Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by Kirsten Pisto, Communications Video by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren After chatting a bit at the entrance, the Early Stage Memory Loss walking group decides on a destination. “We’re headed to Northern Trail today,” they declare, but it’s much more about the journey. The zoo has been partnering with the Washington chapter of Alzheimer’s Association (AA WA) for more than twenty years. As part of the zoo’s Community Access Program, AA WA receives complimentary zoo tickets to provide an opportunity for families and caregivers to enjoy healthy and healing activities with their loved ones who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.  We also welcome two Early Stage Memory Loss walking groups to the zoo twice a week. Year-round on Mondays and Wednesdays the walkers gather for an hour or two as the zoo opens to check out the grounds, soak up some nature and catch up with each other. A delightfully funny, sharp and welcoming crew, they allowed us to tag along on a few of their walks so

Posted by: Alicia Highland, Education A black bear's image caught by a remote camera in a Woodland Park Zoo study of local carnivores. Photo: Woodland Park Zoo. “ How many times has a carnivore interacted with your waste containers (garbage, compost, recycling) in the previous 12 months? ” asks the neighbor survey crafted by Issaquah middle schoolers. The students are trying to understand how their community’s garbage habits—what kinds of cans and lids they use or whether they store compost indoors—relate to encounters with bears, raccoons and cougars. Issaquah and the neighboring communities of east King County lie at the intersection of expanding urban settlement and iconic wilderness. Surrounded by forested mountains on three sides and Lake Sammamish to the north, the area is also home to abundant wildlife including some of Washington’s most charismatic carnivores: black bears, coyotes, bobcats, and cougars. At the interface of urbanization and wilderness, there is some

Posted by Kirsten Pisto, Communications Bear Affair: Living Northwest Conservation Day is one of our favorite events. Each year in early June, we get to do what we love best: watch our animals enjoy a special day tailored just to them and watch our visitors fall in love with those same animals, learn more about conservation actions they can take right here in the Pacific Northwest, and become stewards for protecting wildlife in Washington. It's also a day we get to celebrate the incredible work our conservation colleagues are doing too, as many of our peers join us by setting up learning opportunities that start on the North Meadow and wind all the way through Northern Trail. Our volunteers come out on this day, as do ZooCorps teens, and everyone from our horticulture staff (providing beautiful flowers for the mock wedding cake and arch) to our dedicated keepers who make sure the animals have a great day (without eating too many coffee grounds or cake). It doesn't get any bet

Posted by: Ryan Driscoll, Education Photos courtesy of ZooCrew, Woodland Park Zoo Note from the Editor: Each term, ZooCrew empowers middle school youth to become conservation leaders by providing science learning experiences that inspire them to learn, care, and act through after school and summer expanded learning opportunities. Through the ZooCrew programs, we excite youth from traditionally underserved communities about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) subjects by engaging with real-world conservation issues, preparing them for continued involvement in Woodland Park Zoo’s youth programs, and inspiring them to consider a broad range of STEM and conservation careers. We believe engaging these students, as well as youth across Washington state, is key to solving current conservation issues in our own backyard and around the world. Learning with the zoo doesn’t just take place on zoo grounds! As the school year winds down, we wrapped up another awesome sprin

Roxanne Sanders, a first-grader, was new to Seattle when her mom signed her up for a summer camp at Woodland Park Zoo so she could make some friends. However, Roxanne made more than friends. She found she liked exploring the zoo and the fact that there was more to the camp than just keeping the kids busy. “They taught you lessons about the animals, where they came from, how they live,” Roxanne said. “We got to see what the animals were doing and how they reacted.” Zoo camps became part of Roxanne’s life. She attended Zooper Day Camp for kids 4 to 9, then Zoo U for kids 10-14. In 2010, she became a counselor in training, and now, as a college student, she’s working as a camp assistant. Roxanne at Woodland Park Zoo. “Throughout elementary school, I knew I wanted to work with animals,” Roxanne said, “When I started thinking about college a few years ago, my parents were pushing me into medical jobs, but that wasn’t what I was interested in. I decided to go with what I wanted

Posted by: Bobbi Miller, WPZ Field Conservation Coordinator with Stephanie Fennessy, Giraffe Conservation Foundation Director Out in the field, conservationists watch the giraffe and the giraffe watch back. Photo courtesy GCF.  Here at Woodland Park Zoo we’re all twitterpated about the impending birth of Seattle’s tallest baby . But we’re not the only folks waiting for the giraffe calf. Halfway across the world, in Windhoek, Namibia, Steph and Julian Fennessey are anxiously awaiting word of our new arrival. As founders of the Giraffe Conservation Foundation , a Woodland Park Zoo Wildlife Survival Fund project, they are working to understand and save the remaining giraffe in the wild. It’s a daunting task, but the birth of Tufani’s wee one (if you can call a 6 foot, 150 pound baby a “wee one”) gives them hope for the remaining giraffes in the wild. With every giraffe born in an Association of Zoos and Aquariums-accredited zoo, more people become aware of the plight of giraffes

Posted by: Rebecca Whitham, Editor Tufani on the African Savanna. Photo by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren/Woodland Park Zoo. The signs are there: Tufani is acting restless, her appetite is reduced, and we have observed changes in her udder. She could give birth to Seattle's tallest baby any day now. Or within the week. Or hey, who knows. It's not an exact science. Lead keeper Katie Ahl tells us more: Video: Birth watch begins for Seattle's pregnant giraffe With a gestation period of 14 to 15 months, the birth window for a giraffe is wide. We've been expecting to see the new arrival appear sometime between May and July. According to the 3,000 of you who entered our giraffe baby pool contest (now closed), most thought we'd see him or her in June. But we could have a new bundle of joy sooner! Keeper Katie first took note of the changes in Tufani's behavior earlier this week. She noted “Tufani has been given daily opportunities to cross from the corral to