Archive for September 2010

Sep
30

Plant’s Role in Animal Enrichment (or, Boy Grapevines Look Pretty on His Head)

Posted by in Enrichment,Events,Horticulture

So, when people find out that I work at the zoo, they get all excited and ask what animal I work with.  That’s usually quickly followed by confusion, disappointment, or surprise when they find out that I’m part of the horticulture crew. 

Our Horticulture crew

I realize that plants aren’t the first thing you think of when you think of the zoo, but it’s really an important part of the experience.  We provide the animals with plants that are like their native habitats, while giving them perches and shade.  And we create a lush background for the animals and a nice focal point for zoo visitors to enjoy while taking advantage of the shade that we’ve provided (so that no one melts into a puddle during the middle of the summer!).

It’s not always the easiest thing to do year-round, but we do get to see some cool stuff while we are out there.  For example, one of our jobs is to provide browse for the animals, which means that we cut and deliver selected plants for the keepers to set out for the animals to eat, play with, or just investigate, as part of their enrichment.  The type and size of what gets cut varies a lot depending on time of year, size of the plant, etc. 

Anyway, a few months ago we had to cut a really big tangled mass of grapevine out of a tree that it was trying to smother.  It was near the primate section, so we wrestled it onto our cart and took it over to see who wanted it.  We found a couple of keepers, and they very quickly pounced on our leafy goods — the next thing I knew it had been whisked away into the orangutan area…

Rudi, our male Orangutan, wearing a grapevine

Soon after that, we passed back by the exhibit.  The orangs were back outside, and I saw Rudi, one of our males, sitting on top of his climbing structure, sucking on a frozen treat with a small chunk of the grapevine draped over his head.  I’m not sure if he was keeping it safe for a snack later or if he just thought it looked pretty.  Either way, he was having grand time. 

The close- up!

Enrichment like that happens on a daily basis, and seeing it is usually about being in the right place at the right time.  But if you have a chance, you should come out to Enrichment Day on October 2, from 9:00a.m. to 3:00 p.m.; we’ll have lots of enrichment activities to watch, as well as some to participate in. 

And if you stop by my table, I’ll tell you how to make a giraffe drool.

Written by Anna Land, Horticulture Supervisor

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Sep
29

Animal Enrichment: We Heart the Meerkat Mob

Posted by in Enrichment,Events,Meerkats

Our meerkat mob loves to get treats! We try to create enrichment for animals based on the behaviors that the animal would naturally do in the wild.

Meerkats are great diggers, and when we give them treats wrapped up in paper they must use their paws and claws to dig for it! This way, the meerkats are using both their brains and their brawn to open up their surprise. Because the meerkats are such a large group (12 adults, plus 6 new babies!) we have to give them LOTS of different enrichment to keep them all challenged and entertained.

We use a few different kinds of treats for the meerkats’ enrichment. They receive foods like all-natural popcorn, peanuts, worms and crickets, watermelon, and many others!

But enrichment does not always have to be about food! We give other types of enrichment to the meerkats.  It could be a playhouse for exploring, newspaper for ripping, or sprinkled spices for sniffing. Asyou can see they get VERY BUSYvery quickly!!

Come check out some new fun enrichment for our meerkats on Enrichment Day at the Houston Zoo- October 2, 2010!

Written by Sarah Jane Turner, Keeper in Natural Encounters

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Sep
29

Enrichment Day is for Humans Too!

Posted by in Enrichment,Events,Volunteers

In my short time here at the Houston Zoo, I’ve been amazed at the energy and enthusiasm that goes into every single project we take on. The pride taken by the staff and volunteers at the Houston Zoo is something that you don’t see in just any work environment, and it shows in every facet of the zoo. Enrichment Day at the zoo is no exception. 

Not only will guests be able to learn about the enrichment we do with animals here at the zoo, but children will be able to participate in some enrichment activities of their own!  Yes, humans need enrichment, too!  (Haven’t you ever heard that “variety is the spice of life”?) 

The volunteer team, along with our fall teen volunteer program, Zoo Crew, will be offering games and activities for children at “Enrichment Central” on the Werler lawn near the Meerkat exhibit.  Activities will include the “Cheetah Relay” to simulate carnivores chasing prey, a “Human Dig Box” to simulate foraging for food, and “Fishing like a Bird” which simulates how storks and pelicans catch fish. 

At Enrichment Day, kids acn simulate how animals forage for food with games like this

There will also be draft tables where kids will have the opportunity to make an enrichment item for their pet at home!  These activities, among others, will enhance the zoo experience for all of our younger guests.

Kids can do crafts zoo-wide, including making enrichment items for their pets at home

So, bring the kids and “spice up your life” on Saturday, October 2nd at Enrichment Day at the Houston Zoo!  See you there!

Written by Paul Bishop, Volunteer Programs Supervisor

Tags: , , , , , ,
Sep
28

Tiger Enrichment at the Houston Zoo

Posted by in Carnivores,Enrichment,Events,Mammals

The Carnivore department at the Houston Zoo receives a different form of enrichment every day. 

When it’s fall we usually receive a number of pumpkins to give out to enrich the animal’s experience.  Since tigers don’t get excited about pumpkins by themselves, we add a little meat to it, and voila! you have tiger enrichment. 

In this video Hana our female Malayan tiger gets to tear down a meat stuffed pumpkin, and then reaps the rewards inside.  Often times, after eating the meat, the animals will pulverize the pumpkin for fun. 

By hanging a meat stuff pumpkin, we can stimulate natural behaviors like hunts, stalking, chasing, tearing, chewing, etc.  If our animals exhibit natural behaviors then our enrichment is deemed a success. 

If you would like to see more enrichment activities like this one, please visit the Houston Zoo on October 2, 2010 for our annual Enrichment Day! We will have many keeper talks, games and crafts throughout the day, so come out and enjoy it with the animals!

Written by Angie Pyle, Carnivore Keeper

Tags: , , , , , ,
Sep
28

Chimp Profile: Charlie

Posted by in African Forest,Behind the Scenes,Chimpanzees

As the opening of African Forest draws closer, we’ll be featuring a short bio of each of our chimpanzees.

Charlie: The Patriarch

It seems only fair to start with the Charlie, he’s the oldest, he’s in charge and well, I have a soft spot for him. Charlie was born in Africa and kept as a pet by some Americans living there in the 1970s. When he was a couple years old, they brought him back to the United States (this was before the passage of the Endangered Species Act, which now regulates the importation of wild-caught animals). It did not take long before baby Charlie was tearing up the house – most people that get baby primates have no idea what the commitment will be, and like many other exotic pet owners, they had to find another home for him.

Fast forward 30 years and find Charlie living the good life at the Houston Zoo. Charlie is the patriarch of our group of 10 chimps, which is not an easy job. Charlie has the perfect personality for it though, he is calm and gentle, yet radiates the confidence of a good chimp leader. He doesn’t get too excited about anything and he’s not unecessarily forceful if someone gets out of line.

Nicknames: The Patriarch, The Boss, Charles in Charge

Favorite snacks: Lettuce

Favorite Activities: Hanging out with guys (chimp guys, that is – Riley, Mac, Abe and Willie)

Charlie’s former owners say he seems the happiest to be here of all the chimps. When Charlie is not happy about something he tends to let me know by throwing a handful of whatever is handy in my  direction so I’ll be busy keeping the boss happy so he can focus on making sure everyone else is having as much fun as he is.

Tags: , , , ,
Sep
27

Rhinos Return Series: Rhinos Road (and Sky)

Posted by in African Forest,Rhinos

With The African Forest opening in December, the Houston Zoo will once again be home to white rhinos. We have a trio (2 females and a male) coming to us in just a few weeks from Africa. But how do we get them here? This series is being transmitted to us from the road (and sky) by Staff Curator and Blogger Beth Schaefer. Beth is part of a small group of Houston Zoo staff who are shepherding the rhinos return to the Houston Zoo. It all begins here!

One of the 3 White Rhinos awaiting our team

If you read the last issue of Wildlife, the Houston Zoo’s member’s magazine,  you may have seen the article written by our director, Rick Barongi, outlining what it takes to transport rhinos from Africa to Houston.  Now it’s time to put that plan into action.  The rhinos are on their way!

Although this kind of transport takes an enormous team effort, four of us are lucky enough to have been chosen to travel to Africa to bring these amazing animals home.  Our group consists of myself, Beth Schaefer, Curator of Natural Encounters and Sea Lions, Laurie McGivern, Hoofed Stock Supervisor, Joe Kalla, Vice President of Operations, and Dr. Joe Flanagan, Director of Veterinary Services.

Several people looked quizzical when I said I’d been chosen for this task (much as we would love to have the rhinos at Natural Encounters, the building might be a bit crowded with three rhinos in it!). When it was apparent that we would be expecting another baby elephant at the same time that the rhinos were coming, it meant Darryl Hoffman, Curator of Large Mammals, was going to be a wee bit busy and could not make the trip. I drew the winning straw since I had rhino experience from a previous institution, and so packed my bags!

It’s quite a convoluted process: Laurie and I are headed over to start acclimating the rhinos to their travel containers and the training procedures that we use here at HZI.  Laurie will head home next week to make sure all the preparations are finalized with the new barn, while I will be joined by Joe Kalla and Dr Flanagan for the actual transport home.

For Dr. Joe, Joe Kalla and myself, this means traveling through Amsterdam on our way to South Africa to take a course that‘s required before you can fly on a cargo plane.  The three of us will actually be in the hold of the plane with our rhino trio as we travel back to Houston.  No doubt it will be quite an adventure!

Written by Beth Schaefer

Accompany Beth and the others on this wild adventure over the next few weeks! Check back right here on the Official Houston Zoo blog for her next installment.

Tags: , , , , , ,
Sep
26

Animal Enrichment: More Fun Than a Barrel of Monkeys!

Posted by in Enrichment,Mammals,Primates

Reduce, reuse, recycle. You may have heard this green mantra urging us to live a more eco-friendly lifestyle. One way we are being green at the Houston Zoo is by reusing items for animal enrichment. A durable, reusable item can be given to different species that will each have their own species-typical response.

A squirrel-sized monkey weighing less than a pound will react quite differently to a 3 foot tall plastic barrel with holes cut into it than will a 165 pound pig. In the Wortham World of Primates we have given our babirusas, a pig species native to Sulawesi and other islands in the Indonesian archipelago, the barrel in question with food items placed inside. A wild babirusa might push around leaves or fallen branches while looking for insect larvae to eat.  The response our babirusas had was to push it using their snout, so that pieces of food dropped out of the several holes cut into the barrel.

Our babirusa pushes the barrel around with it's snout to shake tasty morsels out of the holes.

Later, that same barrel was placed in the pied tamarin exhibit with very different results.  For these arboreal monkeys, native to Brazilian forests of the Amazon, we secured the barrel to branches instead of placing it on the ground.

The same blue barrel can simulate a hollow tree cavity, which these tamarins would use in the wild.

The natural curiosity of primates, combined with a tamarin’s preference for utilizing hollow tree cavities as sleeping sites, led us to believe they would interact with the barrel even without using food as an incentive. We were not disappointed.

All three of the young males climbed onto, and then inside, the barrel through the larger holes.  It looked like a game of Whac-a-mole! At one point one of them remained outside and peeked in through the small holes while the other two peered back at him. They interacted with the barrel in this entertaining manner for some time.

We enjoyed watching these two different species use the same item in their own way.  On Enrichment Day, which happens here at the Houston Zoo on October 2nd from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., you will have many such opportunities to observe the Houston Zoo’s animals using enrichment of all kinds!

Written by Joy Oria and Diane Shea

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Sep
23

Animal Enrichment: Birds at the Houston Zoo!

Posted by in Birds,Enrichment,Events

At the Houston Zoo we give our birds many types of enrichment — from things to play with to changing the perching (branches) so they get around their enclosures differently.

The enrichment that most of our birds enjoy the most is food enrichment. Food enrichment can be anything from a new type of food to a new way the food is presented to them (like on a banana leaf instead of in the usual bowl). In this video we are doing both, with an all-time treat: strawberries!


The strawberries are enrichment because they are not given to the birds regularly and have a different texture from their normal food. And because they are being presented by hand or in the basket (not in the regular bowl), it is also enriching.

On  October 2, from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM, we will be having Enrichment Day at the Houston Zoo. Come learn more about bird enrichment and see these and many more birds having fun in the special enrichment demonstrations scheduled throughout the day. Go to our website for all the specifics on crafts, games and demonstrations  at http://www.houstonzoo.org/enrichment-day/ or simply click the words Enrichment Day above! Hope to see you there.

Written by Jessica Clark

Tags: , , , , ,
Sep
22

Okapi Enrichment at the Houston Zoo

Posted by in Enrichment,Events,Hoofed Stock

Zookeepers have learned not to turn their backs from Kwame, the Okapi, for very long.  That’s a sure way to get a fourteen-inch coarse tongue licking the back of your neck!

Kwame is one of three okapi who reside at the Houston Zoo.  His exhibit offers him many things to do throughout the day.  Some days he finds leaves to pluck or a flavored salt block to taste.  Often, he is content to lick the hair of the duikers who share his exhibit.  Due to a healthy zoo-diet consisting primarily of hay and grain, he does not need to search for the right tree leaves to eat.  Finding food in the forest requires work and keepers try to incorporate that into Kwame’s life at the zoo. 

Manipulating their tongue is a very natural behavior for any okapi.  Like the giraffe, their closest living relative, the okapi will reach their necks out and wrap their long tongue around the higher leaves that other animals cannot reach.  This strategy gives them a distinct advantage and the assurance that food is just a neck stretch away. 

Kwame the Okapi uses his tongue to get treats from a puzzle feeder tube

In order to encourage this natural tongue behavior, the hoofed stock keepers can put out enrichment devices such as this PVC puzzle feeder tube.  A variety of favorite produce items, such as carrots and yams, are placed inside and Kwame must use his lengthy tongue to pull  these treats out from the holes.  Another way this foraging behavior is supported is through the use of “browse.”  Keepers cut off branches from trees and place them high throughout the exhibit so that Kwame can eat the many leaves.  There are lots of options, but Kwame appears to favor hackberry and mulberry leaves the most.

Foraging and puzzle feeders are just a few examples of the variety of enrichment opportunities provided to the hoofed stock residents at the Houston Zoo.  The zoo will be highlighting the many ways enrichment is offered to the animals on our annual Enrichment Day, October 2, 2010!  We hope to see you there!

Written by Tim Junker

Tags: , , , , , ,
Sep
21

What is Animal Enrichment?

Posted by in Carnivores,Enrichment,Events,Mammals

The Animal Keeper staff at the Houston Zoo is extremely dedicated to caring for our animals, and a big part of what keeps them stimulated, active, healthy and happy is daily enrichment.

On Saturday, October 2 we demonstrate, educate and celebrate on our annual Enrichment Day. We hope you’ll join us for a day packed with special keeper chats from 10:00 AM to 3:30 PM, games and crafts and more, happening all around the zoo.

What is animal enrichment? Have a look at the video below, featuring Carnivore Trainer and Keeper, and organizer of Enrichment Day, Angie Pyle.

Tags: , , ,

Older Posts »