As we prepare for the opening of Water’s Edge: Africa later this summer, we’re excited to introduce the future exhibit’s newest residents, Penelope and Alexander, eight-month-old common warthogs.
Have you ever seen a warthog do “zoomies”? Click below to learn about these two rambunctious siblings who will live alongside our hippos, and perhaps even venture outside to meet our guests face-to-snout!
Our meerkat population grew three times last year with the addition of three litters of pups. If one of the eldest CMZoo meerkats, Bomani, is any indication, they have long and healthy lives ahead of them. Bomani, a 13-year-old male slender-tailed meerkat, has lived at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo with his two brothers, Akantse and Sekitimi, since he was born here in April 2005.
When you weigh less than two-and-a-half pounds and live across the way from six African elephants, it could be easy to feel overlooked. Not so for Bomani, who lives the bachelor life with his brothers, snacking on crunchy treats, playing games, guarding the mob from perceived predators and receiving special attention from CMZoo vet staff and keepers who make sure this aging Encounter Africa resident is as healthy and comfortable as possible for as long as possible.
In March 2015, during a routine wellness exam, CMZoo vets discovered that Bomani was in early stages of heart failure, which was causing fluid to build up in his chest.
“Because his heart doesn’t pump the blood correctly into the rest of his body, fluid tends to gather in his chest,” said Jeremy Dillon, animal care manager. “He’s on a medicine regimen that helps him process the fluid, but it doesn’t help enough to prevent the fluid build-up from putting pressure on his chest and lungs, which we’ve noticed causes labored breathing and slows him down.”
To alleviate the pressure on Bomani’s lungs and other organs, vets drain his chest cavity about once every three weeks. Until the end of last year, he had been undergoing the treatment about once every six weeks. Before that, he received the treatment about once a year, as a response. In the last couple of months, as fluid builds more rapidly lately, vets are intervening more proactively and more regularly.
“The entire process takes about an hour,” Dillon said. “He’s crate-trained for instances like this, so it’s not stressful for him to be transported from his exhibit up to the vet clinic. We put some of his favorite treats in the crate, and he climbs right in. The vet team gives him anesthesia while he’s calm and comfortable in his crate. Then they bring him out to drain the fluid and return him to his crate to recover. So far, he’s done really well with the procedure and goes back in with his brothers without any issues.”
Over the last four years, vet and animal care staff have maintained flexibility with Bomani’s treatment.
“We realize he’s getting up there in age, so we always want to be sure that the procedures he’s receiving are worth his while,” Dillon said. “Right now, his energy, appetite and breathing are better after he receives the treatment, but we recognize that might not always be the case. Of course, he’s so loved and we want him around, but we ultimately want what’s best for Bomani, and that’s his quality of life.”
Dillon says Bomani loves to play, almost with the energy level of a young meerkat. He’s easily distinguished from his brothers, because he was born missing his left ear, which keepers say has never appeared to impair him. He runs around the exhibit, digging and diving into tunnels, ripping up enrichment items like brown paper sacks and paper towel rolls, or snacking on crickets and cockroaches that he has retrieved from a puzzle ball. He shows signs of aging, but Bomani still takes his sentry duty seriously. Dillon says Bomani diligently protects his mob when it’s his turn to stand guard, in case of overhead predatory birds or other perceived threats, and making impressive alarm calls when he needs to rally the troops.
It’s a delicate balance, providing medical care for aging animals. But vets, keepers and animal care managers will continue to follow Bomani’s lead, observing his behavior, monitoring his health and adjusting his treatment so he can enjoy as much life as he can, as comfortably as he can.
Guests can visit Bomani 365 days a year in the west meerkat exhibit of Encounter Africa.
One way that we engage our Cheyenne Mountain Zoo teen program community is through outdoor adventure experiences. We offer trips year round that connect teens to local, national and international wildlife and wild places. Each destination, adventure, and educational opportunity is intentional.
“Each program we offer focuses on connecting the hands, the hearts, and the minds of our teenagers to the experience,” said Teen Program Supervisor, Austin Kennedy. “It’s about guiding youth outside their comfort zones so they can grow. There is no comfort in the growth zone, and no growth in comfort zone.”
Let us connect you to an experience and share how these three critical components apply to our programs, starting with the ‘hands on’ component. Our teens learn about river ecosystems as they carve their paddles in and out of the rapids of the Arkansas River, through Big Horn Sheep Canyon. Rather than studying maps of waterways from the comfort of a classroom, their bodies are physically engaged with the elements of the natural world surrounding them.
The hands are engaged, and now the wheels in their heads start turning. How did this canyon form? What animals call this canyon home? Where does the river start and end? Now we’ve crossed into the engagement of the mind. The thoughts pour in because the teens are in a setting that encourages curiosity, and our teen program staff foster that curiosity. They are contemplating the whats, ifs, hows, whys and buts about the environment.
The final component is connecting the heart. The idea behind including these three concepts into CMZoo’s teen program outdoor adventures is ultimately to create a connection to the wild places we introduce. These connections are sparked and ignited through the hands and the mind, but are fueled by the heart. After spending a day in the canyon engaging their bodies and minds learning about and working with the earth, the teens leave a piece of their hearts in that experience.
Teenagers are the world’s advocates. They have formed strong opinions over years of knowledge gained, and they have the passion, energy and resources to make a difference.
“Ultimately, we hope that by offering these experiences that connect the hands, the heart, and the mind, these incredible teens will advocate for the wild places they have grown to respect and connect with through the CMZoo teen program,” Kennedy said. “The teens in our program are the next leaders in our world. It’s our responsibility to introduce them to the environments that they’ll hopefully feel connected to and protect.”
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s teen program is a year-round hands-on platform for teenagers who take an interest in the environment. Through experiences gained with wildlife and wild places, teen program attendees learn to become stewards of the environment in their roles as students and beyond. CMZoo’s teen program operates 365 days per year, with new programs beginning quarterly – often with continuous enrollments from one season to the next. Some teen program participants have been enrolled continuously for six years! There are three program tracks within the teen program: Junior Zookeepers (ages 15-17), Zoo Crew (ages 12-14) and Teen Leaders (ages 15-17).
For more information about the teen program and its application process, visit cmzoo.org/teenprograms.
The Giraffe Conservation Foundation (GCF) estimates a little more than 600 West African giraffe remain in the wild today. Although that number seems small, it is a sign of successful conservation efforts over the past 30 years. Only 49 wild West African giraffe existed in the mid-1990s, due to illegal hunting, climate change and habitat loss.
In November 2018, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s Vice President of Mission and Programs and head veterinarian, Dr. Liza Dadone, traveled to Niger to assist with Operation Sahel Giraffe. Dadone was part of a multinational, multi-organizational team led by the Giraffe Conservation Foundation in support of the Republic of Niger and in partnership with the Sahara Conservation Fund, with additional assistance from Ivan Carter Wildlife Alliance, San Diego Zoo Global and Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, with involvement from members of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature Giraffe & Okapi Specialist Group.
West African giraffe are a subspecies of northern giraffe. The world’s only remaining population lives about 40 miles southeast of Niamey, Niger, in an area known as the “giraffe zone” – where giraffe are the only large wild mammals coexisting (and competing for resources) with humans.
“There was a lot of local pride and respect for the West African giraffe there,” said Dadone. “The locals felt they were a chosen community to have the last of this subspecies of giraffe anywhere in the world.”
The ongoing goal of Operation Sahel Giraffe is to establish the first-ever satellite population and increase the number of West African giraffe population by relocating giraffe from their sole location in the giraffe zone to Niger’s Gadabedji Biosphere Reserve (GBR), a reserve area conservationists have identified as a site to rehabilitate. West African giraffe haven’t occupied GBR for nearly 50 years.
The need was evident, the plan was in place and the partners were invested. Now, the team of conservationists, government officials, veterinarians, giraffe experts and rangers needed to put the plan into motion. First, they set up the boma – a paddock where the giraffe would stay together for three weeks before their relocation to the GBR.
“To contain an animal that could stand 18 feet tall and weigh one ton, you need a very strong, very tall fence,” said Dadone. “It took a large team over a week to dig holes, bring in trees we could use as pillars and build the wall structure.”
Next, they needed to identify which of the 600 giraffe were the best candidates to establish this important foundational herd in the GBR.
“We were trying to find young adult giraffe that were old enough to be independent from their mothers, but not so old that they were fully mature and harder to restrain and move. Ideally, that’s between one and three years old,” said Dadone. “Because you can grow a population faster with proportionally more females, we intentionally sought more females than males. We were obviously seeking animals that appeared to be healthy. Logistically, we needed animals that weren’t located at the far end of the existing population’s roaming area, so they didn’t have to be transported many hours to the boma.”
Then, the team would need to find the right age and sex of giraffe in the wild, anesthetize them and transport them by trailer to the boma, where they could ensure the giraffe were safe, contained, fed, shaded and watered.
There were 600 animals in this area, but it took a lot of work to find them. One day, the team engaged the help of a colleague who flew his ULM microlight over the area to help with spotting giraffe in the large area with limited road access.
“He circled to the herd, then circled back to us and was trying to lead us, but we didn’t have any form of communication,” said Dadone. “At a certain point a Coca Cola bottle with a note in it was dropped from the plane. We drove to retrieve it, and sure enough, the note told us which direction to head toward the herd.”
The team followed the pilot’s message in a bottle and found the herd. At least one of the giraffe met their needs.
“Each time we brought in a giraffe, it was a different experience,” said Dadone. “When we would find a giraffe that met the needs of the project, we referred to a catalogue that identified all of the giraffe by their unique spot patterns. Because of the rangers’ work over many years creating that catalogue, we could identify each individual animal before starting anesthesia.”
Wildlife veterinarian Dr. Pete Morkel, who has led field conservation efforts like this countless times across Africa, led the field anesthesias for the Operation Sahel Giraffe team. He would estimate the size of the animal being targeted and load the anesthesia dart appropriately for that animal.
“These animals have lived in close proximity with humans, so they were less wary of us, which allowed Pete to slowly walk over toward the animal to get into dart range, then dart the animal in the shoulder or rear,” said Dadone.
Usually, the animal would stop running and go down on its own, but sometimes the team would have to help it down safely with a series of ropes. Once down, the team applied a blindfold and earplugs to the giraffe, to minimize stimulation and help calm the animal. To avoid potentially harmful side effects of anesthesia, the team immediately administered an anesthesia reversal drug, which would wake the animal within about a minute.
“Any time we’re working hands-on with a species that’s almost gone, we try to make the most of every moment we have,” said Dadone. “During that time, I was able to administer medicines, like parasite treatments, to help minimize the risk of spreading diseases. I also took bloodwork for anesthetic monitoring, which is a long-term project with GCF and other partners to identify which anesthetic combinations are safest and most effective for giraffe anesthesia in the field.”
From those same blood samples, Dadone performed additional research and overall health assessments. While waiting for the giraffe transport vehicle, the team also took measurements, skin samples for follow-up genetic studies and hoof assessments that continue to benefit giraffe in human care around the world.
Once the team loaded the giraffe into the transport vehicle, which was a modified horse trailer, they headed for the boma, where they would introduce the giraffe to the rest of the giraffe selected for relocation and reintroduction. After three weeks allowing the giraffe to acclimate to each other in the boma, the team transported two loads of four giraffe each in the back of long-bed open-top trucks, to release them to the GBR nearly 500 miles away.
The team released eight West African giraffe into the GBR, where GCF now supports a reserve and community based monitoring system to ensure the giraffe thrive in their new home. Giraffe have 15- to 18-month gestation periods, so it may be a few years before any calves are born.
“It’s exciting to get involved with yet another critically necessary project that will ultimately serve as proof that these projects work and can save species on the brink of extinction,” said Dadone. “We have a few years to see how they do, but we’re hopeful it’ll lead to an increase in effort to try to save giraffe in that area and to reestablish more animals in the coming years.”
Every admission and membership to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo supports conservation efforts like Operation Sahel Giraffe. The Giraffe Conservation Foundation is a key conservation partner of Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, who supports their giraffe conservation efforts throughout Africa.
For more information on CMZoo’s commitment to conservation, visit www.cmzoo.org/conservation.
Abuto, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s seven-year-old male African lion, often wows guests with his remarkable roar, striking mane and impressive intelligence. He has many roles, including ambassador, inspiration and patriarch. Abuto is father to males Aslan and Boma, and to female Elsa, who were all born at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo on June 25, 2015. Their mother, Lomela, and her sister, Zwena, are both eleven years old – and complete the CMZoo pride of six.
Abuto and the rest of the pride serve an important ambassador role here at CMZoo, helping to connect our guests to wild African lions. The wild lion population has declined by 43 percent in the last 20 years, and experts predict they will be extinct in the next 20 years. Working to prevent conflict between ranchers and lions, which often results in lion fatalities, EWASO Lions is one of CMZoo’s Kenyan conservation partners that provides local communities with education, training and guidance on conservation practices that help both people and wildlife.
Our pride inspired Cheyenne Mountain Zoo members to send $16,000 to EWASO Lions last year. Through their programming, Kenyans who depend on their livestock and agriculture to survive learn to use tools that create healthy, safe barriers between themselves and the lions who live nearby.
Support from CMZoo members went specifically to EWASO Lions’ Lion Kids Camp. Kenyan children who grow up in close proximity to wildlife often have perceptions shaped by negative observations or encounters, such as a lion hunting their family’s livestock. Through a combination of wildlife education, safari experiences and a conservation-themed curriculum, EWASO Lions is educating and inspiring the next generation of wildlife conservationists to help save wild African lions, with Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s support.
For more information on EWASO Lions, click here.
Click the video below to learn more about Abuto, and how his behavioral training is helping him contribute to his own long-term care.
Guests and staff alike are enamored with CMZoo living legend Laredo, a Rio Grande turkey. At nearly 18 years old, Laredo is the oldest documented living turkey in the United States, and probably in the world. The average lifespan of a turkey is between five and seven years.
Despite his unbelievable age, 19-pound, three-foot-tall Laredo’s keepers say he’s in excellent condition. Turkeys have a keel, which is like a human sternum that’s centered in the chest. In healthy turkeys, the keel is surrounded by healthy muscle and fat and protrudes only slightly.
“We can tell he’s healthy because when he chooses to let us do physical assessments, we can feel that area is full and strong,” said Kevin Pellow, animal keeper in The Loft and My Big Backyard. “When a bird starts losing weight or feathers, it’s usually a sign something needs to be addressed.”
People often ask about Laredo’s secret for a long and healthy life, and although we like to joke that corn flakes must be magic snacks, the truth is, Laredo is protected from predators and gets assistance that his wild relatives don’t receive. A stable weight through a consistently available and healthy diet, managed aches and pains, socialization and a beak trim when necessary seem to make up the recipe for a happy turkey life.
“Most birds in human care need some kind of beak trim or beak care about every three months,” Pellow said. “For Laredo, we’ve only had to perform one beak trim ever. It’s a sign that Laredo is interacting with enough enrichment that he doesn’t need help there. It’s a good indicator of how active he still is, which means he must be feeling good.”
Laredo’s need for specialized care is minimal, especially considering his age. He takes medication to help control pain in his legs and feet, which is compared to an ibuprofen for people. Keepers say Laredo likes to take his medicine in mini peanut butter sandwiches or grapes, and that he shows no signs of slowing down.
“On a recent snow day, the chickens wanted to stay inside in their coop, so we gave Laredo the choice to go into his yard or into the chicken yard,” Pellow said. “Later, we found Laredo playing out in the chicken yard, stomping in the melted snow and galloping around.”
Laredo’s many admirers in addition to his keepers at CMZoo include Hannah Bragg, CMZoo graphic designer, Donna Greenfield, grants and development officer, and Tiffani Clark, development officer. They visit Laredo as often as they can, and say he has a calming effect on them. A new video of Laredo having a snack or cooing at a chicken brings ear-to-ear smiles to their faces. The descriptors “handsome” and “charming” are used without limitation. It’s clear Laredo has a CMZoo staff fan club. Maybe that’s why Pellow says Laredo might have a little extra appreciation for himself.
“He likes to look at himself in the mirror,” Pellow said with a laugh. “He’s kind of narcissistic that way. He can be territorial, too. It depends on which chickens want to come into his yard, because sometimes he lets his favorite chickens come into his barn, sleep near him and share his food.”
Although he’s somewhat skittish and leery of people, Laredo is a unique animal to visit next time you visit Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.
“If you talk to him softly, tell him he’s beautiful, and act calmly around him, he may let you feed him with help from a keeper,” said Pellow. “We’re working on it.”
Guests can visit Laredo any day of the year in My Big Backyard, near The Loft and Asian Highlands at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s EdVenture department is excited to introduce Stroller Safaris, a brand-new monthly program series for early explorers.
Stroller Safaris are informal exploratory experiences for children between the ages of one and four. During every Stroller Safari, children accompanied by an adult will use all five senses to connect with nature and animals. Participants will enjoy a sensory activity, meet-and-greet with an animal ambassador and an animal feeding experience.
Join us for our inaugural Stroller Safari program, Juju in January. Registrants will participate in a gorilla-themed sensory activity, meet Juju, a member of our gorilla troop, and assist keepers with feeding one of our animal ambassadors in The Loft!
To sign-up for a Stroller Safari:
Pre-register online at www.cmzoo.org/stroller, or
Contact the EdVenture Dept. at [email protected] or 719-424-7827.
For more information regarding upcoming Stroller Safaris visit:
CMZoo’s webpage at www.cmzoo.org/stroller, and
Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/events/260590121278699/.
Disclaimer: Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is a leading organization in animal care and welfare. As such, we allow all of our animal ambassadors to choose whether or not they participate in our programs. They even have the option to choose to participate in their own healthcare! Therefore, we cannot guarantee the participation of any of the animals mentioned during a Stroller Safaris program. In the event that an animal cannot or chooses not to participate in a program, CMZoo staff will provide an alternate ambassador. We hope that you’ll appreciate our dedication to the well-being of our animals.
Every day of the year, conservation is at the center of the inspiration and work at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. As 2018 comes to a close, we’re reflecting on some of CMZoo’s conservation contributions this year. We hope you’ll be inspired to take action, big or small, to join us in the important work of conserving endangered species for generations to come.
One way to support wildlife conservation (while learning a lot and having a great time) is by visiting the Zoo! Through CMZoo’s Quarters for Conservation program, guests contribute to conservation around the world, simply by visiting the Zoo. For each paid admission to the Zoo, 75¢ is directly allocated for conservation programs including safeguarding African vultures, rescuing frogs in Panama, protecting wild orangutans, restoring the population of black-footed ferrets, saving wild giraffe, increasing the population of endangered Wyoming toads and helping to protect African elephants and rhinoceroses. Each year, Quarters for Conservation allows Cheyenne Mountain Zoo to contribute $500,000 to these conservation efforts and more.
Learn more about Quarters for Conservation here and continue reading to learn about some of 2018’s conservation highlights.
Giraffe conservation was given a generous boost from many helping hands when Operation Twiga continued in 2018 with Operation Twiga III in Uganda. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo staff and other concerned conservationists took part in translocating endangered Nubian giraffe to a safer location, where they could establish new herds and maintain the important genetics of their subspecies. Additionally, the operation generated more critical health data which will feed research that helps conservationists understand disease management and threats facing all giraffe in the wild.
During Operation Twiga III, the team was able to capture and move a total of 14 giraffe from Murchison Falls National Park, where oil drilling is set to begin, to their new home in Kidepo Valley National Park.
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s Quarters for Conservation has allowed us to send more support to Tsavo Trust – a field-based non-profit organization in Africa that uses aerial surveillance and on-the-ground field efforts to protect wildlife in Tsavo National Park, the largest national park in Kenya. The organization was founded to help protect the last of the “big tuskers,” which are likely the last viable genetic pool of African elephants with tusks weighing more than 100 pounds each. The park is also home to a number of black rhino sanctuaries established by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KSW) and supported by the Zoological Society of London. The black rhino is critically endangered, due primarily to illegal poaching for their horns.
In partnership with the Kratt Foundation in August, CMZoo sent $53,333 to support ongoing anti-poaching aerial surveillance efforts, bringing the total contribution to $145,000. These funds also helped complete the construction of Tsavo Trust on-site staff housing. This donation means Tsavo Trust can continue to monitor and protect roughly 16,000 miles of land that is vital to the survival of these endangered species.
In mid-September, four kits and four adult black-footed ferrets (BFF) were moved to a preconditioning center outside of Fort Collins, Colo., where biologists observe the ferrets to ensure they can hunt, avoid predators and shelter themselves to survive without human intervention and continue to increase the endangered species’ population when they’re introduced into the wild.
Since the 1981 discovery of a small population of BFFs in Meeteetse, Wyoming, conservationists launched a black-footed ferret recovery plan which continues to increase the population. Numbers fluctuate, but recent reports estimate 350 BFFs are thriving in the wild, thanks to this program.
Palm oil is widely used in many products, ranging from food to cosmetics, but is grown in just a few countries throughout the world. This includes much of Indonesia and Malaysia, which are home to orangutans and other unique species. As the demand for palm oil has increased globally, Indonesia’s and Malaysia’s natural rainforest has decreased in size as a result of unsustainable slash-and-burn clearing to make way for more palm oil crops. This loss of habitat threatens the survival of many native species.
CMZoo is committed to educating the public about the use of sustainable palm oil, providing guidance about which companies are members of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, which means they are committed to using sustainably produced palm oil in their products. In September, CMZoo’s palm oil team traveled to the Association of Zoos and Aquariums annual conference to share knowledge and resources. CMZoo’s palm oil app has been named as a reliable guide for information on sustainable palm oil in many publications and forums, including most recently by National Geographic.
Vulture conservation has been a focus at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo for nearly a decade, and while strides have been made toward protecting them, this critically important species still hovers on the brink of extinction. They need our help more than ever.
This year, the Association of Zoos & Aquariums voted to include African vultures as one of their SAFE (Saving Animals From Extinction) projects, thereby creating an opportunity for more united conservation efforts. Currently, 12 zoos across the country are committed to partnering with African conservation organizations in order to address the African vulture population crisis. As part of this group, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo supports Vulpro in their efforts to re-introduce African vultures to their wild habitat through one of our Quarters for Conservation legacy projects.
In addition, these birds have been part of our annual membership vote the past three years. We are proud to say that Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has donated nearly $67,000 to vulture conservation to date.
CMZoo made favorable strides in the management of endangered Wyoming toads in spring and early summer as CMZ experienced a robust egg-laying season, followed by the release of hundreds of year-old toads into the wild. Wyoming toads are currently listed as “extinct in the wild” by The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
On May 30, our CMZoo staff released more than 200 head start toads into the wetlands of the Laramie Basin of Wyoming. At the same time, 856 head-start toads were released by Saratoga National Fish Hatchery and around 50 were released by the Leadville National Fish Hatchery.
Head-start toads develop from tadpoles hatched the previous year. This year’s breeding season at CMZ began June 4 when, after hibernating for 35 days, 11 pairs of adult Wyoming toads were put together in the breeding center. Nine of the pairs produced fertile egg strands, which included 14,822 eggs!
The work continues, as we grow our conservation programs and educate the public about how they can help support efforts to protect wild species.
It’s no surprise that Luna, Navarro and their gorgeous pups continue to be guest favorites at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. What did surprise guests, keepers and vet staff earlier this year was the arrival of the pups.
After decades of unproductive breeding attempts, the Zoo welcomed a litter of the endangered species. The pups and parents are very important to the continued survival of the species in human care, and as ambassadors for their endangered counterparts in the wild.
“Some people wonder why wolf demonstrations at the Zoo aren’t as hands-on as some of the other animal demonstrations,” said Basia Dann, Rocky Mountain Wild animal keeper. “We don’t want to create too much of a positive association between people and food because one of their biggest threats in the wild is the sometimes uneasy sharing of space between humans and wildlife. Regardless of how much we want to talk to them and encourage them with positive food reinforcement the way we do with other animals, it’s best for them if we keep our distance and they keep theirs.”
That’s because the ultimate goal is for CMZoo’s descendants to one day return to the wild, where populations have been dwindling.
The Mexican wolf has been protected as an endangered subspecies of gray wolf since 1976 under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Mexican wolves were near extinction in 1998, when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and partner agencies initiated a captive breeding program descended from seven founder wolves.
USFWS reports that there are only 114 Mexican wolves in the wild and 300 in human care. The population of Mexican wolves in human care at Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA)-accredited zoos is an important part of the plan to repopulate the species in the wild. The Mexican Wolf Recovery Program is run by USFWS, with cooperation from the AZA Mexican Wolf Species Survival Plan.
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has been a participant in the program since 1994. But, until this year’s litter, it had been 20 years since wolf pups made an appearance at the Zoo. For many years, the Zoo housed a bachelor pack of wolves, but within the past seven years, the AZA’s Species Survival Plan (SSP) placed various breeding pairs at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo with the hopes of offspring.
Luna, the 10-year-old mother of the 2018 litter, and two-year-old father Navarro and their pups, as exemplary animal ambassadors, continue contributing to the success of the Mexican wolf Species Survival Plan. One pup, Lupa has already moved on to another organization where the hope is that she will have her own litter one day. Her move was always part of CMZoo’s plan, but was expedited when keepers discovered Lupa limping one morning in November.
Immediately upon noticing Lupa limping, CMZoo vet staff took x-rays of her leg and discovered a fracture of the growth plate of her left femur, just above the knee. The injury is not uncommon among young wolves, but keepers and staff don’t know exactly how it occurred. With approvals from USFWS and the SSP, CMZoo took Lupa to the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo., where surgeons discovered the fracture has worsened in the short time since her last x-rays.
After a successful surgery, Lupa returned to CMZoo, but staff quickly recognized the Zoo’s terrain and a quickly approaching Colorado winter we going to add challenges to her healing process. Although staff separated Lupa from the full pack for her recovery period and placed her in an adjacent area with a littermate, she was still a very active pup in a rocky and vertical natural habitat.
“Like your dog at home does after a surgery that requires stitches, she was irritating the wound by overstretching the incision, so it wasn’t healing as quickly as we would have liked,” said Dr. Eric Klaphake, associate veterinarian at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. “Because her leg was shaved in order to perform the necessary surgery, we decided the snow and cold temperatures would be uncomfortable for her. We didn’t want to keep her inside without socialization, so we found her a new home in a flatter, warmer environment, where she could receive a companion as well.”
Phoenix, Bluestem, Hope and Shadow, Lupa’s littermates at CMZoo, are flourishing. They have grown so much since their birth in May that it has become difficult to tell them apart from their parents by size alone. Luckily, CMZoo keepers have some tips on identifying them. Shadow’s face is darker than the rest of the pack, and she has light eyebrow patches. Phoenix is the biggest of the pups and has two dark spots in his left eyebrow. Bluestem and Luna are similar in appearance, with light fur and even lighter eyebrows. Bluestem is smaller than Luna. Hope has a dark face and dark eyebrows and has a black and white ‘V’ patter in the fur on her chest. Navarro is the biggest wolf whose face is a darker shade of red than the rest of the pack.
You can catch a glimpse of one of the rarest species in North America during a wolf keeper talk at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo every Monday, Saturday and Sunday at 10:30 a.m.
Seeing LouLou, a 36-year-old female African elephant at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, participate in one of her daily care routines is like witnessing a pedicure of gigantic proportions.
Annie Dinwiddie, senior elephant keeper, points her target pole toward a horizontal rod and gently says, “foot.” Three-and-a-half-ton LouLou gracefully places her twelve-inch diameter round pad on a foot rest where Dinwiddie can inspect it and remedy any issues.
“We do this every day with all of our elephants,” Dinwiddie said. “As big as elephants are, the last thing we want is foot problems. Those feet are connected to the rest of their giant body. Their foot health is often a good indicator of their overall health, so this is one way we’re taking a preventative approach in their overall care.”
LouLou balances on three legs and presents her front left foot while Dinwiddie washes it and inspects it closely for any stuck debris, cracks or elephant-sized hang nails. The process takes about three minutes on one foot that needs a little work, due to LouLou enthusiastically using her toenails to strip bark from a log – a tasty treat for elephants. With the same ease and grace as she did before, at Dinwiddie’s request, LouLou expertly shifts her weight to present her back foot and Dinwiddie repeats the process.
LouLou is one of six “Golden Girls” in Encounter Africa, along with Missy, Kimba, Lucky, Jambo and Malaika. They’re all African elephants, but have unique personalities and some distinguishable physical features that help CMZoo visitors recognize and enjoy their individual personalities.
At 49, Missy is one of the oldest African elephants in human care in accredited zoos. She’s often in the yard with LouLou, 36, who is the easiest elephant to identify because she doesn’t have tusks. Kimba, 40, is the largest of the group, weighing in at just over 9,000 pounds. Lucky, 38, is playful and can be seen splashing around in the water or, on sunny winter days, throwing snow and then eating it. Jambo, 35, and Malaika, 32, are known as the sassiest and prefer to spend solo time in one of their many spaces at the Zoo.
“In addition to providing foot care, we’re always trying to give them opportunities to take care of their feet on their own,” Dinwiddie said. “We do that by allowing them to be elephants and to do what elephants are designed to do: move and walk. We have a lot of space for our elephants.”
That space is important in keeping six middle-to-upper aged elephants exercised, flexible and mentally engaged.
“They get smarter and smarter, so we’re constantly thinking of new ways to keep them stimulated and on their toes – and that keeps us on our toes,” said Thomas Reid, elephant animal keeper. “They may be getting up there in age, but they’re all young at heart.”
A big part of an elephant keeper’s job is moving them around between the different spaces. The goal is to prevent them from being in the same space for more than an hour. Various husbandry activities that keepers practice with the elephants daily means the elephants explore different areas and stay comfortable with keepers being in protected-but-close proximity, which is necessary to their care.
“The training is always on their terms,” Dinwiddie said. “They’re trained to present their ears so we can do monthly blood draws. There are a lot of blood vessels in their ears and it’s the thinnest area of skin. They have the ability to restrict blood flow to their ears, so literally if they don’t want to participate, they can prevent it from happening. If they choose to participate, they get a handful of jumbo marshmallows as a special treat that reinforces their behavior.”
Taking proper care of any animal requires dedication, but keeping this aging group healthy and happy calls for a jam-packed schedule of care, training, monitoring and documentation.
The elephants also participate in ‘elephant yoga,’ doing various stretches instructed by keepers in effort to maintain flexibility. Keepers take the elephants on daily walks on a quarter-mile path they call the elephant trek, ensuring they get adequate exercise. Lucky and Missy get injections to help with arthritis, and they’re all weighed monthly. Keepers document images of each of their feet to track changes long-term and five of the six elephants need regular oral medications for various reasons.
“Because of their size, often it’s a large number of pills,” Dinwiddie said. ”We ask them to come around to the bollards and open their mouths. Then we throw the pills into their mouths and chase it with orange juice. They swallow and it’s all done.”
On days of 40-degrees-or-cooler weather, the girls have the option of going into the barn, which is open to guests all year long, or into the yard. Visitors can also get to know CMZoo’s amazing elephant herd by planning an animal encounter. During these behind-the-scenes experiences, guests can feed them and even watch them paint a picture.
For more information, visit cmzoo.org/encounter.