Yesterday, Mina’s three cubs–Kamau, Zenda, and Mandisa, now seven weeks old–received their first veterinary exam (see Marcia’s previous blog, Lion Cubs Named). The cubs came through with flying colors and were proclaimed strong and healthy.
Have you ever wondered why the San Diego area is such a desirable place to live and work? People who already live here have a good idea. Miles of sandy beaches, a natural harbor ideal for water recreation, and, of course, a perfect climate tops the list. Our favorable climate makes going to the beach enjoyable, and it also helps gardeners at the San Diego Zoo grow plants and trees from around the world. People may visit the Zoo with the intention of seeing live animals, but most walk away feeling very impressed by the living plants and trees they encounter.
After 12 weeks at CRES it is time for me to say “Adios” and continue my education. Being a summer fellow has been an invaluable experience. Beyond what I have learned conducting my own research with cheetahs and Gabriella’s crested gibbons (see Sagan’s blog, Cheetah Chirps and Gibbon Duets), I have taken in information about all the projects going on around me. It is incredibly exciting to be surrounded by so much great research that is being carried out by people who are truly passionate about what they do. If nothing else, this summer has me excited for the possibilities that lay ahead…and there are many!
Bill Toone, a conservation program specialist for CRES, helped implement a teacher training program in Kenya. In blogs, he shares his experience as he works with Dan Rubenstein, a Princeton University scientist, and Louise Bradshaw, the St. Louis Zoo’s education director, to inspire the next generation of Kenyans to work for wildlife conservation. Read Bill’s previous blog, Kenya: Teachers on a Game Drive.
Class has become a bit of drudgery for me. Contrary to our plan, one of the instructors is doing 90 percent of the lecturing (2 hours at a time with no break) and because English, in spite of being the national language, is really everyone’s second language, he is presenting slowly and at a very simple level.
Our new elephant calf weighs nearly as much as the two of us combined! On Monday night, at the Wild Animal Park, an elephant cow, Umngani, gave birth to a 209-pound (95-kilogram) daughter. She entered the world at 7:49 p.m. and, about 14 hours later, managed to find her way to mom’s nipple and taste milk for the first time in her life. Since then, she has nursed on a regular basis; elephant babies usually only suckle for short periods of time throughout the day and night. In general, they spend about two hours a day actually drinking from their moms.
We have finished analyzing most of the data on the chemical communication of male koalas (see Jennifer’s blog, Smelly Koalas). One of our main goals was to determine the chemical make-up of the scent gland secretion, which we have now completed. An organic chemist, Todd Nute, helped us identify all the chemicals. He took the swabbings we collected and then ran them through a special analytical chemistry machine that uses a heating process to break apart the scent exudate and identify individual chemicals using a computerized catalog of chemicals.
We knew that it was going to happen at some point, but it was still difficult to accept when we finally did get the news: the tiger cubs are going to be sent to their new home soon. (Read Bridget’s previous blog, Tiger Cubs Now One.) Mata and Rimba are scheduled to go to the Palm Beach Zoo at Dreher Park in West Palm Beach, Florida at the end of October or early November.
Bill Toone, a conservation program specialist for CRES, helped implement a teacher training program in Kenya. In blogs, he shares his experience as he works with Dan Rubenstein, a Princeton University scientist, and Louise Bradshaw, the St. Louis Zoo’s education director, to inspire the next generation of Kenyans to work for wildlife conservation. Read Bill’s previous blog, Kenya: Rain and Termites.
The teachers were ready go. Nearly two hours were spent on introductions and welcomes before launching into a coffee break, pre-course evaluation, and, finally, lectures. We wrapped up the day’s classroom portion at 1 p.m. and broke for lunch.
In San Diego, we are pleased to hear of the birth of a new panda cub at Zoo Atlanta. We know our colleagues there must be thrilled, but are probably also holding their breath. The early days of watching a new panda mom and cub can be a bit nerve-wracking, as you search for clues that the female is doing a good job in mothering her offspring. So far, it appears they have another success story on their hands.
Four cheetah cubs were born at the Wild Animal Park’s off-exhibit cheetah breeding facility last August, 2005. They were pulled from their mother because she was not showing us strong signs of caring for them. The four cubs were taken to the Harter Veterinary Medical Center for a quick checkup, where we discovered we had four very healthy girls! It is unusual to have all girls. In fact, the cheetahs at the Wild Animal Park have only had all-girl litters on three other occassions.
