When her incubation time goes over 80%, then we are fairly certain she is about to lay her egg. After egg laying, if her incubation time drops below 80%, we know it’s time to collect her eggs for artificial incubation. This system of scoring behavior can be seen in this 2004 graph documenting the reproductive cycles of Lilinoe in 2004. She laid four clutches of eggs, many of which were fertile. Careful video recording and monitoring of Lilinoe and 13 other `alala pairs at the Keauhou and Maui Bird Conservation centers in 2005 will hopefully produce many more good `alala eggs… our fingers are crossed.

Alan Lieberman is the program director for the San Diego Zoo’s Hawaii Endangered Bird Conservation Program.

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A Jamboree was held for the top collectors at each participating school at the Zoo’s Wegeforth Bowl on April 29. The students got to watch a special animal show starring Akela the timber wolf and his dog pal, Nala, and Nelson and Jake, two active and photogenic California sea lions.

Awards were handed out to the three students who collected the most cans and the three schools that brought in the most money. Nineteen participating schools brought in a grand total of $12,925.33 during the four-month recycling program—that’s a lot of cans and a lot of work! That whopping total benefits the San Diego Zoo’s department of Conservation and Research for Endangered Species (CRES).

Miller Elementary School in San Diego took top honors by collecting $1,389. Ms. Debi Iannizzotto (Mrs. I. to her 4th-grade students) brought the Cans for Critters program to her school 16 years ago, and says each year more and more students participate. She uses songs, posters, skits, and more to motivate the kids to take part in the recycling effort. As a thank you, the school will receive pizza and a free animal assembly program.

The top student collector this year was Erik Vanderheiden, a third-grade student at Miller Elementary. Erik began his can-collecting career as a kindergartner, and placed third in the Cans for Critters program at the ripe age of 6! This year he beat the competition by collecting 5,568 cans. This master recycler modestly shared the secret to his success: ask everyone—family and neighbors—to save their cans. His thank-you gifts included plush animals, gift certificates, and a kiss from Nelson the sea lion.

On behalf of wildlife everywhere, I want to thank all of the students, teachers, and parents who helped get those cans and bottles out of landfills and turned them into money that will be used to help animals both near and far. You CAN make a difference!

Here’s information about the Cans for Critters program.

Debbie Andreen is the San Diego Zoo’s Web Site editor.

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