Zoo News Digest 13th - 15th June 2011 (Zoo News 761)
Peter Dickinson
Dear Colleague,
Today is World Sea Turtle Day. What is your Aquarium doing?
Almost every week there is something in the press about Orangutans and Palm Oil Plantations. I don't link to all the stories but they are there along with diverse and contradictory opinions. I don't believe that there really can be any argument though that if you chop down a diverse forest and plant a single 'Triffid' tree species that it will mean that all the species which lived there before can no longer live there. Not only can they no longer live there... there is NOWHERE for them to go. Nor will there be....ever again.....ever. Up to now most, but not all, of the Palm Oil problem has been confined to S.E. Asia but now there are plans to chop down one of the oldest rainforests in the world! In Africa. What a truly frightening thought.
The story about the deputy zoo director being abused disturbed me in many ways. Read the article. See what you think.
Today is World Sea Turtle Day. What is your Aquarium doing?
Almost every week there is something in the press about Orangutans and Palm Oil Plantations. I don't link to all the stories but they are there along with diverse and contradictory opinions. I don't believe that there really can be any argument though that if you chop down a diverse forest and plant a single 'Triffid' tree species that it will mean that all the species which lived there before can no longer live there. Not only can they no longer live there... there is NOWHERE for them to go. Nor will there be....ever again.....ever. Up to now most, but not all, of the Palm Oil problem has been confined to S.E. Asia but now there are plans to chop down one of the oldest rainforests in the world! In Africa. What a truly frightening thought.
The story about the deputy zoo director being abused disturbed me in many ways. Read the article. See what you think.
Some Articles You May Have Missed
ANKUS
ISIS Users' Conference - Join the migration
World Sea Turtle Day
Crocodile TRAINING is the way to go
ACCESS TO WILDLIFE INFORMATION SET TO REVOLUTIONISE ANIMAL CARE
ANKUS
ISIS Users' Conference - Join the migration
World Sea Turtle Day
Crocodile TRAINING is the way to go
ACCESS TO WILDLIFE INFORMATION SET TO REVOLUTIONISE ANIMAL CARE
****
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BP Oil Spill Turtles Released Into Gulf
All endangered sea turtles rescued off the coast of Louisiana in the wake of the BP oil spill last year have been released into the Gulf of Mexico.
The 30 turtles, the last of nearly 200 nursed back to health by Audubon Nature Institute of New Orleans, were released into their habitat off the coast of Venice, Louisiana, on Friday, May 27, 2011.
Audubon Nature Institute’s Louisiana Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Rescue Program (LMMSTRP) worked closely with federal and state agencies such as Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, along with zoos and aquariums across the country, to quickly create and operate a highly effective program at Audubon Aquarium’s Aquatics Center to handle the turtles injured in the Deepwater Horizon incident. Most turtles
http://www.auduboninstitute.org/media/releases/bp-oil-spill-turtles-released-gulf
Sea Turtles Released
Disease endangers bat population
Despite their sometimes dubious reputation, bats are one of man's best friends in the animal kingdom, but a devastating disease is killing Pennsylvania's winged denizens of the night in staggering numbers.
Exactly what the impact of losing many of these natural exterminators remains to be seen, but it's safe to say a lot of bugs will not be getting eaten.
"A common female bat ... can eat about 4,500 insects per night," Pennsylvania Game Commission biologist Greg Turner said.
"They're above ground foraging for about 200, 220 days out of the year, so they have the potential to eat 900,000 insects per bat, and then, if we're going to lose millions of bats, that number of insects that are not going to be eaten is astronomical."
Just last week, a coalition of conservation, organic farming and anti-pesticide groups asked Congress to appropriate $10.8 million for research and management of White-Nose
http://www.cumberlink.com/news/local/article_c67ef052-9311-11e0-93ae-001cc4c002e0.html
Crocodiles in Cheshire trained to obey commands
Crocodiles at an aquarium in Cheshire have been trained to obey the commands of their keepers.
The Blue Planet Aquarium in Ellesmere Port said the two reptiles could open and close their mouths and hold out their front legs on demand.
The male and female cuvier's dwarf caimans have also been taught to respond to their names, to stay still and to return to the water, it added.
The training programme is based on a similar scheme in India.
Blue Planet Aquarium's Adam Mitchell said: "We are one of the very few places in the world that have trained our crocodilians. Not a lot of people do it.
Target stick
"It enables us to move them and put them in transport crates and do medical procedures without having to restrain them, which would potentially stress them out.
"Plus handling a dangerous animal can also be dangerous for us."
The cuvier's dwarf caimans are the smallest of the crocodilian species The crocodiles, a male called Paleo and a female called Suchus, have been trained
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-13730012
Fresno Zoo works to improve nutrition for animals
Every day at Fresno Chaffee Zoo, food is chopped, sliced and diced for hundreds of hungry mouths.
It's not happening at the snack bar. This is an industrial kitchen where getting that food to the animals takes hours of preparation.
Zookeepers can't just toss raw meat or a bucketful of grain at feeding time. And now Chaffee Zoo is getting help to make sure it is providing its animals the best possible nutrition.
Chaffee is the first zoo in the U.S. to join with the San Diego Zoo in a program to improve animal nutrition, said Michael Schlegel, director of nutritional services for the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park.
Schlegel will help guide Chaffee through its hundreds of different meals that meet specific dietary needs
http://www.fresnobee.com/2011/06/12/2424811/fresno-chaffee-zoo-looks-to-improve.html
Devon park operator secures Zoo Licence
Maximum Fun Holdings (MFH), the group which operates Crealy Great Adventure Park in Devon, has been successful in its application to the local authority for a Zoo Licence.
Devon County Council's decision to grant the licence will allow MFH to add exotic animals to the existing visitor offer at the attraction near Exeter.
A breeding pair of meerkats have become the first animals to go on show at Devon's Crealy Great Adventure Park, with marmoset monkeys due to arrive at the park in due course.
MFH managing director Rod Pearson said: "To receive our licence we have had to meet stringent criteria and ensure we have the resources to meet conservation standards at the zoo, as
http://www.attractionsmanagement.com/detail1.cfm?pagetype=detail&subject=news&codeID=263723&site=AM&dom=N
Deadly amphibian disease found in Panama
A fast-spreading amphibian disease reached the last disease-free region of Central America, National Zoo scientists in Washington said Monday.
The discovery of chytridiomycosis in Panama's Darien region is troublesome for the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project, a consortium of nine U.S. and Panamanian institution trying to rescue 20 species of frogs in danger of extinction, the zoo said Monday in a release.
Chytridiomycosis has been tied to seep population drops and the extinction of amphibian species worldwide.
"We would like to save all of the species in the Darien, but there isn't time to do that now," said Brian Gratwicke, biologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute and coordinator for the Panama project. "Our project is one of a few to take an active stance against the probable extinction of these species."
In 2007, Doug Woodhams, a research associate at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, tested 49 frogs at a site bordering the Darien region
http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2011/06/13/Deadly-amphibian-disease-found-in-Panama/UPI-62561308008299/
Scottsbluff zoo moves animals
Volunteers swarmed into the Riverside Zoo in Scottsbluff Monday morning after increasing floodwaters made a lake out of the employee parking area and caused a small stream to form around the education building.
Riverside Discovery Center Executive Director Anne James said floodwaters began invading the zoo property Sunday afternoon, and by Monday morning, about 6 to 12 inches of water covered much of the employee parking lot. In addition, the education building is surrounded by water.
Volunteers transferred animal food to a refrigerator truck and moved all items from the education building to the front office. James said a trailer will be used for storage.
She said that nearly all the animals have been moved to the quarantine/hospital building, which sits on higher ground, but that the hoof stock would remain in enclosures, along with the chimpanzees and large cats.
“The animals are all where they need to be for a high-water event,” James said.
She said Roger Rojas of Oregon Trail Plumbing would dig a trench where the water is coming in to slow the amount of water entering the zoo. Rojas is a Riverside Discovery
http://www.omaha.com/article/20110614/NEWS01/706149929
Merced zoo backers fear worst if city halts funding
The city's budget crisis has now invaded the Applegate Park Zoo, and some of the zoo's supporters warn that the financial crunch could mean killing some of the animals.
Not so fast, city officials retort. They're just trying to cover the budget shortfall and have no immediate plans to close the popular attraction in the center of the city.
The Merced Zoological Society may have to cover as much as half of its
http://www.modbee.com/2011/06/13/1731239/merced-zoo-backers-fear-worst.html
Dublin Zoo 'most visited' Irish attraction
Fáilte Ireland has confirmed that Dublin Zoo was the country's most visited attraction - both fee-paying and non fee-paying - in 2010, welcoming more than 960,000 people.
According to the tourism agency's latest figures, Dublin Zoo reported a 7 per cent growth in visitor numbers - compared with nearly 900,000 for the previous year.
Dublin's Guinness Storehouse welcomed 930,000 visitors in 2010 - down from more than 1 million in 2009, while more than 720,000 visited the National Aquatic Centre.
The capital's National Gallery of Ireland was revealed to be the top non fee-paying attraction, with nearly 737,000 visitors - down from more than 782,000 in 2009.
Fáilte Ireland said that, overall, the top 10 fee-paying and top 10 non fee-paying sites reported a decline of 2.6 per cent in the number of visitor numbers for 2010.
However, the agency also revealed that half of all Irish tourism operators believe that business performance is poised to improve this year, compared with 7 per cent in 2008.
It is one of the main findings
http://www.attractionsmanagement.com/detail1.cfm?pagetype=detail&subject=news&codeID=263623&site=AM&dom=N
DEP: Slain Mountain Lion Was Held in Captivity
The state Department of Environmental Protection’s police unit is investigating whether a mountain lion killed on the Merritt Parkway in Milford over the weekend escaped from illegal captivity — despite the fact that the animal had no physical signs of being domesticated.
“Our division is actively investigating this case as a violation of Connecticut laws,” said Lt. Kyle Overturf, of the state Environmental Conservation Police. “We really need the public’s help on this case
http://southington.patch.com/articles/dep-slain-mountain-lion-was-held-in-captivity-18
Zookeeper hospitalised after bear attack at Ähtäri Zoo
Another keeper came to victim's rescue, chasing the bear away
bear attacked a female zookeeper at the Ähtäri Zoo and Wildlife Park in Ostrobothnia on Monday, as she was working indoors at the bear enclosure.
When the zookeepers are working indoors, the bears are confined to the outdoor enclosure.
For some reason as yet unclear, a young female bear of two years managed to get into the indoor working space, where it attacked the zookeeper. Another keeper came to help.
Together the two zookeepers managed to shoo the bear into a confined space in order to make their escape.
The victim of the bear attack was taken to the Ähtäri Hospital for medical treatment, where she had to be operated on. The other keeper who had come to her assistance sustained minor injuries and was examined at the local health centre.
”The attack victim sustained scratches from bear claws, but her condition is stable. The bear that was locked in the confined place was anaesthetized. The animal was later taken back to its own enclosure”, Ähtäri Zoo intendant Mauno Seppäkoski reports.
According to Seppäkoski, nothing similar has ever happened previously in the Wildlife Park.
Later on, there will be a more detailed investigation of exactly how the bear had managed to get ind
http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Zookeeper+hospitalised+after+bear+attack+at+Ähtäri+Zoo/1135266896509
Time to shut down Johor's Saleng Zoo
The Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers (Mycat), comprising the Malaysian Nature Society (MNS), TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) – Malaysia Programme and WWF-Malaysia, commends the Department of Wildlife and National Parks Peninsular Malaysia (Perhilitan) on their decision to not renew the operating permit of Saleng Zoo in Johor.
Over the years, the zoo has been in the spotlight for various run-ins with the law and has been the subject of many public complaints. The most shocking find by Perhilitan was the 21 dead tiger cubs in its freezer in 2008.
Among the zoo's other previous offences is possession of wildlife without permits including a baby elephant, two slow lorises, a Tomistoma and a number of pythons and storks which were seized by Perhilitan in various raids. The zoo owner also claimed in an interview in December 2008 that Perhilitan has seized more than 20 animals from his zoo in the past six to seven years.
It has been known to rent its tiger cubs for appearances and 'roadshows' - a violation of the law in which the wildlife permit is attached to the animal at the stated premise only, which means that it cannot be taken from one place to another.
In terms of evidence, these compounding offences alone give Perhilitan enough reasons to shut down Saleng Zoo.
We request that Perhilitan disclose records of Saleng Zoo's past cases that have been settled and compounded, pending cases especially the case of the dead tiger cubs, and other offences such as the breeding and hybridisation of protected wildlife.
MYCAT urges Natural Resources and Environment Minister Douglas Uggah Embas to boldly pursue zoos that repeatedly flout our laws and ensure that the owners are never granted a special permit again.
MYCAT calls upon the public to support current efforts to evaluate zoos, and demand strong action against errant zoos. This is the time for members of the public, who had asked for better protection for captive animals, to walk the talk and make your voice heard. We need to make sure that these establishments are closed, and will remain closed, as too many chances have been given in the past, with the only result being that the offender repeatedly violates wildlife laws time and again.
We also call upon the media to cease publicising Saleng and other zoos which are known offenders.
With the passing of the strengthened Wildlife Conservation Act 2010, Malaysians have a real chance to clean up our act in an organised and legal way to
http://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/166977
Zoo deputy director assaulted
The deputy director of Alipore zoo, Piyali Chattopadhyay, was allegedly assaulted by a section of employees who barged into her chamber on Monday afternoon.
Led by a union leader at the zoo, the workers gheraod her and punched and slapped her repeatedly, alleged Chattopadhyay. She rushed to director Raju Das' room where the workers followed her and slapped her again. An FIR was filed at the Watgunge police station against four members of the Kolkata Zoological Garden Employees' Federation.
The deputy director had been suspended last month on charges of leaking out official documents. The charge was later withdrawn and she was reinstated on May 26. On June 6, she resumed duty. "I was in the middle of a discussion with our accountant Chandicharan Santra when union leader Rakesh Singh forced into my chamber. He was accompanied by about a dozen men. They started abusing me and then charged at me. I was punched and slapped. Singh snatched away my dupatta and tore it. He
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Zoo-deputy-director-assaulted/articleshow/8856881.cms
Sanctuary director in scathing attack
Monkey World director Dr Alison Cronin has launched a stinging attack on the research of a visiting American academic and has urged students in the south to boycott her lecture.
The University of Portsmouth is hosting a visit on Wednesday by Professor Sally Boysen from the Department of Psychology at Ohio State University.
Her lecture on ‘chimpanzee intelligence’ is the result of 35 years of researching the creatures, say university chiefs.
But Dr Cronin says such research is unnecessary and has been conducted at the expense of orphaned chimpanzees that have been removed from their mothers at birth and are then trained to participate in sign language and cognitive experiments.
“In the name of science, this type of research into the intelligence of the great apes has been ongoing since the 1960s and there have not been any significant findings over the past
http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/9082458.Sanctuary_director_in_scathing_attack/
Health Checks At The Zoo (Great Video)
http://www.itv.com/central-east/health-checks-at-the-zoo77220/
Great day out at Chester Zoo carnivorous plants show
ONE of the greatest collections of carnivorous plants ever displayed will go on show at Chester Zoo this summer.
Leading experts from across Europe will descend on the zoo for the two-day exhibition as part of the European Carnivorous Plant Expo – seen as Europe’s showpiece carnivorous plant event.
Visitors on July 2 and 3 will enjoy a rare chance to see the bizarre collections close up and explore a specially built carnivorous plant village.
Tim Bailey, chairman of the UK Carnivorous Plant Society, who has the job of organising this year’s event, said: “The event will bring together the biggest display
http://www.wirralnews.co.uk/wirral-news/local-wirral-news/2011/06/15/great-day-out-at-chester-zoo-carniverous-plants-show-80491-28873781/
The bird that may explain why people are unfaithful
It may not work for Ryan Giggs but as a get-out clause for philandering finches it is just about perfect: I can't help cheating, it's in my genes.
Scientists studying the sexual behaviour of zebra finches have discovered that promiscuity is passed down through generations, providing an insight into how an animal's genetic make-up may influence its willingness to take multiple partners.
Like mourning doves and swans, zebra finches generally form lifelong relationships with a single partner. But
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/the-bird-that-may-explain-why-people-are-unfaithful-2297556.html
Joe Biden versus the Desert Tortoise
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden sent me an email today about cutting government waste.
“There’s a new sheriff in town,” read the subject line of the email.
Great, I thought, finally someone’s going to saddle up and lasso a few of those sacred cows -- Social Security, Medicare, runaway military spending -- that are killing our country’s budget. Like Gary Cooper in “High Noon,” Biden, six-shooter at the ready, was going to stand up to the implacable enemies of a balanced budget, no matter how tough it got. I could hear heavy, authoritative steps and spurs jing
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/blog/2011/06/joe-biden-versus-the-desert-tortoise.html?page=all
BP Oil Spill Turtles Released Into Gulf
All endangered sea turtles rescued off the coast of Louisiana in the wake of the BP oil spill last year have been released into the Gulf of Mexico.
The 30 turtles, the last of nearly 200 nursed back to health by Audubon Nature Institute of New Orleans, were released into their habitat off the coast of Venice, Louisiana, on Friday, May 27, 2011.
Audubon Nature Institute’s Louisiana Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Rescue Program (LMMSTRP) worked closely with federal and state agencies such as Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, along with zoos and aquariums across the country, to quickly create and operate a highly effective program at Audubon Aquarium’s Aquatics Center to handle the turtles injured in the Deepwater Horizon incident. Most turtles
http://www.auduboninstitute.org/media/releases/bp-oil-spill-turtles-released-gulf
Sea Turtles Released
Disease endangers bat population
Despite their sometimes dubious reputation, bats are one of man's best friends in the animal kingdom, but a devastating disease is killing Pennsylvania's winged denizens of the night in staggering numbers.
Exactly what the impact of losing many of these natural exterminators remains to be seen, but it's safe to say a lot of bugs will not be getting eaten.
"A common female bat ... can eat about 4,500 insects per night," Pennsylvania Game Commission biologist Greg Turner said.
"They're above ground foraging for about 200, 220 days out of the year, so they have the potential to eat 900,000 insects per bat, and then, if we're going to lose millions of bats, that number of insects that are not going to be eaten is astronomical."
Just last week, a coalition of conservation, organic farming and anti-pesticide groups asked Congress to appropriate $10.8 million for research and management of White-Nose
http://www.cumberlink.com/news/local/article_c67ef052-9311-11e0-93ae-001cc4c002e0.html
Crocodiles in Cheshire trained to obey commands
Crocodiles at an aquarium in Cheshire have been trained to obey the commands of their keepers.
The Blue Planet Aquarium in Ellesmere Port said the two reptiles could open and close their mouths and hold out their front legs on demand.
The male and female cuvier's dwarf caimans have also been taught to respond to their names, to stay still and to return to the water, it added.
The training programme is based on a similar scheme in India.
Blue Planet Aquarium's Adam Mitchell said: "We are one of the very few places in the world that have trained our crocodilians. Not a lot of people do it.
Target stick
"It enables us to move them and put them in transport crates and do medical procedures without having to restrain them, which would potentially stress them out.
"Plus handling a dangerous animal can also be dangerous for us."
The cuvier's dwarf caimans are the smallest of the crocodilian species The crocodiles, a male called Paleo and a female called Suchus, have been trained
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-13730012
Fresno Zoo works to improve nutrition for animals
Every day at Fresno Chaffee Zoo, food is chopped, sliced and diced for hundreds of hungry mouths.
It's not happening at the snack bar. This is an industrial kitchen where getting that food to the animals takes hours of preparation.
Zookeepers can't just toss raw meat or a bucketful of grain at feeding time. And now Chaffee Zoo is getting help to make sure it is providing its animals the best possible nutrition.
Chaffee is the first zoo in the U.S. to join with the San Diego Zoo in a program to improve animal nutrition, said Michael Schlegel, director of nutritional services for the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park.
Schlegel will help guide Chaffee through its hundreds of different meals that meet specific dietary needs
http://www.fresnobee.com/2011/06/12/2424811/fresno-chaffee-zoo-looks-to-improve.html
Devon park operator secures Zoo Licence
Maximum Fun Holdings (MFH), the group which operates Crealy Great Adventure Park in Devon, has been successful in its application to the local authority for a Zoo Licence.
Devon County Council's decision to grant the licence will allow MFH to add exotic animals to the existing visitor offer at the attraction near Exeter.
A breeding pair of meerkats have become the first animals to go on show at Devon's Crealy Great Adventure Park, with marmoset monkeys due to arrive at the park in due course.
MFH managing director Rod Pearson said: "To receive our licence we have had to meet stringent criteria and ensure we have the resources to meet conservation standards at the zoo, as
http://www.attractionsmanagement.com/detail1.cfm?pagetype=detail&subject=news&codeID=263723&site=AM&dom=N
Deadly amphibian disease found in Panama
A fast-spreading amphibian disease reached the last disease-free region of Central America, National Zoo scientists in Washington said Monday.
The discovery of chytridiomycosis in Panama's Darien region is troublesome for the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project, a consortium of nine U.S. and Panamanian institution trying to rescue 20 species of frogs in danger of extinction, the zoo said Monday in a release.
Chytridiomycosis has been tied to seep population drops and the extinction of amphibian species worldwide.
"We would like to save all of the species in the Darien, but there isn't time to do that now," said Brian Gratwicke, biologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute and coordinator for the Panama project. "Our project is one of a few to take an active stance against the probable extinction of these species."
In 2007, Doug Woodhams, a research associate at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, tested 49 frogs at a site bordering the Darien region
http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2011/06/13/Deadly-amphibian-disease-found-in-Panama/UPI-62561308008299/
Scottsbluff zoo moves animals
Volunteers swarmed into the Riverside Zoo in Scottsbluff Monday morning after increasing floodwaters made a lake out of the employee parking area and caused a small stream to form around the education building.
Riverside Discovery Center Executive Director Anne James said floodwaters began invading the zoo property Sunday afternoon, and by Monday morning, about 6 to 12 inches of water covered much of the employee parking lot. In addition, the education building is surrounded by water.
Volunteers transferred animal food to a refrigerator truck and moved all items from the education building to the front office. James said a trailer will be used for storage.
She said that nearly all the animals have been moved to the quarantine/hospital building, which sits on higher ground, but that the hoof stock would remain in enclosures, along with the chimpanzees and large cats.
“The animals are all where they need to be for a high-water event,” James said.
She said Roger Rojas of Oregon Trail Plumbing would dig a trench where the water is coming in to slow the amount of water entering the zoo. Rojas is a Riverside Discovery
http://www.omaha.com/article/20110614/NEWS01/706149929
Merced zoo backers fear worst if city halts funding
The city's budget crisis has now invaded the Applegate Park Zoo, and some of the zoo's supporters warn that the financial crunch could mean killing some of the animals.
Not so fast, city officials retort. They're just trying to cover the budget shortfall and have no immediate plans to close the popular attraction in the center of the city.
The Merced Zoological Society may have to cover as much as half of its
http://www.modbee.com/2011/06/13/1731239/merced-zoo-backers-fear-worst.html
Dublin Zoo 'most visited' Irish attraction
Fáilte Ireland has confirmed that Dublin Zoo was the country's most visited attraction - both fee-paying and non fee-paying - in 2010, welcoming more than 960,000 people.
According to the tourism agency's latest figures, Dublin Zoo reported a 7 per cent growth in visitor numbers - compared with nearly 900,000 for the previous year.
Dublin's Guinness Storehouse welcomed 930,000 visitors in 2010 - down from more than 1 million in 2009, while more than 720,000 visited the National Aquatic Centre.
The capital's National Gallery of Ireland was revealed to be the top non fee-paying attraction, with nearly 737,000 visitors - down from more than 782,000 in 2009.
Fáilte Ireland said that, overall, the top 10 fee-paying and top 10 non fee-paying sites reported a decline of 2.6 per cent in the number of visitor numbers for 2010.
However, the agency also revealed that half of all Irish tourism operators believe that business performance is poised to improve this year, compared with 7 per cent in 2008.
It is one of the main findings
http://www.attractionsmanagement.com/detail1.cfm?pagetype=detail&subject=news&codeID=263623&site=AM&dom=N
DEP: Slain Mountain Lion Was Held in Captivity
The state Department of Environmental Protection’s police unit is investigating whether a mountain lion killed on the Merritt Parkway in Milford over the weekend escaped from illegal captivity — despite the fact that the animal had no physical signs of being domesticated.
“Our division is actively investigating this case as a violation of Connecticut laws,” said Lt. Kyle Overturf, of the state Environmental Conservation Police. “We really need the public’s help on this case
http://southington.patch.com/articles/dep-slain-mountain-lion-was-held-in-captivity-18
Zookeeper hospitalised after bear attack at Ähtäri Zoo
Another keeper came to victim's rescue, chasing the bear away
bear attacked a female zookeeper at the Ähtäri Zoo and Wildlife Park in Ostrobothnia on Monday, as she was working indoors at the bear enclosure.
When the zookeepers are working indoors, the bears are confined to the outdoor enclosure.
For some reason as yet unclear, a young female bear of two years managed to get into the indoor working space, where it attacked the zookeeper. Another keeper came to help.
Together the two zookeepers managed to shoo the bear into a confined space in order to make their escape.
The victim of the bear attack was taken to the Ähtäri Hospital for medical treatment, where she had to be operated on. The other keeper who had come to her assistance sustained minor injuries and was examined at the local health centre.
”The attack victim sustained scratches from bear claws, but her condition is stable. The bear that was locked in the confined place was anaesthetized. The animal was later taken back to its own enclosure”, Ähtäri Zoo intendant Mauno Seppäkoski reports.
According to Seppäkoski, nothing similar has ever happened previously in the Wildlife Park.
Later on, there will be a more detailed investigation of exactly how the bear had managed to get ind
http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Zookeeper+hospitalised+after+bear+attack+at+Ähtäri+Zoo/1135266896509
Time to shut down Johor's Saleng Zoo
The Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers (Mycat), comprising the Malaysian Nature Society (MNS), TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) – Malaysia Programme and WWF-Malaysia, commends the Department of Wildlife and National Parks Peninsular Malaysia (Perhilitan) on their decision to not renew the operating permit of Saleng Zoo in Johor.
Over the years, the zoo has been in the spotlight for various run-ins with the law and has been the subject of many public complaints. The most shocking find by Perhilitan was the 21 dead tiger cubs in its freezer in 2008.
Among the zoo's other previous offences is possession of wildlife without permits including a baby elephant, two slow lorises, a Tomistoma and a number of pythons and storks which were seized by Perhilitan in various raids. The zoo owner also claimed in an interview in December 2008 that Perhilitan has seized more than 20 animals from his zoo in the past six to seven years.
It has been known to rent its tiger cubs for appearances and 'roadshows' - a violation of the law in which the wildlife permit is attached to the animal at the stated premise only, which means that it cannot be taken from one place to another.
In terms of evidence, these compounding offences alone give Perhilitan enough reasons to shut down Saleng Zoo.
We request that Perhilitan disclose records of Saleng Zoo's past cases that have been settled and compounded, pending cases especially the case of the dead tiger cubs, and other offences such as the breeding and hybridisation of protected wildlife.
MYCAT urges Natural Resources and Environment Minister Douglas Uggah Embas to boldly pursue zoos that repeatedly flout our laws and ensure that the owners are never granted a special permit again.
MYCAT calls upon the public to support current efforts to evaluate zoos, and demand strong action against errant zoos. This is the time for members of the public, who had asked for better protection for captive animals, to walk the talk and make your voice heard. We need to make sure that these establishments are closed, and will remain closed, as too many chances have been given in the past, with the only result being that the offender repeatedly violates wildlife laws time and again.
We also call upon the media to cease publicising Saleng and other zoos which are known offenders.
With the passing of the strengthened Wildlife Conservation Act 2010, Malaysians have a real chance to clean up our act in an organised and legal way to
http://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/166977
Zoo deputy director assaulted
The deputy director of Alipore zoo, Piyali Chattopadhyay, was allegedly assaulted by a section of employees who barged into her chamber on Monday afternoon.
Led by a union leader at the zoo, the workers gheraod her and punched and slapped her repeatedly, alleged Chattopadhyay. She rushed to director Raju Das' room where the workers followed her and slapped her again. An FIR was filed at the Watgunge police station against four members of the Kolkata Zoological Garden Employees' Federation.
The deputy director had been suspended last month on charges of leaking out official documents. The charge was later withdrawn and she was reinstated on May 26. On June 6, she resumed duty. "I was in the middle of a discussion with our accountant Chandicharan Santra when union leader Rakesh Singh forced into my chamber. He was accompanied by about a dozen men. They started abusing me and then charged at me. I was punched and slapped. Singh snatched away my dupatta and tore it. He
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Zoo-deputy-director-assaulted/articleshow/8856881.cms
Sanctuary director in scathing attack
Monkey World director Dr Alison Cronin has launched a stinging attack on the research of a visiting American academic and has urged students in the south to boycott her lecture.
The University of Portsmouth is hosting a visit on Wednesday by Professor Sally Boysen from the Department of Psychology at Ohio State University.
Her lecture on ‘chimpanzee intelligence’ is the result of 35 years of researching the creatures, say university chiefs.
But Dr Cronin says such research is unnecessary and has been conducted at the expense of orphaned chimpanzees that have been removed from their mothers at birth and are then trained to participate in sign language and cognitive experiments.
“In the name of science, this type of research into the intelligence of the great apes has been ongoing since the 1960s and there have not been any significant findings over the past
http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/9082458.Sanctuary_director_in_scathing_attack/
Panthera Newsletter - June 2011
Health Checks At The Zoo (Great Video)
http://www.itv.com/central-east/health-checks-at-the-zoo77220/
Great day out at Chester Zoo carnivorous plants show
ONE of the greatest collections of carnivorous plants ever displayed will go on show at Chester Zoo this summer.
Leading experts from across Europe will descend on the zoo for the two-day exhibition as part of the European Carnivorous Plant Expo – seen as Europe’s showpiece carnivorous plant event.
Visitors on July 2 and 3 will enjoy a rare chance to see the bizarre collections close up and explore a specially built carnivorous plant village.
Tim Bailey, chairman of the UK Carnivorous Plant Society, who has the job of organising this year’s event, said: “The event will bring together the biggest display
http://www.wirralnews.co.uk/wirral-news/local-wirral-news/2011/06/15/great-day-out-at-chester-zoo-carniverous-plants-show-80491-28873781/
The bird that may explain why people are unfaithful
It may not work for Ryan Giggs but as a get-out clause for philandering finches it is just about perfect: I can't help cheating, it's in my genes.
Scientists studying the sexual behaviour of zebra finches have discovered that promiscuity is passed down through generations, providing an insight into how an animal's genetic make-up may influence its willingness to take multiple partners.
Like mourning doves and swans, zebra finches generally form lifelong relationships with a single partner. But
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/the-bird-that-may-explain-why-people-are-unfaithful-2297556.html
Joe Biden versus the Desert Tortoise
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden sent me an email today about cutting government waste.
“There’s a new sheriff in town,” read the subject line of the email.
Great, I thought, finally someone’s going to saddle up and lasso a few of those sacred cows -- Social Security, Medicare, runaway military spending -- that are killing our country’s budget. Like Gary Cooper in “High Noon,” Biden, six-shooter at the ready, was going to stand up to the implacable enemies of a balanced budget, no matter how tough it got. I could hear heavy, authoritative steps and spurs jing
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/blog/2011/06/joe-biden-versus-the-desert-tortoise.html?page=all
ELEPHANT ENRICHMENT
Competition between females leads to infanticide in some primates
An international team of scientists, with Spanish participation, has shed light on cannibalism and infanticide carried out by primates, documenting these acts for the first time in the moustached tamarin (Saguinus mystax). The mothers, which cannot raise their infants without help from male group members, commit infanticide in order to prevent the subsequent death of their offspring if they are stressed and in competition with other females.
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-06-competition-females-infanticide-primates.html
Hyena attack boy undergoes surgery
There were no signs put up to warn pupils that they should not take food into their tents at the Sontuli Camp in Imfolozi Game Reserve, Thomas More College principal Shane Cuthbertson said yesterday.
He was speaking after one of his pupils, Nicholas Hudson, 13, was mauled by a hyena in the game reserve at the weekend. A group of 40 pupils were on a sports tour of Zululand when a hyena tore into the Grade 7 pupil’s tent, attacking him while other pupils watched.
Nicholas was taken to the Bay Hospital in Richards Bay, where he underwent surgery on Sunday and yesterday.
Cuthbertson said it was not true that staff at the park had warned the pupils not to take food to their tents. “There are no signs anywhere warning pupils or anybody else that they should not take food into their tents,” he said.
Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife spokeswoman Maureen
http://www.themercury.co.za/hyena-attack-boy-undergoes-surgery-1.1083139
Animal trade threatens bears
In 1902, former American president Theodore Roosevelt went to Mississippi with his friends to hunt for bears. All his friends could manage to hunt something down, except for Roosevelt. The next day, there was a cartoon in the Washington Post, where there was an American black bear caught by his attendants and Roosevelt was asked to kill it, but he refused to kill the bear. This cartoon character of the bear soon started selling by the name of Teddy bear by a toy company. Roosevelt’s nickname was Teddy. There is no child who does not like Teddy bear. There is no nature lover who has not appreciated the WWF mascot, which is a panda bear. Baloo (a sloth bear) is one of the favourites of all The Jungle Book, written by Rudyard Kipling, lovers. However, in reality, many know very little about them.
There are eight recognised species of bears in the world. Out of these, four are found in India — the Indian sloth bear, Asiatic black bear, brown bear and the sun bear. The others are the American black bear in north America, spectacled bear living in south America, the giant panda in China and the polar bear in the arctic region.
Of the four species found in our country, just the sloth bear is endemic, while the rest are found in other regions too. Two continents famous for wildlife — Africa and Australia, do not have any bear population, but yes, bears are not found in Antarctica too. Bear guards the health of the forest, as its primary food is termite. With the gigantic three-inches-long claws, the bear digs out mounds of termites and uses the lips like a vacuum cleaner nozzle to suck up the termites and during this time, they are capable of closing their nostrils to keep dirt away. We all know the relation between bear and honey; the thick fur prevents the bear from honeybee stings. However, a sloth bear’s main food can
http://www.mydigitalfc.com/leisure-writing/animal-trade-threatens-bears-731
India’s Human-Elephant Conflict Rages
Last week, two elephants ran amok in the city of Mysore, killing a man and injuring several others. The two elephants, which were separated from their herd on the outskirts of the city, also injured and mauled many cows.
The incident once again highlights the fragile nature of the co-existence between people and elephants – a relationship that is becoming increasingly strained as human development impinges on the natural habitat of the animals.
There are some 26,000 wild elephants in India. According to a report by the Elephant Task Force, which was set up in 2010, roughly 400 people in India are killed every year by elephants. Retaliatory killings lead to 100 elephant deaths, on average, while many others are poisoned by farmers trying to protect their crops.
The number of elephant attacks in India is on the rise, especially in the country’s northeast and south, where the majority of wild elephants live. In 2008, an elephant killed three people at a temple ceremony in Kerala, and in December 2010 a herd of 70 elephants – intoxicated after drinking from barrels of rice beer – went on a drunken rampage through a village, killing four people and destroying 60 h
http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2011/06/14/india’s-human-elephant-conflict-rages/
Letter: Orangutans need protection
The Jakarta Post (May 17) had a photograph of two female orangutans, both with babies clinging to them, enduring a “parade ride” at the Ragunan zoo during a public holiday. I suppose that day was chosen because visitor numbers are at their highest.
I can only describe this picture as greatly upsetting. How can any zoo, or other establishment which confines animals, call it educational or informative to subject these intelligent and sensitive great apes to such a pointless, dangerous and exploitative experience?
Have the multitude of visitors surrounding the four orangutans all been screened for TB, common cold and flu viruses before entering the zoo?
I very much doubt it. The two adult orangutans look stressed and unhappy in the photo. It must have been extremely hot, uncomfortable and confusing for them with a crowd so close by. Goodness knows how the young orangutans must have felt amongst all the noise and commotion.
Orangutans are not clowns or objects to be poked fun at. They are deeply curious, thoughtful and clever beings who are now on the brink of extinction.
We are going to lose them soon. In my view, the few that
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/06/15/letter-orangutans-need-protection.html
RAGUNAN ZOO
Oldest rainforest in the world to become a palm oil plantation
In Cameroon, 60,000 hectares of rainforest are to be cleared for a palm oil plantation. Kenya, Liberia, the Ivory Coast and other African countries have already given large areas of their rainforests up to palm oil plantations. The Blackstone Group now wishes to cultivate palm oil in Cameroon as well. As a result of this project, one of the oldest rainforests on the planet could be destroyed forever. The palm oil will primarily be produced for European industry.
One of the oldest rainforests could be destroyed forever
In Southwest Cameroon, one of the oldest and most bio-diverse rainforests on the planet is facing destruction. The area planted for logging directly borders the Korup National Park and the
http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=12166
Marin turtle's trek has biologists amazed
A western pond turtle appears to have made an incredible journey across Marin County in the past two years, traveling some 18 miles and making his way around large dams on a trek from Ross to near Point Reyes Station.
"It does seem hard to believe, but it is possible," said Eric Ettlinger, a Marin Municipal Water District aquatic ecologist. "If he did, it was done very slowly."
It was Ettlinger who first marked the turtle -- known as Turtle No. 9 -- in 2004 at Phoenix Lake near Ross. The same turtle was recaptured in 2009 at Phoenix Lake, measured and released back into the lake.
This past April, Ettlinger was near Point Reyes Station on Lagunitas Creek measuring, weighing and observing coho salmon. The fish are caught in a large rotary screw trap in a cascading portion of the creek. Researchers remove the fish daily and place them
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_18230060?nclick_check=1
No Ape is an Island
(though sometimes must live on one)
http://savetheorangutan.org.uk/newsletter/islanduni.html
Pioneer George barred the bars from Chester Zoo
The man pictured laying bricks with a chimpanzee is George Mottershead – the founder of Chester Zoo and one of Sale's famous sons. The story goes that George, on visiting the long-gone Belle Vue Zoo as a child, became so upset at seeing large animals in cages he told his father he would one day create a zoo without bars.
This comment is featured in most histories of the zoo, but a lesser known fact about George is that he is from Sale – a fact rediscovered by another George.
Historian and author George Cogswell has published a book about George’s life and his connection to Sale, which coincided with the zoo’s 80th anniversary celebrations.
George said: "I had an immediate empathy with George.
"His dislike for the Belle Vue zoo and the conditions in which animals were housed there had a familiar ring about it from my own personal experiences as a lad at the London Zoo."
George was born at 33 Lindow Terrace, now Lindow Street, in Sale Moor in 1894, to botanist Albert and Lucy and was baptised at St Ann’s Church.
The family, who later moved to Old Hall Street, visited Belle Vue Zoo to celebrate the end of the Boer War, where George was struck by the sight of an elephant standing in a foul-smelling building, its face pressed against thick iron bars.
It was an image that would
http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1423744_pioneer-george-barred-the-bars-from-chester-zoo
Chester Zoo launches national animal charity Act For Wildlife
CHESTER Zoo is launching an online global conservation charity.
The flagship charity is called Act for Wildlife and the zoo has set a £50,000 target this year alone.
The zoo, which has an annual intake of 1.4 million visitors every year, is to forge closer links with its on-field conservation projects across the world.
As an international umbrella charity, it will supply five key conservation
http://www.ellesmereportpioneer.co.uk/environment/ellesmere-port-environment-news/2011/06/15/chester-zoo-launches-national-animal-charity-act-for-wildlife-55940-28876954/
Borth Animalarium leopard Rajah stays as removal fails
Wildlife experts have failed in their second attempt to remove a leopard from a small Ceredigion zoo.
The Cat Survival Trust spent six hours trying to lure Rajah out of his cage at Borth Animalarium and into a transport box with a trail of meat.
Three people made several attempts to coax Rajah out but he was suspicious of the transport box.
Last year the zoo was fined and told the animals would be removed for not having the correct paperwork.
The team from the Cat Survival Trust in Hertfordshire, which looks after unwanted or surplus zoo cats, arrived at the animalarium at 0715 BST on Wednesday, and started work at 0900 BST.
It said it would plan another attempt to remove the animal, while owner Jean Mumbray has lodge an appeal against the leopard's removal.
The trust, which has been asked by Defra [the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs] to remove 15-year-old Rajah and two black and white ruffed lemurs, tried to coax the leopard from its cage into a rectangular-shaped box with a trail of chicken and rabbit.
Rajah ate most of the food near him
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-mid-wales-13774797
The Elephant Man
In the world of zookeeping, Charles “Chuck” Doyle is, well, something of a rock star. A native Syracusan, he began working at the then city-owned Burnet Park Zoo in 1976, initially as an animal keeper and night watchman. Doyle eventually developed a particular bond with the zoo’s Asian elephant, Siri, and he was promoted to senior keeper in 1982.
His approach to elephant care laid the groundwork for the Asian elephant exhibit—and successful breeding program—that now exists. It also made Doyle highly sought after as a consultant for other elephant programs in the United States.
When he became director of the facility—since renamed the Rosamond Gifford Zoo—in 2006 after 13 years as general curator, Doyle, 61, was determined that administrative tasks would not disrupt his commitment to the welfare of the animals and close relationship with staff. In ways large and small, Doyle has had a hand in many of the projects that have taken the zoo from a small, city park collection to one of Onondaga County’s best-loved attractions and home to about 700 animals
Although he had been a full-time employee for just a year when the county agreed to take over the zoo from the city in 1979, Doyle believes the transfer of ownership was ultimately best for the animals. By 1987, the zoo received accreditation from the Association of Zoos & Aquariums for its commitment to ecology, education and animal care. Less than 10 percent of all animal exhibit facilities in the United States currently have
http://www.syracusenewtimes.com/newyork/article-5020-the-elephant-man.html
Rare poison dart frog breeds for the first time at Blue Planet Aquarium
A RARE species of poison dart frog has bred successfully for the first time at the Blue Planet Aquarium in Cheshire Oaks.
The strawberry poison dart frogs are renowned for their high levels of parental care, with both the male and the female looking after their young.
Originally from Central America, the tiny frogs, which measure just two centimetres in length, are also famed for their vivid colouration which warns would-be predators of their deadly poison.
Despite their name, strawberry dart frogs occur in up to 30 different colours ranging from bright red
http://www.chesterchronicle.co.uk/chester-news/local-chester-news/2011/06/16/rare-poison-dart-frog-breeds-for-the-first-time-at-blue-planet-aquarium-59067-28885679/
Allianz Group Finances Destruction of Rainforest
Dear friends of the rainforest,
Allianz AG doesn't make its money with insurance policies alone. The multinational's financial services arm also reports billions in profits each year.
The Allianz RCM Global Agricultural Trends fund invests in the three biggest and most troubling palm oil companies — Wilmar International headquartered in Singapore, the IOI Group in Malaysia, and Golden Agri Resources located in Indonesia. Together, these three companies alone have cut down over one million hectares of rainforest and turned them into industrial palm oil plantations. Every euro invested in palm oil helps them destroy more of our rainforests.
Join the protest today –
http://www.rainforest-rescue.org/
**************************************************************************
Competition between females leads to infanticide in some primates
An international team of scientists, with Spanish participation, has shed light on cannibalism and infanticide carried out by primates, documenting these acts for the first time in the moustached tamarin (Saguinus mystax). The mothers, which cannot raise their infants without help from male group members, commit infanticide in order to prevent the subsequent death of their offspring if they are stressed and in competition with other females.
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-06-competition-females-infanticide-primates.html
Hyena attack boy undergoes surgery
There were no signs put up to warn pupils that they should not take food into their tents at the Sontuli Camp in Imfolozi Game Reserve, Thomas More College principal Shane Cuthbertson said yesterday.
He was speaking after one of his pupils, Nicholas Hudson, 13, was mauled by a hyena in the game reserve at the weekend. A group of 40 pupils were on a sports tour of Zululand when a hyena tore into the Grade 7 pupil’s tent, attacking him while other pupils watched.
Nicholas was taken to the Bay Hospital in Richards Bay, where he underwent surgery on Sunday and yesterday.
Cuthbertson said it was not true that staff at the park had warned the pupils not to take food to their tents. “There are no signs anywhere warning pupils or anybody else that they should not take food into their tents,” he said.
Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife spokeswoman Maureen
http://www.themercury.co.za/hyena-attack-boy-undergoes-surgery-1.1083139
Animal trade threatens bears
In 1902, former American president Theodore Roosevelt went to Mississippi with his friends to hunt for bears. All his friends could manage to hunt something down, except for Roosevelt. The next day, there was a cartoon in the Washington Post, where there was an American black bear caught by his attendants and Roosevelt was asked to kill it, but he refused to kill the bear. This cartoon character of the bear soon started selling by the name of Teddy bear by a toy company. Roosevelt’s nickname was Teddy. There is no child who does not like Teddy bear. There is no nature lover who has not appreciated the WWF mascot, which is a panda bear. Baloo (a sloth bear) is one of the favourites of all The Jungle Book, written by Rudyard Kipling, lovers. However, in reality, many know very little about them.
There are eight recognised species of bears in the world. Out of these, four are found in India — the Indian sloth bear, Asiatic black bear, brown bear and the sun bear. The others are the American black bear in north America, spectacled bear living in south America, the giant panda in China and the polar bear in the arctic region.
Of the four species found in our country, just the sloth bear is endemic, while the rest are found in other regions too. Two continents famous for wildlife — Africa and Australia, do not have any bear population, but yes, bears are not found in Antarctica too. Bear guards the health of the forest, as its primary food is termite. With the gigantic three-inches-long claws, the bear digs out mounds of termites and uses the lips like a vacuum cleaner nozzle to suck up the termites and during this time, they are capable of closing their nostrils to keep dirt away. We all know the relation between bear and honey; the thick fur prevents the bear from honeybee stings. However, a sloth bear’s main food can
http://www.mydigitalfc.com/leisure-writing/animal-trade-threatens-bears-731
India’s Human-Elephant Conflict Rages
Last week, two elephants ran amok in the city of Mysore, killing a man and injuring several others. The two elephants, which were separated from their herd on the outskirts of the city, also injured and mauled many cows.
The incident once again highlights the fragile nature of the co-existence between people and elephants – a relationship that is becoming increasingly strained as human development impinges on the natural habitat of the animals.
There are some 26,000 wild elephants in India. According to a report by the Elephant Task Force, which was set up in 2010, roughly 400 people in India are killed every year by elephants. Retaliatory killings lead to 100 elephant deaths, on average, while many others are poisoned by farmers trying to protect their crops.
The number of elephant attacks in India is on the rise, especially in the country’s northeast and south, where the majority of wild elephants live. In 2008, an elephant killed three people at a temple ceremony in Kerala, and in December 2010 a herd of 70 elephants – intoxicated after drinking from barrels of rice beer – went on a drunken rampage through a village, killing four people and destroying 60 h
http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2011/06/14/india’s-human-elephant-conflict-rages/
Letter: Orangutans need protection
The Jakarta Post (May 17) had a photograph of two female orangutans, both with babies clinging to them, enduring a “parade ride” at the Ragunan zoo during a public holiday. I suppose that day was chosen because visitor numbers are at their highest.
I can only describe this picture as greatly upsetting. How can any zoo, or other establishment which confines animals, call it educational or informative to subject these intelligent and sensitive great apes to such a pointless, dangerous and exploitative experience?
Have the multitude of visitors surrounding the four orangutans all been screened for TB, common cold and flu viruses before entering the zoo?
I very much doubt it. The two adult orangutans look stressed and unhappy in the photo. It must have been extremely hot, uncomfortable and confusing for them with a crowd so close by. Goodness knows how the young orangutans must have felt amongst all the noise and commotion.
Orangutans are not clowns or objects to be poked fun at. They are deeply curious, thoughtful and clever beings who are now on the brink of extinction.
We are going to lose them soon. In my view, the few that
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/06/15/letter-orangutans-need-protection.html
RAGUNAN ZOO
Oldest rainforest in the world to become a palm oil plantation
In Cameroon, 60,000 hectares of rainforest are to be cleared for a palm oil plantation. Kenya, Liberia, the Ivory Coast and other African countries have already given large areas of their rainforests up to palm oil plantations. The Blackstone Group now wishes to cultivate palm oil in Cameroon as well. As a result of this project, one of the oldest rainforests on the planet could be destroyed forever. The palm oil will primarily be produced for European industry.
One of the oldest rainforests could be destroyed forever
In Southwest Cameroon, one of the oldest and most bio-diverse rainforests on the planet is facing destruction. The area planted for logging directly borders the Korup National Park and the
http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=12166
Marin turtle's trek has biologists amazed
A western pond turtle appears to have made an incredible journey across Marin County in the past two years, traveling some 18 miles and making his way around large dams on a trek from Ross to near Point Reyes Station.
"It does seem hard to believe, but it is possible," said Eric Ettlinger, a Marin Municipal Water District aquatic ecologist. "If he did, it was done very slowly."
It was Ettlinger who first marked the turtle -- known as Turtle No. 9 -- in 2004 at Phoenix Lake near Ross. The same turtle was recaptured in 2009 at Phoenix Lake, measured and released back into the lake.
This past April, Ettlinger was near Point Reyes Station on Lagunitas Creek measuring, weighing and observing coho salmon. The fish are caught in a large rotary screw trap in a cascading portion of the creek. Researchers remove the fish daily and place them
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_18230060?nclick_check=1
No Ape is an Island
(though sometimes must live on one)
http://savetheorangutan.org.uk/newsletter/islanduni.html
Pioneer George barred the bars from Chester Zoo
The man pictured laying bricks with a chimpanzee is George Mottershead – the founder of Chester Zoo and one of Sale's famous sons. The story goes that George, on visiting the long-gone Belle Vue Zoo as a child, became so upset at seeing large animals in cages he told his father he would one day create a zoo without bars.
This comment is featured in most histories of the zoo, but a lesser known fact about George is that he is from Sale – a fact rediscovered by another George.
Historian and author George Cogswell has published a book about George’s life and his connection to Sale, which coincided with the zoo’s 80th anniversary celebrations.
George said: "I had an immediate empathy with George.
"His dislike for the Belle Vue zoo and the conditions in which animals were housed there had a familiar ring about it from my own personal experiences as a lad at the London Zoo."
George was born at 33 Lindow Terrace, now Lindow Street, in Sale Moor in 1894, to botanist Albert and Lucy and was baptised at St Ann’s Church.
The family, who later moved to Old Hall Street, visited Belle Vue Zoo to celebrate the end of the Boer War, where George was struck by the sight of an elephant standing in a foul-smelling building, its face pressed against thick iron bars.
It was an image that would
http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1423744_pioneer-george-barred-the-bars-from-chester-zoo
Chester Zoo launches national animal charity Act For Wildlife
CHESTER Zoo is launching an online global conservation charity.
The flagship charity is called Act for Wildlife and the zoo has set a £50,000 target this year alone.
The zoo, which has an annual intake of 1.4 million visitors every year, is to forge closer links with its on-field conservation projects across the world.
As an international umbrella charity, it will supply five key conservation
http://www.ellesmereportpioneer.co.uk/environment/ellesmere-port-environment-news/2011/06/15/chester-zoo-launches-national-animal-charity-act-for-wildlife-55940-28876954/
Borth Animalarium leopard Rajah stays as removal fails
Wildlife experts have failed in their second attempt to remove a leopard from a small Ceredigion zoo.
The Cat Survival Trust spent six hours trying to lure Rajah out of his cage at Borth Animalarium and into a transport box with a trail of meat.
Three people made several attempts to coax Rajah out but he was suspicious of the transport box.
Last year the zoo was fined and told the animals would be removed for not having the correct paperwork.
The team from the Cat Survival Trust in Hertfordshire, which looks after unwanted or surplus zoo cats, arrived at the animalarium at 0715 BST on Wednesday, and started work at 0900 BST.
It said it would plan another attempt to remove the animal, while owner Jean Mumbray has lodge an appeal against the leopard's removal.
The trust, which has been asked by Defra [the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs] to remove 15-year-old Rajah and two black and white ruffed lemurs, tried to coax the leopard from its cage into a rectangular-shaped box with a trail of chicken and rabbit.
Rajah ate most of the food near him
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-mid-wales-13774797
The Elephant Man
In the world of zookeeping, Charles “Chuck” Doyle is, well, something of a rock star. A native Syracusan, he began working at the then city-owned Burnet Park Zoo in 1976, initially as an animal keeper and night watchman. Doyle eventually developed a particular bond with the zoo’s Asian elephant, Siri, and he was promoted to senior keeper in 1982.
His approach to elephant care laid the groundwork for the Asian elephant exhibit—and successful breeding program—that now exists. It also made Doyle highly sought after as a consultant for other elephant programs in the United States.
When he became director of the facility—since renamed the Rosamond Gifford Zoo—in 2006 after 13 years as general curator, Doyle, 61, was determined that administrative tasks would not disrupt his commitment to the welfare of the animals and close relationship with staff. In ways large and small, Doyle has had a hand in many of the projects that have taken the zoo from a small, city park collection to one of Onondaga County’s best-loved attractions and home to about 700 animals
Although he had been a full-time employee for just a year when the county agreed to take over the zoo from the city in 1979, Doyle believes the transfer of ownership was ultimately best for the animals. By 1987, the zoo received accreditation from the Association of Zoos & Aquariums for its commitment to ecology, education and animal care. Less than 10 percent of all animal exhibit facilities in the United States currently have
http://www.syracusenewtimes.com/newyork/article-5020-the-elephant-man.html
Rare poison dart frog breeds for the first time at Blue Planet Aquarium
A RARE species of poison dart frog has bred successfully for the first time at the Blue Planet Aquarium in Cheshire Oaks.
The strawberry poison dart frogs are renowned for their high levels of parental care, with both the male and the female looking after their young.
Originally from Central America, the tiny frogs, which measure just two centimetres in length, are also famed for their vivid colouration which warns would-be predators of their deadly poison.
Despite their name, strawberry dart frogs occur in up to 30 different colours ranging from bright red
http://www.chesterchronicle.co.uk/chester-news/local-chester-news/2011/06/16/rare-poison-dart-frog-breeds-for-the-first-time-at-blue-planet-aquarium-59067-28885679/
Allianz Group Finances Destruction of Rainforest
Dear friends of the rainforest,
Allianz AG doesn't make its money with insurance policies alone. The multinational's financial services arm also reports billions in profits each year.
The Allianz RCM Global Agricultural Trends fund invests in the three biggest and most troubling palm oil companies — Wilmar International headquartered in Singapore, the IOI Group in Malaysia, and Golden Agri Resources located in Indonesia. Together, these three companies alone have cut down over one million hectares of rainforest and turned them into industrial palm oil plantations. Every euro invested in palm oil helps them destroy more of our rainforests.
Join the protest today –
http://www.rainforest-rescue.org/
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