Image(s) of the Week: Grizzly Bears

We visited the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium (again) a couple of weeks ago and the grizzly bears but on quite a show! Brutus and Buckeye were wrestling each other in the water. Amazing to watch but I wouldn’t want to be caught in the middle of it!

Bald Eagles at Highbanks Metropark

Looking for something else to do near Columbus, Ohio? That is, of course, after you've visited the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. For your next wildlife and animal adventure be sure to head over to Highbanks Metropark for a chance to see real live bald eagles nesting in the wild. I visited a couple weeks ago and although we didn't get a good shot of the eagles I did snap a few pictures of the gigantic nest high above the banks of the Olentangy River.

The Metropark's staff has setup a web site with a live feed of the eagle's nest. I took a few screen grabs and if you look closely you can see the eagle pretty well!

Aerial Antics: Overhead pictures of the Columbus Zoo

Aerial Antics: Overhead pictures of the Columbus Zoo 

Welcome to the latest addition of our new feature, Aerial Antics. Today, we're going to be flying over my home zoo, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. These aerial images were taken from Bing maps bird's eye view feature. 

This first picture is an overhead view of the North America region of the park. North America is the largest and oldest section of the zoo. As you can see, these satellite images are not completely up-to-date as the Polar Frontier area is still under construction on the right hand side of the image. The big green pasture in the middle is for the bison and pronghorn antelopes. The big, red petting zoo farm building is at the bottom of the photo above the parking lot. Can you trace the railroad tracks for the train ride? 

The next aerial photograph primarily shows Asia Quest , which opened in two phases in 2006.  The large building at the bottom is the indoor facility for the rhinos and elephants. It's the largest indoor exhibit of its kind in North America and the second in the world, with the capacity to house 10–12 elephants and 3–4 rhinos simultaneously. It really is a big building! 

This last picture actually shows an overhead view of the entire western half of the zoo. Which lies aon the banks of the Scioto River. The first region is called Shores and comprised tManatee Coast and the Coral Reef.  The Manatee exhbiti is particularly interesting because this habitat is one of only two outside of Florida to keep manatees, as wekk as the retractable roof, which creates an outdoor environment for up to five manatees during warm weather. 

There are two important round buildings: one is the reptile house and the other is a restored 1914 Mangels-Illions carousel (which used to reside at the neighboring Wyandot Lake). Can you spot Islands of Southeast Asia region opened in 2003 features a relaxing boat ride?

New Zoo Videos and Resources Pages

I just wanted to let you know that I've added two additional new pages to the Zoo Tails site to go along with the "Zoo Books" page I recently created. The first new page is entitled "Videos" and contains some of the zoo videos I have filmed and edited over the past several years. The second page is called "Resources" and contains some useful links to different services and tools I use to help keep this blog and my other websites up and running.

Cheetahs run loose on football field

Tampa, Fla. (March 5, 2012) – On Friday, March 9, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment (SEA)will broadcast the most recent installment of its Saving a Species series, which features some of Busch Gardens Tampa’s most popular new residents – the cheetahs – and St. Petersburg’s Tropicana Field.

With the stadium closed to outside visitors and the turf marked for the St. Petersburg Bowl football game, the cheetahs were encouraged to run the length of the field, chasing a lure system identical to the one in their Cheetah Run habitat. The cats’ efforts were captured by high-definition and slow-motion cameras. “Even though we have this awesome habitat at Busch Gardens, a 100-yard football field will give us the opportunity to showcase what that speed looks like on a field that people can relate to,” said Tim Smith, a Busch Gardens assistant curator who works with the cheetahs daily.

Virtual Queuing Coming to Zoombezi Bay

Are you looking for something to do this summer in Columbus, Ohio? One of the most popular activities in Columbus on a hot summer day is to cool off at the Zoombezi Bay waterpark, which is owned and operated by the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium right next door (a tickets gets you into both). Zoombezi Bay is a very popular attraction in central Ohio but the good news is those long waits for the waterslides are about to vaporize. The waterpark just signed a five year deal with Lo-Q, a company that designs systems which allow park visitors to make reservations for attractions.

Here’s how it works: Using kiosks located throughout the park, Zoombezi Bay visitors rent RFID-enabled wristbands, call Q-Bands, which reserve a “virtual” place in-line for some of the park’s most popular rides and slides. Just like at a local restaurant, when your reservation time arrives you and your friends enter the attraction via a separate entrance after getting their wrist bands scanned. How cool is that!

Zoombezi Bay is the eleventh water park in the United States to sign-up for the Q-band system since its conception last year.

Read the full article here.

SeaWorld Orlando veterinarian removes lodged fishing hook from throat of loggerhead sea turtle

Press release from SeaWorld Orlando:

 

Feb. 27, 2012 (Orlando, Fla.) -- This morning SeaWorld Orlando’s senior veterinarian performed surgery on a rescued sea turtle, removing a large fishing hook from its throat. 

 

The animal was found by the Inwater Research Group - an organization committed to the research and conservation of coastal species and habitats – who also assisted in the animal’s transport. The turtle, a sub-adult weighing approximately 100 pounds, was rescued from the intake canal at the St. Lucie Power Plant in St. Lucie County, Fla.

The turtle arrived at SeaWorld Orlando last night (February 26) and underwent surgery this morning following x-rays and blood work procedures. According to the veterinary team, the 4-inch-long hook was successfully removed. The turtle’s behavior will continue to be monitored over the next several weeks, but is doing well following the procedure.

 

So far this year, SeaWorld Orlando has rescued nine sea turtles. It is the intent that upon recovery, this animal will be released back into its natural environment.

For 45 years, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment has helped animals in need -- ill, injured and orphaned.  More than 20,000 animals have been rescued by our experts.‪ SeaWorld’s animal rescue team is on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. ‪