INTERNATIONAL ZOO NEWS
Al Ain Wildlife Park and Resort, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
The park (AWPR) has announced the first-ever birth of two sand cat kittens following an in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer procedure. The success marks an important step forward in its efforts to conserve this threatened cat species and other arid-land carnivores such as the Arabian leopard.
In October 2009 AWPR initiated Project Sand Cat in partnership with the U.S.-based University of Illinois and Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden – both world leaders in endangered species research. Fresh sperm and eggs collected from male and female sand cats were fertilized in an incubator to produce 50 embryos. Twenty-one of these were transferred into four host cats, one of whom recorded a successful pregnancy. (The remaining 29 embryos were frozen and transported to Cincinnati Zoo for similar trials.)‘Our sand cat mother gave birth to two kittens. They and their mother are in a very good condition,’ says Farshid Mehrdadfar, the Animal Collection Manager at AWPR.
According to AWPR’s Chief Programs Officer, Dr Mike Maunder, the goal is to develop protocols for embryo transfer that can be used for the sand cat and other more threatened species such as the Arabian leopard. ‘This technique will allow sand cats and other threatened species held in the UAE to contribute to the breeding work of conservation institutions throughout the world,’ explains Dr Maunder.
AWPR is home to almost 20% of the world’s captive sand cats. The 34 cats at the park make up the largest and most genetically significant captive population of this species at any single zoological institution in the world. The in vitro fertilizations and embryo transfers would not be possible without the park’s large number of the cats. Eggs were harvested from five female donors, fertilized with the sperm from three males, and the resulting embryos were implanted into a separate group of four female recipients.
Embryo transfer is an important technology for conservation efforts. Embryos fertilized at AWPR can be frozen and later implanted into recipient groups across the world. ‘We can exchange genetic material without having to transport the animals themselves. This is a model for managing threatened wildlife species in the future,’ explains Dr Bill Swanson, Director of Research at Cincinnati Zoo. ‘The cats at AWPR are totally unrelated to other sand cats held anywhere in captivity. To introduce their genetic material to other populations will help build a stronger and more viable captive population.’
In North American AZA-accredited zoos, the sand cat SSP population consists of just 35 cats and, although carefully managed through selective breeding, the total number of animals remains too low to maintain a genetically healthy population over time. One solution to this management challenge is to link together the various regional populations housed in zoos and wildlife parks in North America, Europe and the Middle East to form a larger meta-population of nearly 160 cats. Developing an effective global management program for sand cats will depend on establishing international collaborations between these diverse geopolitical regions, as well as applying scientific expertise to optimize sand cat propagation. The initial efforts at getting these countries united for the species’ conservation have been focused on connecting zoo populations in the United States with those in the UAE.
Al Ain Wildlife Park’s first ‘test-tube’ sand kittens.
If test-tube kittens from the project are born to sand cats at zoos in the United States, they will carry genetic material from AWPR’s cats. As these foreign-born cats mature, they will be bred with their U.S.-based counterparts. This process will diversify the gene pool of captive sand cat populations. One such trial of the embryos fertilized at AWPR is underway at the Living Desert Zoo in California. In June 2010, the project members hope to create gene flow in the opposite direction, using frozen semen from unrelated U.S. cats to produce IVF embryos and offspring in female sand cats at the AWPR.
Project Sand Cat is a pilot project within AWPR’s conservation program. The conservation work at the park focuses on the conservation and restoration of arid-land biodiversity and has a special focus on desert carnivores, including current work with Arabian leopards, African wild dogs and African lions.
Al Ain Wildlife Park press release, 26 January 2010, with material from Farshid Mehrdadfar and Bill Swanson in Wildlife Middle East News (www.wmenews.com) Vol. 4, No. 4 (March 2010)
Chester Zoo, U.K.
The zoo has achieved a world-first by monitoring and recording the heartbeat of a rhinoceros with a stethoscope. The newly-launched Littmann stethoscope – from the diversified-technology company 3M – is so sensitive that it even works through a rhino’s thick protective hide. The zoo’s veterinary team can not only listen clearly to a rhino’s heart-beat and lung sounds for the first time, but, thanks to the stethoscopes’ unique on-board Bluetooth technology, transfer the sounds wirelessly for digital storage and further analysis.
‘We can now gather and build up crucial information about our rare eastern black rhinos and share it with other wildlife professionals worldwide,’ explains the zoo’s resident vet James Chatterton. ‘These rhinos have been around for about five million years but they’ve been reduced to a critically endangered species, with only around 700 remaining in the wild. It’s paramount that we learn as much as we can to help protect their health and welfare.’
The launch of the Littmann 3200 stethoscope couldn’t have come at a better time for the two latest additions to the zoo’s nine black rhinos. Asani, the first Eastern black rhino to be born here in ten years, celebrated his first birthday in October. And in May 2009 he was joined by a female calf called Bashira. As Asani and Bashira grow up and develop their hide – which on rhinos can be up to two inches [50 mm] thick – the zoo can continue to record their progress.
The Littmann 3200 electronic stethoscope, which has been singled out by Popular Science magazine as the ‘Innovation of the Year’, amplifies sounds by 24 times and reduces background noise by an average of 85%. It has been primarily developed for use by cardiologists, hospital specialists and GPs on human patients. It will help to minimise the number of ‘false negative’ results, where heart conditions aren’t detected, and also ‘false positives’, where patients are unnecessarily referred to a consultant.
Peter Robinson, 3M senior technical services specialist, commented: ‘There’s been considerable interest in this new model from medical professionals and we’re delighted that its benefits can be transposed to the equally challenging fields of veterinary and zoological medicine.’
And it’s not only the rhinos that will be benefiting at the zoo. As James Chatterton added: ‘If it works that well on a rhino, just imagine how well we can now monitor other animals in our care.’
Z Magazine (Spring 2010)
Copenhagen Zoo, Denmark
The European population of Malayan tapirs counts around 50 individuals of which a large number suffer from a mysterious dental disease. Several of the tapirs in Copenhagen Zoo have suffered from dental problems over the past few years. The veterinarians examine the teeth thoroughly and take X-rays to establish whether the roots are damaged. If the roots are not healthy the teeth get loose and need to be extracted. In cooperation with the University of Copenhagen, the zoo veterinarians are in charge of investigating this mysterious disease that seems to be restricted to animals in captivity.
English summary of item in Zoonyt (Summer 2010)
Detroit Zoo, Michigan, U.S.A.
The zoo’s breeding program for the critically endangered Puerto Rican crested toad (Peltophryne lemur) has yielded the best results in ten years with 3,701 tadpoles. The zoo kept 20 tadpoles for future breeding at its National Amphibian Conservation Center and shipped the rest to Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico, for release into the wild.The zoo has been working to preserve the species since 1999. ‘Establishing a new population of amphibians in their natural environment is enormously gratifying and one very important way that the National Amphibian Conservation Center helps to save amphibians,’ says Chief Life Sciences Officer Scott Carter. The award-winning center is a state-of-the-art facility that boasts a spectacular diversity of frogs, toads, salamanders, newts and caecilians. The Wall Street Journal dubbed the attraction ‘Disneyland for toads’.
Connect (Association of Zoos and Aquariums), May 2010
Edinburgh Zoo, Scotland, U.K.
Keepers are celebrating the news that one of two lesser bushbabies (Galago moholi), born on 5 January, is the first female to be born to the resident bushbabies since their arrival at the zoo.
When the infants were just over four months old, and at an age when they could be caught without undue stress, zoo vets confirmed the news while carrying out routine micro-chipping and DNA sampling.
Speaking following the announcement, Darren McGarry, the zoo’s Animal Collections Manager, said: ‘For the keepers at Edinburgh Zoo there is always a sense of satisfaction when one of the animals in our care breeds, as it means we must be doing something right. While any parent would be delighted with a baby of either sex, this one obviously is particularly special as it is the first female of this species to be born at Edinburgh since the pair arrived in 2005.’
After a gestation period of four months, the adult female gives birth firstly to a single offspring, but then for subsequent births she will tend to have twins and even triplets. Lesser bushbabies can live for up to 16 years; they are found in Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland, Transvaal, western Tanzania and Zimbabwe. With five now in the zoo’s collection, they can often be seen dozing during the day in a nest or tree hollow in their enclosure, and emit a cry similar to that of a human child.
Edinburgh Zoo press release
Kansas City Zoo, Missouri, U.S.A.
The zoo has conditioned a gorilla to allow transthoracic echocardiography on a weekly basis through positive reinforcement. Wanto, a 33-year-old male, has subtle signs of cardiac and respiratory insufficiency, including exercise intolerance. Due to the prevalence of fibrosing cardiomyopathy in gorillas, a specially-designed PVC portal was installed in the caging to have the gorilla present his thorax against the open end of the barrel portal, permitting 2-D, M-mode and Doppler echocardiography with a standard B-mode or digital ultrasound with color flow Doppler.
The right and left ventricles, mitral and tricuspid valves, pulmonary and aortic outflow tracts are routinely fully imaged. Evidence of mural hyperechoic densities compatible with fibrosing cariomyopathy are present in the left and right myocardium, and hyperechoic densities associated with the mitral valve have also been documented over the course of two years. Routine ultrasound is performed to monitor the progress of cardiac health without the use of immobilizing drugs which may influence cardiac function. Use of behavioral restraint allows consistent evaluation of cardiac health in this gorilla and may serve as a model for consistently monitoring gorilla cardiac health.
Connect (Association of Zoos and Aquariums), April 2010
Los Angeles Zoo, California, U.S.A.
Randa, a 40-year-old Indian rhinoceros, has successfully completed treatment for skin cancer using a breakthrough treatment platform designed to deliver electronic, X-ray-based therapy directly to cancer sites with minimal radiation exposure to surrounding healthy tissue.
Randa was recently diagnosed with recurrent squamous cell carcinoma, a form of skin cancer, under her horn. To deliver her treatment, zoo veterinary staff worked closely with oncology surgeons and radiation oncologists from UCLA Medical Center, as well as scientists from Xoft. Inc., makers of the Axxent® Electronic Brachytherapy eBx System. Her treatments were in two sessions, or radiation fractions. Since the eBx treatment does not use a radioactive isotope, it can be performed without the need for a lead-shielded room. This enabled the veterinarians and oncologists to remain with Randa during treatment, ensuring her safety and the accurate delivery of treatment.
‘We are very happy with the outcome of Randa’s cancer treatment and her recovery,’ says Leah Greer, Randa’s primary veterinarian at the zoo. ‘After the treatment sessions were completed, she quickly returned to her normal attitude, acting years younger and entertaining zoo visitors. When you’re talking about a 4,000-pound [1,800-kg] animal, you have to balance the safety of the animal and the safety of staff with the logistics of the treatment. In Randa’s case, we clearly wanted to eradicate the cancer, but we had to consider where the treatment could be performed and how long it would take. The ability to roll the fully functional Electronic Brachytherapy cancer treatment system into Randa’s habitat gave us the ability to provide quick, safe and accurate treatment. I don’t know that we would have been able to reach such a positive prognosis without it, as there is no way we could have transported Randa to a traditional lead-shielded room for radiation treatment.’
‘We are proud to have made our Electronic Brachytherapy technology available to treat Randa and are especially pleased that she recovered so quickly,’ says Michael Klein, Xoft president and CEO ‘Through its use in the treatment of breast and endometrial cancers, Electronic Brachytherapy has shown the proven ability to deliver a high treatment dose to a cancer tumor while sparing nearby normal tissue. It is very gratifying that advancements in treating cancer in people can now lead to improvements in animal care as well – at the zoo and in general veterinary practices.’
Connect (Association of Zoos and Aquariums), May 2010
Miami Metrozoo, Florida, U.S.A.
After suffering for years from severe bilateral cataracts that had left her virtually blind, a gorilla at the zoo underwent surgery to remove the cataracts and implant new lenses in hopes of restoring her vision.
At 42 years old, Josephine is considered a senior citizen in gorilla society where the average lifespan in the wild is between 35 and 40 years and in captivity around 50. Her advanced age presented significant risks regarding the anesthesia, but the decision was made that those risks were outweighed by the strong possibility that the surgery would significantly increase her quality of life.
Over the past year, Josephine had become increasingly introverted and reclusive. Instead of socializing with the other four (1.3) members of the troop, she would back herself up against the rockwork, off to the side, and seem to be lost in her own world. If others approached, she would become nervous and visibly stressed. Though it is believed that she could distinguish general shapes through light and shadows, she couldn’t see details or colors. The goal of the surgery was to make all that possible again.
The surgical team consisted of Metrozoo’s chief veterinarian, Christine Miller, who served as the anesthesiologist, Dr Lorraine Karpinski and Dr Tim J. Cutler, regional veterinary ophthalmologists, and Dr Frank Spektor, a medical ophthalmologist. Because of the strong similarities between the gorilla eye and the human eye, Dr Spektor was the lead surgeon. The team used the latest technology available to human cataract and implant surgery to perform the procedure. After the cataracts were successfully removed, Dr Spektor implanted new lenses that are identical to those he uses on his human patients. Josephine went through the anesthesia very well and after approximately two hours was returned to a darkened night house for recovery. Though the team felt that the surgery went very well, only time would tell if it would indeed make a difference in Josephine’s life.
For nearly two days she remained in her darkened night house waiting for the effects of the anesthesia and drugs that had dilated her pupils to wear off. On the second day after the surgery, she became much more tolerant of the light and emerged from the darkness to approach one of her keepers. It was a very moving encounter as Josephine gazed at the keeper with pure fascination. She then proceeded to go out onto the exhibit and slowly look all around her. She would stare at trees and follow birds as they flew by. She was fascinated by all the little things she found in the grass and gingerly pick up little pebbles and twigs and stare at them with an expression that seemed to say, ‘I can see!’ Most importantly, she ventured away from the rockwork that had been the main part of her reclusive world and joined the rest of the troop in the center of the exhibit under the shade of the trees on a carpet of grass. It was as if a light switch had been turned on in her life and she was rediscovering a whole new world for the very first time. It moved many of us who observed her to tears. There was no doubt – the procedure was an overwhelming success.
This entire effort is a classic example of the kind of thing zoos can do not only to provide a better quality of life for some of our world’s wildlife, but also to help bring attention to our efforts and include the communities where we exist in those efforts. The lead surgeon, as well as the veterinary ophthalmologists, donated all of their time and expertise. In addition thousands of dollars in supplies and equipment was donated by the company Alcon, a world leader in eye care. This procedure was featured around the world in a variety of media including the Today show, CNN, and the BBC. The bottom line is that we were able to make a huge difference in the life of this gorilla while educating people around the world on what a remarkable animal she is.
Ron Magill in Connect (Association of Zoos and Aquariums), February 2010
Oakland Zoo, California, U.S.A.
The zoo is committed to action for improved global health and the preservation of biodiversity: but how does a zoo with limited resources go about accomplishing such a mission? Creativity – infused with passion, teamwork and lots of imagination – has allowed us to create a holistic approach to conservation support that any zoo could achieve. Let’s consider our support of the Hornbill Research Foundation (HRF) in Thailand.
The Hornbill Nest Adoption Project, part of the HRF, is based in the Budo Sangai-Padi National Park and employs local rural communities to watch over nests of hornbills. This provides a financial incentive for protecting hornbills while instilling a spirit of stewardship for the forest and its wildlife. This is a win-win situation, providing income to the community, protecting the hornbills, and aiding researchers in collecting valuable data about the birds. Since hornbills are seed dispersers, the forests need the hornbill as much as the hornbill needs the forests.
The Oakland Zoo Conservation Fund has supported this successful program through annual grants for many years. To create awareness around hornbill issues, hornbill conservation information has been infused in tours, classes and special events. The founder of the project, Dr Pilai Poonswad, visited the zoo and gave a presentation to our staff, volunteers and community about hornbills and her unique approach to helping them. Our institution’s historic connection to the project provided the foundation for what was to come in summer 2009.
Enlisting the help of Eric Kowalczyk of Woodland Park Zoo, Professor Poonswad and a hornbill research assistant, Pomtip Poolswat, Oakland Zoo expanded our support of HRF by greater breadth and depth. ZooCamp Director Sarah Cramer selected the hornbill and HRF as the mascot animal and project for ZooCamp 2009, thereby designating one dollar of every camper registration a donation to the project. One thousand children spent the summer exploring the zoo in bright orange t-shirts featuring a pair of wreathed hornbills on the front and the HRF logo on the back.
During the week, ZooCampers connected to hornbills in many ways. They visited our beautiful pair of wreathed hornbills and created hornbill crafts. After studying their needs and meeting with zookeepers, ZooCrew teens made hornbill enrichment items. ZooCampers enthusiastically participated in a multi-media presentation called Hornbill Hour, complete with a child-friendly PowerPoint and interactive theater focusing on hornbill behavior and the HRF conservation program.
Families were included in our outreach efforts, as well. Letters explaining the project and the ZooCamp’s support of it were sent home with campers. According to our evaluation forms, 78% of the campers talked to their families about hornbills and 121 families visited HRF’s website (http://en.thaihornbill.org), indicating that we raised awareness for HRF with an audience that otherwise never would have heard about their work.
As an additional fundraising effort, campers were encouraged to bring in a three-dollar donation, for which they were presented with a limited edition gold coin featuring the ZooCamp hornbill logo. We were pleasantly surprised when over half of the families chose to donate.
At the end of the week, each camper earned a hornbill pin through a promise to help the environment or answering questions about hornbills. The wooden, painted pins were made by the Young Bird Conservation Club. Our purchase of 1,300 pins also served as a way to support hornbills and the citizens of Thailand.
Each ZooCamper left camp with increased knowledge and compassion for these incredible birds and, in the end, ZooCamp 2009 raised $3,000 for the Thailand Hornbill Project.
Abridged from Amy Gotliffe, Sarah Cramer and Melinda Sievert in Connect (Association of Zoos and Aquariums), April 2010
Orana Wildlife Park, Christchurch, New Zealand
Orana has opened a new kea aviary. This exciting exhibit, built by our development team, provides the parrots with a healthier home and enables visitors to have a close encounter with these remarkable birds. The aviary is 20 metres long by 17.6 metres wide and reaches 6.8 metres high at the peak. The habitat is designed to resemble a regenerating beech forest and contains fallen trees, roosting posts, a pool, an iron roof and numerous other features for the birds. A large service and isolation area is included for keepers, and the size of the aviary makes it more efficient than the old aviaries for keepers to operate.
Visitors traverse a boardwalk through the aviary and exit the habitat through a musterers’ [shepherd’s] hut which is the main interpretation area.
The habitat demonstrates the intelligence and uniqueness of the species whilst highlighting the fact that the birds are endangered. We want visitors to appreciate the beauty of these parrots and hope to demonstrate how people can help conserve these magnificent birds.
Keas are only found in New Zealand’s Southern Alps. They are classified as ‘Nationally Endangered’, but their wild population is unknown – estimates often range from 1,000 to 5,000 birds. One of the main ways people can assist in kea conservation is by not feeding the birds and ensuring their equipment is secure when entering kea territory.
Call of the Wild (Summer 2009/2010)
Paignton Zoo Environmental Park, U.K.
Six dormice (Muscardinus avellanarius) from Paignton have been sent to London Zoo, where they will be checked by vets before being released at a secret site in the Midlands in June. The reintroductions are part of a collaborative project to reinstate the species – still common in the south-west of England – in ten counties where it was formerly found.
The project involves Natural England, the People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), Paignton Zoo, London Zoo and other captive breeders, as well as release site volunteers and owners. The dormice, who have just started to come out of their winter torpor, were transported by Paignton’s Senior Head Keeper of Mammals, Julian Chapman: ‘I’m dropping off one pair of to a private breeder in Cheddar and taking six more pairs to London Zoo for distribution to other people around the country. We hope they will all breed this year – then they and their offspring will be part of a bigger release next summer.’
Julian and Curator of Mammals Neil Bemment coordinate the Common Dormouse Captive Breeders Group, an association of ten private volunteer breeders and a small number of U.K. zoos which provides animals for Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme. This year’s release will top up numbers at a site where a large release was carried out last year. Monitoring by the PTES has shown that dormice have already bred at the site.
Paignton Zoo press release, 4 May 2010
Randers Regnskov [Rainforest], Denmark
On 10 August 2009 Randers Rainforest became one of the very few zoos in the world – and the only zoo outside the Americas – to have succeeded in breeding the bushmaster (Lachesis muta), the largest viper species in the world.Director Henrik Herold has a soft spot for reptiles in general, and bushmasters in particular. ‘To set a goal and reach it is a fantastic feeling,’ he said. ‘When the goal is breeding something very difficult, the victory is even sweeter. This is a milestone for the Rainforest team, something that can only be achieved through meticulous husbandry and teamwork.’
Bushmasters lay their eggs underground in agouti burrows, so the incubation environment has to mimic the climate found there. From reading articles, keepers found that 26?C, and a near-100% humidity, was optimal. They knew that it would be hard to keep that low a temperature in the summertime, so a room was cooled down, and the incubator moved there. After 72 days, the first bushmaster pipped its egg. The egg tooth was large and sharp, the right tool for slashing through the thick, leathery shell.
From the eight fertile eggs, all the young developed perfectly.
Zooquaria (formerly EAZA News) No. 69 (Spring 2010)
San Diego Zoo, California, U.S.A.
The eyes of the world are focused on the far north as climate change has brought the frozen ocean that the polar bear calls home into the public consciousness. The devastating loss of sea ice, and precarious polar bear populations that absolutely depend on ice to ‘make a living’, have been a call to action for the zoo community. Many zoos are joining forces, both with each other and with the wider conservation community, to address the sobering forces facing polar bears.
For our organization, San Diego Zoo’s Institute for Conservation Research, Polar Bears International (PBI), a non-profit organization devoted to research, stewardship and education, has proved essential for instigating our research program, connecting us to scientists working in the field, and providing much of the funding to conduct our work with this species. In some cases, we apply our inter-disciplinary craft directly to conservation in the field, but in this case it made more sense to address some important information gaps, working in step with field biologists.
Sensory ecology – how organisms use their senses to survive and communicate – was poorly understood for this species and it quickly became apparent that this was a research program well-suited for zoo research, yet relevant to field conservation. Understanding how polar bears perceive their world will help wildlife managers address the escalating impact that human disturbance is having on the animals, as the arctic ‘opens up’ (i.e. melts) and becomes more accessible.
Our story dates back to 2004, when we began a small project to study the reproductive physiology and behavior of polar bears. Although the sample size was small, this study helped uncover some important aspects of reproduction, thus serving as a benchmark for understanding what is normal and abnormal for the species, whether the context is the wild or a zoo setting. At the same time, we were studying the impacts of noise disturbance on giant pandas. The confluence of these two studies made it natural for us to move on to a larger program addressing how noise might impact polar bears in an arctic predicted to become ever noisier.
Although habitat loss driven by climate change is by far the gravest threat to polar bear populations, declines in body condition associated with lost hunting opportunities have left polar bears potentially more susceptible to the negative impacts of human disturbance. This threat is most germane to parturient females denning on the coastal plain of Alaska’s North Slope. This region holds some of the largest petroleum reserves in North America, and it is also where bears from the Southern Beaufort Sea excavate maternal dens in the fall, remaining in them throughout the winter. Overlay the map of denning habitat with that of oil interests and one can readily see that there is the potential for biologically significant disturbance. What are the further impacts to these nutritionally-stressed females, who each year find it harder to capture seals without the sea ice platform they need to hunt and must swim further across the open waters than ever before to reach the denning sites? Noise disturbance in their den refugia may exact a cost in the form of reduced cub survival.
In 2005, we joined forces with PBI again, drew in the bioacoustic expertise of our colleagues at Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute (Carlsbad, California), and began a research program designed to describe the acoustic world of denning polar bears. What can polar bears hear? How much noise from industrial and vehicular activities gets into the maternal den? What is the impact of this noise on mother and cubs?
Generally speaking, the more sensitive a species’ hearing is at a particular frequency, the more likely that noise emitted in that frequency will be disruptive. So, we spent the better part of two and a half years training five polar bears and running them through a behavioral assessment of their hearing. This collaborative research effort produced the first-ever comprehensive description of the hearing range of the polar bear. This study would not have been possible with free-ranging bears and is a great illustration of the contribution that zoo animals can make to conservation research.
The next question we are addressing is: How much noise from industrial activity actually gets through the snow and ice into a polar bear den? There’s not much snow and ice in San Diego, so we are headed to the North Slope of Alaska, where we will test how much and what kinds of noise will make it to a polar bear’s ears inside a den – we dig our own dens, since we are not too keen about placing our instruments in an occupied den. We’ll also map these results onto our findings for polar bear sensitivity to get the full picture of how polar bear mothers and cubs experience noise in their dens. Future studies will involve placement of video cameras in polar bear dens in many AZA zoos and, perhaps, the wild, providing critical insights into how noise may impact maternal care and communication.
This is just one of our research stories that we can share. We are concurrently working on other aspects of polar bear sensory ecology as well. We know, for example, that scent plays an important role in polar bear mate location and courtship, according to anecdotal information from the field. But we don’t know what these scents mean to polar bears nor how a better understanding of scent communication might aid in their management. Collaboration has been the name of the game for this study: the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service collect pedal scents from free-ranging bears and, so far, we have presented these scents (in systematic experimental fashion) to 24 bears residing in eight AZA institutions. Stay tuned for some interesting results.
Abridged from Megan Owen and Ronald R. Swaisgood in Connect (Association of Zoos and Aquariums), May 2010
Smithsonian’s National Zoo, Washington, D.C., U.S.A.
The National Zoo keeps only male Grevy’s zebras, which means no breeding – and no birth – takes place on site. This arrangement is part of the SSP for the species. Eighteen years ago, a panel of SSP scientists determined that the zoo’s Cheetah Conservation Station would serve as a Grevy’s zebra holding facility for juvenile males and young stallions. Only a handful of North American zoos play this role. It’s an unusual situation for the zoo, which normally devotes much time and effort to breeding endangered species. But it benefits our bachelors: by sharing an enclosure now, these highly territorial animals learn to accept another zebra’s presence and build invaluable social skills that will help them get along with future mates.
Now is the opportune time for Gumu and Dante – respectively six and four years old – to breed with mares from other zoos. Last year, National Zoo keepers sent both stallions’ records to the SSP panel, hoping to find them suitable mates. Only 83 individuals were selected for breeding and transfer in 2010, and Dante was one of them. Later this year, he will transfer to a South Dakota zoo, where he will have the opportunity to become a father. Why did the SSP scientists recommend Dante and not Gumu? The answer lies in their genes.
North America is home to 163 Grevy’s zebras in 38 zoos, all of whom descend from an original population of 64 individuals. Each year, the SSP panel collects information about potential male and female breeders. They compile the data in one large matchmaking document, the studbook. Before zebra studs can be matched up with a mate, they are put through a rigorous background check. They must be healthy, sexually mature, and capable of breeding. To ensure a good personality match, keepers detail their zebras’ social needs as well.
An animal’s genetic value, however, tops this list of criteria. The SSP panel reviews a zebra’s entire family history, including all known living and dead relatives. Zebras with small family trees (like Dante) have rarer genes than those with lots of relatives, so they are more likely to be paired with mates. That way, zoos minimize the likelihood of inbreeding.
The SSP scientists’ pickiness pays off. As of 2009, they determined that North America’s Grevy’s zebra population is 97% genetically diverse. This is an exceptionally good record, given that most SSPs for other species aim for a 90% genetic diversity goal.
Soon after Dante moves to South Dakota, two yearling zebras from Tampa’s Busch Gardens will join Gumu on exhibit. It’s common for several young wild males to stick together, so keepers believe the trio will get along. ‘Gumu will probably approach them the same way he approaches Dante – with a little skepticism,’ predicts keeper Kate Volz. ‘As long as they recognize him as the dominant male, which they most likely will, this arrangement shouldn’t pose a problem.’
Visitors sometimes voice surprise that the zoo’s zebras and cheetahs live side by side. Yet the two species are good neighbors. Cheetah biologist Craig Saffoe clarifies the seemingly macabre aspect of this placement: ‘Our cheetahs rarely trouble the zebras, or vice versa. The truth is, cheetahs prefer to hunt prey that weighs close to 100 pounds [45 kg], such as antelope and gazelles.’ Gumu tries to use his color and weight advantages to one-up his cheetah neighbor. He often trots along the fences that separate the two species’ enclosures and watches as the cheetah’s head darts back and forth, following his every strut. ‘These interactions,’ says Saffoe, ‘are part of both species’ enrichment and encourage natural behaviors – at a safe distance, of course.’ Zebras can live up to 30 years in captivity, and such social interaction is key to their well-being and keeps their minds active.Since zebras are neophobic – afraid of new things – they tend to turn to familiar faces for entertainment: one another and their cheetah and scimitar-horned oryx neighbors. When keepers introduce a horse toy, such as a large ball or traffic cone, the stallions generally ignore it.
There is one object, though, that Gumu and Dante toss around without fear: their food bowls. They often engage in tug-of-war battles over the rights to these objects. These keep-away games are subtle displays of dominance. Zoo staff have also watched the twosome throw smaller toys over the fence with such frequency that it’s almost as if they’re playing fetch with their keepers. ‘It’s fascinating to watch their social interactions change as they get older,’ says Volz. ‘Both have such unique and charismatic personalities. That’s why our mission is to show zoo visitors how charming these endangered creatures are and inspire them to care about Grevy’s conservation.’
Abridged from Jennifer Zoon in Smithsonian Zoogoer (January/February 2010)
Sosto Zoo, Nyiregyhaza, Hungary
[A visitor’s report by Anthony D. Sheridan]
The zoo, the second most important in Hungary, was blessed with fine weather on 30 April 2010 for the opening of its new Indonesian Tropical House and Oceanarium, known as the ‘Green Pyramid’. At the same time the new Tarzan Trail, comprising indoor and outdoor gorilla enclosures, together with an African savannah and associated giraffe house and boxes for zebras and antelopes, were officially opened.
In front of several hundred visitors, these exciting new facilities were opened by Gordon Bajnai, the then Prime Minister of Hungary, and Judit Csabai, the Mayoress of Nyiregyhaza, the local city that owns the zoo. They congratulated the zoo on the efficient handling of these major projects and the excellent new facilities being offered both to the new occupants and to the anticipated big increase in visitor numbers that will be attracted to the zoo. The Indonesian ambassador to Hungary, Mangasi Sihombing, emphasised the significance of the Indonesia Tropical House to the growing relationships between the two countries, and the importance attached to the two Komodo dragons from Jakarta Zoo. Dr Bernhard Blaszkiewitz, the Director of the two Berlin zoos, which have the largest collections and numbers of zoo visitors in Europe, congratulated Sosto Zoo on its new ‘zoo within a zoo’, as the Green Pyramid accommodates 57 different species of mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians.
It took only 19 months from approval by the city to actual completion of these major projects, with a total expenditure of only #6.5 million, of which 55% was provided by EU funds. It is remarkable that such extensive and attractive facilities can be constructed for this amount; it would surely cost at least four times as much in the U.K. or Germany.
The Green Pyramid accommodates 4.3 Borneo orang-utans, 1.0 concolor gibbon, 2.1 lar gibbons, 0.1 siamang, 1.1 Komodo dragons, 2 slender-snouted crocodiles, three species of pythons, 31 species of birds, as well as sharks, sting rays and other aquatic species amongst the many exhibits.
Komodo dragons in Sosto Zoo’s new Indonesian Tropical House.
The facility has a ground area internally of 4,000 m2 and a fully translucent roof of 350 m2 m. In addition to the inside exhibits, the building provides housing for Asian elephants and Indian rhinos, both of which have extensive new outside enclosures. Also included are new restaurant and shop facilities.
Visitors to the tropical rainforest building can view exhibits from four levels interconnected by staircases and rope walkways. Rainforest vegetation predominates, and waterfalls and simulated thunder give a genuine tropical feel to the main exhibit area. The Oceanarium area, which is separate but within the same building, includes an impressive 460 m3 shark tank with fine viewing.
The Green Pyramid also includes outdoor enclosures for orang-utans, elephants and rhinos; the restaurant has large windows directly overlooking the main orang-utan enclosure. The 0.3 Asian elephants enjoy a 0.45-ha dry-moated, low-fenced, partly wooded, flat area, while the 2.0 Indian rhinos occupy a neighbouring 0.51-ha similar area. It is intended to add a female rhino in the near future with a view to breeding.
The new Tarzan Trail is viewed from a 300-m raised bamboo walkway. This includes indoor housing and two outdoor enclosures (totalling 1,750 m2) for gorillas, boxes for giraffes, antelopes and zebras, and a delightful varied 1.35-ha African savannah area for Rothschild’s giraffe, Grevy’s zebra, sable antelope, greater kudu, addax and oryx, as well as pelicans and other bird species accommodated in a large lake area. The savannah includes wooded and open areas and water features.
Sosto Zoo, owned by a city of 120,000 in the eastern part of the country, and its Director Mr Laszlo Gajdos, admirably assisted by his Deputy Director Dr Endre Papp, can be proud of these splendid additions to their admirable zoo, now occupying 40 hectares, and including a remarkably large number of big iconic mammal species. They confidently look forward to a major increase in their present 300,000 annual visitors, and deserve a bright future, having come a very long way relatively quickly from their foundation only 14 years ago.
Tama Zoo, Tokyo, Japan
The zoo’s insectarium has been breeding glow worms, the larvae of the insect Arachnocampa richardsae, without introducing new individuals since 1987. Glow worms have a light organ in their belly which attracts small insects, which are then captured by sticky threads hung down from the nest. In the exhibit, a large clay slab is suspended from the ceiling, and the larvae make their nests there.
In spring 2007 there were about 50 larvae in all, and some of them showed luminescence. They were fed by using tweezers to attach fruit flies to their threads. In that year 100 larvae were obtained from a single pair, which were nourished by observing their feeding habits and providing the same amount of food to each one. From this group 25 pairs were formed, and a total of 2,000 larvae were obtained.
To obtain a stable glow, in addition to increasing the number of larvae, it is important to provide a suitable environment. The glow worms prefer a temperature of 20?C, humidity of nearly 100%, and freedom from draughts. Until recently low humidity has been a problem, but improvements to the clay slab and the moisturizer have had very good results. In the following season, 6,000 larvae were born from 70 pairs.
Luminescence is seen during the larval period, so if all pupate at once, there is nothing much to see. As the number of larvae has increased, growth rate differences between individuals have widened to more than six months, so that the luminescence of the exhibit is now fairly stable. On 14 January 2010, copulation in the exhibit hall was seen for the first time, and egg-laying and hatching can also be seen.
English summary of article in Japanese by Ryohei Watanabe, Animals and Zoos Vol. 62, No. 2 (Spring 2010)
News in brief
In 1962 Phoenix Zoo, Arizona, became part of a new initiative, Operation Oryx, one of the first captive-breeding programs in any zoo. Starting with a population of just nine animals, the zoo has made great strides in breeding, establishing new herds at other zoos, and collaborating in releasing oryx back into the wild. This year, it has announced the birth of three (1.2) calves, the 237th, 238th, and 239th to be born there since the program started.
Connect (Association of Zoos and Aquariums), May 2010