Archive for the ‘Swap Shop’ Category

Apr
22

Are those cats in the Swap Shop?

Posted by in Swap Shop

Penny

Cats?  In the Naturally Wild Swap Shop?  Yes!

Penny and Bagherra are a part of our education collection and actually have a job at the zoo.  Are you wondering what they do when they are working?They both go to classrooms and presentations as part of the Houston Zoo’s outreach program.  They are wonderful ambassadors and can help us when we teach about animals, especially cats.  We cant bring a big cat like a tiger to a classroom but, we can bring a small cat and teach about the big cats.  We can also use the small cats to talk about predator vs. prey or what animals would make a good pet.

When they are not working,  they live in the building that houses the Swap Shop.

Bagherra

They are very popular in the Swap Shop and some of our visitors come in not only to trade but to visit Penny and Bagherra too.  If you dont know about making trades in the Naturally Wild Swap Shop, click here for more info.

Recently the swap shop even had a visit from a different kind of cat – some of the cast of the Broadway show CATS!  The members of the cast of Broadway Across America’s Cats On Tour stopped by.

You never know what – or who – you will see in the Naturally Wild Swap Shop!

Suzanne from the Swap Shop with Cats cast members

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Apr
13

Earth Day in the Swap Shop

Posted by in Children's Zoo,Conservation,Endangered,Recycling/Green,Swap Shop

Earth Day at the Houston Zoo is fast approaching!   April 16th and 17th are going to be full of Earth Day activities at the zoo and the Naturally Wild Swap Shop is no exception.  Here is your nature journal assignment for Earth Day – How Can I Save The Planet?

Any nature journal brought in April 16th or 17th with an Earth Day topic will recieve DOUBLE points.  This is a great opportunity to earn some extra Swap Shop points and all you need is paper and pen. 

What topics will earn you double points?  Any conservation or green topics that includes such things as:

  • recycling and renewable energy sources
  • conserving water or other resources
  • protecting endagered species (plants or animals)
  • efforts to improve air or water quality
  • pollution, greenhouse effect

 

 

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Mar
30

You Never Know What You’ll See in the Swap Shop

Posted by in Just for Kids,Swap Shop

Welcome to the amazing Naturally Wild Swap Shop located just inside the McGovern Children’s Zoo!  The shop is set up for kids 18 and under to bring in things they find in nature.  We give them points for what they bring in and they can spend their points on some of the things in the shop.  It is a wonderful thing to watch the kids.  You can actually see the wheels start to turn as they realize what they could get for their points.  AND, we give extra points for knowledge!  So if they have learned about the item they bring in before hand and can tell us about it they get extra points for the knowledge.

Click here to see what items can and cannot be brought in.

The Swap Shop is open daily from 9:00 to 11:45 and 1:00-3:45 (closed on major holidays).  Come by and see our wonderful collection and watch your own children not only discover nature but begin to love and care for it.

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Jan
19

Win 4 Tickets to OVO and a Houston Zoo Membership!

Posted by in Contest,Swap Shop

The Houston Zoo is excited to partner with Cirque du Soleil as they take a fascinating look into the mysterious world of insect life in the dramatic and entertaining Cirque du Soleil show OVO.

Text  ”OVOHZOO” to 353-50 by MIDNIGHT ON March 4th and enter to WIN:

*a one-year family membership to the Zoo

*a family four-pack of tickets to see OVO on Friday, March 25, 2011

* AND a backstage tour after the show!!!

WHAT’S MORE:

All those who enter will automatically receive a code to apply a 15% discount towards your purchase of an individual, family, family plus or grandparent membership to the Zoo and a special offer to see OVO!

OVO is a headlong rush into a colorful ecosystem teeming with life, where insects work, eat, crawl, flutter, play, fight and look for love in a non-stop riot of energy and movement. The insects’ home is a world of biodiversity and beauty filled with noisy action and moments of quiet emotion.

Don’t forget to stop by our Swap Shop in the Children’s Zoo to check out our cool collection of bugs, and get inspired to learn more about our diverse environment.

Please CLICK HERE for contest rules.

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Jun
27

Bee-lieve it or Not…

Posted by in Adaptations,Animal Info,Birds,Children's Zoo,Conservation,Endangered,Events,Featured,Insects,Mammals,Natural Encounters,Pollinators,Primates,Reptile House,Reptiles,Swap Shop,Tropical Bird House

Blue Faced Honeyeater Photo courtesy of: www.plantbiology.siu.edu

Honeyeaters are important pollinators of many Australian flowering plants.  All 170 species of honeyeaters have a unique adaptation:  a long tongue with a brush-like tip that they use to get nectar from flowers.  The tongue can be extended into the nectar about 10 times per second!

Honeyeaters aren’t the only birds that help pollinate.  Honeycreepers, sunbirds, Brush-tongued parrots, and hummingbirds are just a few of the birds all over the world who are pollinators.  There are 2,000 bird species globally that feed on nectar, the insects, and the spiders associated with nectar bearing flowers. 

For more Bee-lieve it or Not facts, come join the Houston Zoo in celebrating National Polinator Week on June 26th and 27th. We will have tables and chats from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. all about our favorite pollinators.  Bee sure to  record your pollinating adventures in a nature blog to share at the Swap Shop!

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Jun
26

Bee-lieve it of Not…

Posted by in Adaptations,Animal Info,Children's Zoo,Conservation,Endangered,Events,Featured,Insects,Mammals,Natural Encounters,Pollinators,Primates,Reptile House,Reptiles,Swap Shop,Tropical Bird House

Bumblebee on Lantana

In the U.S., the economic value of pollination services provided by native insects (mostly bees) is estimated at $3 billion each year.  Bumblebees are highly efficient in pollinating many crops such as tomatoes, peppers, cranberries, and blue berries.  Yumm!  Best of all, most bumblebees won’t bother you unless you bother them.  When gardening at home, please consider using native plants.  Most of all, be kind to pollinators, consider going organic.  Insecticides tend to kill indiscriminately and will eliminate a lot of your pollinators.  The larger the variety of wildlife in your yard or garden (insects, birds, toads, lizards, etc.) the less “pest” insects you will have.  Naturally!

For more information on creating a native garden, visit: http://www.xerces.org/pollinators-south-central-region/

For more Bee-lieve it or Not facts, come join the Houston Zoo in celebrating National Polinator Week on June 26th and 27th. We will have tables and chats from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. all about our favorite pollinators.  Bee sure to  record your pollinating adventures in a nature blog to share at the Swap Shop!

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Jun
25

Bee-lieve it or Not…

Posted by in Adaptations,Animal Info,Birds,Children's Zoo,Conservation,Endangered,Events,Featured,Insects,Mammals,Natural Encounters,Pollinators,Primates,Reptile House,Reptiles,Swap Shop,Tropical Bird House

 

Photo taken by Beatriz Moisset

Wait!  Don’t squash that bug!

Beetles get a bad wrap due to “messy pollination”.  No one ever taught them not to dedicate where they eat giving them the name “mess and soil pollinators”.  Due to sheer numbers, beetles comprise of the largest set of pollinating animals.  They are responsible for pollinating 88% of the 240,000 flowering plants globally!  So next time you stop to smell a Magnolia, think of your beetle friends!

For more Bee-lieve it or Not facts, come join the Houston Zoo in celebrating National Polinator Week on June 26th and 27th. We will have tables and chats from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. all about our favorite pollinators.  Bee sure to  record your pollinating adventures in a nature blog to share at the Swap Shop!

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Jun
24

Bee-lieve it or Not…

Posted by in Adaptations,Animal Info,Birds,Children's Zoo,Conservation,Endangered,Events,Featured,Insects,Mammals,Natural Encounters,Pollinators,Primates,Reptile House,Reptiles,Swap Shop,Tropical Bird House

Photo taken by Jean-Christophe Vié

On the island of Madagascar, black and white ruffed lemurs are the main pollinators of traveler’s trees or traveler’s palm. These trees are typically 40-feet-high. They lemurs use their nimble hands to pull open the tough flower bracts. They stick their long snouts and tongues deep inside a tree’s flower. As a result, they collect pollen on their muzzle and fur, and then transport it to the next flower. The resulting fruits are a major source of food. It appears that no other creature has the strength and nimbleness to pollinate the palm. This gives the black and white ruffed lemur the award of the world’s largest pollinator!

For more information go to: http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/pollinators/unusual.shtml

For more Bee-lieve it or Not facts, come join the Houston Zoo in celebrating National Polinator Week on June 26th and 27th. We will have tables and chats from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. all about our favorite pollinators.  Bee sure to  record your pollinating adventures in a nature blog to share at the Swap Shop!

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Jun
23

Bee-lieve it or Not…

Posted by in Adaptations,Animal Info,Birds,Children's Zoo,Conservation,Endangered,Events,Featured,Insects,Mammals,Natural Encounters,Pollinators,Primates,Reptile House,Reptiles,Swap Shop

Endangered Species Chocolate

What would a life without pollinators look like…Well a world with out chocolate!  That would be a pretty bleak world in my opinion.  Some of my favorite desserts are chocolate.  Others seem to agree because the chocolate industry brings in about $50 billion dollars a year worldwide!

Who do we have to thank for our delicious treats?  Bats and other pollinators!  Monkeys and other small mammals even help with seed dispersal.

Lesser long-nosed bat - Photo taken by Merlin D. Tuttle of Bat Conservation International

Chocolate isn’t the only food we can thank pollinators for.  Bats are the major pollinators  for bananas, dates, coconut, cloves, vanilla, Brazil nuts, avocados, and the agave plant (tequila)!

For more Bee-lieve it or Not facts, come join the Houston Zoo in celebrating National Polinator Week on June 26th and 27th. We will have tables and chats from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. all about our favorite pollinators.  Bee sure to  record your pollinating adventures in a nature blog to share at the Swap Shop!

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Jun
22

Bee-lieve it or Not…

Posted by in Adaptations,Animal Info,Children's Zoo,Conservation,Events,Featured,Insects,Mammals,Natural Encounters,Pollinators,Primates,Reptile House,Reptiles,Swap Shop,Tropical Bird House

Male Leafcutter Bee

A fairly common bee in the Houston area is the leafcutter bee.  These bees are smaller than honeybees, grey and black, and a little bit fuzzy.  It’s easy to spot a female because the bright yellow pollen she collects from flowers is carried underneath her abdomen, not on her legs.  Leafcutter bees use leaves from various plants, such as roses, to help seal their nest chambers (this keeps the larvae protected while they grow).  If you notice semicircular patches missing from individual leaves in your garden, you probably have leafcutter bees around – but don’t worry, they don’t take much.  You can even build a bee house to attract these and other kinds of fascinating bees:  http://www.xerces.org/fact-sheets/

For more Bee-lieve it or Not facts, come join us in celebrating National Polinator Week on June 26th and 27th. We will have tables and chats from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. all about our favorite pollinators.  Don’t forget to record your pollinating adventures in a nature blog to share at the Swap Shop!

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