Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Jane David, LVT, Hospital Manager, Animal Surgical Clinic of Seattle Maybe it is just coincidence that “ aguila ” means “eagle” in Spanish, but when a Steller’s sea eagle from Woodland Park Zoo needed specialized surgery for a fractured bone, Dr. Alexander Aguila of the Animal Surgical Clinic of Seattle was ready! On March 23rd, Dr. Darin Collins, Woodland Park Zoo Director of Animal Health, contacted the surgeons at Animal Surgical Clinic of Seattle regarding a potential fracture repair on the right wing of a Steller’s sea eagle named Natasha. Exhibited in the award-winning Northern Trail exhibit at the zoo, Natasha is the female of a breeding pair acquired in 2010 . Steller’s sea eagles are among the largest and heaviest of the raptor family, and Natasha weighs in at 13 pounds with a wing-span of over 6 feet! On the morning of March 22, Natasha (pictured in the background above) was found on the ground of her zoo enclosure. She appeared to be having difficulty main

Posted by: Gigi Allianic, Communications The sound of howls and yips may be heard through the zoo as a pack of 1-year-old gray wolves explore their new home in our award-winning Northern Trail exhibit . The four canids, all female, were born at New York State Zoo and arrived at Woodland Park last September. After a 30-day standard quarantine, the wolves have spent the last several months in an off-view enclosure getting acclimated to their new surroundings and routine. Last week they took their first steps out into their exhibit at Northern Trail and have adjusted well. The wolves are conservation ambassadors representing the complex and volatile story of the return of the wolf to Washington state and the challenges their endangered cousins in the wild face. Although the wolves are nearly full grown, ranging from 75-85 pounds, they are young and still very curious and active. The best way to observe them is to stand quietly and watch the natural behaviors of a wolf pack. They ar

Yesterday we found a baby Tyrannosaurus rex stowed away with some other dinosaurs that arrived to be installed in our new “Dinosaurs. Real Close.” exhibit. With its mother following behind in the next truck not expected to arrive for another full day, we thought we’d take Li’l T out on the town for some sightseeing and adventure. My Travels Posted by: Li’l T, appearing in “Dinosaurs. Real Close.” opening April 30 The folks at Woodland Park Zoo were kind enough to take me on a tour of their town yesterday. I got the full Seattle experience with gray skies and rain, but that didn’t get in the way of my travels. Trust me, the Late Cretaceous was a much harsher climate. I took a ton of photos on my adventure and want to share some favorites with you. My trip started downtown… Oh, cool! Seattle has its own herd of brachiosaurs on the waterfront. Who'd have guessed? Nom nom nom. Your architecture is delicious, Seattle . Nice and crunchy. Oh hey, it’s the Mariners. I know th

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Edmontosaurus , Brachiosaurus and Styracosaurus took a long road trip from Texas this weekend and arrived at the zoo this morning to check out their new summer digs . They’ll be joined by Tyrannosaurus , Dilophosaurus , Parasaurolophus and Euoplocephalus arriving tomorrow. Then we’ll spiff up the place, do some planting over the next few weeks and have the exhibit ready to welcome guests come April 30 when our Dinosaurs exhibit opens to you all! As we unloaded today the animatronic dinos that move, snarl and hiss, zoo visitors couldn’t help but crowd around to see the new arrivals. While our keepers spend a lot of time using operant conditioning to train our animals to respond to cues and shift between areas—allowing the animals to be active participants in their own care—we found the easiest way to coax a hefty Edmontosaurus into a spot where you want her is just to use a forklift. Styracosaurus and Edmontosaurus took the roa

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham and Gigi Allianic, Communications Over the past two years, we have all watched snow leopard cubs Gobi and Batu grow and explore—from their precious first weeks , to their big debut , their first birthday and their participation in a smelly study to help track wild snow leopards. But now we’re preparing to say goodbye to Gobi, our male juvenile who is 2 years old and ready to move on to a new home at Rolling Hills Wildlife Adventure in Salina, Kansas. Gobi—who got his name from more than 35,000 votes cast by zoo fans —has been recommended to move as part of a cooperative breeding management program known as the Snow Leopard Species Survival Plan (SSP). SSPs work to ensure genetic diversity and healthy populations. The SSP does not have immediate plans to breed Gobi, but this is an appropriate age for him to make his departure following the natural course of how snow leopards live in the wild. Snow leopards are essentially solitary animals and it is

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Ocelot kitten Evita is acing her exams. At her 9-week exam last Monday, animal health staff gave Evita another clean bill of health. These regular exams, part of the zoo's preventive health program, allow us to monitor Evita's progress and make sure she's achieving critical benchmarks. Evita is indeed hitting all of her developmental stages on target, and she's growing and gaining weight as expected. Animal health staff keeps the exams quick and efficient to minimize the amount of time Evita is away from her mother, Bella. After the exam, she's quickly returned to Bella in a behind the scenes area at the Tropical Rain Forest exhibit. Mom and kitty share a strong bond and Evita's progress is evidence of the great maternal care that Bella is providing. We expect to introduce Evita on exhibit with her mother in another few weeks—aiming for mid- to late-April. We'll let you know when she is ready to make he

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications This summer, dinosaurs are making a comeback! We’ll be opening a limited-engagement exhibit on April 30 that takes you on a journey back in time to discover life-size, animatronic dinosaurs that roar, snarl, hiss, spit and move. There will be 10 dinosaurs representing seven species that once roamed our continent throughout the Cretaceous and Jurassic periods—from a 19-foot-tall herbivore Brachiosaurus to a full-size, fearsome Tyrannosaurus rex . The latest scientific research reveals that these beasts may have been adorned with brilliant colors, scales and fins. We’re having a lot of fun working with the dino creators, Billings Productions, Inc., to reflect that in the look we’re giving our dinos. Here’s a sneak peek at the creative coloration we’re giving the juvenile Styracosaurus —does it remind you of the colors of a certain zoo animal when it is young? Dinos ruled for millions of years and this exhibit will explore the fascinating adapt