parks can feel pretty daunting—especially if you’ve ever tried to remove a small patch from your backyard! But with this well-organized group, the work was fun and very do-able – even for kids. (One of the maintenance areas we worked on had originally been cleared by a group of kindergarteners)! Here are the numbers for Saturday’s event at Golden Gardens: - 47,040 square feet of restoration site maintenance (that’s over an acre – W

Posted by: Nicole Aragon, Education Up against the lure of TV, video games and computers, it can be hard to get kids to replace screen time with green time. But it’s more important now than ever to help our kids connect with nature, so we can inspire and nurture the future conservation stewards of our planet. Here are some special opportunities Woodland Park Zoo has created this summer to connect kids of all ages with nature and get them involved in real conservation. Ages 2–4 Young Explorers With eight individual classes offered at Zoomazium during the summer, you and your child will have plenty of opportunities to explore nature themes with stories, puppets, animal contact, and nature exploration. Click here for more information or to register. Ages 4–9 Zooper Day Camp: One Can Make a Difference We are very excited to present a day camp theme this year that lets kids discover how they can make a difference in the world and improve their environment. Campers will not only engage in ec

Posted by: Ric Brewer, Communications A male red crowned crane brought new significance to Macy's Mom & Me when he hatched out last Friday. The fuzzy golden-brown chick is one of several that have hatched at the zoo. These cranes, also called the Manchurian or Japanese crane and are endangered, with only a few thousand left in their native Central Asian steppe habitat. The zoo currently teams with the Muraviovka Park for Sustainable Land Use in the Amur River region of Russia which works to protect cranes and their nesting areas in the park and work with local farmers to promote sustainable farming practices, instead of the slash-and-burn techniques that have traditionally been used. Learn more about this successful conservation project supported by Woodland Park Zoo. And don't forget to come and visit this little crane. They grown up fast! Photos by Dennis Dow

Photos and emails are trickling in from WPZ staffers who are currently up in the mountains of Papua New Guinea , celebrating what may be one of the most inspiring Earth Day stories this year. On Earth Day yesterday, thousands of Papua New Guinea villagers gathered in the Teptep village on the Huon Peninsula to hold a traditional Sing Sing, or celebratory gathering, to honor the creation of their nation’s first national Conservation Area . The new YUS Conservation Area—187,000 acres of tropical forest made up of land donated by 35 local communities—will be protected forever from hunting, logging and development. Joining them at the Sing Sing were Woodland Park Zoo Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program staff, representatives from Conservation International , and dignitaries of Papua New Guinea including the Acting Prime Minister—as it is the 12-year culmination of our work together with the villagers of PNG that has brought about this conservation milestone. Lisa Dabek, TKCP Director and WP

Posted by: Jenny Mears, Community Engagement Coordinator (Originally posted in Woodland Park Zoo's Backyard Habitat blog.) There are many ways you can celebrate Earth Day in your own backyard and in your community! - Sign up for Water Features for Wildlife class on April 29 at Woodland Park Zoo: http://www.zoo.org/educate/adult/workshops.html - Check out Savvy Gardener classes and a feature story on welcoming wildlife into your garden: http://www.savingwater.org/savvygardener/default.htm - Sign up for a habitat restoration event with EarthCorps this weekend: http://www.earthcorps.org/volunteer.php - Challenge yourself to some of the easy actions on the zoo's tip list for protecting endangered species and habitats: http://www.zoo.org/conservation/help.html - Share how you're spending this Earth Day, Week and Month: Feel free to post your plans in the comments section and share links for your favorite eco-projects. Together, we can share the habitat!

Posted by: WPZ Field Conservation staff Southeast Asia is home to the world’s smallest bear species, the Malayan sun bear . These little bears face big threats throughout their range, especially from forest destruction, illegal hunting, and the capturing of small cubs for pets. Luckily this unique bear has a champion and protector in Siew Te Wong , a Malaysian researcher and Ph.D. candidate at the University of Montana. Woodland Park Zoo has helped support Wong and his field work in Sabah, Borneo for several years. As one of the very few people studying the sun bear, Wong has uncovered many fascinating aspects of sun bear ecology. Sadly, though, his research also brought him first-hand experience of the inhumane treatment of sun bears kept as pets. Wong’s deep concern for these animals has inspired a new and ambitious project: the creation of the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Center , a partnership between the Sabah Wildlife Department, the Sabah Forestry Department and nonprofit LEAP

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications and Jona Jacobson, Field Conservation Humboldt penguins nest in poop. No, really. In the wild, Humboldt penguins dig their nests into guano, the accumulated droppings of sea birds. These nesting burrows protect eggs and chicks in the unique yet unforgiving desert environment that is Punta San Juan, Peru—home of Peru’s largest Humboldt penguin population, and the inspiration for Woodland Park Zoo’s new penguin exhibit opening in May. But this tidbit is important not just because it’s a great “Did you know?” to pull out at your next party, but because it’s also a significant factor in the conservation of this endangered species. You see, one of the greatest threats to Humboldt penguins is the overharvesting of guano as an agricultural fertilizer. Take away their nesting material, and penguins lose the ability to safely hatch eggs and add chicks to their already depleted population. To mitigate this threat, a guano reserve was created in Punta S

Posted by: Jona Jacobson, Field Conservation When it comes to conservation, it takes a village. Just ask the villagers of Tapoh, Thailand. To help protect hornbills from poaching and deforestation, the Hornbill Research Foundation (HRF) in Thailand—a Woodland Park Zoo Partner for Wildlife—has been working closely with Tapoh villagers in the Narathiwat Province in southern Thailand to transition them into stewards of their own wildlife. The HRF employs local villagers and former poachers as nest guardians—guarding not only naturally occurring nests, but also constructing, installing and guarding artificial nests. Guarding nests is especially important because hornbills tend to nest in large-diameter trees, which, unfortunately, are the same type of trees that are felled to clear the land for agriculture or wood products. There’s good reason for the people of Tapoh to protect hornbills and their nesting sites: hornbills are seed dispersers, essential to the health of the forests upon w

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Big news here at Woodland Park Zoo... We are thrilled to announce  that Woodland Park Zoo’s Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program has helped preserve 187,800 acres of pristine forest habitat with Papua New Guinea’s first ever Conservation Area. That’s an area the size of all five NYC boroughs combined! After 12 years of work, Woodland Park Zoo and partner Conservation International have reached agreement with Papua New Guinea land owners and government to establish the YUS Conservation Area, named for the region’s three rivers, the Yopno, Uruwa and Som. The area will protect thousands of species—including the endangered Matschie’s tree kangaroo —and some of the most critically diverse habitat on the planet. Though the nation has declared protected areas in the past, this is the first of its kind to prohibit all hunting, mining, logging and development—a new level of commitment to conservation a decade in the making for the people of Papua New