Zoo News Digest 11th April 2019 (ZooNews 1017)
Photo by Kathryn Willett
Peter Dickinson
elvinhow@gmail.com
Dear Colleague,
I was horrified the other day when I learned of Singapore's seizure of 12.9 tonnes of African Pangolin scales. The largest seizure ever and estimated to have come from 36,000 animals. Then just a couple of days later the customs stopped ANOTHER smuggled consignment, this time of 12.7 tonnes. I hope against hope that they are able to find and prosecute the extremely nasty individuals responsible for this terrible crime. Somehow prison does not seem a suitable punishment... perhaps sending them off on a one way trip to the Black Hole.
"good zoos will not gain the credibility of their critics until they condemn the bad zoos wherever they are." Peter Dickinson
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Did You Know?
ZooNews Digest has over 109,500+ Followers on Facebook( and over 109,700 likes) and has a weekly reach often exceeding over 350,000 people? That ZooNews Digest has subscribers in over 900 Zoos in 155+ countries? That the subscriber list for the mail out reads like a 'Zoos Who's Who?'
If you are a subscriber to the email version then you probably knew this already. You would also know that ZooNews Digest pre-dates any of the others. It was there before FaceBook. It was there shortly after the internet became popular and was a 'Blog' before the word had been invented. ZooNews Digest reaches zoo people.
I remain committed to the work of GOOD zoos,
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Did You Know?
ZooNews Digest has over 109,500+ Followers on Facebook( and over 109,700 likes) and has a weekly reach often exceeding over 350,000 people? That ZooNews Digest has subscribers in over 900 Zoos in 155+ countries? That the subscriber list for the mail out reads like a 'Zoos Who's Who?'
If you are a subscriber to the email version then you probably knew this already. You would also know that ZooNews Digest pre-dates any of the others. It was there before FaceBook. It was there shortly after the internet became popular and was a 'Blog' before the word had been invented. ZooNews Digest reaches zoo people.
I remain committed to the work of GOOD zoos,
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*****
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Singapore
makes another huge seizure of pangolin scales
Singapore intercepted a second shipping
container packed full of pangolin scales destined for Vietnam in less than a
week, authorities said on Wednesday, a combined haul that set a new record for
the global transit hub.
The seizure of 12.7 tonnes of scales, worth an
estimated $38 million, follows last week's haul of 12.9 tonnes. The scales in
that seizure, the biggest of its kind worldwide in five years, were said to
have come from about 17,000 pangolins.
"The container was declared to have
contained cassia seeds," Singapore's National Parks Board, Customs and
Immigration and Checkpoints Authority said in a joint statement, adding that
the shipment came from Nigeria.
Woman,
27, loses arm in savage attack by two caged bears at camp site near
Blagoveshchensk
The unnamed woman suffered wounds to both arms
and a video shot moments after the attack showed her face covered in blood as
she lay on the ground moments after the attack.
The 27 year old camper is seen writhing and
moaning from pain.
She was rushed to Amur regional hospital
suffering from severe bleeding and pain shock.
Surgeons were unable to save her left arm
which was amputated by doctors due to the severe damage caused by the wild
bears.
How
can Cambodia take on the mammoth task of fighting its illegal ivory trade?
In the first days of 2019, researchers at the
Royal Zoological Society Scotland (RZSS) made a startling discovery: an ivory
trinket taken from a market in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh was made
from the tusk of an animal that has been extinct for more than 10,000 years. It
was the first time that woolly mammoth ivory had been found in the Kingdom. It
may not be the last.
Primate
males with more ornamentation seem to have smaller testes, a new study finds
Gird your loins, ladies and gentlemen, because
today we have a rather peculiar (but still interesting, and quite amusing)
study to talk about. Hailing from the The University of Western Australia and
the University of Zurich, the paper reports that flashy male primates tend to
have smaller gonads, while their more average-looking counterparts sport larger
ones. It all seems to be a product of how male primates handle social
hierarchies and reproductive strategies.
There
is no conservation justification for bringing the tapir back to Borneo
(commentary)
The past few years there has been a dedicated
lobbying/promotional campaign among local amateur naturalists, professional
conservationists, and international researchers to bring back Malay tapirs,
Tapirus indicus, to Borneo. A recent article in Mongabay is yet another push
towards this intended goal. It is well-written and a welcome contribution to
this important discussion. Unfortunately, it misses a few important points.
Since I am mentioned as “Finally… a tapir
researcher willing to speak out” and quoted in the piece, I feel it is
important to bring context to my statements and opinions, lest they stand
alone, as if I am opposed to bringing the tapir back to Borneo just for the
sake of being in the opposition. That couldn’t be further from the truth. I
have worked with this
Indian
turtles disappearing due to international illegal trade
Local myths about the use of their body parts,
as well as an international poaching network feeding ‘traditional’ Chinese
practices, have put Indian softshell turtles in peril. These softshell turtles,
which get their name due to lack of scales on their outer shell or carapaces,
are found in lakes and ponds as well as in the river systems of the Indus and
Ganga drainages across India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. They are nature’s little
helpers in keeping the rivers and waterbodies clean, breaking down rotting
organic matter in lakes, ponds and rivers including dead bodies of humans and
animals. Unfortunately, a brisk trade in their body parts means they are
disappearing from the ecosystems where they were once familiar.
Zookeeper
hospitalized after being 'nipped' by orangutan, Tampa zoo says
The worker, a member of ZooTampa's animal care
staff, was giving the female orangutan its daily medication and vitamins when
the primate "nipped the tip of the keeper's middle finger," according
to a statement released by the zoo.
Phuket
Zoo baby elephant benched from tourist shows over health issues
PHUKET: Phuket Zoo is been ordered to not use
the baby elephant Dodo to perform work, namely performing tricks for tourists,
until his health has recovered.
Animal
Planet Going Behind the Scenes at San Diego Zoo in New Series (Exclusive)
Animal Planet is taking viewers behind the
scenes at the San Diego Zoo in a newly greenlit series tentatively titled The
Zoo: San Diego.
The show, which hails from the producers of
Animal Planet's The Zoo and the upcoming series The Aquarium, aims to give a
"revealing" look at what goes on inside San Diego Zoo Global, whose
mission is to save species worldwide while inspiring passion for animals and
nature. San Diego Zoo Global — which encompasses two parks, the San Diego Zoo
and the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, as well as the San Diego Zoo Institute for
Conservation Research — is home to more than 700 species and 6,500 animals.
Their stories will be featured in every episode of The Zoo: San Diego, which
premieres later this year.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/animal-planet-orders-series-set-at-san-diego-zoo-1200705
Animal
injuries at North Shore safari park: frequent or rare? Ex-employees, owner
disagree
With thousands of exotic creatures roaming
freely on 900 acres in Tangipahoa Parish, the Global Wildlife Center has
maintained a Disneyesque reputation over nearly three decades since it began
offering safari tours for children and adults to interact face-to-face with the
animal kingdom.
On most days, hordes of visitors climb into
“safari wagons” that meander among bison, zebras, camels, giraffes and other
species sauntering about the privately-owned North Shore enclave, which bills
itself as “Africa in Louisiana.” Tourists feed the animals from the trams, in
an up-close experience at what might be considered one of the world’s most
expansive petting zoos, located on Louisiana 40 west of Folsom.
The
state of NZ penguins
Kerry-Jayne Wilson MNZM and Dr Thomas Mattern
have completed a comprehensive review of the state of NZ penguins and it has
been released today.
“This is a review of all that we know, and
don’t know about all six NZ penguins, with a list of research and conservation
management priorities for each species” said Kerry-Jayne.
Based on this review, Dr Mattern is leading a
group of experts to work towards research and
conservation goals outlined in the report under the banner “NZ Penguin
Research & Conservation”. For a start, they will be focusing efforts on
Little or Blue penguins/kororā and Fiordland penguins/tawaki.
Singapore
bull run: Panther, hippo and other famous animal escapees over the years
The hunt for a bull on the loose is still
ongoing at least 14 hours after it was reported missing from a dairy farm in
Lim Chu Kang.
The animal escaped from its enclosure on
Tuesday (April 9), and the Singapore Food Agency said that it is working with
the National Parks Board and the farm to locate it.
They may be rare, but instances of animals on
the run have been reported in Singapore in the past.
Joe Exotic to be featured in documentaries, "Dateline" prime time report and magazine articles
Even in disgrace, Joe Exotic
remains somewhat of a media darling.
Journalists last month came
from across the country to chronicle the former zookeeper's murder-for-hire
case, so many that the judge moved the jury trial to a bigger courtroom.
Among those taking notes was
Manuel Oteyza, producer of "Blackfish," the 2013 documentary that sparked
a public backlash against SeaWorld and led the theme park company to end killer
whale shows.
Keeper shares his passion for conservation
Keeper of the hoofed animals
at the Johannesburg Zoo, Philemon Magoba is passionate about conserving the
giraffe population which is vulnerable following habitat destruction in Africa.
Magoba explained that the
giraffe population has dropped by 40 per cent since 2016, sparking the Joburg
Zoo’s excitement when a new calf was born on 21 January to mom Lady and dad
Madolo.
Historical trade of tortoiseshell reveals origins of
modern wildlife trafficking networks
New research from the
Monterey Bay Aquarium finds that historical tortoiseshell trade routes may have
established the groundwork for modern illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU)
fishing. The study published today in the journal Science Advances, "The
historical development of complex global trafficking networks for marine
wildlife," analyzes 150 years of tortoiseshell trade records and derives
several realistic harvest models to explore the trade of endangered hawksbill
sea turtles.
The study concludes that the
tortoiseshell trade harvested nine million turtles, more than six times
previous estimates.
"The beauty of
tortoiseshell has been the hawksbill's curse," said the aquarium's
assistant research scientist and first author Dr. Emily Miller. "The fact
that the tortoiseshell trade patterns and the IUU fishing patterns overlap
How
you can help East Anglia’s ‘zoo tycoon’ save 15 animals from extinction
Professor David Field explained the new
strategy to business writer Caroline Culot which also includes seeing 150,000
people better connected with nature and 15,000 people’s well being improved.
From using his zoos to help those with
dementia to launching ‘befriending’ schemes to simply encouraging young people
to engage with animals rather than computer screens, Professor Field is taking
the attractions to a whole new level.
THE
PLAN TO SAVE THE RHINO WITH A CERVIX-NAVIGATING ROBOT
THE DUCK IS famous for two things: really
liking bread (even though they’re not supposed to be eating it), and wielding
insanely complicated reproductive bits. More specifically, male ducks have
corkscrew-shaped penises, while females’ reproductive tracts corkscrew in the
opposite direction. It’s a disturbing consequence of an evolutionary arms race,
the females’ countermeasure to notoriously aggressive males.
But you know who tends to get short shrift for
their own bizarrely complicated reproductive system? That would be the rhino.
Specifically, a female rhino’s cervix, a long canal leading into the vagina,
swerves and squiggles all over the place. “It’s composed of a number of i
Memphis
zookeeper Louie Bell — caretaker of TOM the tiger and other big cats — has died
During a career that lasted decades, Louie
Bell earned his stripes — and a few actual scars — caring for TOM the tiger and
other less celebrated animals of all types at the Memphis Zoo.
He lost the top half of his right pinkie when
a chimpanzee slammed it in a metal door. Another time, he was clawed in the
face by a tiger.
"She reached right out and sliced me
open," Mr. Bell recalled in a 2012 interview with The Commercial Appeal,
expressing fondness for the "playful" animal and blaming his own
momentary youthful carelessness for his injury.
Medical
Procedures; Conditioning A Blood Sample Behaviour
As trainers we are opened up too many
challenges from the animals we work with. We try to give them the best care
possible and sometimes medical procedures are part of this care. I’m constantly
amazed with what trainers teach their animals, regarding cooperative care. Some
go miles to teach their animals complex medical behaviours. Recently we posted
a video about a voluntary gastroscopy and biopsy with a Californian Sea lion,
incredible training by this team.
In this article we will be discussing blood
samples, how can you teach an animal this behaviour and what you should think
about. We will also touch on injections.
These
'Astroecologists' Are Using Star-Spotting Tech to Count Endangered Animals
Astrophysicists sometimes turn to thermal
infrared technology to help them find and study stars. The technology’s been
around for decades, and it’s constantly evolving to reveal more about the
cosmos. Now, some of these scientists are bringing their expertise to the world
of conservation. If thermal cameras are capable of spotting distant stars,
well, they must be capable of finding animals here on Earth, right?
In what the researchers are calling the first
official collaboration between astrophysicists and ecologists, a team from
Liverpool John Moores University went in search of Bornean orangutans, a
critically endangered species that hides in the forests of Borneo, a southeast
Asian island. A presentation Tuesday at the Unifying Tropical Ecology
Conference in Edinburgh, Scotla
Humans
are not off the hook for extinctions of large herbivores – then or now
What triggered the decline and eventual
extinction of many megaherbivores, the giant plant-eating mammals that roamed
the Earth millions of years ago, has long been a mystery. These animals, which
weighed 1,000kg or more and included the ancient relatives of modern elephants,
rhinos, hippos and giraffes, reached a peak of diversity in Africa some 4.5m
years ago during the Pliocene epoch (between 5.3m and 2.6m years ago). After
this, their numbers slowly declined, in a trend that continued into the
Pleistocene (2.6m years ago to roughly 11,000 years ago).
AS
MANY AS 36,000 PANGOLINS KILLED TO PRODUCE SINGLE SHIPMENT OF SCALES,
CONSERVATIONISTS SAY
A conservation group is outraged at the
seizure of what is believed to be the largest ever shipment of pangolin scales.
Around 36,000 of the endangered mammals were killed for the shipment from
Nigeria which was stopped in Singapore en route to Vietnam, which has the
world’s second largest market for the scaly ant eaters, The New York Times reported.
In a statement by Singapore customs, the
shipment was declared to contain “frozen beef” but inspectors found 12.9 tonnes
of pangolin scales, packed in 230 bags, worth about $38.7 million. The shipment
also included 177 kilograms o
Magic
show featuring tigers sparks debate at Columbia Theatre
A deluge of emails and calls, most of them
from out-of-state residents, hit the Columbia Theatre this weekend after a
Florida-based big cat sanctuary group criticized the theater for renting out
its space to a performer who uses live tigers and who has performed here
previously.
Montana-based Jay Owenhouse operates one of
the largest touring magic shows in the United States. He has performed twice
before at the Columbia Theatre. In addition to stunts like suspended
straitjackets and “sawn in half” illusions, Owenhouse features twin sister
Bengal tigers “Shekinah” and “Sheena” in his performances. (Shekinah is a rare
white tiger.)
Tiger
shark rips open woman's face during diving lesson in aquarium
A woman was attacked by shark during a diving
lesson - leaving her needing 70 stitches to cuts on her head and face.
Named in reports only as Nana, the learner
diver was attacked by a sand tiger shark - cousin of the great white.
She had been diving inside the Laohutan
Aquarium in the city of Dalian, southern China, when the shark attacked.
Devils
Hole Pupfish Population Reaches 136 At Death Valley National Park
One of the world’s rarest fish species, the
Devils Hole pupfish, has reached a population of 136 observable fish. This high
spring season population count at Death Valley National Park follows years of
substantially lower spring population counts, which triggered concerns over the
chances of survival of this critically endangered fish.
In the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, scientists
counted about 200 Devils Hole pupfish in the annual spring season surveys.
There was a startling decline in fish numbers starting in the late 1990s. Biologists were extremely concerned when less
than 40 fish were counted in the spring seasons of 2006, 2007, and 2013.
Phuket
Zoo faces probe over alleged abuse of baby elephant
Wanvisa Sangthong, a public relations staffer
at Phuket Zoo, today denied the allegations that the baby elephant – which is actually
named ‘Dodo’ – is suffering any form of abuse.
“This baby elephant is well taken care of. The
baby elephant’s name is ‘Dodo’, and he is a male – and he is not forced to work
hard.”
Asked why the baby elephant looks thin, Miss
Wanvisa replied, “We take care of ‘Dodo’ very well. The elephant is just baby.”
Manas Thepparuk, Chief of the Phuket
Provincial Office of the Department of Livestock Development (DLD), the
government regulatory office responsible for all animals used for any form of
work, agreed.
Poetic
justice for a rhino poacher is nothing to feel good about
he story wasn’t subtle: A poacher attempting
to hunt endangered rhinoceroses in South Africa’s Kruger National Park last
week was instead trampled to death by an elephant and eaten by a pride of
lions. Rangers alerted by his companions sought to recover his body and
eventually found a skull and a pair of pants.
It was a comeuppance made for social media.
Poetic justice, the natural order at work, a win for the animals — all were
common themes, as they’ve been in other, similar incidents.
Karma aside, the would-be poacher also left
behind a grieving family — his name and nationality were not immediately
released, but reports say he had daughters. The details speak not to a rich
man’s pleasure hunt gone bad but to a low-level actor in the global trade in
rhino horn and elephant ivory.
Former staff claim bullying at Wellington Zoo prompts exodus of key staff
Toxic. Fearful. And a huge staff turnover. Working with animals may be a dream job, but past and present staff at Wellington Zoo claim the coalface reality is vastly different.
Two recent exit letters, shared with Stuff, describe life at the zoo, claiming animals are loved but some bosses are feared.
Staff members were reluctant to comment on the record, citing a workplace code of conduct and fears of reprisal, but confirmed that key staff - in core roles such as animal welfare and life sciences - had left in recent times.
52
Year Old Dolphin Gives Birth at Blue Lagoon Island
The team at Blue Lagoon Island has officially
introduced its newest member of the family – a healthy and strong native
Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin calf named Duchess.
Her mother, Princess, at age 52 is one of the
oldest known dolphins under human care around the world. Duchess’ father is
Stormy.
Duchess was born in the all-natural habitat on
Blue Lagoon Island on November 21, 2018. The marine mammal team confirmed her
gender a few weeks after her birth. They have been monitoring her health and
progress daily.
http://www.dolphinencounters.com/52-year-old-dolphin-gives-birth-at-blue-lagoon-island/
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After more than 50 years working in private, commercial and National zoos in the capacity of keeper, head keeper and curator Peter Dickinson started to travel. He sold house and all his possessions and hit the road. He has traveled extensively in Turkey, Southern India and much of South East Asia before settling in Thailand. In his travels he has visited well over 200 zoos and many more before 'hitting the road' and writes about these in his blog http://zoonewsdigest.blogspot.com/Hubpages http://hubpages.com/profile/Peter+Dickinson
Peter earns his living as an independent international zoo consultant, critic and writer. Until recently working as Curator of Penguins in Ski Dubai. United Arab Emirates. He describes himself as an itinerant zoo keeper, one time zoo inspector, a dreamer, a traveler, an introvert, a people watcher, a lover, a storyteller, a thinker, a cosmopolitan, a writer, a hedonist, an explorer, a pantheist, a gastronome, sometime fool, a good friend to some and a pain in the butt to others.
"These are the best days of my life"
"These are the best days of my life"
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