Impunga celebrated his first birthday on March 11 with an elephant-sized cake made of ice blocks, browse, hay, and vegetables. His favorite part seemed to be the frozen alfalfa pellets, and after he had his fill the other elephants were able to join the party and helped him finish it off.

Six-month-old Phakamile, aka Kamile, is learning that her keepers don’t just mean lots of fun scratches and games. They also have that most wonderful treat: food pellets!! She is quickly learning that a keeper’s whistle means she did something fantastic. Her older sister, Khosi, who is 1½, is a good role model to follow. She is exploring the pools and has been brave enough to go out doggy paddling with the rest of the babies, although she got a rude awakening when she stepped off the last step into deep water! You can regularly find all of the calves splashing around in the small pool near the Elephant Overlook, and we are even starting to put water in the larger “adult” pool, though we are not filling it all the way yet.

As summer approaches and the weather warms up, all of the elephants are enjoying several new dirt piles and mud bogs we have placed in the yard. It is not uncommon to see all of the calves playing together, rolling around on top of one another and competing for the best patch of dirt. Sometimes they exhaust themselves and eventually lay so still you might mistake them for just another boulder in the yard. They can be inseparable at times, their own little herd of miniature elephants exuberantly running all over the yard! While they are exhausting to watch, their friendships no doubt make it easier on our many mothers who can count on getting a break or two throughout the day while an auntie takes over babysitting duties.

As Mabhulane, or Mabu, continues to enjoy being the only adult male in the herd, we are looking forward to extending our research into the nursing habits and development of elephant calves. After all, collecting data means we get to be entertained by the cutest little babies around! To see our tiny tots, stop by the Elephant Overlook or the Pachyderm Patio at the Wild Animal Park. You never know what antics you might see!

Brittany Archer is a senior keeper at the Wild Animal Park
Jeff Andrews is animal care manager of elephants at the Wild Animal Park
Fred Bercovitch is head of the San Diego Zoo’s Behavioral Biology Division

*Lungile was being treated for a postpartum infection after giving birth in November 2007. Sadly, her calf passed away in February 2008. More…

Blackie is a beautiful bear. Although he is called a brown bear, his coat has a lustrous black color to it, hence his name. He weighs 873 pounds (396 kilos), and measures 4.5 feet (138 centimeters) from wrist to shoulders when on all fours. But once you see him standing on his hind feet, his size amazes you. He is clearly over 6 feet tall! He’s huge!

Although he is big, he is very gentle. He likes his romaine lettuce and apple slices and takes them delicately as you pass pieces through the fencing to him. But don’t get me wrong: he’s a bear. The other morning keeper Cathy had him locked over on one side of his enclosure while she cleaned the other. She began to place his food in a pile when Blackie suddenly stood up, banged the gate, and huffed! It was a loud and scary sound that sent everyone running into the compound to see what the commotion was all about. Blackie was telling Cathy that she needed to hurry along, but he was also reminding us that he was a bear and a wild animal. Once Cathy gave Blackie access to his second room where the food was, he calmly walked up to the food, took a few bites, and then stretched out in the sun for a nap. He had just made a statement that we all heard loud and clear!

Last week, Blackie had his quarantine exam, which consisted of a complete check up, X rays, and teeth cleaning. During his exam, we learned that he had a few cracked teeth (that were filled), some arthritis in his hind legs, and that he could stand to lose a few pounds. But over all he’s in good shape and not doing too shabby for a 24-year-old bear.

We took this opportunity to take a few measurements, too. Blackie measures almost 7 feet (207 centimeters) from the base of his head to his tail, his head is 1.8 feet (55 centimeters) long from his nose to the base of his head, his lower canine tooth measures 3.5 centimeters (that’s almost 1.5 inches), and his rear foot pad is 10.5 inches (27 centimeters). And one claw measured 2.5 inches (6 centimeters). That’s a big bear! We all thought he seemed much bigger than our old friend, Spanky.

We’re happy to have Blackie back. And once he finishes his quarantine time at the hospital, he’ll be back on Zoo grounds where all his old friends can see him again.

Yvette M. Kemp is a senior hospital keeper at the San Diego Zoo.

The process itself is a little time consuming but well worth the entertainment. First the bedrooms at Polar Bear Plunge are prepped the night before. They are thoroughly cleaned and all toys and bedding removed, and then the drinkers are emptied and turned off. This allows for a clean, dry surface to paint on. Next comes the choice of paint. In the past, we typically used only one color, but we have recently expanded our palette to include two or three. Now keep in mind that painting is a messy business, so whatever colors you choose, the bears will be showing them off on exhibit later. Now it’s time to begin!

After applying a nice layer of color (or colors) to the floor of the bedroom, we simply give the bears access to the paint. This is where Kalluk usually has his first problem: he doesn’t seem to like to walk in it. Therefore, it’s usually tough to get a paw print when he manages to step over, around, and, well, pretty much anywhere except in the paint. Chinook and Tatqiq don’t seem to mind it quite as much. Of course, you have to allow for the sniffing, sitting, and sometimes lying down that occurs. Fortunately, it’s non-toxic paint so it’s not harmful to the bears. But then again, it makes for quite a sight for our guests watching them on exhibit.

After they have effectively coated themselves, we then shift them to a bedroom that has the canvases inside. Then it’s really up to the individual bear as to what and how they want to decorate. This is where Tatqiq’s paintings leave something to the imagination: while she covers the canvas beautifully, she has some of the furriest paws that we’ve ever seen. Her paintings would tend to fall into more of the “abstract” category! While we all enjoy Tatqiq’s creations, Chinook really shows her paws off well.

Some of you may recall that we’ve recently started a tradition of celebrating Bear Awareness Days. I’m happy to report that this will be our third year. This year’s event will take place May 8 – 11 and, like last year’s, will feature an auction to be held on our Web site. We will be featuring some of Chinook’s artwork for the auction. I will keep you posted as to the details of the event as well as the auction as it approaches. In the meantime, we continue our journey through breeding season, however slow it may be.

Kelly Murphy is a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo.

Now some of you may be wondering how on earth this was even considered in the first place; it was a novel idea tried years ago. Originally ia kiddie pool was placed in the bedrooms and filled with water. I must say that it didn’t last too long. From there it received the usual testing of folding, pouncing, and biting. It wasn’t long before the bears discovered the pool made a good polar bear taco (with your choice of bear inside, of course!) or a nice comfy bed in which to take a nap; Kalluk even tried giving Tatqiq rides on it through the bedrooms. Unfortunately, due to the narrower tunnel, that proved to be a bit challenging. Overall, since the pools seemed to be a hit, we went ahead and allowed the bears to have them on exhibit. Again, they delighted themselves with various and creative uses.

Of course this is a “specialty” item because the pools only come out seasonally, and it’s not something they get often. So I figured I couldn’t miss with this enrichment activity. Well, I won’t say it was a complete dud, but it definitely didn’t make the splash I was hoping for. Kalluk (pictured) and Chinook were first up. They both investigated the pools and, as usual, put them in the water (that’s where everything goes). But Chinook seemed to be having one of her lazy mornings and decided to settle down for a nap. Kalluk did eventually end up in the water and did play some, but not specifically with the pools.

I went ahead and did an afternoon switch and put Kalluk back out but this time with his sister, Tatqiq. I knew she wouldn’t let me down. Kalluk apparently decided to take his cue from Chinook earlier, and he settled down for a nap. Tatqiq was intrigued, though, and it wasn’t long before she decided to go for a swim. But do you think it was all about the kiddie pools? Of course not! She played with her small Boomer balls, especially the pink and red ones. Tatqiq at least entertained the guests, but I was beginning to feel deflated from my earlier enthusiasm. (Maybe if I can find a pink pool it would turn out differently!)

At the end of the day, I did the final switch and it was Chinook’s turn again. Maybe her earlier napping left her with more energy, because after she finished exploring the exhibit she decided to have some fun. Now granted, it wasn’t all about the pools, but she definitely put on a show. She wore one like a hat, swam on her back as if she were a turtle in its shell, and—the favorite—got to a higher vantage point and pounced right in the center. So maybe my reinforcement wasn’t immediate, but Chinook did allow me to leave that day not feeling like a total failure.

Kelly Murphy is a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo.
Read Kelly’s previous blog, Polar Bear Update.

While all the bears continue to get along and do well, we seem to have hit a lull in our breeding season. In years past, Kalluk has usually reached a point by now where he’s gone off his food, spends most of his day pining for the female he can’t have, and overall is just very difficult to manage. There’s a part of me that is happy to say we’re not experiencing this just yet. Don’t get me wrong: he does have some moments when he prefers to be with Chinook or is choosy about what’s being offered on the menu, but nowhere near as bad as before.

Of course, we do have to keep in mind that this is the first time he’s actually been allowed to have access to a female during the breeding period. Yes, he’s always been with Tatqiq (pictured above), but we have used contraceptives in order to keep her from experiencing her estrous cycle and therefore not get pregnant. Chinook, too, is not showing all the behavior changes that we associate with this process. It may be possible that the actions of the past year have had some type of effect or maybe we’ll experience a later breeding season this year than usual.

Either way, we still allow Kalluk and Chinook time together every day and will continue to do so until their behavior tells us something different. They still have their boxing matches and sometimes curl up and take naps together. We’re pleased, too, that Tatqiq and Kalluk continue to get along and have some good sibling bonding time.

By no means have we given up on Chinook having a successful pregnancy and are still working toward achieving that goal. Plans for a den have been submitted, and now we are just waiting for a start date for the addition to take place. I’m also pleased to announce that it would appear that the Polar Cam is up and running again (at least I’ve had success when I’ve logged on). So, while we wait patiently for things to progress, please continue to watch the days unfold via the Web cam.

Tune in! As many of you know, we celebrate enrichment here at the Zoo during the second weekend of every month. This Saturday I plan on giving the bears a special surprise that I hope (and anticipate) will get some action going!

Kelly Murphy is a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo.

Here’s a schedule of enrichment activities for March 8 and 9…

First we look at Ngami, our dominant female and mom. Her belly gets huge as she progresses through pregnancy, and then one day it will be almost flat again. Also her teats are more apparent once she has given birth. The area around them is hairless once the pups begin nursing. And the other clue is a missing meerkat; usually Seronga, our least dominant adult female, will be underground caring for the pups. It is quite a society where everyone helps to raise the pups. Mom feeds them and moves them and the others take turns caring for them.

The history of this group has not been stellar. Every time Ngami is pregnant we wonder if this time she will choose to leave the pups underground for at least two to three weeks. That gives them a good chance of survival. So when day 5 came and out came a pup, I was frustrated but also determined to have this mob of meerkats raise their litter. I went into the exhibit and checked the pup out. We worry about the pups being warm enough at this fragile stage. They do have a light coating of hair but not enough to help them survive outside of the den for very long.

I decided to try something different this time. After I checked the pup out I gave it back to Ngami. I then told her to “put the pup back in the den.” Lo and behold, she did! I was amazed. Same thing happened later in the day. Okay, this is a new strategy, but if it works, I am going with it. Day 6 brought more of the same; I would check the temperature of the pup and then tell Ngami to put it back. My fellow keepers did the same on my days off with success.

This went on until today. We were never sure how many pups were in the litter because we only ever saw one out of the den at a time. This afternoon I came to find two healthy pups in the sun with their family. One of the younger females was holding them close and guarding them from the others. They were all snuggling and rolling around with each other. Right as the day finished I received a call about one with a hurt front leg. When I arrived I saw a third pup! We are not sure what happened to the pup’s leg, but it does look a little curved. It will be monitored closely.

Laura Weiner is a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo.

Although it would not be uncommon for a mature male siamang to practice infanticide with his own species in the wild, it was a new concept to be considered in this atypical mixed-species social setting. Even though siamangs and orangutan are completely different species, they are occupying one common territory that is exhibit space. Was Cinta, an unrelated newborn in an already established social group, viewed as future competition? We don’t really know.

Cinta with mom, Indah; Eloise with Karim-Alam

Cinta, who turns four on March 5, 2008, and has grown to a whopping 31 pounds (14 kilograms)—about the same size as our adult siamangs—was allowed to spend time with the siamang family off exhibit. A hallway that separates the two species became Cinta’s playgroup. This allowed him to move back and forth between his mom’s room and the siamang family at his own determination. These daily interactions continued several days during the week and lasted for about a month. Cinta became more and more comfortable and spent an increasing amount of time building a relationship with the siamang group on his own accord. Once keepers and the staff were confident that Cinta was ready to meet the siamang family in full contact, we set a date.

Karen with a young siamang

On January 2, 2008, keepers shifted three male and three female orangutans, including Indah and Cinta, onto exhibit as usual. The next step was to shift Unkie’s oldest offspring, Hitam Lucu. This was key. Having Hitam Lucu on exhibit without the other siamangs gave Cinta more confidence to explore the exhibit and have one-on-one interaction with Hitam Lucu. After a few hours with no altercations between Cinta and Hitam Lucu, the rest of the siamang family was allowed to go out. This process was repeated for a few more days. Each day we decreased the time intervals between when we put Hitam Lucu and the siamang family back together. This increased the time they spent grooming each other after the controlled separation, resulting in less time focusing their attention and aggressions on Cinta after they were all on exhibit. This was the secret to their success.

Today you can watch Cinta tumbling around with his two new siamang friends: four-year-old Hitam Lucu and one-year-old sibling Karim-Alam at our Absolutely Apes Exhibit.

Juan Fernandez is a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo.
Read his previous blog, Growing Up Siamang.
Watch the orangutans and siamangs daily on Ape Cam…

Tango and Mweezi were born August 12, 1992, at the San Diego Zoo. They were relocated to the Wild Animal Park at an early age and were housed with each other. At one point, Tango was bred and produced a litter of three cubs in 1995. Unfortunately, the cubs had to be taken away and hand-reared because Tango wasn’t caring for them properly. As far as I know, she has never been bred since. In 2002, the girls were brought back to the San Diego Zoo, where they have been ever since.

The average lifespan of lions is 10 to 15 years in the wild and up to 30 years in managed-care facilities. With this in mind, Mweezi and Tango may only be middle aged!

Do they interact with any other lions? No, they are the only lions we have at the Zoo. A delightful pride of two!

Hali Anderson is a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo.

These separations are beneficial for several reasons. First, a gradual separation from the dam allows the cub to adjust to time alone, preparing her for future housing as an independent animal. Some sun bears prefer to be housed this way as adults; Ting Ting, now residing at the Oakland Zoo, seemed happy to be housed jointly with Marcella (a female) but less thrilled about the presence of Dibu (a male).

Additionally, a separation time each day enables the keepers to feed both Bulan and Marcella some food without worrying about who eats what. This has become an important issue for Marcella, who finds that as her cub ages she competes heavily for the food provided to the pair. Marcella, while still lactating, can find herself with less and less food to eat as her cub consumes more and more. Thus, separating them allows Marcella to get a guaranteed quantity of food without interference from Bulan.

One final reason to wean Bulan from her mother: she has a new home waiting for her as soon as she is ready. The Minnesota Zoo is home to a male sun bear that is in need of a healthy mate. Since the Bornean subspecies is in dire straits, suffering from only two births in U.S. zoos since the 1990s, Bulan’s role as a prospective breeder is a very important one. Hopefully she can successfully breed and rear young in Minnesota in the near future.

By the same token, once weaning is complete we will again pair Marcella with Bulan’s father, Dibu. After the weaning of Danum, our first Bornean cub, Marcella experienced an estrus rather quickly. However, it may have been an infertile estrus, as no cub was born from couplings of our breeding pair. However, Marcella’s second estrus was clearly fertile, as Bulan was born about 100 days later. Hopefully the only successfully reproducing pair in the U.S. can replicate its past performance and provide the Bornean population with another cub in 2008!

Bulan will continue to be on exhibit with her mother for some time each day for the next month or so. If you want to catch them together, come soon! At some point after weaning is complete we will know more about the timeline for Bulan’s move to Minnesota. Before she leaves, come enjoy this beautiful little bear and wish her well as she prepares for the next phase of her life.

Suzanne Hall is a senior research technician with the San Diego Zoo’s Giant Panda Unit.

After cleaning the boys’ exhibit in the morning, I usually hide their fish all around for them to find. As soon as I start placing the fish I can hear the loud, deep breaths of highly sensitive brown bear noses behind the big metal door of their holding pen. They can hardly wait to get out there and “hunt” for their favorite food. Then, after I release Scout and Montana back out to exhibit, it’s a race between them to see who can find the most fish first. It’s a good lesson in using their olfactory skills, since the fish are often stuck into crevices or under objects, making the discovery quite a challenge. Scout, the little devil, has taken to dangling his fish finds in front of Montana and instigating an intimidating screaming and punching match that resonates throughout Bear Canyon. I’m still not sure why Scout continues to do this as Montana usually always makes out with the fish! That’s okay though, there’s plenty to go around.

Another new development is that Montana has learned to swim. And I don’t just mean splash around in the pool, we’re talking a full-on doggie paddle. This will come in handy once we start putting live fish into the pool for them to catch. Scout has also been seen paddling with his front legs, but still seems to keep his rear legs planted. Maybe Montana will teach him soon!

Coming up with new enrichment ideas continues to be a keeper challenge, but I will forever be researching and attempting new items. The boys are avid nest builders, so giving them plenty of things to shred in order to add to their bedding is always fun. New scents and food items are also routine enrichment choices, and we have a few new “toys” in the works. But, perhaps their most favorite activity of all is romping around and wrestling with each other and doing “mock” battles. Keep visiting the babies as they grow and learn; you are sure to be entertained!

Hali Anderson is a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo.