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!

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.

The fun will start at the Zoo at 10:00AM.  On both Saturday and Sunday there will be booths, children’s activities and zookeeper chats about bats.  On Saturday only there will be a bat seminar with some awesome speakers from 10:00-12:15 in the Brown Education Center.   

In addition, to help celebrate, The Naturally Wild Swap Shop will be giving double points for any Nature Journal on bats.  Dont know about the Swap Shop?  Click here for more information. 

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

The festivities won’t stop there.  Be sure to join the Houston Bat Team at the Waugh Drive bat colony (corner of Waugh Drive & Allen Parkway) from 6:00-9:00PM.  The Waugh Drive bridge is home to a colony of 250,000 Mexican Free-tailed Bats.  There will be bat chat presentations from members of the Bat Team along with children’s activities and an amazing emergence from the bats at dusk. Click here to check Facebook for parking info.

On Sunday, January 15, the Houston Zoo is proud to partner with the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra and InterActive Theater Company to present two performances of the children’s classic, Peter and the Wolf. With the intent to “cultivate musical tastes in children from the first years of school,” this beloved story delights and entertains.

At this special event, a small ensemble of River Oaks Chamber Orchestra musicians will play Prokofiev’s composition while actors from the InterActive Theatre Company narrate and act out the story.

This event is included in your regular Zoo admission, and is FREE for Zoo Members. Performances will take place in the Brown Education Center Auditorium, and seating is first come, first served. This event is sponsored by The University of Texas MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital.

Performances are at 2:00 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.

Available just in time for holiday reading, a new children’s book for iPad, Chimps Should Be Chimps is now available for download fre free from the App Store.

Published by Lincoln Park Zoo’s Project ChimpCARE, Chimps Should Be Chimps is designed for early readers aged 3 to 8 years of age and offers an interactive and engaging story that aims to educate and inform kids – and their parents – perceptions about chimpanzees.

“Too often, first impressions about chimpanzees are formed by seeing them in human clothes performing in movies or television shows,” said Steve Ross, PhD, founder of Project ChimpCARE.

“Unfortunately, recent research suggests that these impressions can be lasting and have detrimental consequences for this endangered species,” added Ross.

Chimps Should Be Chimps provides kids, and their parents, with a different impression – one that looks at life from the perspective of the chimpanzee. Through rhyming, lyrical prose, the story is told through the eyes of two chimpanzee characters: wise old Poe and his granddaughter Lulu who live amongst other chimps at a local zoo.

The engaging story is highlighted with bright, colorful and playful illustrations which seem to come to life with the stroke of a finger on the iPad screen. The multisensory book includes the sounds of waterfalls, music and birds to bring the characters to life.

The story highlights things that chimpanzees love to do including climbing and swinging in trees, fishing for termites, building nests and playing with other chimpanzees.

The story carefully conveys a message about things that do not make chimpanzees happy, such as being separated from their mother at an early age and being isolated from their peers to be used for performances in movies or TV shows.
“The inspiration for the book came from trying to talk to my own children about chimpanzees,” explained Ross. “The story aims to relate how chimpanzees deserve to be free from these antiquated practices of being dressed up for human amusement. But perhaps just as importantly, it conveys to kids the importance of being yourself and believing in what comes naturally to you.”

Chimps Should Be Chimps was created in partnership with Manning Productions. Find out more about this free iPad book, see illustrations, view the book trailer and get details behind the scenes interviews about the creation of this children’s app and the work of Project ChimpCARE when you visit www.chimpsshouldbechimps.com.

One lucky person could win a brand new iPad! Sign up to win when you visit www.lpzoo.org/chimpcare until December 31. The lucky winner will be notified on January 16, 2012.

Jason and Peter Zhao

 These two fabulous brothers have brought in many interesting items to the shop such as shells, seeds, cones, rocks, and even a dead spider.  When it comes time to pick something to spend their points on they usually pick from our shell or rock and mineral section. 

 The trips to the zoo are usually a family affair for the Zhaos.  We not only get to see Jason and Peter but their mom and dad too!  The entire family has a love of nature and we all learn when they come in.

Peter and Jason are just two of over 1400 kids 18 years old and younger that are trading with us now.  Don’t know about trading in the Naturally Wild Swap Shop?  Click here for more information.

Mystery Box

Many of you who have been in the Swap Shop recently have seen the very large mystery box.  We are happy to finally announce what was in it!  Thanks to a generous donation from The Junior League of Houston, Inc.,  we now have a complete giraffe skeleton.  This was a 9 foot tall  juvenile male giraffe from Florida and died.  The crate was quite large 6′x3′x2′ and had to be brought into the Shop by fork lift.  The articulator (an expert that assembles skeletons) was here on the evening of Saturday September 17, to put it together. 

Articulator Mike working on the skeleton

During the week the box was here we held a contest to let kids guess what was in the box.  The only clues they had were: 1.  It is a skeleton 2. It is an entire skeleton 3. It may or may not be put together already in the box. 4. It is not an extinct animal.  We had so many wonderful guesses- everything from alligator to long horn to zebra.  We held a drawing Friday September 16,  and Cody Molandes was our winner – guessing that it was a giraffe!  He won 100 points to spend in the Swap Shop for his efforts! 

The finished skeleton

You never know what you’ll see in the Swap Shop.

Dont know about trading in the Naturally Wild Swap Shop?  Click here for more information.

Dora and Diego will be near the 4-D Experience in The African Forest on Saturday and Sunday, October 1 and 2 from 10:00 a.m.- 2:00 p.m. each day. While they will be out from 10:00 a.m.- 2:00 p.m., they may take a few brief breaks during this time.

Dora the Explorer!

 
Also, guests can watch them in action in the exciting and interactive Dora and Diego’s 4-D Adventure: Catch That Robot Butterfly! at the Zoo’s 4-D Experience. The 4-D Experience is $5 for non-members and $4 for members.
 

Dora & Diego's 4-D Adventure!

Jayden at The Naturally Wild Swap Shop

 On a recent visit, he brought in some wonderful finds from his trip to Pensacola, Florida.  His items included a Gafftop Sail Catfish skull (also called a crucifix fish due to the bones of the lower part of the skull resembling the form of a crucifix) and sand dollar pieces- along  with an excellent journal on sand dollars reflecting the research he had done.  Jayden, and all of our traders, get extra points for knowledge when they have learned about the item they bring in and can tell us about it.

 The Swap Shop is growing and we now have over 1200 young people trading with us! 

Dont know about trading in The Swap Shop?  Click here to find out more.

The zoo will be filled with exciting and challenging games and activities for children and adults.  The Houston Texans, KICKSTART KIDS, and other community groups and organizations will also be here, showing guests how and where they can be active and enjoy nature year-round in the city.

The Naturally Wild Swap Shop

One great way to become more active in nature is to get involved in the Naturally Wild Swap Shop in the McGovern Children’s Zoo.  The Swap Shop is designed for kids 18 years old and under to bring in things they find in nature and exchange their items for points. The points can then be swapped for items in the shop.   

  A very important part of the swap is knowledge.  If the trader has researched and learned  about the item they have brought in, and can tell us about it,  they get extra points for their knowledge. 

For more information about The Swap Shop and a list of items that can and cannot be brought in click here.