Archive for the ‘What You Can Do’ Category

May
09

Wildlife Heroes is an awesome book, and we have the author coming to the Zoo!

Posted by in Africa,amphibians,Bats,Birds,Borneo,Bumblebees,Carnivores,Central America,Chimpanzee,community-based conservation,Conservation,Cotton-top Tamarin,Elephant,Endangered Species,Field Research,Going Green,Gorilla,Okapi,orangutan,Painted Dog,Panama,Rhino,Sea Turtles,South America,What You Can Do

Join us on May 19th and 20th for Wildlife Heroes weekend at the Houston Zoo.  On May 20th we welcome Jeff Flocken, co-author of Wildlife Heroes: 40 Leading Conservationists and the Animals they are Committed to Saving for a book-signing and presentations by zoo staff on the focus species of the book. Wildlife Heroes will be available for sale at the zoo on May 20th, quantities are limited!  Books are also available for  pre-order on the Houston Zoo website at: http://www.houstonzoo.org/wildlife-heroes/for a dicounted price until May 17th.

My first heroes were animal people.  When I went to zoos my heroes were the zoo keepers and when I watched animal documentaries the researchers were my heroes.  We all need amazing people to inspire us and that is why the new book Wildlife Heroes is so wonderful. 

The book includes 40 people overcoming impossible odds to save endangered species all over the world.  If you are looking for real heroes for your children to look up to look now further! 

The unique stories in this book of local communities becoming involved in anti-poaching, education and research efforts for wildlife in their own back yard are immeasurably inspiring!  In one story a young boy, Thia grew up in Northern Vietnam watching his village hunt the very species he fights to save today.  His passion to help a unique species called the pangolin will warm your heart!
 
I have had the honor of meeting many of the heroes in this book (including the authors) over the years and they inspire me to move forward in my own wildlife conservation work.  These are real people making a real difference! 

This book introduces readers to pollinator and amphibian decline and other environment issues that continue to threaten our world.  But it also offers great messages of hope.  In the last chapter Jack Hannah suggests ways the reader can help, and the good news is that by purchasing the Wildlife Heroes book you are already helping- 100 % of the proceeds go to the projects featured in the book.  A win for everyone!

Hope to see you at the Houston Zoo for our Wildlife Heroes weekend May 19th and 20th!

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Apr
17

Guest Blogger Carolyn Jess Discusses the Ocelot

Posted by in Conservation,Endangered Species,Guest Blogger,What You Can Do

Carolyn Jess is an 11 year old student who has agreed to be our special guest blogger about wildlife conservation. We first met Carolyn in October 2011 when she came out to the Zoo to meet our special guest Jack Hannah, who was visiting the Zoo to speak at our Conservation Gala. If you would like to contact Carolyn or have comments, you may send them to conservation@houstonzoo.org.

 

Ocelots

 

Four years ago, I first learned about an endangered animal that has become one of my favorites – the ocelot. The ocelot, which is a cat, has a beautiful coat with spots.  It is about twice the size of a normal house cat.  The ocelot lives in the low shrub lands of southTexas.  There are only about 100 ocelots left in theUnited Stateswith half of them living inTexasat the Laguna Atascosa Wildlife Refuge.  The reason why the ocelot is endangered is because their habitat is being destroyed due to housing and other developments.  People are also killing them for their beautiful pelts and some ocelots get hit by cars.

Two years ago, I traveled to the Laguna Atascosa Wildlife Refuge in hopes of spotting an ocelot.  I knew my chances of seeing one were very slim, but I hoped for a miracle that day.  Well, my miracle didn’t happen.  I did not get to see my ocelot out in the wild.  I did manage to see a stuffed one in a display case – he had been killed by a speeding car.  I was disappointed but this helped me to be even more concerned with the ocelots’ survival.

I have continued to raise funds for the endangered ocelot.  A great place that I found to send my donations to is the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Center at Texas A&M Kingsville.  Dr. Michael Tewes works directly with the ocelot and is the director of feline research.  He has used my donations to purchase camera equipment to monitor the ocelot population in Texas.  Mike really cares about the ocelot and works really hard to help these big cats have a fighting chance.

If you would like to see one of the few remaining ocelots, you can visit Novia at the Houston Zoo. She has overcome many obstacles in her life.  She is beautiful and agile and is probably one of the few live ocelots you and I will get to see.

Are you ready to help the ocelot?  If you answered yes, there are some things you can do.  First, you can visit my website:  www.ocelotrescue.webstarts.com.  This website gives facts about the ocelot and other great information like why you should help this big cat.  You could learn more about the ocelot by checking out a book from the library or searching on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.  One of the BEST ways to help is to go see Novia at the Houston Zoo and tell your friends about how close the ocelot is to disappearing forever.

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Mar
21

Houston Aeros Cell Phone Drive

Posted by in Animal Origins & Fun Facts,Central America,Chimpanzee,community-based conservation,Conservation,Endangered Species,Gorilla,What You Can Do

Spring Break is probably the busiest week of the year for many of us. The zoo is full of visiting guests, families are traveling and the Houston Aeros Hockey Team played 6 home games in 8 nights.

Not only did the Houston Aeros win 5 of those 6 home games, they also assisted the Houston Zoo in our most successful recycled cell phone collection drive ever! Just for general reference, the zoo collected nearly 1,200 phones in 2011. During the week of March 10-18 of this year – the Houston Aeros collected 758 phones before their games at the Toyota Center!

Looks like someone just recycled Edward from Twilight. Score one for Team Jacob

Help Wildlife in the Congo:

Why recycle your cell phone? First, it can help the environment by recycling hazardous waste but it also may help animals in the wild. Columbite-tantalite, or Coltan for short, is a dull metallic ore found in major quantities in the eastern areas of the African Congo. It is used in cell phones, laptops, pagers and other electronic devices. When refined, coltan becomes metallic tantalum, a heat resistant powder that can hold a high electrical charge.  Some types of Coltan mining may occur illegally in protected lands all across the Congo which in turn put wildlife such as Elephants and Gorillas of the Congo region at risk. Eighty percent of the world’s known coltan supply is in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. There, it is mined by hand by groups of men digging basins in streams, scraping away dirt to get to the muddy coltan underneath. Recycling unused cell phones can help protect the wildlife, since reuse of the phones results in the need for fewer new ones, which reduces the need for coltan mining.
 
Donate your cell phone to the Houston Zoo and the Zoo will have it recycled ensuring that most of these cell phones and their accessories will be reused or properly disposed of.
 
A big thank you to the Houston Aeros and Aeros staff for all their help and support for the Houston Zoo. There are 7 more home games before the season ends on April 15th and the Houston Aeros start their playoff run to the Calder Cup Trophy. Check out their schedule and support Aeros hockey.

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Mar
08

Conservation Night with the Houston Aeros March 18!

Posted by in Conservation,Elephant,Endangered Species,Gorilla,Uncategorized,What You Can Do

 

Cell phones have become a permanent fixture in our everyday lives. It’s one of the first things you look at in the morning, and the last thing you look at before sleeping. They keep us connected and help us in almost everything we do, but have you ever wondered about their impact on the environment?  

 Columbite-tantalite, or Coltan for short, is an essential element in the production of cell  phones,laptops, and many other electrical devices. This element is mined in the Congo, rapidly depleting the habitat of endangered gorillas and elephants.

In fact, eighty percent of the world’s known Coltan supply is in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. But fear not! There is something you can do to help. With technology constantly evolving, it is estimated that there may be around 500 million unused cell phones floating around the United States alone, with as many as 100 million added each year. Bring those outdated cellular devices to the Aeros game on Sunday, March 18 for Conservation Night and participate in our Cell Phone Recycling Program! Find the Houston Zoo table, turn in your old cell phone, and you will receive four tickets to the Aeros game on Sunday, April 15 and a kid’s pass to the Zoo!

Parts of your old devices can be reused to reduce the amount of Coltan that is mined in the Congo, preserving what is left of the depleted habitat of these amazing animals as well as reducing waste that ends up in landfills. You can also recycle old cell phones year-round by dropping them in our Cell Phone Recycling Bins at the front entrance of the Zoo! Not only will you be relieving yourself of some extra clutter, but the proceeds from all devices collected benefit the Houston Zoo’s Wildlife Conservation Fund. So come out and see us at the Aeros game on Sunday, March 18! We’ll see you there!

 

Mar
01

The Lorax: World’s Original Conservationist?

Posted by in Animal Origins & Fun Facts,What You Can Do

The Lorax and Truffula Trees

March 2nd, 1904 was the birth date of Dr. Seuss (Theodore Seuss Geisel). Other than his book If I Ran the Zoo which featured one of my favorite birds the “Fizza-ma-Wizza-ma-Dill”, why would we write about Dr. Seuss?

It’s all about The Lorax folks. Whether you are 3 (yes, in 2012 there are 3 year olds surfing the internet) or are a centenarian (yes, in 2012 there are 100+ year olds surfing the internet), I suggest you find a copy of The Lorax and get to reading. I’ll pause here briefly while you do…

The Lorax was first published in 1971 and actually chronicles the plight of the environment. As a matter of fact the Lorax may have been the original “tree-hugger” and he speaks on behalf of protecting the Truffula Trees from the greedy Once-ler who intends to chop them down and use their foliage in a new garment that everyone clearly needs. I personally have not seen one of these garments on Ebay since 2005.

Really, it is the Bar-ba-loots (bear like creatures) who need the trees for food and are now going hungry once the trees are all gone.

Now the trees are all gone, and the Once-ler has put himself out of business and desolated the landscape and he finally sees his mistake as his factory crumbles around him.

Whether when you first read the story and become caught up in its animation and imaginative creatures, you may have missed the message and should reconsider taking a few minutes to read it again. Clearing the land for short-term gain without thought of its consequences can ruin the lives of people and wildlife alike.

Check out the environmental tips at http://theloraxmovie.com and click on the “Go Green” tips or go straight to the eco tips at http://origin-www.seussville.com/loraxproject/.

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Feb
28

Elementary Students Help Houston Toads!

Posted by in Conservation,Endangered Species,Texas,What You Can Do

Two students from River Oaks Elementary School, Hunter Hensey and Chloe Hunter, were doing a project on endangered species (under the direction of the teacher May Hong) when they serendipitously came across an article about the endangered Houston toad in the Zoo’s December Member Magazine. The students learned from conservation staff at the Zoo that one of the main reasons for the toads decline is habitat loss. These two conservation champions got the supplies to make “seed balls” for landowners that live in the toads’ habitat. These seed balls protect fragile seeds from the elements and being eaten by birds until they can germinate.

You can make your own seedballs for native wild flowers and grasses by watching the following video at the Coastal Prairie Partnership website.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These native grasses provide habitat for a variety of insects which is what the toad needs to survive. Also, when hopping out of the pond, small and fragile baby toads also need grasses to hide in to stay safe from predators and to keep from drying out in the hot sun.

Hunter and Chloe came to the Zoo last Friday to drop off their seed balls and we will be delivering them to the landowners we work with in Austin County.

Please give a big thank you so these thoughtful students for helping their native and endangered wildlife! We are so proud of our young Zoo patrons and conservation ambassadors!

Hunter and Chloe- Conservation Champions!

 

Nov
18

Procrasti-Nation and Cell Phone Recycling

Posted by in Africa,Chimpanzee,community-based conservation,Conservation,Endangered Species,Featured,Going Green,Gorilla,What You Can Do

Have you ever asked yourself: What are all these broken cell phones doing in the  drawer?  And then your “other” voice says:  They are not really in the way, I’ll throw them out later.

I had a friend bring me a bag of 6 phones and chargers last week. They were in a box in his garage for 2 years. 6 phones? There are 2 people in his family! We cannot keep up with the cell phone revolution and our landfills should not have to either. To make matters worse, every phone not recovered and recycled is equal to minerals and resources coming directly out of the African Congo. Everyone says – “What can we do?”. Here is what you can do and it really makes a difference.

Bring your cell phone to the zoo for recycling and help save wildlfe, and people, in Africa. Civil wars and rebel groups thrive on the illegal trade in the resources which make our phones,  laptops, digital cameras, and video games run. There is a mineral in our phones called coltan and it acts as a capacitor in your phone. Armed groups in eastern Congo that control minerals, mines and trading routes generate an estimated $180 million each year by trading four main minerals: tin, tantalum (colton), tungsten, and gold.

And with these groups comes habitat destruction, illegal poaching and bushmeat, as well as the loss of human life due to the civil unrest. Something as simple as a cell phone has created a power struggle over resources. By recycling that resource so that it can be refurbished and re-used, we cut down on the amount of product imported, and hopefully slow down the trade.

Want to start a company wide collection program? Schools, Scout troops? Wildlife can use everyone’s help. Contact conservation@houstonzoo.org for more information.

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Oct
19

Sea Turtle Rescue Yesterday at the Houston Zoo!

Posted by in Conservation,Sea Turtles,Texas,What You Can Do

Yesterday afternoon, Dr. Joe Flanagan, the Houston Zoo’s Director of Veterinary Medicine, called over to let us know that we had a wild sea turtle in the zoo hospital with a fishing hook lodged in it’s throat.

The juvenille Green sea turtle had been accidentally hooked by fisherman while they were fishing out in Texas City. The fisherman were very concerned and called the local game warden to come help the turtle. All injured or sick sea turtles are then handed over to the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) sea turtle biologists.  Much of the time, these sea turtles will come to the Houston Zoo to undergo diagnoses, surgery and/or treatment.

Dr Joe examines hook in sea turtle's throat

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
After identifying the location of the hook and prepping the sea turtle, surgery begins to carefully remove the hook..
 

Removal of hook

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
After a long, delicate process, the hook is finally removed.
 

Hook that was removed from the sea turtle

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  Sea turtle biologist and NOAA employee Lyndsey Howell will now take the sea turtle back to the Sea Turtle Barn in Galveston to let the little guy recuperate. He will then be released back into the wild. 
 

Lyndsey and Green Sea Turtle

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
If you are on the Upper Texas Coast and hook a sea turtle fishing or see a sea turtle that is in distress please call 1866TURTLE5!  To learn more about sea turtle conservation at the Houston Zoo visit our sea turtle page.
 
 
 

Sep
27

JOIN US FOR THE 3RD ANNUAL STATE OF THE PRAIRIE CONFERENCE – Building Prairies From the Back Yard to the Back 40

Posted by in community-based conservation,Going Green,Texas,Uncategorized,What You Can Do

JOIN US FOR THE 3RD ANNUAL STATE OF THE PRAIRIE CONFERENCE

BUILDING PRAIRIES FROM YOUR BACKYARD TO THE BACK 40

NOVEMBER 18-19 IN HOUSTON

 

Coastal Prairie Partnership and Native Prairie Association of Texas are proud to announce the 3rd Annual State of the Prairie Conference to be held in Houston, TX from Nov. 18-19 at the Houston Zoo’s Brown Education Center, followed by field trips to prairie remnants all over Houston. Each year this event attracts the sharpest minds in prairie conservation from Texas, Louisiana, and the Midwest to spark lively conversations and provide practical, real-world solutions to restore, conserve, and educate about local prairies for multiple uses.

 

We’ll have presentations and field experiences that focus on prairies and cattle production, landscaping with prairie natives, ecotourism, biodiversity, prairie wetlands and more. So if you are a rancher, conservationist, landscape architect, educator, naturalist, or just curious about building build prairies in rural or urban areas, this event is for you!

 

What: 3rd Annual State of the Prairie Conference

When: November 18-19, 2011

Where: Houston Zoo’s Brown Education Center – November 18. Various locations around Houston – November 19.

How Much: $50 for indoor session at Houston Zoo (student rate available) on November 18 and $10 – $25 for November 19 Field Experiences.

Registration: Full details and registration available at www.coastalprairie.org

 

Aug
09

Backyard Toad Spotters!

Posted by in amphibians,Conservation,Going Green,Texas,What You Can Do

I love it when our Houston Zoo patrons contact me to share their stories about native wildlife (especially amphibians) in their own backyards. I especially love it when they become so interested that they give these frogs and toads their own fancy names, observe their daily activities, and actually do things to make the toads more comfortable living in an urban environment. Lets face it, it has got to be hard for a little googly eyed toad living in the city and they can use all of the help we can offer them! Toads, and other reptiles and amphibians, are constantly dodging a gambit of dangerous threats such as moving cars, shovels, domestic cats, and concrete being laid on top of their heads!

Janet Denton is one such fabulous Houstonian who attended our Texas Amphibian Workshop back in May and now has become quite familiar with some of the little Coastal Plains Toads calling her backyard their home. These fantastic toads can live in Janets back yard for up to 10 years gobbling up mosquitos and other pesky insects. Go Janet Dentons toads! Do your thing toads!

Janet found that she also has several little toad tadpoles in her small,  man made pond in her back yard, so she has put in a ramp so that the little toads can hop out of the pond once they go through metamophosis. She has also offered them a nutritious and organic collared green leaf which is full of vitamins and nutrients for the little growing polliwogs. One of her little tadpoles has already come out of the water- SEE PHOTO BELOW! Did you know that tadpoles are vegetarians and adult toads are carnivores? They make the switch once they develop their lungs, grow their legs, and pop out of the water.

Here are some photos below of Janet Dentons backyard toads and tadpoles.

Do you have stories of your backyard creatures that you can share?

Toad Que sat on the wheel of our BBQ for three straight nights!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Hopps is one of my favorites. Very brave, not scared of me or the dogs.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Piper likes to hang out in the overflow pipe to the pond and watch the world go by.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

You can see a few tadpoles enjoying their collard green.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

I'm so excited to announce the sighting of my first toadlet! He (she?) was hopping across the patio at about 8:00 this morning!

 

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