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Erie Zoo's rabbit still entertaining primates
Erica Erwin - Erie Times-News
Published: February 24, 2013 12:01 AM EST
Panda the bunny is still a playmate to primates.
The Erie Zoo's black-and-white Dutch rabbit until recently had been living with Samantha, a western lowland gorilla, in Samantha's exhibit.
When Samantha needed to be euthanized in December because of age-related health issues, zoo staff first thought to use Panda in its educational program.
Instead, he's entertaining other primates -- gibbons and siamangs, said Scott Mitchell, the zoo's executive director.
Panda and the primates aren't in the same exhibit but in separate holding areas not visible or accessible to the public; they can view each other through mesh separating the holding areas.
"He was comfortable there and they liked watching him," Mitchell said. "Rather than moving him, we've left him there."
The zoo has volunteers who visit and interact with the orangutans in the winter, when the zoo is closed for the season. Panda provides entertainment and stimulation for the gibbons and siamangs, Mitchell said.
"They're intelligent primates," he said. "He's active and hops around. I think it's something different."
Panda and Samantha gained national attention when the zoo paired them together in February 2011 to give the aging gorilla a playmate. Panda has been doing well since her death, Mitchell said.
Erie Zoo's rabbit still entertaining primates | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News
Erica Erwin - Erie Times-News
Published: February 24, 2013 12:01 AM EST
Panda the bunny is still a playmate to primates.
The Erie Zoo's black-and-white Dutch rabbit until recently had been living with Samantha, a western lowland gorilla, in Samantha's exhibit.
When Samantha needed to be euthanized in December because of age-related health issues, zoo staff first thought to use Panda in its educational program.
Instead, he's entertaining other primates -- gibbons and siamangs, said Scott Mitchell, the zoo's executive director.
Panda and the primates aren't in the same exhibit but in separate holding areas not visible or accessible to the public; they can view each other through mesh separating the holding areas.
"He was comfortable there and they liked watching him," Mitchell said. "Rather than moving him, we've left him there."
The zoo has volunteers who visit and interact with the orangutans in the winter, when the zoo is closed for the season. Panda provides entertainment and stimulation for the gibbons and siamangs, Mitchell said.
"They're intelligent primates," he said. "He's active and hops around. I think it's something different."
Panda and Samantha gained national attention when the zoo paired them together in February 2011 to give the aging gorilla a playmate. Panda has been doing well since her death, Mitchell said.
Erie Zoo's rabbit still entertaining primates | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News
Times In-Depth: Erie Zoo's future includes $1 million renovation
By ERICA ERWIN - Erie Times-News
Published: February 24, 2013 12:01 AM EST
When Erie Zoo staff made the decision to euthanize Samantha the gorilla, Scott Mitchell's first thought wasn't about how to replace one of the zoo's marquee animals.
The zoo's executive director and his employees were busy mourning the iconic matriarch of the zoo, the animal who'd lived there longer than any other in its history before health problems related to aging -- she would have turned 49 this month -- prompted her euthanization in December.
Mitchell didn't think then about how Samantha's death would affect attendance, or how to fill her empty exhibit by the time the zoo reopens for the season on Friday.
"The zoo is bigger than any one specific animal, even Samantha," Mitchell said. "If it was about one specific animal, you're not much of a zoo."
Still, the zoo is a business that is driven by ticket sales and memberships -- and those sales and memberships are, at least to some extent, driven by the public's desire to see the larger-than-life animals that capture hearts, fire imaginations and fill camera lenses: the lions, tigers, bears, giraffes, gorillas and orangutans.
A handful of the zoo's most visible animals have died in recent years, including Samantha and, earlier, Kumar the Bengal tiger and TJ the giraffe. Others, including Leela, an orangutan who was born at the zoo in 2003, have been transferred to other zoos to participate in breeding programs.
There is no replacing these animals, said Mitchell, 50, who has worked at the Erie Zoo for about 29 years and has been executive director since May 2007. There won't be another Samantha, who watched generations pass by her exhibit.
Part of the answer moving forward, Mitchell said, is a $1 million renovation of one of the zoo's polar bear exhibits and its lion exhibit. The renovation, slated to start this summer, would add space for existing animals and, perhaps just as importantly, transform the exhibits into less species-specific spaces, giving the zoo more flexibility when animals breed, die or are transferred to other zoos.
But even when that project is complete, the Erie Zoo, like all other zoos, will continue to grapple with the unending issue of if, how and when to bring in new animals.
Reaching an answer isn't an easy process.
---
The way zoos acquire animals has changed.
Zoos are no longer bringing in animals from their native habitats, which was the practice decades ago. Today, 90 percent of animals in captivity were born in zoos, said Steven Feldman, spokesman for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums in Silver Spring, Md.
Some animals are bought by one zoo from another, as was the case in 2011 when the Erie Zoo spent $7,500 to buy Nigel, a giraffe, from the Como Zoo in St. Paul, Minn., and another $5,000 to transport him here.
But other animals, particularly those that are endangered or threatened, arrive by way of breeding loan agreements between two zoos.
Those agreements are guided by the AZA's Species Survival Plan Program, introduced in 1981 to "cooperatively manage specific, and typically threatened or endangered, species population" within AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums and other facilities.
Survival plans recommend the proper breeding, treatment, handling and housing of more than 300 species, including the giant panda, California condor and lowland gorilla.
The Species Survival Plan Program helped increase cooperation and communication among zoos, and made the process of acquiring and breeding animals more organized, said Cindy Kreider, director of the Erie Zoo and program manager for the Amur leopard Species Survival Plan.
But filling an empty exhibit isn't a simple task.
With the help of the SSP, a zoo must find another zoo willing to loan the particular animal it hopes to exhibit. And the timing has to work: One zoo might be looking for a polar bear, for instance, but the only one available might be too young to transport at the time the receiving zoo has the necessary space and resources.
All the variables make planning ahead to replace an animal difficult, if not impossible, Kreider and Mitchell said. And there's also the matter of DNA.
When looking to breed an animal, a zoo must make sure that the genes of a potential mate coming from another zoo aren't already well-represented in the population. The Erie Zoo in 2009 added Edgar, an Amur leopard from the European country of Estonia, because his genes were not well represented and would contribute to the diversity of the species.
"At the end of the day, it's about the species," Mitchell said. "You have to look beyond your zoo gates to what's best for the species in the long term."
The Erie Zoo faces a particular challenge in trying to bring another gorilla or gorilla pair here: Gorillas are social animals; males typically live with a harem of three or four females. The zoo can hold two gorillas in what used to be Samantha's exhibit. A potential partner zoo might not be willing to break up an existing group to send a pair -- two females or a male and female -- to Erie.
"It drives me crazy sometimes," Kreider said of the acquisition process. "It's a puzzle you have to figure out and there are a lot of variables in it."
Sometimes the issue isn't with bringing new animals in. It's dealing with the ones already there.
The zoo housed an African elephant as recently as 1997. It decided to stop exhibiting elephants when the AZA recommended zoos house no fewer than four or five elephants because of their social nature. The zoo did not have the space or resources to do that, Kreider said.
The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo had to consider what to do with its aging hippopotamus when it was building its celebrated African Elephant Crossing exhibit, which opened in 2011. The hippo -- more than 50 years old, making it the oldest in North America -- was housed in the same building as the elephants. Including the hippo in the new exhibit would have increased the cost prohibitively, said Chris Kuhar, director of the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.
"We had to make a conscious decision whether to build for this particular animal that was not likely going to be with us" in the future, Kuhar said.
The hippo could not be transferred to another zoo because of its age. In the end, the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo moved it to another exhibit space that is comfortable but not open to the public.
---
Erie's $1 million renovation of the polar bear and lion exhibits is aimed at animal management as well as improving the experience of existing animals and the visiting public, Mitchell said.
The zoo has just begun to work with Kidder Wachter Architecture & Design to design the project. Preliminary plans include renovating holding spaces and refacing and sculpting the concrete walls. The renovation also calls for filling the moats that separate the outdoor open-air spaces from the outer exhibit rail, and installing glass partitions.
The changes are meant to modernize the exhibits and bring the visitors face-to-face with the animals, much as they are with most other exhibits, Mitchell said. The renovation would also likely more than double the size of the exhibits, each of which are about 35 feet by 45 feet, Kreider said.
Also under consideration: adding netting to the top of the exhibits.
Right now, the two exhibits can house a limited number of species. If the lions died or were transferred, for instance, keepers could not move jaguars or cheetahs into that lion exhibit because jaguars and cheetahs are climbers.
Adding netting would remove those restrictions and allow for the housing of a wider variety of animals -- which means more flexibility for the zoo in terms of animal management. When one animal dies, the zoo could quickly and easily move another into that exhibit, Mitchell said.
---
The Erie Zoo is still committed to bringing marquee animals to Erie, Mitchell said.
"You have to have those," he said.
Still, he said, "We are as responsible as any zoo in realizing what we can and cannot do."
"We're never going to have elephants" again, Mitchell said. "We have space constraints, we have budget constraints."
The zoo's commitment to both its animals and the public is evident in the renovation project, he said. The zoo already has raised about $650,000 through donations, and is looking for more donors.
"We need to do these kinds of projects from time to time," Mitchell said. "Our community has an expectation about what we should be doing and we need to keep improving."
Times In-Depth: Erie Zoo's future includes $1 million renovation | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News
By ERICA ERWIN - Erie Times-News
Published: February 24, 2013 12:01 AM EST
When Erie Zoo staff made the decision to euthanize Samantha the gorilla, Scott Mitchell's first thought wasn't about how to replace one of the zoo's marquee animals.
The zoo's executive director and his employees were busy mourning the iconic matriarch of the zoo, the animal who'd lived there longer than any other in its history before health problems related to aging -- she would have turned 49 this month -- prompted her euthanization in December.
Mitchell didn't think then about how Samantha's death would affect attendance, or how to fill her empty exhibit by the time the zoo reopens for the season on Friday.
"The zoo is bigger than any one specific animal, even Samantha," Mitchell said. "If it was about one specific animal, you're not much of a zoo."
Still, the zoo is a business that is driven by ticket sales and memberships -- and those sales and memberships are, at least to some extent, driven by the public's desire to see the larger-than-life animals that capture hearts, fire imaginations and fill camera lenses: the lions, tigers, bears, giraffes, gorillas and orangutans.
A handful of the zoo's most visible animals have died in recent years, including Samantha and, earlier, Kumar the Bengal tiger and TJ the giraffe. Others, including Leela, an orangutan who was born at the zoo in 2003, have been transferred to other zoos to participate in breeding programs.
There is no replacing these animals, said Mitchell, 50, who has worked at the Erie Zoo for about 29 years and has been executive director since May 2007. There won't be another Samantha, who watched generations pass by her exhibit.
Part of the answer moving forward, Mitchell said, is a $1 million renovation of one of the zoo's polar bear exhibits and its lion exhibit. The renovation, slated to start this summer, would add space for existing animals and, perhaps just as importantly, transform the exhibits into less species-specific spaces, giving the zoo more flexibility when animals breed, die or are transferred to other zoos.
But even when that project is complete, the Erie Zoo, like all other zoos, will continue to grapple with the unending issue of if, how and when to bring in new animals.
Reaching an answer isn't an easy process.
---
The way zoos acquire animals has changed.
Zoos are no longer bringing in animals from their native habitats, which was the practice decades ago. Today, 90 percent of animals in captivity were born in zoos, said Steven Feldman, spokesman for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums in Silver Spring, Md.
Some animals are bought by one zoo from another, as was the case in 2011 when the Erie Zoo spent $7,500 to buy Nigel, a giraffe, from the Como Zoo in St. Paul, Minn., and another $5,000 to transport him here.
But other animals, particularly those that are endangered or threatened, arrive by way of breeding loan agreements between two zoos.
Those agreements are guided by the AZA's Species Survival Plan Program, introduced in 1981 to "cooperatively manage specific, and typically threatened or endangered, species population" within AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums and other facilities.
Survival plans recommend the proper breeding, treatment, handling and housing of more than 300 species, including the giant panda, California condor and lowland gorilla.
The Species Survival Plan Program helped increase cooperation and communication among zoos, and made the process of acquiring and breeding animals more organized, said Cindy Kreider, director of the Erie Zoo and program manager for the Amur leopard Species Survival Plan.
But filling an empty exhibit isn't a simple task.
With the help of the SSP, a zoo must find another zoo willing to loan the particular animal it hopes to exhibit. And the timing has to work: One zoo might be looking for a polar bear, for instance, but the only one available might be too young to transport at the time the receiving zoo has the necessary space and resources.
All the variables make planning ahead to replace an animal difficult, if not impossible, Kreider and Mitchell said. And there's also the matter of DNA.
When looking to breed an animal, a zoo must make sure that the genes of a potential mate coming from another zoo aren't already well-represented in the population. The Erie Zoo in 2009 added Edgar, an Amur leopard from the European country of Estonia, because his genes were not well represented and would contribute to the diversity of the species.
"At the end of the day, it's about the species," Mitchell said. "You have to look beyond your zoo gates to what's best for the species in the long term."
The Erie Zoo faces a particular challenge in trying to bring another gorilla or gorilla pair here: Gorillas are social animals; males typically live with a harem of three or four females. The zoo can hold two gorillas in what used to be Samantha's exhibit. A potential partner zoo might not be willing to break up an existing group to send a pair -- two females or a male and female -- to Erie.
"It drives me crazy sometimes," Kreider said of the acquisition process. "It's a puzzle you have to figure out and there are a lot of variables in it."
Sometimes the issue isn't with bringing new animals in. It's dealing with the ones already there.
The zoo housed an African elephant as recently as 1997. It decided to stop exhibiting elephants when the AZA recommended zoos house no fewer than four or five elephants because of their social nature. The zoo did not have the space or resources to do that, Kreider said.
The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo had to consider what to do with its aging hippopotamus when it was building its celebrated African Elephant Crossing exhibit, which opened in 2011. The hippo -- more than 50 years old, making it the oldest in North America -- was housed in the same building as the elephants. Including the hippo in the new exhibit would have increased the cost prohibitively, said Chris Kuhar, director of the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.
"We had to make a conscious decision whether to build for this particular animal that was not likely going to be with us" in the future, Kuhar said.
The hippo could not be transferred to another zoo because of its age. In the end, the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo moved it to another exhibit space that is comfortable but not open to the public.
---
Erie's $1 million renovation of the polar bear and lion exhibits is aimed at animal management as well as improving the experience of existing animals and the visiting public, Mitchell said.
The zoo has just begun to work with Kidder Wachter Architecture & Design to design the project. Preliminary plans include renovating holding spaces and refacing and sculpting the concrete walls. The renovation also calls for filling the moats that separate the outdoor open-air spaces from the outer exhibit rail, and installing glass partitions.
The changes are meant to modernize the exhibits and bring the visitors face-to-face with the animals, much as they are with most other exhibits, Mitchell said. The renovation would also likely more than double the size of the exhibits, each of which are about 35 feet by 45 feet, Kreider said.
Also under consideration: adding netting to the top of the exhibits.
Right now, the two exhibits can house a limited number of species. If the lions died or were transferred, for instance, keepers could not move jaguars or cheetahs into that lion exhibit because jaguars and cheetahs are climbers.
Adding netting would remove those restrictions and allow for the housing of a wider variety of animals -- which means more flexibility for the zoo in terms of animal management. When one animal dies, the zoo could quickly and easily move another into that exhibit, Mitchell said.
---
The Erie Zoo is still committed to bringing marquee animals to Erie, Mitchell said.
"You have to have those," he said.
Still, he said, "We are as responsible as any zoo in realizing what we can and cannot do."
"We're never going to have elephants" again, Mitchell said. "We have space constraints, we have budget constraints."
The zoo's commitment to both its animals and the public is evident in the renovation project, he said. The zoo already has raised about $650,000 through donations, and is looking for more donors.
"We need to do these kinds of projects from time to time," Mitchell said. "Our community has an expectation about what we should be doing and we need to keep improving."
Times In-Depth: Erie Zoo's future includes $1 million renovation | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News
The zoo has added two large-spotted genets named Kojo and Jojo. See an image at the link.
Bob Sanders Day at the Erie Zoo | News | GoErie.com
Bob Sanders Day at the Erie Zoo | News | GoErie.com
jusko88
Well-Known Member
the large spotted genets that are at erie now came from the Cincinnati zoo. thanks tigervalley98 for sharing
In response to the exhibit renovations, I am a bit skeptical with the amount given - One Million Dollars. Let's compare that to proposed polar bear exhibit at the Buffalo Zoo, which will cost $18 million dollars. I mean it's better than what they have now, but it sounds like when Buffalo Zoo spent one million to renovate their elephant exhibit, which is still OUTDATED. Maybe it's age or as they say, difficult to relocate to another zoo, but I honestly rather see Patches go to another zoo.
From something their Executive Director said in the Erie newspaper article, I am wondering if they are thinking that Patches may have to relocate someday. They are considering adding netting to the top of these exhibits as well so species that climb like jaguar and leopards could live there. I also noted that one of the polar bear exhibits was not being done right now. I expect this is so Patches could be outside while they are working on her other exhibit. I expect they will renovate this exhibit later on. The black bears, Laurel and Libby, should be gone now. They were slated for Akron's Grizzly Ridge, but the black bear exhibit was the one exhibit removed from the plan to allow for nicer exhibits for the red wolves and coyotes. I have not heard where Laurel and Libby will end up.
Erie Zoo Keeper’s Corner Summer 2013
Erie Zoo Keeper’s Corner Summer 2013
Two new exciting animal species will soon be joining the Erie Zoo family. A female serval will be arriving from the Dakota Zoo and be exhibited in the main zoo building. These medium-sized spotted African cats have large ears and are famous for their ability to spring straight up into the air to catch birds and other prey. A plan is underway to import a male to pair with her for breeding, as recommended by the Serval SSP. The second species will be coming from the Buffalo Zoo for a three month stay. A pair of African crested porcupines will be exhibited in the main building in what was previously the inside gorilla exhibit. They will then move on to the Staten Island Zoo this fall when their new exhibit is complete. These very unique animals are quite impressive to see. They are the largest porcupine in the world.
On April 22nd, we welcomed the arrival of a baby prehensile-tailed porcupine. Visitors will soon be able to see the youngster when the family moves into their summer exhibit the end of May. Hopefully you will still be able to see the unique orange coloring of the baby before it starts turning into the color of its parents. Baby porcupines are born very well developed, becoming very independent almost immediately, and eating solid food in just a few days.
Ceiba, the female jaguar will soon be moving to the St. Louis Zoo. She has been recommended by the Jaguar SSP to be paired with their male for breeding. Ceiba produced two cubs here in 2009. The cubs moved on to the Sedgwick Zoo in Kansas and the Salisbury Zoo in Maryland. Since our pair has produced offspring, they need to be re-paired to add new genetics to the SSP population. Plans are underway to import a female to pair with our male Caax. Imports take time, so it could be as late as next spring before a female arrives.
A female Amur leopard will soon be arriving from the Minnesota Zoo to be paired with our imported male Edgar. We currently have 10 year old female Sakhar, who has been paired with Edgar for the last several months. Because we are not sure if Sakhar will be a successful breeder due to her age, the second female will be brought in to have a better chance of Edgar’s valuable genes becoming represented in the population. If breeding is not successful soon with Sakhar, she will be moving on to another zoo to be an ambassador for her species as an exhibit animal. Amur leopards are currently the most endangered cat in the world. It is imperative that this breeding program grow its numbers, while carefully planning the pairings so that the population’s genetics improve.
There will soon be a group of Speckled mousebirds arriving from the Detroit Zoo to join our other bird species exhibited in the Kiboka Ranger Station. These small African birds are quite active and should add a lot of energy to this exhibit.
It had been planned to move the two female black bears to another zoo last fall, but it looks like they will be with us through another summer. The other zoo’s exhibit will not be ready until fall, so we offered to keep them here until then.
We are sorry to report that Alfie, the reticulated python, who was exhibited in the Adventure Center, passed away recently. He had been undergoing treatment for cancer for several months. He was 19 years old.
Last but not least, we have another addition to the animal department, but not what you might expect. Richelle Swem, an Animal Keeper who has been with us for two years, has taken on the position of Animal Care Supervisor. She had previously been the Behavioral Training Supervisor, having had extensive experience at her previous job of Senior Animal Care Specialist at Sea World of Florida. She is now responsible for overseeing the care of the animal collection, supervising animal care staff, working with our veterinarian on health issues, and coordinating various animal related programs.
https://www.eriezoo.org/ShowNews.aspx?ID=22
Erie Zoo Keeper’s Corner Summer 2013
Two new exciting animal species will soon be joining the Erie Zoo family. A female serval will be arriving from the Dakota Zoo and be exhibited in the main zoo building. These medium-sized spotted African cats have large ears and are famous for their ability to spring straight up into the air to catch birds and other prey. A plan is underway to import a male to pair with her for breeding, as recommended by the Serval SSP. The second species will be coming from the Buffalo Zoo for a three month stay. A pair of African crested porcupines will be exhibited in the main building in what was previously the inside gorilla exhibit. They will then move on to the Staten Island Zoo this fall when their new exhibit is complete. These very unique animals are quite impressive to see. They are the largest porcupine in the world.
On April 22nd, we welcomed the arrival of a baby prehensile-tailed porcupine. Visitors will soon be able to see the youngster when the family moves into their summer exhibit the end of May. Hopefully you will still be able to see the unique orange coloring of the baby before it starts turning into the color of its parents. Baby porcupines are born very well developed, becoming very independent almost immediately, and eating solid food in just a few days.
Ceiba, the female jaguar will soon be moving to the St. Louis Zoo. She has been recommended by the Jaguar SSP to be paired with their male for breeding. Ceiba produced two cubs here in 2009. The cubs moved on to the Sedgwick Zoo in Kansas and the Salisbury Zoo in Maryland. Since our pair has produced offspring, they need to be re-paired to add new genetics to the SSP population. Plans are underway to import a female to pair with our male Caax. Imports take time, so it could be as late as next spring before a female arrives.
A female Amur leopard will soon be arriving from the Minnesota Zoo to be paired with our imported male Edgar. We currently have 10 year old female Sakhar, who has been paired with Edgar for the last several months. Because we are not sure if Sakhar will be a successful breeder due to her age, the second female will be brought in to have a better chance of Edgar’s valuable genes becoming represented in the population. If breeding is not successful soon with Sakhar, she will be moving on to another zoo to be an ambassador for her species as an exhibit animal. Amur leopards are currently the most endangered cat in the world. It is imperative that this breeding program grow its numbers, while carefully planning the pairings so that the population’s genetics improve.
There will soon be a group of Speckled mousebirds arriving from the Detroit Zoo to join our other bird species exhibited in the Kiboka Ranger Station. These small African birds are quite active and should add a lot of energy to this exhibit.
It had been planned to move the two female black bears to another zoo last fall, but it looks like they will be with us through another summer. The other zoo’s exhibit will not be ready until fall, so we offered to keep them here until then.
We are sorry to report that Alfie, the reticulated python, who was exhibited in the Adventure Center, passed away recently. He had been undergoing treatment for cancer for several months. He was 19 years old.
Last but not least, we have another addition to the animal department, but not what you might expect. Richelle Swem, an Animal Keeper who has been with us for two years, has taken on the position of Animal Care Supervisor. She had previously been the Behavioral Training Supervisor, having had extensive experience at her previous job of Senior Animal Care Specialist at Sea World of Florida. She is now responsible for overseeing the care of the animal collection, supervising animal care staff, working with our veterinarian on health issues, and coordinating various animal related programs.
https://www.eriezoo.org/ShowNews.aspx?ID=22
I am assuming the Arctic exhibit is going to take over the spot of the American Pavilion (cages by Rocky mountain big horned sheep exhibit). In that case, the Buffalo Zoo will probably be getting rid of the Cinerous vultures as well. Well, that's another sore eye at the zoo we no longer have to see.
Back to the Erie, interesting to hear all the changes. I am curious to hear where the serval is going in the main building. The leopard and jaguar already have exhibits in there, that are quite small for them.
I asked Erie where Laurel and Libby will be going in the fall and I was told they do not know for sure where.
New baby porcupine, red panda at Erie Zoo
New baby porcupine, red panda at Erie Zoo
By ERICA ERWIN, Erie Times-News
Published: June 29, 2013 12:01 AM EST
Updated: June 29, 2013 2:58 AM EST
Xavier Van Tassel considered the exhibit's prickly inhabitants carefully.
"They're cute," the 7-year-old ruled. "They're dangerous because they have things that hurt, so you shouldn't touch them."
They were a new baby prehensile-tailed porcupine and one of its parents, curled up against the rain drops in their outdoor home at the Erie Zoo. The baby, born April 22, is only the second prehensile-tailed porcupine born at the zoo.
The baby was the color of an orange creamsicle at birth, its quills soft and flexible. It's gray now, and those quills have since become harder and stiffer.
"They need to grow quickly," Erie Zoo Executive Director Scott Mitchell said of the quills. "That's their defense mechanism."
Just steps away from the exhibit was an even newer addition: a red panda, born June 6. The baby is an umber color and fits in the palm of a hand, Mitchell said.
Its mother carries it between one of three "cubbing boxes," two indoor and one outdoor. The two indoor boxes can be viewed by video; the baby won't venture out into the exhibit on its own for a few months, Mitchell said.
The red panda is one of the most endangered animals in the world, he said. The baby is only the second for mom Syringa and the first for dad Tate.
"Genetically, they're both very important, so this baby is very important to his species as well," Mitchell said. "Anything we can do to help the population is important."
Zoo officials don't know the sex of either of the new babies just yet. But they and their parents are doing well, Mitchell said. The porcupine is already exploring its new home.
"He's much more adventurous than the previous one," Mitchell said. "I see him out, climbing on the branches."
New baby porcupine, red panda at Erie Zoo | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News
New baby porcupine, red panda at Erie Zoo
By ERICA ERWIN, Erie Times-News
Published: June 29, 2013 12:01 AM EST
Updated: June 29, 2013 2:58 AM EST
Xavier Van Tassel considered the exhibit's prickly inhabitants carefully.
"They're cute," the 7-year-old ruled. "They're dangerous because they have things that hurt, so you shouldn't touch them."
They were a new baby prehensile-tailed porcupine and one of its parents, curled up against the rain drops in their outdoor home at the Erie Zoo. The baby, born April 22, is only the second prehensile-tailed porcupine born at the zoo.
The baby was the color of an orange creamsicle at birth, its quills soft and flexible. It's gray now, and those quills have since become harder and stiffer.
"They need to grow quickly," Erie Zoo Executive Director Scott Mitchell said of the quills. "That's their defense mechanism."
Just steps away from the exhibit was an even newer addition: a red panda, born June 6. The baby is an umber color and fits in the palm of a hand, Mitchell said.
Its mother carries it between one of three "cubbing boxes," two indoor and one outdoor. The two indoor boxes can be viewed by video; the baby won't venture out into the exhibit on its own for a few months, Mitchell said.
The red panda is one of the most endangered animals in the world, he said. The baby is only the second for mom Syringa and the first for dad Tate.
"Genetically, they're both very important, so this baby is very important to his species as well," Mitchell said. "Anything we can do to help the population is important."
Zoo officials don't know the sex of either of the new babies just yet. But they and their parents are doing well, Mitchell said. The porcupine is already exploring its new home.
"He's much more adventurous than the previous one," Mitchell said. "I see him out, climbing on the branches."
New baby porcupine, red panda at Erie Zoo | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News
According to this article, the polar bear exhibit will be renovated for either leopards or lynx (this info is in the text under the right-hand picture of Patches).
Polar bear leaving Erie Zoo (VIDEO) | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News
Polar bear leaving Erie Zoo (VIDEO) | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News
I wouldn't mind either cat species in the exhibit if redesigned properly. Then they can have that area all be big cats. Leopards/Lynx, Lion, Tiger. However, I hope they knock the wall in between the main polar bear exhibit and the side one. That would help with adding more space.
arcticwolf
Well-Known Member
According to what I heard in the video, the lions will be moving to the gorilla exhibit and leopards and lynxes will move into the lion and polar bear exhibits.
Nice to hear that Patches is moving to the NC Zoo (my local zoo). The NC Zoo itself is currently a year away from finishing its own polar bear exhibit expansion.
Thanks for that information. I was at work so I was unable to listen to the sound on the video.