Zoo News Digest 26th October - 23rd November 2013 (ZooNews 880)
Lujon, Argentina....a zoo which should be closed down.
Dear Colleagues,
I note that Surabaya
Zoo is getting it in the neck once again. I would be the very last person to
say that everything in their garden is rosy….it clearly isn't. There is much
that needs to be improved and changed. My argument is that the collection is deliberately
being set up to fail by corrupt politicians who are all sleeping in the same
bed as the journalists who promote their cause. Sadly most people believe
anything if they see it in print. I am led to understand that a team of zoo
experts will shortly be looking into the situation there. I will be happy if
they are 'experts' but from the little I do know I am already worried about
their background and affiliations.
Did you see the
story about the lion cubs at Gaza strip Zoo? Photographs splashed all over, day
old cubs in hand. Two days later and the cubs were dead. I expected no less. It
is sad of course but politics aside it is ridiculous to blame this on a blockade.
These cubs died because conditions were inadequate and the people dealing with
them just did not have the experience or resources.
It has been nearly a
month since the last Zoo News Digest. I have been busy. There never seems to be
enough hours in a day anymore to do all the things I need and want to do. I
monitor the news daily of course and anything I find of real interest, 'real'
news, I post out on the Zoo News Digest Facebook Page. So you will find more
there. The biggest stories of the past month? A Beagle which can sniff out
pregnant bears and a story of a lion killing another lion. The unfortunate
keeper who was killed by cougars scarcely got a mention anywhere. I genuinely
sympathise with her friends family and colleagues. Ignore the collection. It is
often the case that I may run down and not have a good word to say about a
facility but this does not mean that the staff are not good or caring….or sadly
sometimes know no better. Many of us started out in crap collections but never
knew it at the time. Then there are a huge number of staff who know they work
in crap collections but stay there because they care about the animals, have
families to support etc.
Returning to the 'Lion kills Lion' story for a moment. A sad event which was witnessed my some visitors. The thought has passed through my mind wondering how long it will be before one of those visitors sues for the stress caused.
The article 'Kanpur
Zoo staff suffering from zoonotic diseases' I find very disturbing. I do hope
that the zoo assists their staff to full recovery including any of the so
called 'daily wage' employees and that no staff member loses their job. Sadly
within the Indian sub-continent the 'daily wage' employee is looked on as
non-permanent and therefore expendable regardless of the fact that these people
are often the backbone of an establishment and often working their whole lives
in such a role.
My surface mail mail box is just not working out. Mail is going astray. Even lost my last but one passport for a while. So for now please send all paper mail, books for review etc to :
Peter Dickinson
10 Cheshire View
Appleyards Lane
Handbridge
Chester
UK
CH4 7DD
Bear in mind it is NOT where I live. My mail will be forwarded to me to wherever I am from there. My contact phone number remains the same:
00971 (0)50 4787 122
00971 (0)50 4787 122
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Fota gets go-ahead for €7 million expansion
After collapse of
Celtic tiger, wildlife park hopes Sumatran tigers will boost visitors
Fota Wildlife Park
in Cork is pushing ahead with an estimated €7 million expansion plan after
receiving planning permission this week for a development that will increase
the size of the park by 40 per cent.
Fota will begin work
on the first phase of the 26-acre development, costing some €2 million, early
in the new year.
Sean McKeown,
director of Fota Wildlife Park, said it hoped to have the Asian Sanctuary open
to visitors by the summer.
It will include
several Sumatran tigers, which are a protected species and rare in the wild,
and plans to breed them.
It will also include
visayan water pigs from the Philippines and visayan spotted deer.
The expansion plan
is split into four phases, which Fota hopes to have completed before the
planning permission runs out in five years. It currently only has funding in
place for the first phase.
Mr McKeown said the
park, which attracts close to 400,000 visitors annually and is one of Munster’s
biggest tourist attractions, hopes to obtain some State funding, possibly
through one of the Government’s job-creation
3rd International Flamingo Symposium
Renee Radziwon-Chapman Killed By Cougar At WildCat
Haven Sanctuary
A head keeper at a
no-kill animal sanctuary in Oregon was fatally attacked by a cougar over the
weekend. Officials at the WildCat Haven Sanctuary in Sherwood, Ore., say that
Renee Radziwon-Chapman, 36, a keeper and vet technician, was alone in an
enclosure with the animal when it attacked her.
Clackamas County
Sheriff’s deputies and other local emergency crews received a call of a serious
attack at the sanctuary at approximately 7 p.m. on Saturday. The Clackamas
County medical examiner reported that Radziwon-Chapman died on the scene from
injuries consistent with a wild animal attack.
According to the
Oregonian, Radziwon-Chapman hailed from Portland and had worked at the
sanctuary for eight years. “Her relationship with the cats was amazing,” Jim
Caliva, a board member at the organization, said. “She knew exactly what she
was doing, but apparently there was a mistake. I don’t know what it could
be."
Caliva said that she
had relationships with all of the sa
List of fatal cougar attacks in North America
Chinese circus customers targeted by Animals Asia
Poster designs by
China’s animal welfare activists are at the centre of a campaign to persuade
local people and tourists not to attend an international circus festival in
Zhuhai, Southern China.
Although government
bans have been put in place to stop animal performance, the First China
International Circus Festival has gone ahead, complete with animal attractions,
despite widespread protest from local and international animal welfare
campaigners.
With organisers
expecting the circus to promote and benefit the region, activists are
determined to demonstrate that animal cruelty only shows the area in a negative
light.
Having started this
week, the event will carry on until early December, during which the posters
against animal performance will be displayed at train stations in Zhuhai and
surrounding areas. Under the slogan “Not
Born to Perform” they graphically highlight the cruelty involved in animal
performance.
The posters are as a
result of an Animals Asia Competition this year with the aim of encouraging
local designers to come up with images to counter future animal performances.
Animals Asia is also
one of 31 organisations that has put its name to a letter sent to the Ministry
of Culture by Chinese NGO Nature University.
The letter reminds the MoC that it is effectively breaking its own government’s
guidelines against animal performance as put in place by the Ministry of
Housing and Urban-Rural Development and State Forestry Bureau.
The international
acts include elephants and chimpanzees from Thailand as well as dog shows.
Other reports have also suggested Bengal tigers will perform. Concern has also
been raised over the transportation of animals from overseas.
Recently campaigners
in Jinan were celebrating when local objections shut down an animal performance
with assistance from local authorities. But with the First China International
Circus Festival going ahead - questions are being asked as to why the rules are
being overlooked on this occasion.
Animals Asia’s
Animal Welfare Director said:
“There is huge
investment involved and we know that is what we are up against. This is not just about a circus - the
festival is seen as promoting tourism and investment in the region. We argue
that they couldn’t be more wrong - animal performance has no place in modern
China and negative international reports on the festival further damages
China’s image.
“There is a double
failure here - firstly by allowing this festival they are attracting negative
headlines rather than the positive interest they’d hoped for. Secondly by completely failing to understand
modern and international attitudes to animal cruelty they are demonstrating an
incredibly old-fashioned outlook. We hope that when local people and tourists
see our posters they’ll think twice before attending. Investing in animal
performance in order to promote an area is entirely misguided on so many
levels. Why invest in a sunset industry?”
Animals Asia founder
Jill Robinson added:
"The
astonishing thing is how people in China are no longer tolerating performances
that see such obvious exploitation and suffering to the animal entertainers.
The outcry would have been unthinkable even five years ago. The fact is today so many people here see
animals as much more than playthings to make them laugh for just a few seconds
in a ring."
From Richard Gibson
Hi everyone.
Apologies for the unsolicited and impersonal
email but the world needs your help........
About 20yrs ago I went on my first ever international
field trip as a professional (if very young and wet behind the ears) zoo
herpetologist. I know, hard to believe I'm that old.
This trip was to visit a remote location in Jamaica
where the endemic rock iguana Cyclura collei had
just been rediscovered after years of presumed extinction, and then to help the
local zoo set up a headstart programme - much as we do with tuatara here at
Auckland Zoo.
Twenty years later, through the heroic (and I'm
not exaggerating here) efforts of a small band of iguana-focussed individuals,
fighting against the odds in a country that seems to value its wildlife even
less than most, the iguana is in better shape in the wild than it has been for
more than a century.
BUT, the govt of Jamaica is now proposing a deal with
China to build an enormous international shipping port, right on top of the
iguanas last remaining habitat. Home also to several other rare and endemic
species and the largest surviving continuous tract of tropical dry forest in
Jamaica, perhaps the Caribbean.
It will be a complete disaster for the iguanas and
will almost certainly bring about their extinction in the wild with a matter of
years.
Please see the associated information below if you'd
like to know more but in the meantime, the one tiny thing we can all do to help
is sign this petition....it'll take you less than 2mins. Please make the
time.....
The 'only hope for
lions'
Half of Africa’s 30
000 surviving wild lions are likely to die off within the next 20 to 40 years
unless they are fenced off from humans or protected more intensively.
This is the
conclusion reached by a group of more than 50 wildlife researchers in a study
published in the latest issue of the journal Ecology Letters.
The main author,
Professor Craig Packer, of the University of Minnesota, concludes that the
future of the king of the beasts in Africa is so bleak that fencing them off
from human settlements may be the only hope for their long-term survival.
The article was
based on studying lion population densities in 42 conservation areas in 11
African nations.
The researchers
found that lion population growth rates were highest in South Africa and
Namibia, as well as in parks which were fenced off, privately managed and not
vulnerable to trophy hunting.
“Given current
population sizes and recent trends, all of the fenced-off populations are
expected to remain at or above their full potential for the next 100 years,”
they said.
But less than half
of the unfenced reserves in Africa were likely to retain more than 10 percent
of their carrying capacity for lions for the next 20 to 40 years. This included
most unfenced conservation areas in Kenya, Botswana, Tanzania, Uganda, Cameroon
and Ghana.
The authors say many
conservationists have recognised that large carnivores should be kept apart
from humans, but the lion-proof fencing option was not used in several
countries for aesthetic reasons, because of high costs, or because they did not
want to cut off animal migration routes.
As a result,
conservation agencies in east Africa and other areas had tried to promote
human-wildlife co-existence projects or mitigate conflict by setting up buffer
zones and compensation schemes.
“However, our
analysis suggests that human-lion coexistence should only be considered in
areas where large-scale megafauna and pastoralist migration precludes any form
of fencing.”
Alternatively, the
authors say the other option would be to fence people into protected enclaves
inside some of the large wildlife areas such as the Niassa National Reserve in
northern Mozambique.
Co-author Dr Luke
Hunter said: “These findings hig
Learn more HERE
Kangaroo testicles a hit with Chinese as aphrodisiac
KANGAROO testicles
are bound for China as a sex drug branded as a new aphrodisiac.
As kangaroo numbers
explode in plague proportions across the Outback, the love potion made out of
powdered roo testicles has become a boom trade.
Aphrodisiac named
for IMF chief
According to popular
online shopping websites, China has gone nuts over the tonic which sells for
between $30-$150 for a bottle of 100 capsules.
In a great leap
forward for the kangaroo meat industry, drought-stricken graziers hope the new
trend will stiffen Chinese resolve to consume more of the Aussie icon. But
Australian medical experts warn the drug, based on testosterone, is untested
and without scientific data to support its claims of a super-sexed libido.
"The kangaroo
is the symbol of Australia and highly reproductive,'' reads one label.
"The male kangaroo may mate with 40 female kangaroos and produces twice as
much semen as a bull. Essence of Kangaroo is extremely potent as it is rich in
natural hormones, proteins, zinc and iron, which are able to increase physical
strength and enhance the sexual energy.''
Roo ball expert John
Kreuger, 73, of Townsville, a 40-year veteran of the testicle trade, this week
meets with Chinese investors to buy his business "for the end product''.
He said the Chinese
buyers wanted
How SeaWorld Keeps the Body Clocks of Its Antarctic
Penguins on South Pole Time
You know that
out-of-sync feeling you have for those first few days after Daylight Savings
Time? Where your internal body clock is telling you that it's one time while
the light levels outside are telling you that it's an entirely different time?
Well, then imagine
how tough it must be to be an Antarctic penguin on display in Orlando. Where --
because you're now living in the Northern Hemisphere rather than the Southern
-- you're a full six months out-of-sync. And because the light outside is telling
you that it's Fall while your internal body clock is telling you that it's
Spring, you now don't know whether to mate or molt.
Well, back in 1983,
the animal care specialists at SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment recognized
that being over 8,000 miles away from home might be an issue for these aquatic,
flightless birds. Which is why -- when they were building SeaWorld San Diego's
Penguin Encounter exhibit some 30 years ago -- SeaWorld not only installed a
ridiculously large air conditioning unit (to keep this habitat at a brisk 30
degrees) but also hung an elaborate lighting rig which then allowed them to
replicate Antarctica's seasonal light cycle.
Now you have to
understand that no one in zoological circles had ever done something like this
before. Combining quartz halogen lights, LEDS, metal halide lights, quartz
halogens and theatrical sunset lamps to replicate what the sunlight was
supposed to be like in another part of the world.
Mind you, the folks
at SeaWorld San Diego didn't stop there. They then went on make daily
adjustments to the Penguin Encounter's lightning pattern. So that -- for the
flightless birds living in this exhibit space -- the sun would first rise and
then set at the exact time as it would down at the South Pole. They even made
an effort to simulate Antarctica's springtime light and wintertime dark.
As you might
imagine, a behind-the-scene effort like this -- especially back in the early
1980s -- was very hands-on. With the animal care specialists at SeaWorld San
Diego (not to mention the electricians who worked at this theme park)
constantly flipping switches, adjusting dimmers and replacing light bulbs a
KC Zoo uses beagle to detect possible Berlin pregnancy
The Kansas City Zoo
has joined other zoos from around the country to find out whether a beagle
named Elvis can let them know when their polar bears are pregnant.
The 2-year-old has
been specially trained for a year by a Shawnee, KS, handler who has taught dogs
to sniff out everything from explosives to bed bugs. A Cincinnati Zoo animal
conservation scientist had the idea after reading about studies on using dogs to
detect cancer.
Elvis has been
checking out samples of 22 female bears from 14 zoos, while his handler logs
his reactions.
The Kansas City Zoo
submitted feces from Berlin to be a part of this study.
"While there is
no other test for polar bear pregnancy, this study is part of the research
mission the Kansas City Zoo strives to be a part of. Whether the result is
positive or negative we will continue to care for Berlin as we have been – as
though she may be pregnant," the zoo said in a written statement.
Kansas City Zoo
officials said Berlin is being housed in her "quiet, behind-the-scenes
area" where "denning" can take place. Nikita, the 6-year-old
male bear, had been pestering this summer the 23-year-old Berlin, and she was
moved to give her more alone time and make her comfortable if she has cubs. The
two bears mated this spring.
"Polar bears
can project pregnancy-type behaviors even though they may not be pregnant.
Either way, zo
Tanzania Suspends Campaign Against Elephant Poaching
To Investigate Reports Of Killings
The government of
one African country has reportedly suspended its campaign to crack down on
elephant poaching.
According to the
Agence France Presse, Tanzania shelved its anti-poaching operations on Friday
in order to investigate reports of wrongful property seizure, torture and
killings that were allegedly perpetrated by officials during the campaign,
dubbed "Operation Terminate."
Natural Resources
and Tourism Minister Khamis Kagasheki defended the program, arguing: "I
admit that there is an ugly side in the operation," he said. "But
what is happening now in arresting culprits and impounding tusks is part of the
success of the operation."
Illegal ivory
poaching is a big problem in Tanzania, a country that is estimated to have lost
about half its elephant population to poachers in the last decade,
primatologist Jane Goodall said last year.
However, the recent
crackdown against elephant poaching has been swift and thorough. Tanzanian
officials promised the c
Wildlife centre at Vandalur zoo replaces night safari
The advanced
research institute for wild species, proposed to be set up in Vandalur zoo,
will come up on a portion of land earlier earmarked for a night safari project.
In 2007, a night
safari was proposed on the 92-hectare rescue and rehabilitation centre of the
Anna Arignar Zoological Park at a cost of Rs. 256 crore but the project was
shelved due to paucity of funds.
Now, around five
acres of that space will be used to set up the advanced research centre for
wild species. “The new centre will be a state-of-the-art facility for research
on rare species, especially endangered ones, including the lion-tailed macaque
(LTM) and Nilgiri langur,” said an official of the State forest department.
The Advanced
Institute of Wildlife Conservation Centre (AIWCC) will be set up at a cost of
Rs. 27.13 crore and will provide information on wildlife, apart from hosting a
research laboratory.
It will feature four
divisions — on migratory birds, survival of species, genetic study and
education. On the migratory birds, the centre will study the migratory pattern,
routes, species and locations they visit.
The species survival
division will deal with specific studies on 13 identified indigenous species
including LTM, Nilgiri langur, elephants, tigers and black sheep, while the
genetic division will look into gene composition and associated functions.
The education
division will deal wit
Hunting for Corpses: Vultures Lured Back to Germany
Vultures are slowly
returning to Germany, driven out long ago by an unwelcoming populace. At the
behest of conservationists, loosened "carcass regulations" in Europe
have made the search for food less daunting -- but some still wonder if the birds
will be able to survive.
Griffon vulture
number 259 is no longer able to fly. A bullet from a small-caliber rifle
wielded by an unknown shooter shattered the ulna and radius of the bird's wing
in June. Veterinarians tried to rehabilitate the vulture, using physical
therapy to strengthen its wing muscles and even applying leeches to improve
circulation, but nothing worked.
"It's over for
him," says Wolfgang Rades, director of Herborn, a bird park in the central
German state of Hesse. Rades casts a concerned glance toward the vulture, where
it crouches on a pile of stones in a corner of its enclosure, looking a sad
sight on this cold, damp morning. Yet for Rades, the bird is also a sign of
hope. "He's an ambassador for others of his kind living in the wild,"
the biologist says. "Many more vultures will follow him, if we humans
allow them to."
Griffon vulture 259
is among the vanguard of a new avian presence in Germany. Vultures are
returning to the country, slipping stealthily into German airspace and often
flying at heights of over 1,000 meters (3,300 feet). Ornithologists, glider
pilots and hang gliders have all spotted these carrion-feeders above cities
such as Hanover and Freiburg and regions such as the Black Forest and the
Swabian Jura (see map).
"At least 50 to
60 vultures have been sighted in Germany this year," says Dieter Haas from
the Vulture Conservation Initiative (GESI) based in Albstadt, southwestern
Germany. "And many more are sure to follow."
Ornithologist
counted 26 griffon vultures just in mid-June in the area outside the town of
Tessin in northeastern Germany. And from April to August, a bearded vulture
named Bernd delighted bird lovers by flying all the way from the Alps to the B
Ethics and Living Collections: A View from the Zoo!
Lecture Notes
Last week, I had the
pleasure of attending the title lecture, part of the University of Michigan’s
Department of Museum Studies series, It’s Alive! Re-Discovering Institutions of
Living Collection. Our presenter was
Ron Kagan, the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Detroit
Zoological Society.
Zoos are members of
the museum community; they offer meaningful social, cultural, educational, and
physical environments to a human community.
Zoos and aquariums add living animals, the natural community, to this equation. While in the museum community, Kagan
advocates for different terminology when discussing its structure and
collection. Instead of using the term
owners to describe the artifacts in a zoo’s collection, he encouraged the use
of the term guardians and the idea of guardianship when thinking about human
relationship to the living artifacts in a zoo’s collection. When thinking about the idea of collectors of
artifacts in a museum collection, Kagan sees zoos as conservators of the living
resident population, the animals.
Like all museums,
zoos are faced with ethical decisions when considering their role as guardians
and conservators of their artifact collection.
One of the major questions, like human health care concerns, are whose interests
are primary when it comes to patient care?
Unlike our healthcare system, zoos have hundreds of species needing 24/7
care. The Detroit Zoo is moving towards
a more patient centered-care model for its collection; Kagan believes if the
animals come first, the zoo experience will be better for the people visiting
the collection as well. Humane care is a
paramount concern at the zoo. The Berman
Academy for Humane Educ
Crane breeding center crowded as birds age
The Okayama
Prefectural Nature Conservation Center in the town of Wake, known for having
the nation’s largest population of Japanese cranes, has been wrestling with
overcrowded breeding facilities as the birds age.
Officials say that
the unexpected longevity of the Japanese cranes, also known as red-crowned
cranes, in the center is affecting their reproductive ability.
According to the
prefecture, building new breeding facilities may be difficult due to budgetary
constraints.
The center’s
officials, however, emphasize the necessity of coming up with solutions to
maintain the number of young cranes.
“If we leave the
situation as it is, only the number of old cranes will be on the rise while the
population of young birds will decline,” one official said. “There is a risk
that there will be no Japanese cranes left in Okayama in the future.”
After the center
began to breed Japanese cranes in 1991, the population in the center’s
facilities has risen to the current number of 42. Without natural enemies in
the environment they inhabit, the population has been aging, with the average
rising to 18 years old. The officials describe this as equivalent to the age of
the baby boomer generation for humans.
The oldest crane in
the facility is 36 years old.
Amid the rapid aging
of the bird population, allowable space in the 24 habitats, each measuring
about 180 sq. meters, is nearly fully utilized. Even though the younger cranes
are laying eggs, the center has to give up letting the cranes hatch them because
of the limited breeding space.
To alleviate the
situation, the prefectural government intends to increase the number of
breeding facilities outsi
Kanpur Zoo staff suffering from zoonotic diseases
In a startling
revelation, a number of Kanpur zoo employees have been found to be affected by
'Leptospira' and 'Brucellosis' bacteria. This has been reportedly claimed in a
report submitted by a leading diagnostic centre of the city to the Kanpur zoo
authorities, giving complete description of the health status of the entire zoo
staff.
The diagnostic
centre had conducted medical check up of the zoo employees and confirmed the
presence of these bacterias in zoo employees. In September and October, the zoo
authorities had got their employees to undertake medical tests at a leading
private diagnostic centre. The tests performed by this centre revealed that the
staffers are suffering from various zoonotic diseases and need proper
treatment.
The decision to
conduct the medical check up for zoonotic diseases of the entire zoo staff was
taken by the zoo veterenarians Dr RK Singh and Dr UC Srivastava.
According to
reliable sources, as many as 30 zoo employees are affected with leptospirosis
disease (caused by bacteria Leptospira) alone. Some 10 zoo staffers are
affected with brucellosis, including the zoo director, Kuruvilla Thomas and zoo
veterinarian RK Singh.
Dr Ashish
Srivastava, a doctor (member) of a medical panel constituted by the Chief
Medical Officer, Kanpur Nagar, on his visit to Kanpur zoo for conducting the
health check up of the zoo staff, told TOI that "the zoo director and zoo
veterinarian are affected with brucellosis bacteria but there is nothing to
worry and neither there is any threat of spread of any epidemic".
"Those who stay
in contact with the animals, e
New Doha Zoo to occupy 75 hectares
The Public Works
Authority (Ashghal) yesterday unveiled the final master plan of the New Doha
Zoo project that seeks to develop the facility in the model of a safari park,
with dedicated areas for animals from different continents.
The area of the New
Doha Zoo will be 75 hectares, seven times the size of the current zoo, and will
be divided into several regions that will represent the natural and climatic
features of three continents.
There will be an
“Africa Safari,” with forests and savannas; an “Asia Woodland,” which is
characterised by charm natural features and mountains; and a “South America
rainforest,” with dense and rainy forests.
“And there will be
rainy parts in this region to enrich the visitors’ experience who will feel
that they are truly walking in one of the dense tropical forests of South
America”, Ashghal President Nasser bin Ali Al Mawlawi said yesterday, while
unveiling the final concept plan.
Ashghal has
appointed KEO International Consultants as the project’s Design and
Construction Supervision Consultant in cooperation with HHCP+PJA with a QR230m
contract. Work on the project would begin next year and the new zoo is expected
to be open to the public by the end of 2017.
Al Mawlawi signed
the contract along with KEO International Consultants CEO Donna Sultan.
Upon completion, Al
Mawlawi said, the New Doha Zoo will be one of the biggest and most beautiful
zoos in the region.
The zoo will be
interweaved with a public park with no fences that obstruct the vision; and
therefore, will not affect the landscape of the surrounding streets, but will
add an aesthetical dimension and green spaces to them. A bridge will connect
the zoo with the Aspire Park on the opposite side.
Each region of the
zoo can be discovered through multiple safari trips that will take the visitors
on memorable journeys across the zoo and its vast green landscapes to watch the
wildlife species of each of the three continents. There will be car trips, trekking
on foot through safe passages, trips by boats and Children’s Safari that
commensurate with their age and maintain their safety.
More than 12,500
trees will be planted, some are local and others are brought from different
geographical areas, in addition to the current 1,000 trees in the zoo.
The zoo will have a
training centre for animal care, and allo
Celebrating Plants and the Planet:
Plants could make us
better. Those who use them benefit. Those who emulate them benefit even more.
November’s news links at www.zooplantman.com
(NEWS/Botanical News) might give you some new ideas:
· Rolled up leaves enable Spix’s
disc-winged bats to better hear each other’s calls in order to organize meet
ups. Foolish humans with smart phones!
· How can a cactus survive in a desert?
Cacti use their spines to collect fog and then absorb the water into their
leaves.
· Pitcher Plants have created the most
slippery substance on earth. Scientists followed their lead to invent a better
glass.
· Orchid mantises can be confused with
orchid flowers. The mantises are even better at attracting pollinators than the
flowers are. Except the mantises call them “dinner.”
· The scientists at MIT are always
looking for the next great technology. They are studying structural mechanics
at the “school” of plants.
Since plants
demonstrate so many surprising adaptations perhaps they can replace us. One
artist began by growing human hands from plants. Well, sort of: http://vimeo.com/38728139
Please share these
stories with associates, staff, docents and – most importantly – visitors!
Follow on Twitter: http://twitter.com/PlantWorldNews – a new story every day as well as hundreds
of stories from the past few years.
Rob
Al Ain Zoo Strengthens Partnership with Jersey Zoo
-- Al Ain Zoo
welcomes British VIP delegation to discuss further collaboration on wildlife
conservation initiatives --
Abu Dhabi, 13
November 2013: As part of its commitment to the conservation of endangered
species, Al Ain Zoo recently welcomed a delegation from Jersey Zoo, accompanied
by H.E. Senator Sir Philip Bailhache, Minister of External Affairs of the
Government of the British Channel Island of Jersey, and Jonathan White,
Chairman of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, which is named after the
famous author and naturalist, Gerald Durrell.
Al Ain Zoo and
Jersey Zoo, who have long shared a collaborative relationship, met to discuss
future joint projects and development activities. Among key topics was a joint
training programme focused on animal husbandry, which is the selective breeding
of animals between zoos, ultimately contributing to the preservation of
endangered species.
Commenting on this
campaign, H.E. Ghanim Mubarak Al Hajeri, Director General of Al Ain Zoo, said:
“Al Ain Zoo is
delighted to welcome our visitors from the British Channel Island of Jersey,
including the Gerald Durrell Foundation. Our commitment to wildlife
conservation is strengthened by such collaborations, and this is one of our
numerous strategic partnerships and programmes, both in the UAE and overseas.”
Such visits
highlight that, further to offering visitors the opportunity to explore a
diverse collection of approximately 4,000 animals, Al Ain Zoo is also an active
player in efforts to prevent the extinction of many of these same species. The
zoo works in partnership with entities around the world, such as Jersey Zoo, to
share best practice in animal conservation, develop human capital through
training programmes, and to enhance animal husbandry capabilities.
Author and
naturalist Gerald Durrell established the Jersey Zoo in 1959, pioneering the
concept that zoos have an essential role to play in the conservation of
wildlife. His vision was of a safe haven for the world’s most threatened
animals, where they and the efforts required to save them would engage the
public. It would also serve as a centre for training conservation specialists
from around the globe in endangered species recovery.
Al Ain Zoo is a
member of the World Association for Zoo and Aquaria (WAZA) and is actively
involved in several internationally coordinated conservation projects, working
with other like-minded organisations such as Jersey Zoo, Environment Agency –
Abu Dhabi, the Species Survival Commission, San Diego Zoo, the Northern
Rangelands Trust of Kenya and the Sahara Conservation Fund.
The zoo is open
daily from 9am to 8pm.
Ragunan animals to get one day off
In a bid to ensure
the welfare of animals at Ragunan Zoo, the management has decided to close
every Monday to give the animals a day of rest.
Ragunan Zoo
spokesperson Wahyudi said zoo workers and veterinarians would therefore be
better able to focus on taking care of the animals on the day of closure.
“It will also
decrease the stress level of the animals due to visitors’ voices and
disturbances,” he told The Jakarta Post recently.
Wahyudi said the
city administration was working on the legal basis for the day of closure,
which had been recommended at a public hearing.
“We hope we can
implement it as soon as possible,” he said.
Business tycoon
Hashim Djojohadikusumo, who recently took over as chief supervisor, recently
recommended that the management give the animals a day off by closing once a
week.
“The task given [to
supervisors] by Jakarta Governor Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo is to optimize Ragunan
Zoo as a conservation center,” he said.
He added that it was
important to protect the animals so as to maintain their well-being.
“A day off will be
good not only for the animals’ mental health but it will also allow carers to
pay extra attention to the animals,” he said.
Hashim said giving
the animals a day of rest was the least the zoo could to improve the facility.
He said the zoo
management planned to tackle 12 projects, including filtering dirty water from
the 6.8 hec
BBC Wildlife Camera-trap Photo of the Year 2013 – the
winners
Doctor Who and the Big Cats
Keepers at Santa
Barbara Zoo clearly are sci-fi fans (and have a sense of humor)
TARDIS SIGHTING:
Doctors are not unusual sights around zoos and animal parks. They're usually
inside pens or nurseries, stethoscopes in hand, tending to the beasties. But a
time-traveling Doctor, who arrives with his own spanning-the-centuries machine
in tow, is another matter. Which
Perth Zoo elephant gets massage therapy
Talk about being
pampered. Perth Zoo's 56-year-old Asian
elephant Tricia is receiving 25 minute back and shoulder massages twice daily
using a specially designed massage pad usually used on horses.
Perth Zoo Senior Vet
Dr Simone Vitali said he hoped the massages would starve off the aches and
pains of old age as the elephant stomps towards her twilight years.
And it's not just
massage keeping Tricia in tip to
Sad news: Gaza Strip zoo's newborn lion cubs have died
The adorable pair of
lion cubs born at a Gaza Strip zoo and amusement park on Monday have died,
according to an Agence France-Presse report.
"The lions
named Fajr and Sijil (Dawn and Clay in Arabic) died today due to a
deterioration of their health at birth," zoo supervisor Shadi Hamad told
the AFP.
Zoo officials said
they lacked adequate resources to bring the cubs back to health due to the
Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip.
"The cause of
death is a lack of experience and resources for the birth and treatment of
cubs," Hamad said. "Food and medicines for such a situation are not
available."
The cubs were born
at the Hamas-run Bissan amu
Conflict at Indonesia's Surabaya Zoo leaves animals to
languish and die, including endangered Sumatran tigers
Thousands of exotic
animals, including endangered Sumatran tigers, are languishing at a renowned
Indonesian zoo where a bitter conflict is leaving animals to suffer and die.
The Surabaya Zoo was
once the pride of South-East Asia, but overcrowding, small enclosures and
squalid conditions have seen the number of animal deaths at the zoo run in to
the hundreds - possibly thousands - over recent years.
There are 3,500
animals in Surabaya Zoo, including endangered orangutans and 15 tigers.
During the past
three months alone, 50 animals have died, including an endangered Indonesian
orangutan. Three tigers, dozens of Komodo dragons, and a gira
The Tiger in Surabaya Zoo
Al Ain Zoo Welcomes International Partners for
Arabian Sand Cat “One Plan” Conservation Workshop
- Regional and international institutions meet to produce first regional population management plan and design a research project to study the sand cat in the wild -
Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, 18 November, 2013: Al Ain Zoo recently initiated and hosted the Arabian Sand Cat One Plan Conservation Workshop, a two-day event focused on continuing the drive to conserve the Arabian sand cat. The workshop saw 30 experts from regional and international institutions – including the International Union for Conservation of Nature Species Survival Commission (IUCN) – convene at the zoo, which is home to the largest ex situ (captive) population of the species worldwide.
The institutions collaborated during the workshop to produce the first regional population management plan for the Arabian sand cat, ensuring that the captive population is sustainable and remains genetically healthy. Participants further worked together to design a research project to study the Arabian sand cat in the wild (the in situ population), as very little is known about the elusive species.
Commenting on the initiative, H.E. Ghanim Mubarak Al Hajeri, said:
“Given the international zoo community’s move towards bridging the gap between ex situ and in situ conservation, Al Ain Zoo hosted this workshop to produce the first One Plan for research and conservation of the Arabian sand cat. The ex situ element will focus on collections in the Arabian region and the in situ research will focus initially on Abu Dhabi.
The initiative sees Al Ain Zoo well positioned to continue driving the conservation of this species, as we house the largest captive population of the Arabian sand cat worldwide, and is a strategic component of our commitment to leading the conservation of arid wildlife overall.”
The sand cat inhabits the deserts of Arabia, North Africa and Central Asia, with the Arabian sand cat being a distinct population. Degradation of the desert environment has led to the decline of many species, including the sand cat. IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species lists the cat as ‘near threatened’, however the threat to many local populations in the region is suspected to be much higher. In fact, the Arabian Sand Cat is classified as ‘endangered’ in both the UAE’s and Abu Dhabi’s regional IUCN Red Lists, with only four reliable sightings in the Emirate since 1995. Due to the mysterious nature of this species, it is challenging to estimate exactly how many individuals are left in the wild. Factors including overgrazing, habitat loss and accidental poisoning aimed at foxes and dogs mean that the wild population could be under threat.
In addition to leading the establishment of the Arabian Zoo and Aquarium Association, Al Ain Zoo is a member of the World Association for Zoo and Aquaria, and is actively involved in several internationally coordinated conservation projects, working with other like-minded organisations such as Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi, the IUCN Species Survival Commission, San Diego Zoo, the Northern Rangelands Trust of Kenya and the Sahara Conservation Fund, to conserve and re-introduce threatened arid land species such as Arabian Oryx and Scimitar-horned Oryx to their natural habitat.
Hello ZooLex Friend,
We have worked for your enjoyment!
~°v°~
NEW EXHIBIT PRESENTATION
Crocodile Swamp is an exhibition of various reptiles and fish species at Paignton Zoo Environmental Park with a focus on large crocodiles from tropical regions. The exhibition spaces are maintained at a temperature of 25°C, at night at 18°C. The building is mostly heated by passive solar heat and with woodchip or pellets from zoo waste timber and local forestry timber.
http://www.zoolex.org/zoolexcgi/view.py?id=1356
~°v°~
SPANISH TRANSLATION
Thanks to Eduardo Diaz Garcia we are able to offer the Spanish translation of the Fishing Cat exhibit at Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia:
http://www.zoolex.org/zoolexcgi/view.py?id=1076
~°v°~
We keep working on ZooLex ...
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