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For guests visiting the Indoor Rainforest exhibit in the Carruth Natural Encounters building, a little monkey awaits with a big surprise!

Normally, visitors are quick to comment on the flashy appearance of the bright orange Golden Lion Tamarins seen in the Indoor and Outdoor Rainforest exhibits. Right now, however, all eyes are on the Cotton Top Tamarins.  These monkeys are known for their shock of white head hair and their brown and white coloring.  That all changed for our two monkeys in preparation for our celebration of Proyecto Titi, one of the conservation organizations that is featured in the recently released book Wildlife Heroes.

Natural Encounters zookeeper Rachel Godambe worked with the pair to dye their hair bright blue in support of the wild Cotton Top Tamarins of Colombia, who are studied by Proyecto Titi scientists and are fitted with radio trackers and dyed in color patterns to make identifying individual monkeys at great distances a slightly easier process.  This weekend, keeper chats at the Indoor Rainforest will highlight the conservation work done by Proyecto Titi to save these tiny endangered monkeys.  Guests will be able to spot our brightly colored monkeys and learn more about what native Colombians are doing to celebrate Cotton Tops and protect them and their rainforest habitat.

On Sunday, author Jeff Flocken will be at the Houston Zoo to sign copies of his book Wildlife Heroes, available for purchase at the zoo, and to share his wonderful stories about Cotton Top Tamarins and Proyecto Titi.  Please stop by on either Saturday or Sunday to see our information display and learn more!

Check out Rachel’s answers to some monkey related questions below:

Fun Facts about our Cotton Top Tamarins:

• Cotton Top Tamarins vocalize to each other with a variety of high pitched squeaks that sound a lot like bird calls.

• Cotton Top Tamarins tails are long but they are not prehensile. They use their tails for balance as they run and leap through branches.

• Cotton Top Tamarins are social animals and live in groups of 2 to 12 individuals in the wild.

How long have you been a CTT trainer?

I have been training Mikey and Minnie the Cotton Top Tamarins at Natural Encounters for 8 months now.

Is this the strangest behavior you’ve trained the monkeys?

If you told me I will end up dying monkeys’ hair I wouldn’t believe it in a million years!

What makes working with Cotton Top Tamarins so rewarding?

These guys have interesting personalities which makes training them so fun and rewarding.

You had great success in dying the CTT hair bright blue.  What was the process?  What was your biggest challenge?  How long from start to finish did this take? 

It took a month to accomplish this goal of dying their hair blue for the conservation event. I had in mind applying the dye with a syringe. They are used to the presence of the syringe for oral medication and associate it with treats, so they were quite comfortable with this process. I used the syringe with water and had them touch a target, which is one of their long established training behaviors. The syringe was presented above their heads and a reward was given. I did this for a few days and once they were accustomed to it I dripped some water on them from the syringe and rewarded them with a big jackpot (lots of verbal goods, wax worms, currents, and yogurt tossed at them) and they did not mind at all. We did these sessions a couple of times a week up to a few days before the event. It was now time to introduce the dye (nontoxic food coloring) and this is where I was faced with a challenge, the dye would not apply properly to the hair. It was suggested that we use a small paint brush. These guys have never seen a paintbrush in their lives and to have it rubbed on their heads could be very scary for them. After practice sessions of presenting the paintbrush with the dye on it and moving it around them with lots of treats it became a positive item to them. Eventually, they let me apply the dye with a paintbrush on their crazy white hair. Now you can see them rock their blue hair in the Natural Encounters Rainforest for conservation!

The biggest challenge was Mikey would only let me do a few strands at a time because he would run to the window and stare at his reflection. We had to wait for him to stop looking at himself, then he would come back and let us do some more. It was a time consuming process, but I think he just wanted to make sure it looked good. = )

This post written by Kim Siegl 

Bowling for Rhinos (BFR) is a family friendly event that is organized by your local zookeepers . The event associated with the Houston Zoo is designed every year by the Greater Houston Chapter of American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK). Bowling for Rhinos was initially started by zookeepers in 1990. Houston has been Bowling for Rhinos since 1991. There are currently over 60 AAZK chapters nation-wide that host a BFR event. This year, our chapter hopes to reach a huge milestone of $100,000 raised by Houston over the last 21 years. Come on out to help us reach our goal!

All of the proceeds raised from BFR support several conservation organizations including: Lewa Wildlife Conservation, International Rhino Foundation, and Action for Cheetahs. These organizations facilitate sanctuaries that are home to White and Black rhinos of Africa, as well as the Javan, Greater One-horned, and Sumatran rhinos of Asia. These projects help to save many other animals too. The funds raised by BFR events help to fence in the parks, purchase planes and off road vehicles to curtail poaching, move rhinos into the sanctuaries, purchase motion sensing cameras for censuring, and pay salaries for anti-poaching security guards. For more information on the history of BFR, please click here  or watch the 2012 BFR video

There are less than 30,000 rhinos left in the world. The greatest threat they face is from poachers, who kill the rhinos for their horns. Rhino horn is believed to have almost-magical curative powers; the belief is that eating it can cure everything from the common cold to cancer. Unfortunately, that belief is wrong. There is actually no stronger benefit from eating rhino horn than if you were to eat your own fingernails. Hundreds of rhinos are killed by poachers every year, some even inside the sanctuaries, which is why money to support anti-poaching is so necessary to the rhinos survival.

By attending BFR, you do not just get the good-feeling from supporting a worthy conservation effort, but also a fun-filled night of bowling with family and friends, as well as zoo staff. The event also includes food (first come, first served), and a raffle all night long. Every year we host a silent auction comprised of a variety of one-of-the-kind items, including paintings created by zoo animals specifically for BFR. No two events are the exact same.

Friday, June 22, 2012
6:00 pm to 10:00 pm

Please visit our 2012 BFR website to purchase event tickets online now.

As we honor Mother’s Day and our newest orangutan family, awareness of what wild orangutans in Borneo and Sumatra are facing is ever-present. Baby Aurora has found a loving mother here, and yet babies in the forests are routinely losing theirs, as mother orangutans all over these islands are in the midst of the biggest crisis the species has ever faced.  As consumers all over the world buy food, cosmetics and lotions containing palm oil, the forests in Indonesia and Malaysia are being cut, burned and drained to create more palm oil plantations.  Orangutans are being killed by fire, gunshots and machetes to quench the world’s infinite appetite for palm oil, and that includes mothers with tiny, clinging infants. Crying babies are pried off their deceased mothers; the luckier ones are sometimes rescued and sent to rehabilitation facilities, where they are cared for by humans in the company of hundreds of other orphaned youngsters. The unluckier ones are kept as pets, where they die of malnutrition or remain chained to a backyard post, where they languish in misery for years.

The Houston Zoo is fortunate to have an orangutan like Cheyenne, whose great role in life is to adopt and love babies not genetically her own.  But, we must be mindful of those missing orangutan mothers  in the wild, who like her, are just trying to make sure that their babies stay safe and healthy. They are fighting a war that they cannot win unless the world listens to their plight. Are we willing to sacrifice the lives of one of our closest living relatives for  …  palm oil?

This Mother’s Day, ponder that question, and know that all of us have a part in being responsible consumers. We can help, with “the power of the purse.” Everything we buy is like a vote, and we can vote for orangutan mothers and their babies to survive by choosing our products carefully.

Right now, it’s time to reveal the final photo in our contest!!!

Jeffery visited this public art installation originally created by the art group Ant Farm that encourages visitors to add to the art by spray painting vehicles half-buried nose-first in the ground, at an angle corresponding to that of the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

Where in the world is Jeffery?

You have until Friday at 10 AM to submit your final captions!

Alright Jeffery fans, this is your second to last chance to make it to the top! Final results will be calculated soon, but I can already tell you, Tess, Melissa and Linda will be winning prizes! This photo may take a little research, and we will only give points to the correct answer, giving the correct name and state (there’s a hint for you!)

Unveiled in 2004, Jeffery visited this Stonehenge replica which matches the original Stonehenge horizontally, but is approximately 14 percent shorter in height than the original.

I may be small, but don't count me out!

Earth Day topics include some of the following:

• endangered or extinct plants and animals
• edible plants
• the rock cycle
• the water cycle
• habitat loss and how it affects animals

Not sure how the Swap Shop works?  Click here for more information.

Enjoy the other activities throughout the zoo – Earth Day Scavenger Hunt, Mother Earth Maze, Re-usable Mural and more.  And, as always, the animal Keepers here at the zoo will be sharing their knowledge with you during Meet the Keeper Talks.   You will be able to learn more about how the way we treat the planet affects our animals. 

The best part?  All of these Earth Day activities are included with your paid Zoo admission!

I prefer tasty mice, so I’m sending this to Ara, my BFF in Bolivia. He’s a Blue-throated Macaw, another critically endangered bird. Think he’ll like it?--Tess

So I thought last week’s photo was a little tough, but within 3 minutes, each of our contestants had submitted the correct answers! I’m so happy each of you ladies is excited about Jeffery and this contest!

Before I get to this week’s (the second to last!) photo, I’d like to share some wonderful news with you from the Philippine Eagle Foundation!

Our favorite eagle saviors in the Philippines just announced another first in bird conservation–the first captive breeding of the Pinsker’s Hawk Eagle! With some feathers mimicking a large spike on their heads, these eagles are the punk rock answer to the adorable Philippine Eagle! Just like the Philippine Eagle, this endemic species is threatened by loss of habitat. Guess what? Husbandry practices developed at the foundation for breeding of the Philippine Eagle helped in the breeding of the Pinsker’s! It’s not just one eagle we are trying to save; it’s an entire habitat, and everything that depends on it.

Now onto our current standings:

Tess came in third with the answer, but won the caption contest, to leave her with 102 points

Melissa has 90 points

Linda had 88 points

It’s still anybody’s game!

**Jeffery visited the largest military installation in the United States, where is he?**

Straw Colored Fruit Bats

 Saturday, April 14 and Sunday, April 15 are the dates for Bat Fest Houston.   On both days there will be children’s activities, keeper chats and bat related information booths at the zoo from 10:00am – 3:00 pm.   If you come on Saturday you will also have the opportunity to attend a bat seminar in the zoo’s Brown Education Center  from 10:00-12:15 that will include some great speakers.  The talks will include information  about bats from around the world and the bats in our own back yard as well as a new threat to bats, White Nose Syndrome.   You will also be able to visit the zoo’s bat exhibits where you can see Jamaican Fruit Bats, Seba’s Short-tailed Fruit Bats, Pallas Long-tongued Nectar Bats, Straw Colored Fruit Bats and an Indian Flying Fox Bat! 

If visitors 18 and under bring a nature journal or report to the Naturally Wild Swap Shop on the topic of bats they will receive DOUBLE points on these two days!  Don’t know about the Swap Shop?  Click here to learn more.

The best part – all of this is included in your regular zoo admission. 

Bat emergence at Waugh Ave. Bridge

And the fun doesn’t stop there!  From 6:00pm to 9:00pm join us at the Waugh Avenue Bridge (Waugh Avenue at Allen Parkway) for more children’s activities, bat chats and an amazing emergence of 250,000 Mexican Free-tailed Bats from under the bridge.  The Waugh Bridge activities are completely free.  Click here for information on parking at the bridge.