Portland, January 24th, 2014. Looking for a winter getaway? How about hiking around an ancient lava dome or taking a road trip to scope out birds of prey? A series of programs led by naturalists from the Oregon Zoo’s education division offers these adventures and more over the next several months.
“Winter is a great time to get outside and explore nature,” said Grant Spickelmier, the zoo’s education curator. “When people think of the Oregon Zoo, they usually think of one specific spot here in Washington Park, but we’d like to expand that notion. The natural areas program of our parent organization, Metro, offers amazing opportunities throughout the region to connect with animals and the natural world, and we want people to take advantage of them.”
You can see winter birds like this Bald Eagle at Smith and Bybee Wetlands
Bird lovers also won’t want to miss the Winter Birds programs at Portland’s Smith and Bybee wetlands, where each year thousands of ducks, geese and swans spend the winter. On Feb. 22 and March 8, naturalists will be on hand to point out waterfowl and water birds such as grebes, gulls, coots, cormorants and herons. It is also the best time of year to see bald eagles and other birds of prey.
On Sunday, Jan. 26, Stories in the Stones presents a hands-on geology lesson amid the rugged winter beauty of Mt. Talbert Nature Park. This unique lava dome — just 12 miles from downtown Portland — is part of a series of cinder cones and small shield volcanoes that began bubbling almost three million years ago.
On Saturday, Feb. 1, hikers can explore the trails, trees and waterways of Newell Creek Canyon Natural Area in Oregon City. A two-hour Winter Walk offers a sneak preview of this voter-protected land where improvements are on the way for people and wildlife.
The following week — on Saturday, Feb. 8 — bird enthusiasts will flock to Sauvie Island for the annual Raptor Road Trip, sponsored by the Audubon Society of Portland, Metro, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and HawkWatch International. Naturalists and hawk experts host activities at four locations around the island, offering up-close encounters with birds of prey and guiding visitors to raptor hotspots.
These are the views from a winter walk at Newell Creek Canyon.
A March 1 Stayin’ Alive program at Oxbow Regional Park, teaches families how to build a winter survival shelter that keeps you safe and warm without a sleeping bag or fire. And Winter Twigs — held Sunday, March 2, at Graham Oaks Nature Park — offers “tree detective” training, showing participants how to tell one evergreen from another, or identify a tree in winter by looking at its bark or buds.
The zoo is a service of Metro and is dedicated to its mission of inspiring the community to create a better future for wildlife. Committed to conservation, the zoo is currently working to save endangered California condors, Oregon silverspot and Taylor’s checkerspot butterflies, western pond turtles and Oregon spotted frogs. Other projects include studies on Asian elephants, polar bears, orangutans and giant pandas. The zoo relies in part on community support through donations to the Oregon Zoo Foundation to undertake these and many other animal welfare, education and sustainability programs.
The zoo opens at 10 a.m. daily and is located five minutes from downtown Portland, just off Highway 26. The zoo is also accessible by MAX light rail line. Visitors who travel to the zoo via MAX receive $1.50 off zoo admission. Call TriMet Customer Service, 503-238-RIDE (7433), or visit www.trimet.org for fare and route information.
General zoo admission is $11.50 (ages 12-64), $10 for seniors (65 and up), $8.50 for children (ages 3-11) and free for those 2 and younger; 25 cents of the admission price helps fund regional conservation projects through the zoo’s Future for Wildlife program. A parking fee of $4 per car is also required. Additional information is available at www.oregonzoo.org or by calling 503-226-1561.
Portland, October 11th, 2013. Nikita Zimov, director of Siberia’s Pleistocene Park, joins experts from the Oregon Zoo Oct. 14 for an evening of conversation about conservation, presented by the Lewis & Clark College environmental studies program.
This year’s symposium, which runs Oct. 14-18, explores “The Nature of the Unnatural” — modifications of our biophysical surroundings that are considered “unnatural.” Experts will discuss issues such as genetically modified organisms, species resurrection, rewilding, ecological restoration and artificial intelligence.
At the Oct. 14 kickoff event, Zimov will speak about the past and future of the mammoth steppe ecosystem, Oregon Zoo condor keeper Kelli Walker will discuss aspects of the zoo’s participation in the California Condor Recovery Program, and Oregon Zoo education curator Grant Spickelmier will address the changing nature of zoos and their increasing focus on wildlife education and conservation.
Zimov is the director of Pleistocene Park, a project that is importing megafauna like horses, bison, tigers — and perhaps even clones of the wooly mammoth — into Siberia to cause massive landscape-scale ecological change. As the animals adapt, a newly engineered ecosystem will develop that mimics the function of Siberian grasslands at the end of the Ice Age. Once one of the world’s dominant biomes, these grasslands will serve as a large-scale experiment, help solve unanswered questions about the roles of humans in early mass extinctions, and could — by acting as a carbon sink — become a major part of the fight against global climate change.
The zoo is a service of Metro and is dedicated to its mission of inspiring the community to create a better future for wildlife. Committed to conservation, the zoo is currently working to save endangered California condors, Oregon silverspot and Taylor’s checkerspot butterflies, western pond turtles and Oregon spotted frogs. Other projects include studies on Asian elephants, polar bears, orangutans and giant pandas. Celebrating 125 years of community support, the zoo relies in part on donations through the Oregon Zoo Foundation to undertake these and many other animal welfare, education and sustainability programs.
The zoo opens at 9 a.m. daily and is located five minutes from downtown Portland, just off Highway 26. The zoo is also accessible by MAX light rail line. Visitors who travel to the zoo via MAX receive $1.50 off zoo admission. Call TriMet Customer Service, 503-238-RIDE (7433), or visit www.trimet.org for fare and route information.
General zoo admission is $11.50 (ages 12-64), $10 for seniors (65 and up), $8.50 for children (ages 3-11) and free for those 2 and younger; 25 cents of the admission price helps fund regional conservation projects through the zoo’s Future for Wildlife program. A parking fee of $4 per car is also required. Additional information is available at www.oregonzoo.org or by calling 503-226-1561.
PORTLAND, Ore. — She was born big — with an outsize personality to match — and now her weight has reached quadruple digits: Lily, the Oregon Zoo’s youngest Asian elephant, tipped the scales at more than a 1,000 pounds this week, not quite 10 months after her birth last November.
“Lily’s not only a quick study, she’s a fast grower,” said Bob Lee, the zoo’s elephant curator. “She’s packed on more than 700 pounds in under 10 months. She gains about 2½ pounds every day even though she never stops moving.”
Lily, born Nov. 30, weighed a hefty 300 pounds at birth and has been described by zoo animal-care staff as a “spitfire.”
“She’s definitely not shy,” Lee said. “She competes with the bigger elephants for enrichment toys and treats. She doesn’t just wait for her turn — she’s right in there with the others being a true member of the herd. She likes carrots and apples, and she’s pulling leaves off branches just like mom. She’s still nursing, but the amount of milk she takes each day varies quite a bit now that she’s eating more solid food.”
To see video of Lily weighing in and spending some quality time with Rose-Tu and the rest of the herd, visit bit.ly/Lily1000.
Lily’s taste for fruit has allowed keepers to begin daily training sessions with the young elephant — encouraging her, through positive reinforcement, to participate in the routine checkups and veterinary tests needed for her healthcare.
“We train the elephants in a lot of behaviors geared toward their care,” said senior elephant keeper Shawn Finnell. “She’s learning to open her mouth so we can check her teeth and gums, and she’s learning to pick up her feet, which will be very helpful for her care throughout her life. Getting the animals to participate voluntarily makes it so much easier if we need to administer medical treatment.”
Like most kids, Lily likes to play.
“She’s been enjoying daily play sessions with her big brother, Sam,” Finnell said. “She’s usually the one who initiates the play. They like to play King of the Mountain on a huge sand pile. Sam always lets her win. Or she’ll splash into the pool and then bellow at the top of her lungs for Sam to come play with her. She’s not a quiet elephant.”
And like most kids, Lily is very inquisitive.
“She’s interested in everything around her,” said Lee. “Especially the construction taking place outside her habitat.”
In June, the zoo broke ground on Elephant Lands, a project that will quadruple the animals’ space and dramatically enhance their experiences and daily routines. The new habitat is scheduled to open in 2015. To learn more, visit oregonzoo.org/ElephantLands. To learn about the Oregon Zoo Foundation’s Campaign for Elephants — which will fund education- and conservation-based activities at Elephant Lands — call 503-220-5707 or visit oregonzoo.org/givetoelephants.
The Oregon Zoo is recognized worldwide for its Asian elephant program, which has spanned more than 50 years. Considered highly endangered in their range countries, Asian elephants are threatened by habitat loss, conflict with humans and disease. It is estimated that fewer than 40,000 elephants remain in fragmented populations from India to Borneo. Through the International Elephant Foundation and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the zoo supports a broad range of elephant conservation efforts to help wild elephants.
The zoo is a service of Metro and is dedicated to its mission of inspiring the community to create a better future for wildlife. Committed to conservation, the zoo is currently working to save endangered California condors, Oregon silverspot and Taylor’s checkerspot butterflies, western pond turtles and Oregon spotted frogs. Other projects include studies on Asian elephants, polar bears, orangutans and giant pandas. Celebrating 125 years of community support, the zoo relies in part on donations through the Oregon Zoo Foundation to undertake these and many other animal welfare, education and sustainability programs.
Lily, the Oregon Zoo’s youngest Asian elephant, tipped the scales at more than a 1,000 pounds this week, not quite 10 months after her birth last November. Photo by Michael Durham, courtesy of the Oregon Zoo.
The zoo opens at 9 a.m. daily and is located five minutes from downtown Portland, just off Highway 26. The zoo is also accessible by MAX light rail line. Visitors who travel to the zoo via MAX receive $1.50 off zoo admission. Call TriMet Customer Service, 503-238-RIDE (7433), or visit trimet.org for fare and route information.
General zoo admission is $11.50 (ages 12-64), $10 for seniors (65 and up), $8.50 for children (ages 3-11) and free for those 2 and younger; 25 cents of the admission price helps fund regional conservation projects through the zoo’s Future for Wildlife program. A parking fee of $4 per car is also required. Additional information is available at oregonzoo.org or by calling 503-226-1561.
PORTLAND, Ausust 23rd, 2013. Asian elephant Samudra turned 5 years old at the Oregon Zoo, and it’s fair to say big brothers don’t come much bigger.
“Sam’s growing up to be a big boy, just like his daddy, Tusko,” said Shawn Finnell, senior elephant keeper. “He weighs more than two tons now, and he’s almost as tall as Chendra, who’s the smallest of the adult females.”
Samudra, born Aug. 23, 2008, had a rough start to life. First-time mom Rose-Tu became confused and agitated after delivering Sam, and keepers worked hard to ensure the critical mother-calf bond became the strong one it is today. Now that he’s older, Samudra’s also been getting life lessons from his dad.
Tusko — the father of both Samudra and Lily — has been teaching his son what it means to be a bull over the past two years. Keepers believe that seeing male behavior modeled from an early age will have a positive effect on Samudra’s ability to socialize with the herd as he matures. So far, it seems to be working.
“Sam’s been a very patient big brother,” Finnell said. “Lily has been enjoying daily play sessions with him — and she’s at the point now where she initiates the play. King of the Mountain is the game of choice right now. Sam always lets her win.”
Keepers say Lily, born Nov. 30, is proving a boisterous addition to the zoo’s Asian elephant herd — and the pitter-patter of little feet is beginning to sound downright thunderous: At just under 9 months old, the zoo’s youngest elephant has already topped 900 pounds.
“Lily was born big, and she’s got a big personality to match,” Finnell said. “She’s more than tripled her birth weight of 300 pounds. You can almost watch her grow.”
Keepers have begun daily training sessions with the young elephant — encouraging her, through positive reinforcement, to participate in the routine checkups and veterinary tests needed for her healthcare.
“We train the elephants in a lot of behaviors geared toward their care,” Finnell said. “She’s learning to open her mouth so we can check her teeth and gums, and she’s learning to pick up her feet, which will be very helpful for her care throughout her life. Getting the animals to participate voluntarily makes it so much easier if we need to administer medical treatment.”
Like her big brother, Lily enjoys the water. (Samudra’s name — a Sanskrit term for ocean — was inspired by his love of all things wet.)
“Her favorite activity is probably her bath,” Finnell said. “She enjoys rolling around in the water under mom. It’s fun to see Lily growing up and taking on traits similar to her mother, father and big brother.”
By the time Samudra is 7 years old and Lily is 3, things should be looking a lot different for the zoo’s elephant herd. In June, the zoo broke ground on Elephant Lands, an expansion of the current habitat that will quadruple the animals’ space and dramatically enhance their experiences and daily routines. The new habitat is scheduled to open in 2015. To learn more, visit oregonzoo.org/ElephantLands.
To learn about the Oregon Zoo Foundation’s Campaign for Elephants — which will fund education- and conservation-based activities at Elephant Lands — call 503-220-5707 or visit oregonzoo.org/givetoelephants.
The Oregon Zoo is recognized worldwide for its Asian elephant program, which has spanned more than 50 years. Considered highly endangered in their range countries, Asian elephants are threatened by habitat loss, conflict with humans and disease. It is estimated that fewer than 40,000 elephants remain in fragmented populations from India to Borneo. Through the International Elephant Foundation and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the zoo supports a broad range of elephant conservation efforts to help wild elephants.
The zoo is a service of Metro and is dedicated to its mission of inspiring the community to create a better future for wildlife. Committed to conservation, the zoo is currently working to save endangered California condors, Oregon silverspot and Taylor’s checkerspot butterflies, western pond turtles and Oregon spotted frogs. Other projects include studies on Asian elephants, polar bears, orangutans and giant pandas. Celebrating 125 years of community support, the zoo relies in part on donations through the Oregon Zoo Foundation to undertake these and many other animal welfare, education and sustainability programs.
The zoo opens at 9 a.m. daily and is located five minutes from downtown Portland, just off Highway 26. The zoo is also accessible by MAX light rail line. Visitors who travel to the zoo via MAX receive $1.50 off zoo admission. Call TriMet Customer Service, 503-238-RIDE (7433), or visit trimet.org for fare and route information.
General zoo admission is $11.50 (ages 12-64), $10 for seniors (65 and up), $8.50 for children (ages 3-11) and free for those 2 and younger; 25 cents of the admission price helps fund regional conservation projects through the zoo’s Future for Wildlife program. A parking fee of $4 per car is also required. Additional information is available at oregonzoo.org or by calling 503-226-1561.
Portland, July 25th, 2013. The Oregon Zoo this week began its yearlong treatment regimen for Rama, the Asian elephant who cultured positive for tuberculosis in late May, officials announced. Zoo staff is also preparing to administer preventive treatment to Packy, who reacted to a subsequent blood-serum test and could have a latent infection.
“Packy has shown no signs of active TB,” said Mitch Finnegan, the zoo’s lead veterinarian. “But lab work on his blood indicates possible exposure, so it’s better to treat this now than risk an active infection down the line.”
The zoo routinely tests all its elephants for TB by taking an annual trunk culture (collecting fluid from the animal’s trunk and sending it to a certified laboratory for testing) as part of its comprehensive health program and in compliance with U.S. Department of Agriculture standards. Following Rama’s diagnosis last month, each of the elephants was retested, with preliminary results coming back negative once again for all but Rama.
As a further precaution, the zoo also submitted blood samples from each of its elephants for testing, using the serologic DPP (Dual Path Platform) assay, a broad but useful screening test. Packy, in addition to Rama, was reactive to this assay, so his blood serum was submitted for further testing. A more specific test known as MAPIA (multi-antigen print immunoassay) indicated possible exposure to TB. While only a positive trunk culture test is considered definitive, Dr. Finnegan — in consultation with the USDA — has recommended treating Packy as the most prudent course of action.
“For elephants, we are using the MAPIA the same way we’d look at a TB skin test for humans,” Dr. Finnegan said. “It doesn’t necessarily indicate active tuberculosis — it indicates exposure to the TB bacteria at some point in the past. In humans, only a small percentage of those who react positively to the skin test ever develop TB, and treating a latent TB infection reduces that risk even further. That’s the course we’ll be taking with Packy.”
Dr. Finnegan said neither Rama nor Packy have shown any signs of illness and, although Rama is being kept apart from the herd during his treatment, no similar measures are needed for Packy at this time.
“TB is typically very manageable,” Dr. Finnegan said. “Neither elephant has shown signs of being sick, and we’re hopeful that with proper treatment they never will. Getting early results like this is very helpful and the prognosis is good for both animals.”
After receiving the initial report about Rama in late May, Dr. Finnegan immediately contacted the public health authorities and veterinarians at the Oregon Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture. Zoo personnel were also informed of the results, and those working in prolonged close proximity to Rama were tested to ensure they did not have the disease.
Zoo visitors were not at risk, according to Justin Denny, M.D., public health officer for Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties.
“Transmission of tuberculosis requires prolonged periods of close contact,” Dr. Denny said. “So we wanted to make sure we tested anyone who spent time close to Rama. But as far as the general public is concerned, there is nothing to worry about.”
It took until this month to amass enough medication to begin Rama’s treatment regimen, which began on Tuesday, but now that the medicine is on site, Packy’s treatment can begin starting next week. The zoo’s veterinary staff will monitor both elephants’ progress through trunk cultures and blood tests during their prescribed treatment regimen.
While not common, TB has been reported in elephants as far back as 1875 and has a history of successful treatment at several North American elephant facilities.
The Oregon Zoo is recognized worldwide for its Asian elephant program, which has spanned more than 50 years. Considered highly endangered in their range countries, Asian elephants are threatened by habitat loss, conflict with humans and disease. It is estimated that fewer than 40,000 elephants remain in fragmented populations from India to Borneo.
The zoo is a service of Metro and is dedicated to its mission of inspiring the community to create a better future for wildlife. Committed to conservation, the zoo is currently working to save endangered California condors, Oregon silverspot and Taylor’s checkerspot butterflies, western pond turtles and Oregon spotted frogs. Other projects include studies on Asian elephants, polar bears, orangutans and giant pandas. Community supported since 1888, the zoo relies in part on donations through the Oregon Zoo Foundation to undertake these and many other animal welfare, education and sustainability programs.
The zoo opens at 9 a.m. daily and is located five minutes from downtown Portland, just off Highway 26. The zoo is also accessible by MAX light rail line. Visitors who travel to the zoo via MAX receive $1.50 off zoo admission. Call TriMet Customer Service, 503-238-RIDE (7433), or visit www.trimet.org for fare and route information.
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