Mother’s Day Gift Guide

Mom deserves the BEST of everything, but getting her the perfect gift can be tough. Not to worry…we’ve got you covered!

Treat mom to a year of family fun with a Dallas Zoo gift membership! Members get free daily admission, free parking, member-only events, discounts, and more. Give a gift membership!

We’re celebrating the births of two western lowland gorillas! Join in the celebration by purchasing this special package, which includes two plush gorillas, a personalized adoption certificate, a Zookeeper’s Report, and a full color photo. Adopt a gorilla today!

Pack a picnic and head to the Zoo on May 11 for a rockin’ Mother’s Day at Safari Nights Presented by Reliant! Start your evening with special keeper chats and animal encounters, then enjoy live music with the Stoneleighs. Purchase tickets now.

Treat Mom to the experience of a lifetime! Backstage Safari is a 90-minute tour of the Zoo with special behind-the-scenes access. Our zoologists will give you the scoop on the animals they care for every day, and you’ll get to hand-feed an okapi! Reserve your spot now.

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FIELD NOTES PART I: Saving our state reptile

Reptile Supervisor Bradley Lawrence guest-blogs on ZooHoo!

Dallas Zoo reptile team members went out into the field last weekend to check in on the Texas horned lizard population.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock (like our state reptile was during the winter months), you know how much we love Texas horned lizards here at the Dallas Zoo. Last weekend we began our 10th year of studying “horny toads” at the Rolling Plains Quail Research Ranch in Fisher Co, Texas.

The population in this area of Texas is very healthy, and we have been monitoring them for 9 years now. We are gathering as much data as we can to help us learn what makes a habitat like this so good for horned lizards. We hope to use what we learn to help conserve these fabulous reptiles both in the wild and in our care here at the Dallas Zoo.

Over the next several months, we’ll be providing up-to-date notes from the field to give y’all a first-hand look at what we do. I hope that you will learn more about the Texas horned lizard as well as how they fit into the bigger ecological picture here in Texas.

The team worked against the unpredictable spring weather. Check out that lightning!

The RPQRR is a 4700-acre ranch about 4 hours west of Dallas. Along with horned lizards, we get to experience a rare glimpse of wild Texas that is more and more difficult to find these days.

We start our lizard season in late April or early May, giving them a chance to wake up from their roughly 5 month hibernation. Once they’re awake they start looking for much needed food and also start to think about finding a mate.

We had a very productive first outing. We saw several very healthy looking horned lizards, even though we fought Mother Nature a bit. Spring weather in the rolling plains of Texas can be unpredictable and a little scary.

Stay tuned! We’ll give you more in a couple of weeks.

Categories: Conservation, Reptiles and Amphibians | Leave a comment

Creating a better world for turtles

Conservation Interpreter Grayson P. guest-blogs on ZooHoo!

An endangered black-breasted leaf turtle at the Herpetarium.

With a family tree that began 300 million years ago, turtles have been around since the time of the dinosaurs. There are 356 species of turtles, and they play an essential role in maintaining our environment. Freshwater turtles keep our lakes and rivers healthy by controlling aquatic vegetation; tortoises shape habitats for animals and plants by grazing; and sea turtles’ infertile eggs fertilize coastal dunes. However, while turtles have survived multiple mass extinctions, they are facing threats like never before, and as many as one-third of turtles could be extinct in the next twenty years. The Dallas Zoo is determined to change that.  

This April, we are highlighting endangered turtles and how we can protect them through everyday actions as part of our Protecting the 12 conservation plan, and we hope you’ll join us. The Dallas Zoo has a long history of protecting turtles. We take a two-pronged approach: protecting endangered turtles in the wild and breeding them in human care. We provide funding to many turtle conservation organizations, including the Turtle Survival Center in South Carolina, home to breeding populations of thirty turtle species at the brink of extinction. And in turtle biodiversity hotspots such as Madagascar, Myanmar, and India, we facilitate boots-on-the-ground field research and conservation to protect these reptiles.

With our conservation partner, the Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA), the Dallas Zoo is ensuring no species of turtle becomes extinct in the 21st century. One of the most significant threats facing turtles is the illegal wildlife trade. In April 2018, over 10,000 endangered radiated tortoises were found in a poacher’s house in Toliara, Madagascar without access to food or water. It is believed the animals were collected for the illegal pet trade. The TSA led an unprecedented rescue mission to get these animals safe and healthy. Along with other AZA-accredited institutions, the Dallas Zoo sent emergency funds, supplies, and reptile specialists to Madagascar. Our team spent weeks soaking the surviving turtles to give them water and keep them alive. Because of this collaboration, the majority of the turtles lived and were able to be returned to the wild.   

In addition to the illegal pet trade, one of the biggest threats to turtles is plastic pollution. Every day, 8 million pieces of plastic flow through rivers, creeks, and other waterways, and end up into the ocean, threatening sea turtles who mistake it for jellyfish. As part of our movement to protect turtles, we are asking Zoo guests to make a pledge to pick up ten pieces of plastic pollution every Tuesday to keep the land and waters that turtles call home clean and safe. We hope this pledge is just a starting point and inspires our guests to reduce the amount of single-use plastic they use in order to protect turtles and other species.  

When you think of conservationists, you might picture biologists in the field. Here at the Dallas Zoo, we see our guests as conservation heroes because protecting our planet and the animals that call it home is a collaborative effort and everyone’s responsibility.

By picking up plastic pollution, making sure our reptile pets are from reputable breeders, and supporting the Turtle Survival Alliance, we can help protect turtles from extinction. We can’t do it alone and will need everyone’s help to save these magnificent animals which are essential to the wellbeing of our environment. Visit our turtle conservation station at the Galapagos tortoise habitat in ZooNorth through the end of the month to learn more about how you can help, and join us in creating a better world for turtles.

Categories: Conservation, Reptiles and Amphibians | 1 Comment

Update from the field: Emergency flamingo chick rescue mission

Senior Zoologist Dana I. and Assistant Bird Supervisor Nathan C. guest blog on ZooHoo!

Dana hand-feeds one of the flamingo chicks.

We arrived in Kimberley, South Africa on Tuesday, March 12, after a long journey from Dallas. We were greeted by our fellow AZA colleague, who’s been taking care of the flamingo chicks for the last few weeks. We were immediately taken to the Kimberley SPCA, where the chicks are being cared for, to jump in and quickly learn the ropes. The SPCA has the youngest of the 1,800 chicks rescued from the Kamfers Dam. All of the chicks are doing well!

The first group of older chicks were brought in from the initial rescue. This group is already feeding themselves and, because of the specially formulated food they’ve been eating, they are starting to turn a bright pink/red a little bit earlier than normal. We are continuing to weigh these chicks every few days to make sure that they are continuing to gain weight and are staying healthy.

Nathan weighs a flamingo chick.

The second set of chicks came from a later trip to the Kamfers Dam. After the initial rescue, dogs disturbed the flamingo colony remaining at the dam and caused more flamingos to abandon their nests. Volunteers went in and collected the abandoned eggs, and now there is a group of 18 chicks. These chicks are still being hand-fed three times a day at 8 a.m., 4 p.m. and 10 p.m. Every morning the chicks are weighed so we can determine how much food to feed them for the day. We also make sure the little chicks get plenty of time outside for some all-important sunshine and exercise.

On Thursday we got a chance to go out to Kamfers Dam and see the flamingos that are still there. There is still a large colony of adults raising an estimated 5,000 chicks. They are being monitored but continue to do well.

Categories: Africa, Conservation, Zookeepers | Tags: | Leave a comment

Dallas Zoo welcomes another baby gorilla! 

Baby gorilla playdates will be endless this year at the Dallas Zoo! We are welcoming our second baby gorilla born in 21 years – and the second born in just the last year.

A close-up of Megan’s baby./Senior Zoologist Annie B.

Our 13-year-old critically endangered western lowland gorilla Megan quietly delivered the infant in the early morning on Thursday, March 7. This is Megan’s first time raising a baby and both are doing well; Megan has been very attentive, and the baby is nursing often and is keeping a strong grip on mom.

This birth brings another new wave of excitement for the Dallas Zoo – this is the first time we’ve cared for two baby gorillas at the same time in almost 50 years. Nearly nine-month-old gorilla Saambili (born June 25, 2018 to mom Hope) now has a half-sibling playmate, and she’s already shown much interest in the newest addition.

“Gorilla conservation is a huge part of Dallas Zoo’s mission – we’ve been unwavering in our commitment to save them in the wild, and now we’re contributing more than ever to their protection in human care,” said Gregg Husdon, Dallas Zoo’s President and CEO. “We’ve gone from not having an infant gorilla for two decades, to now having two babies back-to-back, and it truly shows the dedication and perseverance of our world-class animal experts.”  

Mom Megan was paired with silverback Subira (also the father to Saambili) on an Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ (AZA) Species Survival Plan breeding recommendation in hopes of increasing the western lowland gorilla population in North America. Subira has proven to be an excellent father to Saambili, and he’s recently been observed giving her special attention and playtime during this quiet period for the troop.

“This is the most ideal social situation for our troop – both of our babies will be able to learn, grow, and play together,” said Linda King, Dallas Zoo’s Primate Supervisor. “This is also a big moment for mom Megan who has been extremely interested in Saambili since day one. She now has the wonderful opportunity to raise a baby of her own.”

Megan holds her sleeping baby./Lead Zoologist Tara S.

The Dallas Zoo cares for ten gorillas, including the bachelor troop who live on the south side of the Gorilla Trail, and the family troop who live on the north side. All six family troop members have remained behind the scenes so Megan and her baby can bond privately. Zoologists will take their cues from Megan on her comfort level and readiness to explore the habitat. A moniker and the baby’s gender reveal will come within the coming weeks.

According to the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International, there are approximately 350,000 western lowland gorillas left in Africa. The population decline is contributed to habitat destruction, poaching for bush meat, animal trafficking, and disease.

Native to the Congo Basin, western lowland gorillas are the smallest of the subspecies and the least critically endangered. There are roughly 3,800 Grauer’s gorillas, 880 mountain gorillas, and 300 Cross River gorillas remaining in the wild.

With nearly 300 western lowland gorillas living in AZA-accredited zoos, the nation’s top zoos have never been more committed to protecting this species in human care and in their native habitat. The Dallas Zoo has supported gorilla conservation for many years through its partners at the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund and the Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center (GRACE).

Our animal care team aims for Megan and her baby to make their first scheduled public appearance by the end of the week (weather dependent). We will share the date on our social media channels!

Categories: Africa, Gorilla | 7 Comments

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