Sunday, November 22, 2009

Zoo News Digest 19th - 22nd November 2009 (Zoo News 631)

Zoo News Digest 19th - 22nd November 2009 (Zoo News 631)
http://zoonewsdigest.com/

http://zoonewsdigest.blogspot.com/

Peter Dickinson
peterd482001@yahoo.co.uk


Dear Colleagues,

There appears to be a spate of people wanting to commune with bears at the moment. This one is a double tragedy as not only was the 'communer' injured but the bear too. These modern bear pits have only been open a little over a month and house the bears which originally lived in the traditional pits in the middle of the city. I recollect seeing the pits a number of years ago.

Pleased to learn of the new home for the 900 pound alligator. I am sure though he must have been much loved to have lived in the same back yard for so long. There was a story in the Bangkok Post today of a tame temple crocodile (there was a photo of it being petted by children) which was inhabited by the spirit of the former Abbot.

The mention of the Bacolod Zoo in the Philippines brought back a few memories. This is one of the best collections I have ever visited. Not because of big, beautiful, state of art because it is none of these. No it was the dedication of the staff there that impressed me.

I read the Kuwait Zoo story three times. I could see similarities there to Al Ain Zoo in the seventies. This behaviour of zoo visitors can be changed. It needs supervision and support. I very much doubt that there is more than a few, if any, Kuwaiti keepers in the zoo. How then is the citizen employee of any other country going to tell a Kuwaiti citizen what to do? At best they will be ignored and at worst they will be beaten. In between they and all their relatives will be insulted. Keepers need support. They need the back up, instant back up. Supervisors who care! People who do not abide by the rules must be asked to immediately leave or be forcibly removed. It would not need more than a few weeks of strict control before a visible difference would be noted. You can put up all the signs you like, you can raise the barriers, you can widen moats but it is active supervision and reprimand which will work.

'Jaguars take Jungle Walkies'....I knew nothing about this place but I do now because I visited the website. Their volunteers (most of them) appear to have a good time. I would like to know more than I have read though. I really cannot get my head round the concept of how taking jaguars and pumas for walks on leads is ever going to ready them for return to the wild. Can anyone enlighten me?

Please post in comments below if you feel so inclined.


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On with links:

Zoo horror in bear pit
A man lies injured after being attacked by a bear at a zoo yesterday.
The 25-year-old suffered head and leg injuries after climbing on to a wall and falling 13ft into the animal's enclosure.
The intruder was saved after police shot the bear at the Bear Park in Bern, Switzerland. Both man
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2009/11/22/zoo-horror-in-bear-pit-115875-21840252/

See Photos and more information;
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1229998/Man-seriously-injured-bear-attack-climbing-zoo-enclosure.html



Elephant dies at Vandalur zoo
A four-year-old sub adult cow elephant died at Vandalur zoo, on Friday due to a suspected attack of herpes virus.
The zoo authorities said the elephant, Chellamma, was rescued from the Andhiyur forests in Erode district and brought to the zoo in 2005. Since Friday morning, the animal refused food. Its head started swelling and administration of prophylactic medicines also
A four-year-old sub adult cow elephant died at Vandalur zoo, on Friday due to a suspected attack of herpes virus.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/22/stories/2009112258760300.htm




ZOO TO BE REFURBISHED TO ACCOMMODATE NEW ANIMALS
Sri Lanka National zoo at Dehiwala does not have enough space to accommodate new animals, therefore the zoo authorities are planning to refurbish the zoo premises according to a master plan on completion of the new zoo in Pinnawala and the Safari park in Ridiyagama Hambantota , Director of the national zoo Duminda Jayaratne said.
Addressing a press conference yesterday he further said that they received Rs 120 million for the Pinnawala zoo construction and Rs.50 million for Ridiyagama safari park construction this year.
“We are planning to open a Sri Lankan section at the Pinnawala zoo and a Lion enclosure at the safari park next year. Normally we introduce a pair of animal to the zoo instead
http://srilankanewsfirst.com/news/14960.html




900 pound neighbor gets new home
Walter is his name: a 48-year old alligator adopted by a local family when it was just two years old. The gator has been living in a back yard in Marshall for 46 years. Friday, the dear old friend moved to a new home - all 900 pounds of him. Click on the video in the upper right-hand corner of this page to watch KLTV photojournalist Lynn Mitchell's story. The gator is safe and making new friends. He is now living in a 22-foot pond at the East Texas Gators and Wildlife Park in Canton. He is
http://www.kltv.com/Global/story.asp?S=11548527





Bacolod kids treated to zoo tour at Conservation Center
More than 150 kids and parents took part in the storytelling and zoo tour at the Negros Forests and Ecological Foundation, Inc. (NFEFI), Biodiversity Conservation Center (BCC) open house in observance of the Negros Occ. Wildlife Month.
According to NFEFI Curator -Veterinarian Joanne Mae Justo, the open house and story telling day is meant to educate the children on the richness of Negros Occ. biodiversity.
She said the youngsters were given the opportunity to appreciate and see various endemic and rare species kept in the center after a story telling session.
Teaching kids to value the wildlife develops a positive character within them and in the process, they influence their parents on their views regarding the environment and the wildlife, she said.
Environmentalists lament the fact that Filipino kids know more about lions, giraffes and tigers when these animals are not found in the country rather than local fauna like maral (wildcats), Philippine spotted dear and the bleeding heart pigeons which are
http://www.pia.gov.ph/default.asp?m=12&r=&y=&mo=&fi=p091120.htm&no=28




Catalina will give contraceptives to female bison
In 1924, a film crew moved 14 bison onto Catalina Island for a movie appearance that never came to be.
Not only were the animals cut out of the silent film, they were left behind on the island's interior, presumably because of cost overruns. The move would leave Catalina with a sizeable herd decades later.
To trim the population that at one point numbered 600, the conservancy that oversees most of the island has sold bison to an auction house and shipped the animals off to South Dakota Indian reservations.
But now, management of the herd will come from a shot of a contraceptive dart. The Catalina Island Conservancy Friday will announce the start of a birth control program among female bison that utilizes a vaccine derived from pig eggs - a management strategy that's said to be cheaper and less stressful for the animals than having them shipped away.
The goal is to reduce the annual growth of the herd from nearly 10 percent to 4 percent
http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_13829260




Alexandria Zoo plans $3.5 million in improvements; Lee Ann Whitt named director
The Alexandria Zoo will undergo a $3.5 million renovation and expansion, and it will do so under the leadership of Lee Ann Whitt, who was named today as the zoo’s director.
Whitt had been serving as acting director for more than a year following the death of her husband, Les Whitt, who ran the Alexandria Zoo for 34 years.
The $3.5 million project and the naming of Lee Ann Whitt as zoo director were announced today in a press conference
http://www.thetowntalk.com/article/20091120/NEWS01/91120022




Charles Darwin’s Findings Hold Key To Saving Rare Bird
Two birds collected by Charles Darwin back in 1835 could help bring back a rare mockingbird to the Galapagos Islands.
The DNA was taken from the specimens by a team of geneticists and then compared to DNA from living sub-populations on two other islands. The researchers discovered genetic hints on the best way to conserve the birds.
The study, appearing in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters, was let by biologist Paquita Hoeck of the University of Zurich in Switzerland.
Darwin and Robert Fitzroy, the captain of HMS Beagle, collected samples from Floreana Island during their trip to the Galapagos more than 170 years ago.
Shortly after his famed expedition, human impact on its delicate habitat led to the extinction of the Floreana mockingbird (Mimus trifasciatus) on that particular island.
There are now only two small sub-populations surviving on two tiny satellite
http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1788632/charles_darwins_findings_hold_key_to_saving_rare_bird/




It's no party for the animals in Kuwait Zoo
As Eid Al-Adha approaches and the temperature continues to fall, Kuwait Zoo in Omariya has been getting ready for a surge of visitors - an alternative option for families willing to spend a day outdoors. However, the growing expectation of more visitors has also spread the fear that the lack of zoo manners amongst them might cause further suffering to the animals. "Many visitors don't care about the cleanliness of the zoo, and they throw different objects everywhere and in the animal cages," explains Farid a Mulla Ahmad, the zoo's director.
Speaking with the Kuwait Times, Ahmad explained that throwing food and objects as varied as socks, bottle caps and keys are common pastimes for the more offensive zoo visitors. "It is quite dangerous for the animals and disturbs their digestion," she explained. "On one occasion, we found socks in an ostrich's stomach after it had died.
In a bid to tackle the problem of illegal feeding of the animals, the zoo's administration has installed signs all over the cages warning people against feeding them, but "People do not respect the signs," said the director.
She explained that the zoo also faces a serious problem with visitors who harm the animals intentionally or unintentionally, explaining that the animals have a certain food regime. "The animals are fed at a certain time and should not eat more, but the visitors fail to respect that," said Ahmad, calling upon visitors to respect the rules and instructions and keep the zoo clean.
Shelter
The zoo and the animals have still not made it to the priority list for the Government's budget, with the under-funded zoo desperately needing more spacious cages and more utilities. There are archaic utilities that need to be changed. "We need to expand some cages to give more freedom of movement to the animals," Ahmad explained, adding that the number of animals is increasing. The elephants and hippopotami, especially, need more living space, she stressed.
The administration at the zoo has drawn up expansion plans, but its limited budget remains the greatest obstacle to implementing them. "I aim to make our zoo the best, especially if there are world organizations visiting us," Ahmad asserted.
Wild animals brought from desert hunting have created the need to establish a rescue center, with a number of hunters of wild birds in the desert area attempting to sell their captured prey to the zoo, explains the director. "Some people hunt for birds and bring them here injured. When we refuse to buy them, they just leave them here. We then cure them at the veterinary clinic and later take them back to the natural protectorate or desert and set them free." Ahmad said that, despite the zoo's advice, "The
hunters then go hunting again although we explain to them that they can't keep such birds at home and feed them bread as these birds eat meat only.
Establishing a rescue shelter for animals is one of the plans on the zoo's list and the administration there has already submitted an official request to the Public Authority for Agriculture Affairs and Fish Resources, who agreed to the establishment of an animal shelter. "We're currently searching for a suitable place to establish the rescue center," explained Ahmad.
Animal exchange
In recent years, the animals' breeding rate has outstripped the zoo's forecast for growth. In such cases, Kuwait Zoo exchanges these animals with other zoos around the world. For instance, at the end of last year, Kuwait Zoo received a batch of new animals from North Korea as a part of an animal exchange program. "We received sika deer, water deer, lemur and ponies. In exchange, we sent a mouflon, Barbary sheep, fallow deer, axis deer, Alexandrian parakeets, rose ring parakeets and pygmy goats," the zoo di
rector said.
When the animals' life cycle approaches its end and get very ill, often euthanasia is the only solution. "If any animal is still eating and walking, we keep it with the others, even if it's very old," Ahmad revealed, adding that when an animal is incurably ill, the zoo is forced to euthanize it.
Fortunately, Farida observes, the zoo is swine flu-free.
Two staff members, Noor Hussein and Jamal Al-Jeeran, gave the Kuwait Times a tour of the zoo, showing this reporter the diversity of birds, and the various kinds of reptiles. They also explained how the zoo administration has installed double cages to keep visitors as far from the animals as possible in order to protect both, especially from
http://www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news.php?newsid=NDEwNzI1NDQ3



Rhinos de-horned to stop poaching
Three black rhinos at Imire Safari Park have been dehorned in order to prevent them from being killed by poachers. Imire has four black and two white rhino, and all but one baby have now been dehorned. An estimated 200 rhino have been killed by poachers in the last three years. (Pictured: Dehorning one of the Imire rhino)
MARONDERA – In August 2007: Imire lost three of their rhinos. Even though they had been dehorned, they were brutally killed by poachers. It has been speculated that the poachers were not aware that the rhinos had been dehorned. However, they managed to cut off the male rhino’s stub of horn, so some believe that the massacre of these dehorned rhinos was a politically motivated act, and that the poachers were fully aware that these rhino did not have horns but went out and killed them anyway.
Another theory is that poachers have now resorted to killing off rhinos for the sake of being able to cover more ground when it comes to poaching. That way they can keep track of the rhinos that are still alive in certain areas and can then condense the margin they have to cover when poaching. Zimbabwe has become a hot spot for rhino poaching, and with the
demand for rhino horns ever increasing from the Asian market, the question remains; how can these relentless poachers be stopped? Dehorning is one solution, as it stops giving poachers a reason to kill these animals. The Rhino are sedated, a qualified vet is brought in, and the horn is literally sawn off. They suffer no pain, and are back on their feet in a matter of minutes.
However the act of dehorning has been quite a controversial topic, with the main argument being that rhinos use their horns for grazing, and for protection in the wild. If the animals are dehorned it may affect their entire social behavior. Reily Travis, who has lived on Imire his entire life, and runs the volunteer programme on the farm, thinks that there is another way
that Zimbabwe can save the rhinos and their horns
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/2009111826796/opinion-analysis/rhinos-de-horned-to-stop-poaching.html




Tourists sue Sanbona safari park after too-close encounter with lions Eight British tourists are suing a South African safari park after they became trapped by a pride of wild lions when their tour vehicle overturned.
The group are claiming hundreds of thousands of pounds for injuries and post-traumatic stress allegedly suffered when they were exposed to the “threatening conduct of the lions” at Sanbona Wildlife Reserve northeast of Cape Town.
One of the animals also stole a boot from the tourists, they say.
Papers lodged at Cape Town High Court claim that the injuries were due to the irresponsible actions of Natasha Van der Merwe, a park
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article6922448.ece




Baghdad's once ravaged zoo comes back to life
More than six years after the U.S. invasion left Iraq's main zoo a wasteland of starving animals and deserted cages, the park in central Baghdad is enjoying a vigorous revival and needs to grow.
Few Iraqis ventured into Baghdad Zoo during the violence that surged after the 2003 invasion. But as the bombings and shootings receded, families started to return in droves -- so many, in fact, that officials are now desperate to expand the park which is home for the zoo to make space for them all.
The zoo has replaced the hundreds of animals that escaped, were stolen, died of thirst
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/17/AR2009111700254.html




Toronto Zoo's baby gorilla named Nassir
A contest to name the new baby gorilla at the Toronto Zoo was capped off in an usual way on Wednesday when the baby's father made the final choice.
Charles is a western lowland gorilla at the Toronto Zoo and on Wednesday morning he chose his son's new name by picking a plate filled with his favourite treats.
The zoo decided to have a naming contest for the baby gorilla and solicited names from the public.
They were inundated with thousands of name suggestions, then whittled that pile down to five: Nassir, Neo,
http://news.sympatico.cbc.ca/abc/Local/ON/ContentPosting?isfa=1&feedname=CBC_LOCALNEWS&date=true&newsitemid=to-toronto-gorilla




Anderson blames NT govt for hippo death
The Northern Territory government is to blame for the death of a pygmy hippopotamus in the outback, the former owner of Tipperary Wildlife Sanctuary says.
The hippopotamus was shot on Saturday night during a pig hunting expedition in the Douglas Daly region, about 200km south of Darwin.
It is believed the African rainforest animal had escaped from Tipperary Station, near the Daly River, which was once an exotic wildlife sanctuary.
Warren Anderson, a millionaire property developer who established the sanctuary, tried to sell the animals after being wrongly accused by the territory
http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-national/anderson-blames-nt-govt-for-hippo-death-20091118-im1j.html




NT's Tipperary Zoo animals sold for hunting, hippo shot
IT'S a curious tale of a hippo, a pig hunter, a millionaire property developer, a red-faced government and now a game safari. Warning: graphic image.
The accidental shooting of a rare African species of pygmy hippo in the Northern Territory outback sparked peoples' imagination and raised the question: Whatever happened to the exotic animals of Tipperary Wildlife Sanctuary?
Despite urban legends, the fantasy of a mini African menagerie wandering freely in the Top End could not be further from the truth.
About 300 of the animals, including herds of critically endangered African scimitar horned oryx and addax, were sold to a hunting safari in the Northern Territory.
A small number of the more crowd-attracting animals were transferred to a zoo in far north Queensland.
Sadly, it is believed the remainder of Tipperary's 2000 animals suffered the same fate as the pygmy hippo following two separate and yet equally intriguing legal battles.
The mystery hippo
Nico Courtney said he would not have shot the pygmy hippo had he known what it
http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,26384260-5017965,00.html




Flamingo Land zoo's new addition is six-foot tall and a big baby - WATCH THE VIDEO
A six-foot baby giraffe is finding its feet at Flamingo Land Zoo and Theme Park near Malton.
The giraffe was born on November 3 and staff are not sure whether it is a boy or a girl.
Zoo manager Ross Snipp said: "We're really pleased – it's very exciting.
"We've had three giraffes born in the last three to four years and this one is doing the best of all of them. It's healthy
http://www.maltonmercury.co.uk/news/Flamingo-Land-zoo39s-new-addition.5832027.jp




Experts convene to save freshwater fish
A plan to save Australia's freshwater fish from becoming extinct is being worked out at a meeting of experts from around the world at the Adelaide Zoo which begins today.
The 25 delegates will discuss a series of freshwater fish management strategies to tackle the issue.
The head of Zoos SA, Chris West, says the drought, over-extraction and the drainage of wetlands have all led to diminished native fish numbers in Australia.
"In Australia, about 95 per cent of our wetlands have either been destroyed or very severely compromised by urban and
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/11/22/2749828.htm




First Aquarium in US to Breed Dwarf Cuttlefish
Anchored to an algae-covered rock in a 120-gallon tank at the California Academy of Sciences' Steinhart Aquarium, a cluster of inky-colored cuttlefish eggs is beginning to swell -- evidence of success for the Academy's new captive breeding program for dwarf cuttlefish, Sepia bandensis. The program, pioneered by Academy biologist Richard Ross, is the first of its kind in a U.S. aquarium, and offers the Academy and other institutions the opportunity
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091112141319.htm




Really Rare Rhinos Found by Dung-Sniffing Dogs
We all know dogs like to smell just about everything, including other animals' poo. Now scientists have figured out how to put the canines' odd pastimes to work to help sniff out the dung of endangered rhinos in Vietnam.
The collected dung will help scientists to figure out how many Javan rhinos, also called Rhinoceros sondaicus, remain in the wild. The rhinos were considered extinct on mainland Southeast Asia until hunters in Vietnam killed one in 1988. Now two remaining populations exist, with
http://www.livescience.com/animals/091120-dogs-sniff-rhinos.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+livescience%2Fanimaldomain+%28LiveScience.com+Animal+Domain%29




Bears get satellite collars in Indian Kashmir: officials
Wildlife experts in Indian-controlled Kashmir have fitted black bears with satellite-tracking collars to study their behaviour and help conserve the endangered animals, officials said Wednesday.
"This is the first time in India that Himalayan black bears have been fitted with a GPS collar," wildlife warden Rashid Naqash told AFP, adding that there just 300 of the animals in the region.
These collars will help in studying the behaviour and habitat of the Himalayan black bear, he said, adding the "step will go a long way in conserving the endangered species."
A team of wildlife experts have put collars on three black bears -- a male, a female and a cub -- in the Dachigam national...........Wild bears have killed more than two dozen people in the past four
http://www.spacemart.com/reports/Bears_get_satellite_collars_in_Indian_Kashmir_officials_999.html




Jaguars take jungle walkies
MOST humans wouldn't get this close to a killer big cat, let alone put it on a lead and take it for a walk.
But these are the passionate volunteers at a unique animal rescue centre where they are trying to reintroduce jaguars back into the wild.
These majestic creatures have been saved from Bolivian black markets or abusive situations.
The volunteers at the Comunidad Inti Wara Yassi (CIWY) are gradually trying to get the cats used to their natural environment, but most of them have never set so much as a paw in the wild.
So each day the dedicated live-in helpers walk the predatory felines, some weighing as much as 260 pounds, on a lead through the CIWY's 1,991-acre Bolivian jungle compound.
Karen Peter, a 45-year-old volunteer who has been stationed at the centre for two years, said: "They are walked around outside their cage by a minimum of two volunteers at one time and a maximum of three.
"Each jaguar spends up to seven or eight hours outside the cage a day to readjust them to a semi-wild existence.
"It must be remembered that some of the animals have never spent any time in the wild and are totally dependent on humans for their lead and food."
CIWY, which is located in the central-Bolivian region of Santa Cruz and also rescues monkeys, birds and pumas, has become recognised as one of the world's leading animal rescue centres.
Karen added: "We get the animals from all across Bolivia and the border with Peru.
"The illegal trade and purchasing of exotic cats such as
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2735676/Jaguars-take-jungle-walkies.html




Enforcement officers put in the picture
One of the hardest daily challenges facing wildlife law enforcement officers is to recognize which species are being traded in order to determine if the trade is legal.
To assist them, the ASEAN-Wildlife Enforcement Network (WEN) Support Programme has today launched a set of simple identification sheets to provide frontline enforcement officers with a user-friendly tool designed to help them decide whether a species is being traded legally or not.
The ASEAN region is a major hub of trade in wildlife, functioning both as supplier and consumer of plants, animals and their derivatives. Nearly all the major groups of plants and animals found within this biodiverse area are traded.
Unscrupulous traders often label shipments of rare and threatened animals as common species that can be legally traded, in the hope that officers inspecting the shipment can’t tell the difference.
“It’s obviously impossible for officers to be experts in the identification of every wildlife product they come across, which is why ASEAN-WEN has produced these simple guides” commented Dr Chumphon Sukkaseam, Senior Officer of the ASEAN-WEN Programme
http://www.traffic.org/home/2009/11/18/enforcement-officers-put-in-the-picture.html


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ZOO BIOLOGY


The Zoo Biology Group is concerned with all disciplines involved inthe running of a Zoological Garden. Captive breeding, husbandry,cage design and construction, diets, enrichment, man management,record keeping, etc etc

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/zoo-biology




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Okay this is NOT zoo related but with the festive season coming up it is worth clicking on the link to make a choice or really original gifts. Most of these you will not find anywhere else! Even if you are not feeling festive you will find gifts with a difference for any occassion.





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Asia for Animals Singapore 2010
http://www.blogger.com/



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MonkeyLand- (worth a watch for the diversity, but it is interesting too)
http://www.wikemy.com/monkeyland


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The 6th European Zoo Nutrition Conference, Barcelona , 28-31 January 2010

organised by ConZOOlting and the EAZA Nutrition Group

The full draft programme for the event has just been released, coinciding with an extension of the early bird registration period to November 30th.

Potential delegates are encouraged to register as soon as possible in order to benefit from both the lower registration fee and discounted hotel rates.

To view the draft programme, accommodation arrangements, registration and paper submission forms, please visit the dedicated page on the EAZA website: http://www.eaza.net/

Dr. Andrea Fidgett

Chair, EAZA Nutrition Group


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Zookunft 2010
Crowne Plaza Hotel
Bleicher Ufer 23
19053 Schwerin
on
19, 20 & 21 February 2010

Environment and Climate Change - Challenges for the zoo of the future

Program and registration: http://www.zookunft.info/



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Celebrating Plants and the Planet:


OK, maybe last month I had too much fun at the expense of insects (that can be read in so many unpleasant ways). The dance of plants and insects is complex and wonderful, as this month's stories at www.zooplantman.com (NEWS/Botanical News) illustrate.


· Plants and pollinators have intimate, carefully developed relationships, right? What about insects that break the rules and steal nectar without pollinating? Is that bad for plants or good? Check out this terrific link examining the entire phenomenon.

· To defend against foraging insects, plants produce a variety of hormones that are matched to the precise nature of the damage they are suffering.

· Ants have evolved exquisite relationships with plants in the tropics, from "ant gardens" to "ant acacias." But when the ant population outgrows the home plant, things can get interesting in the neighborhood.

· Few relationships are as interdependent as the one between the Senita cactus and its pollinating moth. So how do they avoid killing each other?

· Back to ants: you know those Batesian bodies we learned about that the tree produces to keep the ants around? Now learn about the rare vegetarian spider that outwits the ants and the plant (with video!).


Remember, you can find all of the past stories, easily categorized and separate from the ZHCD website at www.plantworldnews.com . Additional stories are also posted there, and the new stories are added each week. Share with Facebook or whatever you kids use, or subscribe via RSS. A great tool for educators and students, as well as general nature nuts.


Please share these stories with associates, staff, docents and -- most importantly -- visitors! Remember, over a hundred other stories can be found in the archive section of the website.


Rob

Zoo Horticulture

Consulting & Design

Greening design teams since 1987

Please add rob@zooplantman.com to your email list


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1st Conservation Medicine Symposium - Chile

On November 30th and December 1st, we are organizing The first Conservation Medicine Simposium in Chile. This concept is a very new concept for Chile, but it is completely necesary since in Chile we have and extremely high endemism!


We also have 3 zoos, which are very good, but need to use some conservation medicine in their exhibits. For example, are zoos are plagued (sorry if it sounds harsh!) with cats! They go in and out of the other animals enclosures! I believe I don't have to mention how many diseases could be transmitted between cats and the rest of the animals!! We have very important guest speakers like: Andrew Cunningham, Alonso Aguirre and Marcela Uhart.


If you want to read more about it, and are interested in coming please go to: http://mdc.unab.cl/


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ORCA
Organization for Reinforcement Contingencies with Animals


The second annual Art and Science of Animal Training conference is in February





or email Katie Tucker at obie1204@gmail.com

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Dear Friends and Colleagues,

We have a lot of new events planned for 2009 and 2010, some in collaboration with Chester Zoo, Odense Zoo, Reaseheath College and Howletts & Port Lympne.

Please check on http://www.animalco ncepts.eu/ AnimalConcepts/ Events/Events. html
for the latest information and programs.

There will also be information on upcoming conferences and workshops in the animal field, like the PASA workshop in Kenya later this month.
Please let us know if we are missing one, or if you are organising an event so we can add it to the calendar. Thank you.

Please contact us if you have any further questions.

Kind regards,

Sabrina

AnimalConcepts
http://www.animalconcepts.eu/
+31633008373



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Howletts and Port Lympne Student Enrichment and Welfare Course in collaboration with AnimalConcepts.
27th – 29th January 2010




Instructors: Sabrina Brando and Mark Kingston Jones



Howletts and Port Lympne Wild Animal Parks are pleased to announce a course on Enrichment and Welfare to be run by Sabrina Brando and Mark Kingston Jones.


Sabrina runs AnimalConcepts, an international consultancy company specialising in enrichment, behaviour and animal welfare. Sabrina has 17 years experience in the field and collaborates with many facilities, universities and research institutes.


Mark has been involved in the animal welfare field since 2004 and now works at Howletts and Port Lympne as the Enrichment and Research Officer for both parks organising workshops, talks and working with keepers to design and implement enrichment ideas. He has been involved in two ‘The Shape of Enrichment’ workshops, in the UK and Indonesia, and has presented 9 talks on topics relating to animal welfare at conferences, both nationally and internationally.



This course is designed specifically for college and university students (past or present) who do not currently work within a zoo setting but are looking to do so as a career. Over three days students will gain a background in animal welfare and working with different species, as well as providing practical skills in designing, building and testing enrichment within the settings of both Howletts and Port Lympne Wild Animal Parks, in Kent. Our aim is to provide valuable experience and the addition of useful skills to a would-be keeper’s CV. Please note you must be 18 or over to attend this course.


Lecture topics include: An overview of welfare and enrichment, animal husbandry and learning, choice and control, enclosure design and breaking into the zoo world. Additionally there will be talks and practicals with keepers involving working with carnivores, primates, ungulates, elephant management, getting involved in in-situ conservation, rope splicing and fire hose weaving.


The workshop registration fee of £150 includes:
All workshop materials
Practical sessions
Lunches during the 3 days, as well as drinks and snacks during the scheduled tea breaks.


Information on discounted accommodation is available on request and the number of available places is limited, so please book early.



For further information and to request a booking form please contact:
Kim Guillot at Howletts and Port Lympne Wild Animal Parks
Email: intern@totallywild.net


Final deadline for registration is: 31.12.09

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For Zoo Jobs and Related Vacancies please visit: http://zoowork.blogspot.com/

For notification of Zoo related Meetings, Conferences, Courses and Symposia go to: http://zoosymposia.blogspot.com/

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Kind Regards,

Wishing you a wonderful week,

Peter Dickinson


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