Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Surprise! We’re excited to announce that we have not one, but two sloth bear cubs doing well behind the scenes at Woodland Park Zoo. It turns out our big news about having a cub born back in December is even bigger news, now that we know we have twins! Video: Sloth bear mom Tasha leaves the maternity den briefly, lured by a snack of crickets offered by zookeepers, revealing the two cubs she birthed on December 18. The case of the hidden sloth bear cub Back on December 18 when the cubs were born, 7-year-old mother Tasha was so quick to build a fortress of hay around her cubs to protect and support them in the maternity den, that we never got much of a visual on the litter. We spotted one cub, but we suspected there was a second cub in the litter, hiding out from where we could see it. What made us think we had two cubs? Through baby monitors, keepers could hear what sounded like two cubs breathing, grunting and nursing. But since

Posted by: Rob Goehrke, Education Partners One of my favorite things about working at Woodland Park Zoo is bringing amazing partnerships into the classroom. This season, our ZooCrew middle school program partnered with the Snow Leopard Trust (SLT)--a Woodland Park Zoo Partner for Wildlife conservation partner --in some exciting ways. Curriculum While deciding which animal to focus on this season, we came across a new curriculum guide that SLT put together in partnership with Facing the Future. With our snow leopard cubs just born months earlier, it seemed like a great fit. Curriculum from http://www.facingthefuture.org/ During our first lesson, the ZooCrew students learned that snow leopards are a top predator and a keystone species—they have a much larger impact on their ecosystem than some other species, which makes their protection even more important. During the next few weeks, the students learned about different types of people involved in protecting snow le

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications Zookeeper Pam Cox soothes a cub as it wakes up from its vet exam. Photo by Kirsten Pisto/Woodland Park Zoo. Can you believe the lion cubs are 2 months old now? The growing boys and girls (two of each) were due for another health checkup with the zoo’s veterinarians yesterday, and they aced their exams. Zookeeper Matt Mills carries a cub to the exam table. He holds the cub just like its mother would and the cub is relaxed by the comforting position. Photo by Kirsten Pisto/Woodland Park Zoo. Now weighing in at a healthy 21 to 23 pounds each, the wriggly quadruplets are getting harder to handle, so the cubs were anesthetized for parts of this latest checkup and round of blood draws and vaccinations. A cub hisses at the immobilizer mask after it was removed. Photo by Kirsten Pisto/Woodland Park Zoo. We took a look at their eyes… Vets are looking for clarity and good response in the eyes. Photo by Kirsten Pisto/Woodland

Posted by: Caileigh Robertson, Communications With this weekend’s Hawks vs. Falcons game rapidly approaching, let’s take a look at some of the strengths of each opponent. Red-tailed hawk (left, photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo) and peregrine falcon (right, photo by Dennis Conner/Woodland Park Zoo) 1. Hawks capture and kill their prey with their feet, yet falcons rely on the tomial tooth of their beaks to break the necks of their prey. (I wouldn’t want to be that unlucky fellow…) 2. Hawks are known for their slow glides in the sky, while falcons are known for their incredible soaring speeds.  Falcons have produced speeds clocking in at 200 miles per hour! 3.Hawks have broad, wide wings that are perfect for soaring. Falcons have long, slender wings that are pointed at the tip, which give them greater agility in the air. Both hawks and falcons are strong and powerful creatures, but we’ll let the playoffs determine which of the two is best on the field. Is i

Posted by: Lorna Chin, External Relations, with contributions from Dr. Darin Collins, Woodland Park Zoo Animal Health I have been involved with both Woodland Park Zoo and Make-A-Wish Alaska and Washington since 1998. It’s a joy to share the zoo with Make-A-Wish kids who are awaiting their wish experiences. A recent experience with a young girl named Nicole brought together the things I love most about both organizations. Nicole and her mother first came to visit in March. Her Make-A-Wish volunteers Audrey and Stephanie said she had a special request to see the elephants. Nicole was about to have major surgery for her bone cancer and this was going to be a fun day before she’d be laid up for several months. Nicole, Chai and zookeepers, March 2012. Photo courtesy of Audrey Seale. A typical experience involves the keepers sharing their vast knowledge of the animals, talking about their daily routines, and answering questions. Sometimes these visits are pretty quick, lasting

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Communications We’re counting down the zoo stories that made us smile, made us care, and made us take action this year. From fuzzy new faces at the zoo, to scaly new additions to the wild, all of these stories have been made possible because of your support. Thanks for an amazing 2012, and here’s to going wild in 2013! 12. Snowpocalypse Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo. Remember Snowpocalypse 2012 ? The year got off to a snowy start, and—despite having to close the zoo for safety—we caught a number of zoo animals having fun romping around in the snow. 11. Turtles take a wild journey Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo. When we released 90 native western pond turtles to a South Puget Sound protected habitat, it was the story of turtle "2"  that brought home the big hope riding on these tiny turtles. Hope for an endangered species, hope for a recovering habitat, and hope for people finding a way to live sustainab

Posted by: Caileigh Robertson, Communications We’re capping off the year with yet another significant birth: an endangered sloth bear . Born Dec. 18, the tiny cub is off view with its mom, 7-year-old Tasha, in a behind-the-scenes maternity den. Dad, 16-year-old Randy, is staying in his own den right now, giving mom and cub their space to bond, which is a typical family structure for sloth bears. This screen capture from the internal web cam was taken just moments after the birth of the cub. The tiny size is normal, with an average birth weight for sloth bears at 10.5-17.5 ounces (300-500 g). Photo by Woodland Park Zoo. To minimize any disturbance to the family, zookeepers are keeping their distance, monitoring the new family via an internal web cam to keep their eye on things and make sure the cub continues to nurse and bond with mom. This is Tasha’s first cub, but her motherly instincts kicked in immediately. Right after the birth, she built two large mounds of hay in the