Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by Elizabeth Bacher, Communications Visayan warty pigs in their mud wallow. Photo by Ryan Hawk, Woodland Park Zoo. Warty pigs may not have the prettiest name, but we think they are beautiful! If you haven't stopped by the Trail of Vines lately, you should. Our three female pigs are especially active in early spring. This critically endangered forest pig is found only in the Visayan islands of the Philippines. The relatively small, grayish-brown pigs get their name from three pairs of fleshy “warts” that develop on the cheeks of adult males, but they are best recognized by the white stripe that runs over the bridge of the nose behind the mouth. Mature males also grow a stiff, spiky mane of hair tufts that make them look like the punk-rockers of the pig world. Hey cutie! Photo by Ryan Hawk, Woodland Park Zoo In the wild, Visayan warty pigs used to roam over six different islands of the Philippines, but they’ve lost more than 95% of that habitat due t

Posted by: Elizabeth Bacher, Communications Photos by Dennis Dow, Woodland Park Zoo Here at Woodland Park Zoo, we share the habitat with all kinds of native wildlife such as bald eagles.  Two eagle fledglings, called eaglets, just left their nest above the zoo’s elk yard a few weeks ago. They’re only about 15 or 16 weeks old right now and already as big as their parents, but their overall dark coloring sets them apart from adults.  Juveniles don’t develop the distinctive bald eagle features—white head, yellow beak and yellow feet—until they’re 4 or 5 years old. The eaglets’ long flight feathers, which help steady them as they learn to fly and hunt, often make them look even bigger than adults for the first year. But they’re still completely dependent on mom and dad right now.   Soon, the parents will leave the nesting area to take advantage of fall salmon runs in places like the Skagit and Columbia River systems, and they won’t return for several months. The young