Sad News for the Columbus and Cincinnati Zoos

Fluffy, a gigantic and gentle reticulated python at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, died last night due to an apparent tumor.  The eighteen-year-old snake was 24-feet-long and 300-pounds and held the title of longest snake by Guinness World Records.

Also, our deepest condolences go out to the Cincinnati Zoo for the loss of their baby Indian rhino yesterday. Our thoughts are with you

Orca calf born at SeaWorld Orlando

Good news out of Sea World this week after the bad news of the recent death. SeaWorld Orlando's newest addition — a 7-foot-long, 350-pound baby killer whale — is in good physical shape and showing signs of strength hours after its birth, the theme park says. Katina, a 34-year-old female, gave birth to her seventh calf Saturday night at 7:28 p.m. It's the circle of life baby! Read the full story here.

Pictures from the Wilds: Part 8 Cheetah

It's the never ending updates! This sub-saharan and northern Iran animal is the fastest land mammal in the world, capable of reaching a top speed of 70 miles per hour for a short period of time. Only about 10,00 remain left in the wild. The cheetahs are definitely one of the highlights of visiting the Wilds on your safari adventure.

Pictures from the Wilds: Part 7 African Wild Dogs

The updates are endless! This is part 7 of our journey to the Wilds of Cumberland, Ohio. Today we look at one of the three species of carnivores that call the Wilds home, the African Wild Dog. Originally found in Southern, eastern, and central Africa, these pack oriented animals have a strong social structure which aids them in hunting for prey in the wild. There success rate is supposedly 80% (where you come up with that I don't know. Would be interesting to see the sample size on that data). Habitat loss (of course) has been their major cause of decline to a population of about 5000.

Pictures from the Wilds: Part 6 Giraffe

There are three subspecies of giraffe's represented at the Wilds: Masai, reticulated, and Rothchild's. Masai have leafy shaped  spotting patterns. These creatures are found on the continent of Africa. here you can see them among the trees.

Pictures from the Wilds: Part 5 Przewalski's Wild Horse

This endangered species of wild horses is originally from Europe and Asia. The Przewalski's Wild Horse actually went extinct in the wild but has recently been reintroduced and is making a nice comeback. A good sized herd is located at the Wilds and you should get nice and close to them!

Video from the Wilds