Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications We’re asking for your help to provide relief for the community by dropping off food donations at our annual Turkey Toss event this Saturday. We’ll be accepting donations of non-perishable food items at the zoo to benefit the Phinney Neighborhood Association (PNA) soup kitchen program. Food items can be dropped off on November 21 outside the zoo’s South Entrance (N. 50th St. & Fremont Ave. N.) during operating hours, 9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Zoo admission is not required to donate food, but if you join us that day, you’ll see snow leopards, Komodo dragons, grizzlies, lions and more carnivorous species chow down on raw, store-prepared turkeys—all part of the zoo’s ongoing enrichment program for the animals! So what kinds of food items should you donate? Our friends at the PNA soup kitchen program tell us the items most in demand are: non-perishable juice, jam, canned fruit, beans, canned vegetables, chili, ketchup and powdered creamers. Ever

On November 12, the zoo lost a beloved staff member, Sammy Kiako Ole Sipoi, to a tragic motorcycle accident in Kenya. Sipoi had worked as a Maasai cultural interpreter at the zoo for two summers, sharing stories about his life on the savanna with zoo visitors, and bringing to life the real conservation issues of his homeland. Paula Eggertsen, a close friend to Sipoi and former member of Woodland Park Zoo’s education staff, writes this tribute. We welcome you to share your thoughts and memories of Sipoi in the comments section. Tribute to my “olalashe,” Sammy Kiako Ole Sipoi Posted by: Paula Eggertsen The interpretation of cultural values and traditions is nearly impossible, particularly when you’re comparing cultures as different as a pastoralist and a capitalist society. What can easily translate are the qualities of human kindness. Sipoi embodied kindness. When I first met Sipoi in Kenya in 2004, he rode the bus to Nairobi to greet my sister and me. It took Sipoi three hours of bus t

Posted by: Mark Myers, Curator Back in September we announced the hatching of the first Chilean flamingo chicks in Woodland Park Zoo’s history. For the best possible care, we’ve been hand-rearing them behind the scenes. But they still need their exercise for healthy development, so at least once a day, the chicks are taken outside (depending on the weather) and raced up and down to help them stretch out and gain strength in their long legs and developing wings. You can watch zookeeper Ernie Rose take the flamingos for a walk in this video, including a stop by the back of the flamingo exhibit to see the adult birds. Chicks are hatched with a gray, downy coating. At around 1 year of age, the familiar pink coloration will develop as the adult plumage grows in, the color derived from beta carotene— the same naturally occurring nutrient that gives carrots and other vegetables their coloration. Once the chicks are large enough, they will join the rest of the flock in the exhibit. Video pro

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications We just heard the great news that an episode of public television’s Biz Kid$ featuring Woodland Park Zoo’s own Dr. Doo and our Zoo Doo program won a prestigious Environmental Media Award in the category for Children’s Live Action. Here’s the segment on Zoo Doo from the now award-winning episode “The Green Economy & You.” You’ll follow the whole Zoo Doo process, from poop scooping, to the compost yard with Dr. Doo, then see the finished product. Dr. Doo talks the business side of what comes from the backside of our zoo animals! If you’re in the region, you can catch the full episode when it re-airs Saturday, November 7 at 10:30 a.m. on KCTS 9 . Biz Kid$ is an Emmy Award-winning financial education series broadcast on more than 330 public television stations.

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham & Gigi Allianic, Communications Woodland Park Zoo is cheering for the Seattle Sounders FC as they head to the first round of MLS Cup playoffs this week. This morning, the animals got into the spirit of the playoffs their own way. While we didn’t see any banana kicks or diving headers here, the zoo’s grizzly bears, twin snow leopard cubs, and Humboldt penguins did have quite the time playing with and kicking around soccer balls. The soccer balls for the animals are a form of enrichment as part of the zoo’s animal care program to help enhance the lives of the zoo’s animals, promote natural animal behavior, keep animals mentally stimulated and engage zoo visitors. The cubs playfully tumbled with the soccer balls, the bears crushed them with their jaws, and the penguins excitedly dove around the soccer balls floating in their pool. Do your own cheering as the Seattle Sounders FC face the Houston Dynamo in the MLS Cup Playoff Western Conference Semifinals on T

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Check out this latest conservation interview featuring Dr. Sergei Smirinski, a Woodland Park Zoo Partner for Wildlife , on endangered cranes and other plants and animals of Muraviovka Park in Russia. The Cranes of Asia conservation project works to protect the red crowned crane, hooded crane and oriental white stork, all of which rely on protection of the habitat in Russia's Muraviovka Park. Some of the critical threats facing the cranes and their habitat include long-term drought, fires that eliminate the dead grass necessary for nest camouflage, predators and competitors due to the growing impact of the drought and fires, disturbance by spring hunting on waterfowl, collisions with power lines, and use of pesticides and herbicides. For more information on Dr. Smirinski's work to conserve the cranes of Asia, check out our newly updated Partners for Wildlife website. Video by Ryan Hawk, photo by Dennis Dow.

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications We’re gearing up for Pumpkin Bash this Saturday and Sunday—and our three hippos helped to get the party started with the first chomp yesterday. Keepers tossed out whole pumpkins to 46-year-old Gertie, 31-year-old Water Lily and 10-year-old Guadalupe, and it didn’t take long for them to smash them open. Step 1: Toss Step 2: Chomp Step 3: Enjoy The pumpkin treats are part of the zoo’s ongoing enrichment program to help enrich the lives of the zoo’s animals, promote natural animal behavior, keep animals mentally stimulated and provide added enjoyment for visitors. See it yourself this Saturday and Sunday, 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. at Woodland Park Zoo’s Pumpkin Bash presented by Franz Bakeries. Enjoy a repertoire of animal behavior as hippos, bears, elephants, monkeys, and other animals crunch, smash or stomp on pumpkins. A full schedule of animal enrichment events is available online . Photos by Ryan Hawk and Dennis Dow.