Media

$5 admission during Penguin Days through Feb.

African black-footed penguin

African black-footed penguin

That’s right – through January and February the price of admission is dropping with the temps. Until Feb. 28, guests can visit the African penguins (and all the other animals) for just $5 per person. Children age 2 and younger and Dallas Zoo members are always free.

The special pricing is our way of thanking our incredible community for support throughout 2014. Even if it’s chilly, the lower admission offers a chance to enjoy the warmth of the nation’s most venomous Herpetarium, the creepy-crawlies of Bug U!, facts about great apes at the Jake L. Hamon Gorilla Conservation Research Station, and to hear the trumpeting of an elephant in the Simmons Safari Base Camp at the Giants of the Savanna.

Here’s 30 seconds of our 11 African black-footed penguins waddling, torpedoing and plunging their way through winter.

Categories: Birds, Events, Guest Services, Media, Penguins | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Palm oil debate: Saving rainforest homes

On the other side of the world, orangutans, tigers and many other animals are losing their rainforest homes so we can eat food and use products that contain a special ingredient that grows in their habitats – palm oil.

Palm oil is obtained from the fruit of the African and South American oil palm tree. Today, it’s found in about half the products sold in grocery stores, everything from cookies to toothpaste. Conflict palm oil production is connected to major issues, including habitat loss, climate change and more, as rainforests in countries like Indonesia and Malaysia continue to be wiped out to make room for new palm oil plantations. In fact, palm oil production is now one of the leading causes of rainforest destruction worldwide.

But there’s something we can do. With the help of one of the Dallas Zoo’s own zookeepers, big snack food companies are starting to change how they produce palm oil.

Tiger keeper Stacy Lupori supports the #InYourPalm campaign with Sumatran tiger Melati

Tiger keeper Stacy Lupori supports the #InYourPalm campaign with Sumatran tiger Melati

Tiger, primate, and otter keeper Stacy Lupori is an action team leader for Rainforest Action Network (RAN). Right now, Lupori is helping coordinate a social media campaign called “The Last Stand of the Orangutan.” With only about 60,000 orangutans left in the wild, one of humankind’s closest kin are on the brink of extinction if their homes continue to be destroyed.

“We’re not asking these companies to stop using palm oil – that’s not going to happen. We’re pushing them to be sustainable,” Lupori said. “A lot of companies choose to go in and slash and burn the rainforest and all the animals that live there, but there are much better ways to do it.”

So far, more than 300,000 people from all over the world have flooded the Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages of what RAN has dubbed the “Snack Food 20.” These 20 major U.S. companies were selected by RAN for harvesting conflict palm oil. The campaign lets people submit a photo of their hand, labeled with the hashtag #InYourPalm. Through increased consumer pressure, the goal is to get the Snack Food 20 to change how they grow palm oil.

RAN is asking the Snack Food 20 to implement a palm oil procurement policy to ensure that the oil it sources is fully traceable, legally grown and from verified responsible palm oil producers not associated with deforestation.

Some of the companies already have agreed to change their policies to eliminate conflict palm oil. However, those steps won’t be taken until 2015. “We all know just because a company says they are going to do something doesn’t mean they will,” Lupori said. “Until these policies are put into effect and are traceable, we still need help putting the pressure on them.”

RAN’s campaign won’t end until all 20 companies have responsible palm oil polices in effect. For Lupori, it’s a lifelong commitment. “As a zookeeper, it’s not just about taking care of these tigers. It’s mostly about conservation,” she said. “This means nothing if I’m not doing something to preserve them in the wild. I look at them, and it breaks my heart to think that if conflict palm oil doesn’t stop, they may not be around in 10 years. And that’s why I’m not going to stop.”

This Halloween, we ask you to buy sustainably produced candy. And we challenge you to post your #InYourPalm photo to Instagram and Facebook, along with a photo of your conflict-free Halloween candy. Our colleagues at the Woodland Park Zoo have put together a great candy list, and it includes many of the most popular ones: http://www.zoo.org/document.doc?id=1423

Lupori and RAN officials are working to create a “sustainably made” product logo to help consumers detect traceable palm oil products. Until then, Lupori suggests downloading the free Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Palm Oil Shopping Guide App. It’s a great tool to help identify sustainably produced products in the meantime.

The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) is also standing behind efforts toward deforestation-free palm oil production. The AZA encourages guests at AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums to help break the link between palm oil production and deforestation.

Learn more about the #InYourPalm campaign: http://inyourpalm.org/

Categories: Africa, Conservation, Education, Social Media, Tigers, Zookeepers | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Dallas Zoo speakers present at top conferences

Zoological and aquarium professionals from across the U.S. are gathering this month at the top professional conferences in the country to share ideas, network and learn from one another – and the Dallas Zoo is well-represented.

Keepers Russell Pharr and Heather Seymour train Grant zebra Stewart to accept voluntary vaccination injections. Dallas Zoo/Ashley Allen

Keepers Russell Pharr and Heather Seymour train Grant zebra Stewart to accept voluntary vaccination injections. Dallas Zoo/Ashley Allen

At the American Association of Zookeepers (AAZK) national conference in Orlando, Fla., hoofstock keeper Russell Pharr presented a paper he co-authored with lead giraffe keeper Heather Seymour. His presentation focuses on two years spent training Grant’s zebras to accept voluntary hand injections for their semi-annual vaccinations.

Also at AAZK, lion keeper Rebecca Wolf presented a paper she co-wrote with keeper Sara Squires, discussing training our female lions to accept voluntary ultrasounds to monitor potential pregnancies.

Other speakers are featured at the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) annual conference, also in Orlando. Our coordinator of elephant behavior science, Nancy Scott, will present data collected since 2009 to compare how our five elephants’ behavior and activity patterns have changed after moving into their world-renowned Giants of the Savanna habitat in 2010.

Gypsy and Jenny's playful behaviors are noted during observations by researcher, Nancy Scott. Dallas Zoo/Cathy Burkey

Gypsy and Jenny’s playful behavior is observed in their Giants of the Savanna habitat. Dallas Zoo/Cathy Burkey

Our director of communications and social media, Laurie Holloway, will discuss how we listen and respond to guests on consumer review sites, such as TripAdvisor and Yelp. (Thanks to your positive comments about the Dallas Zoo, we just earned our second straight TripAdvisor 2014 Certificate of Excellence award!)

Sharing successes and knowledge with our zoo and aquarium colleagues showcases the expertise of the Dallas Zoo team, and also provides them with the opportunity to learn from others.

Categories: Conservation, Education, Elephant, Lion, Mammals, Social Media, Zookeepers | Leave a comment

Baby otter Tasanee plays in her tub

Even a baby otter has to learn to swim. Our Asian small-clawed otter pup, Tasanee, plays with toys and a hose in a large tub in her indoor habitat, chirping all the while. Playing in the tub is a great way for mom, Daphne, to be sure she can navigate the deeper pool in the outdoor habitat.

Categories: Enrichment, Mammals, Media, Otter | Leave a comment

OH-kapi! Baby pictures show success for this endangered species

These unique animals, relatives of giraffes, have been called the “African unicorn,” because they’re so elusive. But did you know the Dallas Zoo is world-renowned for our breeding program to keep this endangered species from disappearing from Earth?

Okapi first came to the zoo in 1960, and our first calf arrived in 1963. Since then, we’ve welcomed a total of 36 calves. What’s even cooler is that we’ve maintained a continuous maternal line over the past 55 years. (That represents sustained success in the areas of husbandry, breeding, calf management, and veterinary care.) It’s a rare achievement for any zoo, with any species. That line started with the original matriarch, Vivianne.

We’ve even sent okapi overseas to zoological parks in Europe, to ensure that genetic lines stay pure and healthy. The expertise and collaboration between zoos in the U.S., Europe, and Japan have made great progress in saving the okapi since it was first identified/ discovered in 1901.

Many of our calves have been born in August, including our youngest, Almasi, who turned 1 just the other day. So to close out the month, we’re celebrating this very special maternal line with some of their baby pictures. Here’s how it goes: Vivianne-Liana-Kamili-Desi-Almasi.

Find out more about these remarkable animals in the Wilds of Africa, and catch an okapi keeper talk at 1:30 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.

Read more about our okapi program in this Dallas Morning News story.

 

Liana mother (born at Dallas Zoo Dec 1974) with Kamili calf born August 31, 1982.
Liana mother (born at Dallas Zoo Dec 1974) with Kamili calf born August 31, 1982.
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Categories: Africa, Conservation, Exhibits and Experiences, Mammals, Media, Okapi | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

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