Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by: Caitlin Potter and Stacey Hammond, Education If you visited the zoo during July, you may have seen a group of enthusiastic, orange-t-shirt wearing learners writing in their nature journals at the maned wolves exhibit, designing a scavenger hunt along the Northern Trail, typing away on computers at the building across from Bug World, observing the birds in the Tropical Rain Forest Dome, or reading about animals as they snuggled up in the den on the Discovery Loop. ZooCrew students practice reading and writing at the zoo. For five weeks this summer, twelve 6th and 7th grade students from Asa Mercer, Washington and Denny Middle Schools explored ecosystems, watersheds and science careers through the ZooCrew Summer Learning Program , Woodland Park Zoo’s middle school outreach program. The ZooCrew Summer Learning Program is a free program in which students participate in nature explorations and science investigations, meet and work with STEM professionals, produce and sh

Posted by: Kirsten Pisto, Communications Photos by: Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo unless otherwise noted Last October 24, 2014, three little lion cubs were born to mom Adia and dad Xerxes. Since then, the cubs have stolen more than a few hearts as we've watched them grow into rough and tumble pre-teens. Then and Now: at two weeks old and at ten months old. At just two weeks old , the lion cubs were already curious enough to keep Adia busy in the den. Filling their bellies with milk and going on tiny scouting adventures was supplemented with lots and lots of cat naps. Cublets Mandla and Gandia at two weeks old. Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo. At six weeks old, the cubs aced their veterinary exam with flying colors, proving to be feisty and strong and by 11 weeks old they were ready to explore the outdoor exhibit with mom and dad. They went Beast Mode in January... And later that month, Xerxes picked out names for his three sons (with just a l

Posted by: Greg Brandell, Animal Care Photos by: Dennis Dow, Woodland Park Zoo We here at Woodland Park Zoo recognize and appreciate that all species of animals are significant and necessary within native ecosystems. Now, having said that, let’s be honest: sometimes some get a bit more recognition than others. Sometimes an animal has a dirty but essential job that needs doing. Take for example the noble turkey vulture, a species which can even be found right here in Washington. We call them turkey vultures, but their scientific name hints at their role in an ecosystem; they are Cathartes aura , the Cleansing Wind. They are the clean-up crew, the ones that help make sure the rest of the ecosystem is nice and clean. And in this case, clean means free of dead and rotting meat, which helps protect us and other animals from harmful diseases and illness. Turkey vultures have amazing noses and can use smell alone to locate a carcass from over a mile away! They survive by eating what w

Posted by: Keith Thompson, Colobus Conservation Ltd., a Woodland Park Zoo Wildlife Survival Fund project For field conservationists dedicated to protecting colobus monkeys , file this one under “Other Duties as Needed.” Photo courtesy of Colobus Conservation, Ltd. Colobus Conservation was called about a sea bird that had washed up on the beach of a nearby hotel. On arrival, I was handed a large cardboard box by the manager and told in no uncertain terms to be careful. Upon opening the box I realized why I was getting the warning as I was face-to-face with the razor sharp bill of what we later determined was a masked booby, which is a pelagic diving bird similar to a gannet. After assessing the bird back at our vet clinic, we observed that there was nothing broken but the bird was severely underweight, exhausted and dehydrated. After a few days of assisted feeding, the bird regained a little of its strength and started to eat on its own. We outfitted one of our rehab enclosu

Posted by Alissa Wolken, Communications Welcome Sam, Woodland Park Zoo’s new male siamang! The 28-year-old male joins female Briony in the Trail of Vines exhibit. And how fitting that this new arrival comes during the Year of the Gibbon , a global effort to raise conservation awareness for these lesser known apes facing the threat of extinction. Sam first arrived at the zoo in June and was introduced to Briony in the indoor exhibit, and now they are ready to explore their outdoor exhibit together. Welcome Sam! Photo by Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo “Once we could see that Sam and Briony were getting along and he was familiar with the inside exhibit, we introduced Sam, with Briony, to the outside island exhibit,” says Collection Manager Pat Owen. “He is gradually spending more time out on exhibit; we anticipate it taking time for him to adjust to his new surroundings, because this is the first open air exhibit Sam has experienced.” Briony showing Sam the ropes (er...vines!

Posted by: Laura McComesky, Zookeeper Today is World Orangutan Day and in honor of our fab five, we know you'll love seeing how we celebrated orangutan awareness—and how you can take a role in helping save endangered Sumatran and Bornean orangutans—during our Asian Wildlife Conservation Day earlier this month. Tropical fruit generously provided to the orangutans by Uwajimaya. Photo by Laura McComesky/Woodland Park Zoo. KIND Snacks was our official sponsor for the day and we thank and applaud them for their commitment to sourcing and using only certified sustainable palm oil. Family-owned Asian grocery Uwajimaya generously contributed a cornucopia of exotic tropical fruits for our orangutans. Melati delights in the durian and other tropical fruits. Photos by Carolyn Sellar/Woodland Park Zoo. Not everyone finds the treats as tempting as the orangutans. Photo by Laura McComesky/Woodland Park Zoo. During our keeper talk, our orangutans enjoyed durian, jackfruit,

Posted by: Gigi Allianic, Communications McKenna Princing/UW Medicine Gorilla Vip is recovering from sinus surgery performed over the weekend. More than 25 medical specialists joined the zoo’s veterinary team and donated their time and expertise to help the 36-year-old, 430-pound gorilla. Vip remains off view in an enclosure at the gorilla exhibit. McKenna Princing/UW Medicine A similar surgery was performed a year ago on the western lowland gorilla for treatment of a chronic sinus infection. As a result of that successful surgery to remove polyps (growths within the nasal sinuses), Vip was able to breathe normally through his nose for the first time in weeks. In recent days, however, symptoms re-emerged, explained Dr. Darin Collins, Woodland Park Zoo’s director of Animal Health. “It was evident that Vip was experiencing some level of discomfort, likely from a repeat sinus infection. During this second round of surgery, polyps and infection were surgically removed,” sai