Welcome to Zoo Tails! The internet resource for zoos around the world including pictures, video, reviews, news, construction updates, and more. If you're an animal lover then you've come to the right place! Unofficial guide to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.
The zoo has installed two large viewings windows along the front side
of the aviary for those who want to view the beautiful birds but don’t
want to walk through aviary.
They have also installed a huge mesh roof over the zoo’s master escape
artist’s yard, the markhors, also located within Asia Quest.
The new reindeer yard outside of Polar Frontier (where the wolves used to be, behind the OSU solar house). Looks to be a temporary seasonal exhibit only. Happy New Year!
It's that time of year when we look back and reflect on our the great memories from the past year and look forward to the future. Here is a list of some of the most popular zoo news from 2011:
While at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium today I discovered a very cool interactive feature at the brown and polar bear exhibits in the Polar Frontier section. The bear enclosures feature a "Sniff Port", a small covered hole in the exhibit wall, located on the far
left side of the polar bear's above-water viewing space. It allows the bears to easily smell you, and if you look through the tiny holes you can see their noses and hear them smelling you!
Here's a tip a zoo volunteer gave us to lure a polar bear over to the sniff port - eat some peanut butter! At the sniff port, you can breathe
out and the scent that wafts through to the other side often lures the
polar bears over. And peanut butter is the smell that seems to be the
most alluring.
Are there any other exhibits that you know of that have such exciting and innovative features?
Zoo Chat forum
member Team Tapir gave us an update today about a few of the ongoing
projects at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. You may have noticed some
working taking place in the pheasant aviaries over in Asia Quest. The
zoo has installed two large viewings windows along the front side of the
aviary for those who want to view the beautiful birds but don’t want to
walk through aviary. They have also installed a huge mesh roof over the
zoo’s master escape artist’s yard, the markhors, also located within
Asia Quest. Another juicy tidbit, according to some unknown sources
preliminary work on the massive African
Savannah expansion has begun. However, no details on the finalized
project plans are available at this time. Hopefully, we’ll know more
about these plans when they become public, rumored to be revealed this
spring. It’s a great time to be a fan of the Columbus Zoo!
The white rhino calf is not yet named, but the Zoo has launched a naming contest on its Facebook page
for the online community to participate. A selection of African names
selected by the Zoo’s animal care team -- starting with the letter K in
honor of mother Kidogo -- are below (in alphabetical order).
· Kafi – “quiet” · Kande - “first born daughter” · Kato – “second born” · Kwaku – “born on Wednesday”
The female calf will receive her name just in time for the holidays with the most votes through Friday, Dec. 23.
What is there to do in Columbus, Ohio? Go to the Columbus Zoo, of course! Hank, a 23-old male Asian Elephant, arrived at the zoo this morning from
Riddle's Elephant and Wildlife Sanctuary in hopes that he will breed
with their breeding cow, Phoebe.
Press release:
Powell,
OH – Hank, a 23-year-old Asian elephant, arrived at the Columbus Zoo
and Aquarium early this morning and brought with him hope for a
genetically diverse population of Asian elephants within zoos.
“Hank has previously sired a calf.” said Harry Peachey,
Assistant Curator at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. “He was brought to
the Columbus Zoo based on a Species Survival Plan recommendation to
breed with our females, Connie and Phoebe.”
Hank was born at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay in 1988 and also
lived at the Bronx Zoo and in California at Have Trunk Will Travel. He
came to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium from Riddle’s Elephant and
Wildlife Sanctuary in Arkansas.
According to standard procedure, Hank will be kept in
quarantine before being introduced to the other Columbus Zoo elephants
and Zoo visitors.
With the arrival of Hank, the Columbus Zoo elephant experts
now care for four elephants. In the past ten years only 13 Asian
elephants have been born successfully in nine AZA zoos in the U.S.
including Beco and Bodhi at the Columbus Zoo.
The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium’s elephant facility has more
indoor space than any other North America zoo. Although there is space
for more than one bull elephant, seven-year-old Bodhi was moved to the
Denver Zoo last month to better position him to one day sire a calf and
contribute to the elephant population.
An endangered species, Asian elephants are represented by an
estimated 38,000 to 51,000 individuals in range countries. Fragmented
wild populations, agriculture, deforestation and conflict with humans
pose a constant threat to wild Asian elephants.
“The elephants at the Zoo inspire people to care and take an
active role in conservation” said Columbus Zoo and Aquarium CEO and
President Dale Schmidt. “Their contributions enable the Columbus Zoo to
be a leader in conservation. We provide $1 million of privately raised
revenue each year to fund field projects and conservation organizations
in more than 30 countries.”
The holiday gift giving season is upon us. Here are a few gift ideas for zoo fans and their kids.
World of Zoo is the only life sim game that pushes you past the fences
and into a word of your own zoo. Create and customize your zoo
experience and develop hands on relationships to earn the trust and love
of your animals.
Zookeeper DVD. The animals at the Franklin Park Zoo decide to break their time-honored
code of silence and reveal their biggest secret to zookeeper Griffin
Keyes (Kevin James): They can talk!
Pulled from the pages of the wildly popular ZooBorns blog, this picture book presents the most charming critters ever: baby animals, ranging
from the adorable to the zany! Featuring full-color photographs on every
page and a cozy text perfect for reading aloud, this book is bound to
become a must-have for animal lovers of all ages.
"Beco's Big Year: A Baby Elephant Turns One" is a Columbus Zoo and
Aquarium book about a real baby elephant born in the Columbus Zoo.
Celebrating Beco's first birthday, "Beco's Big Year" features month-by
month chapters with stories and pictures that show early elephant
development milestones, and related facts about elephants.
Opening day, September 18, 1875, dawned sunless and chilly, a shaky
start for the second zoological garden in the United States, The Cincinnati Zoo. Exhibits
were unfinished, and animals remained crated. The polar bear had not
arrived, and the collection on display included a feeble tiger, a blind
hyena, an elephant rescued from a bankrupt circus, a talking crow, eight
small monkeys, and 400 birds.
The polar bears of Polar Frontier at the Columbus Zoo were in rare form during our latest visit in November 2011. The exhibit is one of the best due to the pools being stocked with live trout which the bears love to eat. The underwater viewing area is also a great touch, especially when one of the bears decides to sit on top of it.
Russia's Grizzly Coast is an exhibit complex at the Minnesota Zoological Garden in the United States of America
where visitors can see various animal species from the Russian Far
East. Above is a map of the Minnesota Zoo from 2009. Pictured below is the site plan diagram for Russia's Grizzly Coast exhibit.
After a brief hiatus the image of the week feature is back! Today we bring you a few images of a species which has not been studied as intently as other North American predators: the Wolverine!
We took a short trip to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium today and took some pictures of Pixie, one of the three new rescued manatees from Florida. A zoo staff member informed us that they believe Pixie is between one and two years old and weighs one hundred something pounds. She is certainly the smallest manatee I have ever seen! Did you know the manatee exhibit has a retractable roof- just like a football stadium. How cool is that!
According to an Associated Press report, PETA has just filed suit in
federal court against SeaWorld stating that the Marine Park is in
violation of the 13th Amendment for “enslaving its five performing
whales,” by claiming that while the Amendment prohibits slavery and
involuntary servitude, “it does not specify that only humans can be
victims.”
While SeaWorld has denounced the move as baseless, PETA’s general
counsel, Jeff Kerr contended that plaintiffs orcas, Tilikum and Katina
based at SeaWorld in Orlando, Fla., and Corky, Kasatka and Ulises at
SeaWorld San Diego “were kidnapped from their homes, kept confined,
denied everything that's natural to them and forced to perform tricks
for SeaWorld's profit," In addition Kerr stated that "the males have
their sperm collected, the females are artificially inseminated and
forced to bear young which are sometimes shipped away."
The lawsuit asks the court to order the orcas released to the custody
of a legal guardian who would find a "suitable habitat" for them, and
alleges “that captivity in the ‘barren tanks’ of a marine park
suppresses the orcas' abilities and relationships, and subjects them to
stress. This sometimes leads to instances where the orcas injure
themselves, other orcas or humans that interact with them.”
I think this is ridiculous and way over the top. The animals live arguably live a better life at SeaWorld than they would in the wild. I like to think SeaWorld does more good than harm. Aren't there better business to sue? How about those sea food companies killing thousands of wild dolphins and whales?
ZANESVILLE, Ohio --
Forty-nine animals are killed and six were rescued after the
owner of an animal preserve released his exotic animals and killed
himself. It played out Tuesday evening at the 73-acre Muskingum County Animal Farm at 270 Kopchak Road in Zanesville. Deputies found wild and exotic animals on the loose and the farm's
owner dead in the driveway from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
A news conference is scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday. NBC4 and nbc4i.com will provide live coverage on-air and online.
Officials said the owner, Terry Thompson, opened pens and cages before he committed suicide.
The farm housed animals including Bengal tigers, mountain lions, grizzly and black bears, primates and wolves. A total of 56 animals escaped. Six black bears, two grizzly bears, nine male lions, eight lionesses,
one baboon, three mountain lions, 18 tigers and two wolves were killed
by authorities.
Six animals were caught and transported to the Columbus Zoo and
Aquarium: one grizzly bear, three leopards and two macaques (a breed of
monkey).
One animal remains loose: a monkey that is carrying the Herpes B
virus. According to Jack Hanna, the director emeritus of the Columbus
zoo who was working with the emergency communications group, the monkey
may have been eaten by another animal. Officials are still asking the public to be on the lookout for the monkey. Consultants recommended to law enforcement that the monkey be shot
and killed. The Herpes B virus is not harmful to the monkey but is
considered extremely dangerous to humans. A bite wound by the monkey
would be considered very dangerous.
"I'm sorry for what happened to these animals. But also for what
could have happened to people. Let's hope this never has to happen again
in any state. This is a tragedy for the animal world. It could have
been a bigger tragedy for the human world," Hanna said.
"You cannot run from it. It doesn't see you as a human. It sees you
as something fleeing, or something to play with," Hanna said.
There also were horses also being kept on the farm and officials said
Wednesday afternoon that some of the wild animals were charging at the
horses when deputies arrived.
Hanna said the animals that were captured will go into quarantine before being brought into the zoo.
The Columbus zoo reached out to other zoos for possible placement, but the animals still belong to Thompson's wife legally.
The zoo called in extra security after reports of death threats from
people who are pro-animal rights. The Zanesville Chamber of Commerce
also received a few emailed threats. The Wilds, a conservation center in Zanesville, was helping out as well, Hanna said. No human injuries were reported.
Schools in the area were closed at the recommendation of Lutz
Wednesday. Lutz said he would recommend to districts that they can open
school for Thursday.
Someone attempted to steal the carcass of one of the big cats Tuesday
night. The animal was recovered, and the person was taken into police
custody. Charges will be filed, the sheriff said.
For additional information, stay with NBC4 and refresh nbc4i.com.
October turned out to be a GREAT time to visit the Wilds in Cumberland, Ohio. There were numerous baby animals out and about at the safari wild animal park. The star of the show and one of the cutest animals I've ever seen was a Southern White Rhinoceros calf which was born on October 2nd, less than two weeks ago! This is the second 4th-generation calf born at The Wilds.
They also had four baby Persian Onagers (at least, might have been a fifth
one), two baby Fringed-Ear Oryx, a baby Rothschild's Giraffe, and a baby
Grevy's Zebra. Check out the pictures and stay tuned for more updates from the Wilds!
The two new Grizzley bear cubs from Wyoming (Cheyenne and Jackson) have
joined the two from Montana (Cody and Cooper). A baby capybara was born
too. We'll have to go soon to see these new additions!
I've got some great pictures to share from the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium and I will hopefully be visiting the Wilds for the first time this year this weekend. Let's hope the weather forecast isn't too bad!
Nineteen
months after an animal trainer was killed by one of its killer whales,
SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment heads to court next week to fight for
the future of its iconic Shamu shows. SeaWorld is challenging the
results of a federal investigation triggered by the Feb. 24, 2010, death
of veteran trainer Dawn Brancheau, who was pulled underwater and killed
by Tilikum, a 6-ton killer whale.
Frankly,
I think OSHA is out of its league here. These are not machines with
well defined points of danger and risk, they're animals. There will
always be an inherent danger in working with the animals, and it's a
risk that frankly the trainers understand and accept.
A third Kiwi chick hatched at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium
on Jul. 17, marking the first time an institution in North America has
successfully hatched three kiwi in one year. The Columbus Zoo’s first
hatching of the North Island brown kiwi (Apteryx mantelli) occurred less
than four months ago on March 23, while the second hatched on June 25, 2011.
This newest little chick, a female, is
currently being cared for behind-the-scenes. The first two chicks are
both males and have been given names reflecting their native New
Zealand; “Ariki” (ah-ree-kee), meaning first-born
or chie,f and “Toa” (to-ah) meaning warrior. The oldest of the chicks,
Ariki, can be seen in the Zoo’s Roadhouse nocturnal habitat for a few
hours each day.
Next in our vintage zoo pictures series is from probably my favorite zoo. These pictures of the Columbus Zoo were taken in 1985. The zoo has changed so much since then. It's amazing to see the transformation. What along way it has come.Check out the giraffe exhibit which is where the current Asia Quest area sits. I also spy some goats in the petting farm which used to be on the opposite of the zoo. The back of the gorilla pictures says the animal is actually a twin!
Our vintage zoo series continues, this time with a few great shots from the Denver Zoo taken in 1979. It looks like you can see a few giraffes, bison, and what looks to be maybe elk or caribou or reindeer. Be sure to subscribe to the site via RSS feed or Google friend connect for the latest updates and more old zoo pictures coming soon!
They have also installed a huge mesh roof over the zoo’s master escape
artist’s yard, the markhors, also located within Asia Quest.
The new reindeer yard outside of Polar Frontier (where the wolves used to be, behind the OSU solar house). Looks to be a temporary seasonal exhibit only. Happy New Year!
