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.

The Association of Zoos & Aquariums has just 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 extinction crisis. As part of this group, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is helping to re-introduce African vultures to their wild habitat as 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.

Africa currently has two species of vultures that are endangered and four species that are critically endangered. The main threats to African vultures are poisoning and power line collisions, says Jenyva Fox, lead animal keeper of African Rift Valley at CMZoo.

“Poisoning is a serious threat to vultures, which are nature’s clean-up crew,” said Fox. “Poisonings occur when farmers want to target larger predators like jackals and lions, so they lace meat with poison. Since vultures are very good at their job, they will clean up any carcasses they find – even the poisoned ones. Another newer issue is connected to elephant and rhino poaching. Poachers are lacing the elephant/ rhino carcasses with poison to target the vultures, so they do not give away the presence of a poached animal.”

In 2017, Zoo members voted to fund the monitoring of 34 vultures that were released back into the African wild in order to learn more about the threats they face and help them be successful. The funds are also helping conservationists determine which power line locations cause the bulk of collisions. In turn, raised or rehabilitated vultures will be trained to avoid those lines before they are released back into the wild.

Unfortunately, Africa is not the only place where vultures are threatened by poison. In Asia, an estimated 40 million vultures have died due to an anti-inflammatory drug called Diclofenac, which is used to treat fever and inflammation in cattle.

Because they scavenge for carcasses, vultures are often depicted as macabre or fatalistic symbols. But their role in the natural world is to help stop the spread of disease, and they are ideally suited for it.

“Vultures are nature’s clean-up crew,” said Fox. “Because they eat dead animals, they are thought to be dirty or gross birds. But they have a few adaptations and behaviors that help them stay clean, such as bald heads and necks to prevent bacteria from sticking. Some species of vulture will urinate on their own legs to kill bacteria from the carcasses they fed on, and vultures bathe regularly – both in the water and the sun. The UV rays from the sun kill the pathogens on their feathers after feeding.

“But the thing that I think makes them the most amazing is that they have very strong stomach acids that kill diseases and bacteria in the food they are eating,” said Fox. “This is why they don’t get sick like other scavengers could. Sadly, these acids are not able to overcome man-made poisons.”

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is home to three Cape vultures and one Eurasian griffon vulture. Guests can see our Cape vultures in African Rift Valley and can learn more about vultures at our Wings of Africa Bird Show, held daily at 10 a.m. (weather permitting).


 
A nine-day trip to the jungles of Panama to help release hundreds of critically endangered frogs into the wild is just part of the job for Cheyenne Mountain Zoo veterinarian Dr. Eric Klaphake.

As part of the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation project (PARC), the Zoo is actively involved in helping save dozens of species of Central American frogs and toads threatened by an infectious disease called chytrid fungus. Dr. Klaphake is part of the research team investigating the fungus’ impact while trying to preserve what remains of these species. There are currently 13 critically endangered frog species in human care at PARC, but the group is studying many more at risk.

The January release was composed of 500 Atelopus limosus frogs, also known as harlequin frogs or clown frogs due to their bright coloring. While not the first release of harlequin frogs by PARC, it was the largest. Like many release trials, it is uncertain how many may survive, as their resistance to chytrid is still in question. Also, determining perfect release sites for the frogs can be difficult. A site can appear good initially, but new issues can be revealed once it’s put into practice. However, it will provide the PARC researchers with valuable data.

“We will gain critical information for future releases, including understanding the challenges faced by a frog as it transitions from captivity into the wild,” said Dr. Klaphake.

Before being released, the frogs were injected with a harmless, under-the-skin fluorescent “tattoo” so they could be identified by black light upon recovery. In addition, a subgroup of about 30 frogs were outfitted with miniscule radio transmitters. The transmitters will provide valuable feedback, even though expense and limited battery life (approximately 21 days) limited the size of the subgroup.

“The transmitters will help the consortium understand where the frogs go after release, including how they respond to weather, what type of vegetation/location they like to use, and their preferred basking temperature,” explains Dr. Klaphake. “They will also make it easier to find those frogs to confirm life/death, and, if dead, hopefully discover whether chytrid, predation, or other causes contributed to death to help us better guide future releases.”

The frogs were released near the Cobre mine in Panama’s Colon province. Cobre is one of the largest copper reserves in Panama and the mining company contributes generously to PARC.

“In addition, it’s well secured, so it was a location we knew would not be easily disturbed by outsiders,” said Dr. Klaphake.

While January is considered the dry season, the weather was abnormally cool and rainy during Dr. Klaphake’s visit. Traversing the site involved wading up a creek, traversing its steep, clay banks, and battling the dense jungle understory. Along the way, the team observed other frog species, giant millipedes, rats, and baby anole lizards. They were careful to give wide berth to the few venomous fer-de-lance snakes they encountered.

As a founding partner for PARC, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has provided instrumental support to the project, including participation in field expeditions and surveys, development of education programs, and veterinary and husbandry support in Panama. Dr. Klaphake has visited the PARC project in Panama once before, while Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Conservation Coordinator Jeff Baughman travelled there last year to participate in a smaller release.

The project is considered significant due to the immediate, and not inconsequential, threat of losing multiple amphibian species forever. Frogs are considered an indicator animal, meaning if they were to go extinct in Central America, eventually the delicate balance of our ecosystem would be upset and we would start to see a ripple effect caused by their absence.

While researchers in the PARC consortium and around the world are investigating how to halt the spread of chytrid and/or increase amphibians’ immunity to the fungus, there are other important steps we can take in our everyday lives to help amphibians thrive.

“Remember, all water flows downstream, so being careful about what we dump into sewers, drains, and waterways is important,” notes Dr. Klaphake, adding “especially medications – they can concentrate and lead to many problems, including fertility issues in many aquatic species, even at very low levels.”

To learn more about the threat to Panama frogs, visit http://amphibianrescue.org. Panama Frog Conservation is one of the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s Quarters for Conservation projects, so you can also choose to support our work with PARC every time you visit the Zoo.


 
The Tsavo Trust, which works to protect elephants and rhinos in Africa from illegal poaching, is gaining more ground, thanks to the continued support of Cheyenne Mountain Zoo guests. This year, donations are supporting the Trust’s long-term viability through infrastructure development, in addition to ongoing support for aerial surveys. Two $18,333 donations for infrastructure have already been sent this year, along with an initial $25,000 donation to support aerial surveys at the beginning of the year. A third $18,333 will follow in the near future to complete our total pledge toward infrastructure of $55,000. These donations were made possible through the Zoo’s Quarters for Conservation (Q4C) program and our popular Elephant and Rhino Snack Times.

Tsavo Trust is 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, in part, to help protect the last of the big “tuskers,” which are likely the last viable genetic pool of African elephants with tusks larger 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.

Following a visit to Tsavo National Park by CMZoo President Bob Chastain in May this year, it was apparent that the Trust had grown enough to warrant more infrastructure support, by way of assistance for staff housing. Currently, Tsavo Trust’s founder and CEO, Richard Muller, provides all administrative oversight with the help of an off-site, part-time development officer.

“To paint a picture, their house is not like our houses. He and his family live fairly remotely – about an hour from the nearest town,” Chastain explained. “Their beautiful living room has no walls, just a roof, and they rely on solar power to heat water. Their family’s bedrooms have normal walls, but this is to protect them from leopards and lions roaming in the area at night. Last year, a member of their team was seriously injured around camp by a water buffalo.

“I observed that Richard works long days, doing field work during the day and working on reports at night,” Chastain said. “It seemed the best way we could help Tsavo Trust at this time was to help them grow their infrastructure.”

The goal is to build two permanent facilities – a house for the pilot, and a house for a future assistant to Richard. To date, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s donations have helped complete the pilot’s house and laid the foundation for an assistant’s house. Made primarily from concrete with wood supports, the houses are simple, but special, and only cost about $35,000 to build. The Zoo’s donations are sent when specific milestones in the construction project are met.

The Tsavo Trust conducts on average about 4,400 miles of aerial surveillance each month. The Tsavo East and West National Parks cover approximately 16,000 square miles, so the surveillance is a critical method of stemming illegal poaching activity. Dividing the park is a highway, and train tracks also cross it (the rail line is depicted in the movie Heart of Darkness), both of which provide additional hazards for animals.

During his visit, Chastain was able to fly with the pilot and observe some of the terrain covered by surveillance. Typically a Kenya Wildlife Service officer flies with the pilot, a partnership that has yielded positive results. The Trust’s joint efforts with KWS has resulted in numerous poaching arrests, the disbandment of poacher camps, the recovery of elephant tusks and confiscation of over a thousand wire snares.

These partnerships are critical in providing local support for the work of the Tsavo Trust. Another way the Trust builds local support is through its work with the Kamungi Conservancy to implement problem-solving strategies for local people. Part of the land surrounding the park is designated as conservation easement and is farmed by locals. The recent Kamungi Water Project provided a 2.4-kilometer water delivery pipe line to a local village. As human/animal conflicts arise, it’s important they are resolved humanely whenever possible. For example, elephants sometimes raid the farmers’ fields and are shot in retaliation. One method of easing this conflict has been the establishment of bee hives and hotwire fencing along the perimeter of three local community farms as part of the Human Elephant Conflict (HEC)-Elephant & Bees Project. This solution incorporated the use of a natural deterrent (bees) and resulted in income for the farmers through the sale of honey.

By continuing to focus on solutions that work, the Tsavo Trust is able to make headway in its efforts to reduce the illegal poaching of critically endangered giant tusker elephants and black rhinos, as well as other threatened species in Tsavo Park.


Every expectant mother wants good lighting for her big moment, but for black-footed ferrets, lighting is absolutely critical to optimum breeding.

CMZoo Conservation Coordinator Jeff Baughman utilizes lighting cycles, lots of cell testing and a solid timetable to successfully breed the endangered small mammals.

Currently, Baughman averages about 20 to 30 black footed-ferret kits per breeding cycle. The ferrets are a little behind schedule right now, but Baughman has his fingers crossed that the females due from the beginning through the end of July will provide healthy kits. Baughman and staff have a whelping success rate of 57% – an impressive statistic that has helped bring this species back from the brink of extinction.

With their little black masks and feet, adorable ears and fluffy fur, it’s easy to assume the black-footed ferret is another one of North America’s plentiful small mammals, when in reality this apex predator is the only ferret species found on this continent.

During the western frontier exploration in the early 1800s, prairie dogs were identified as pests and large-scale poisoning and eradication programs continued into the 1930s. The prairie dog is the black-footed ferrets’ main prey, so, sadly, this behavior and belief also led to the decline of black-footed ferret.

By the early 1980s, black-footed ferrets were considered extinct – until they were rediscovered in 1981 on a ranch near Meeteetse, Wyoming. After studying this small population for a few years, scientists discovered they were extremely susceptible to diseases like canine distemper and the sylvatic plague. To effectively save the species, 24 ferrets were taken into human care.

Since then, a black-footed ferret Species Survival Plan (SSP) was written, enacted and has been continued by a handful of Association of Zoos & Aquariums-accredited (AZA) organizations along with U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is proud to be one of those zoos and is currently in the process of monitoring the whelping of seven out of 11 female black-footed ferrets at the on-site Zoo’s conservation center.

Associate Zoo Veterinarian Dr. Eric Klaphake explained the veterinary aspect of successful breeding begins early on in the process. CMZoo’s vet and conservation staff will start doing health checkups on breeding age males and females in the fall. This includes checking body condition and teeth health.

Baughman utilizes light cycling to stimulate breeding behaviors in the ferrets. He operates the lights at around 90 foot candles. A foot candle is a measurement of light intensity and is defined as the illuminance on a one-square-foot surface from a uniform source of light. This means it gets pretty bright during breeding cycles. In the fall, Baughman begins the light cycle at a low luminescence to stimulate breeding behaviors in the males. By late spring and early summer, the light level has increased to 15 hours of light per day to speed up the estrus cycle in females.

“These light cycles recreate what would naturally be happening in the wild and essentially make it feel and look like the long days of summer,” Dr. Klaphake said. “The ferrets need to cycle down and back up. The light starts this cascading of hormones up to the brain and back down to the organs to initiate breeding activity.”

To ensure optimum breeding opportunities, conservation staff will test the viability and health of male ferrets through sperm samples and then examine reproductive cytology of the females so that the best breeding partners can be matched up.

“We will test to evaluate the quality and number of sperm cells, their morphology and motility,” Dr. Klaphake said. Negative testing can indication reproductive challenges and if so, we can choose not to cycle those animals into the breeding pool, or we can contact the National Black-Footed Ferret Conservation Center up near the Colorado/Wyoming border and talk about exchanging for different animals.”

The ferrets’ gestation period is only around 50 to 60 days. After birth, the kits are monitored by camera. Conservation and vet staff try to stay as hands-off as possible, but will interact with the kits to assess their growth and weight, try to determine the sex of the kits and monitor both mom and babies for any health concerns.

“The first four days are hands-off,” Baughman said. “At 21 days, we’ll start weighing and determining sex, then at 26 to 30 days, we will introduce meat. At 37 days, they open their eyes. Then, at 50 to 90 days, they are given live prey and separated from mom to begin the pre-conditioning process. This is important because they need to be able to be effective hunters as they’re being reintroduced back into the wild.”

Different kits progress to different stages, says Dr. Klaphake.

“Some might go into the wild ferret ‘bootcamp’ at the conservation center, others might to be sent to other facilities to be part of breeding programs and others might go to zoos to be animal ambassadors or conservation program animals,” he said.

“Bootcamp” is a pre-conditioning stage where conservation staff introduce and test ferrets slated to be released on their hunting and predation skills.

To get as many ferrets as possible to that stage, Baughman needs the remaining females to birth successfully. Part of the complication comes from the fact the ferrets are not artificially inseminated – their breeding is all natural. Though it’s not an exact science, Baughman is fairly confident that if all the components are on track – lighting, testing and time – the formula will again prove successful.

“It’s like a Tetris game, where all the pieces and parts have to fit into place,” he said.

Throughout Panama, a silent extinction is occurring. Dozens of frog and toad species have already been driven to extinction by chytridiomycosis, the world’s most lethal amphibian disease. Fortunately, amphibian conservationists and the greater zoo community have not been sitting idly by.

Caused by the chytrid fungus, this disease is responsible for having caused amphibian population declines in North, South and Central America, Australia, Europe, Africa and more. But in Panama, a ray of hope in the form of the Atelopus limosus has been released back out into the wild.

Jeff Baughman, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s Conservation Coordinator, was instrumental in the release, which was done in partnership with the Panama Amphibian and Rescue Conservation (PARC) Project, a program Cheyenne Mountain Zoo helped found.

Not only is CMZoo a founding partner for PARC, Baughman and other CMZoo staff have provided instrumental leadership to get the project at a point where the project can allow releases to happen. CMZoo staff assist with field expeditions and surveys, development of education programs and provide veterinary and husbandry support in Panama. This contribution has resulted in developing long-term security for Panama’s biodiversity.

PARC is truly an ark for amphibians. They partner with conservation organizations around the world to ensure the global survival of amphibians – focusing on those that can no longer be safeguarded in nature. In eastern Panama, there are 30 amphibian species that have been identified by PARC as rescue priorities.

This time, Baughman was on hand to release 90 of the Atelopus limosus, a native species more commonly known as the Limosa harlequin frog. A few years prior, only a handful of the species remained in existence.

“They’re very lucky and have a second chance,” Baughman explained. “It was nearly extinct, so we pulled the remaining few out of the wild to try and save the species.”

Baughman said conserving this particular species was difficult, as its numbers were so low. He said ideally conservationists aim to collect at least 20 males and 20 females of a species in order to generate greater genetic diversity in their offspring, yet there were so few of the Atelopus limosus collected during the first few expeditions and, their goal became simply to save it.

“We didn’t know how many other nearby sites would still have the limosus present. Time was ticking fast,” Baughman said.

The frogs were treated for the chytrid in an anti-fungal bath when they were first brought into the facility. Additionally, biosecurity is extremely important at the PARC facility. Scientists and workers disinfect any equipment or supplies that may have come into contact with the fungus, and remove shoes every time when entering the building. Baughman said humans could bring chytrid into the facility, so these precautions are necessary and crucial.

Baughman said the idea of releasing the species at lower elevations is interesting to the PARC scientists and others involved in the project because chytrid is less stable at areas that are warmer throughout the year. They released all of the frogs at the same location – within the lowland habitat, where temperatures are higher. They’re hopeful the released frogs will be able to self-treat if they happen to contract the disease again, as they’ll be in a warmer climate.

“The best case scenario we can hope for is that they survive and successfully reproduce,” Baughman said. “Even if this release trial isn’t successful this time, the information that is being collected will help not only this project, but many other amphibian programs throughout the world.”

The frogs will be tracked daily through July. There are a few frogs that have radio telemetry transmitter belts. They also have two forms of visible implant elastomer (VIE) markings for easier tracking. There are colored tags that are visible externally and are made up of a two-part elastomer material. One is an elastomer liquid that is injected into tissue with a hypodermic syringe and allows scientists to see the tags through a thin part of the frog’s skin. Within hours or days, the elastomer converts into a pliable solid and maintains the pigment in a well-defined mark, without damaging surrounding tissue or the animal.

“Think of it like a tiny fluorescent tattoo that can easily be seen under a black light,” he said.

Baughman traveled to Panama for the release itself, but also to help with the setup leading up to the release. Identifying and processing the animals took quite a bit of time, as did preparing and securing the actual release site.

There are currently 13 critically endangered frog species in human care at PARC. Baughman is hopeful for future releases for those species, as well.

Frogs are indicator animals, says Baughman. This means that if they were to go extinct in Central America, people would start to see a ripple effect caused by their absence.

“For example, you might start to see algae overgrowing in ponds, lakes and streams because there’d be no tadpoles to feed on it. That in turn would lead the PH and water chemistry to be off, so other species locally would start to suffer. Then unbalanced water would end up as runoff in the ocean and affect the species there.”

“It’s like a game of Jenga,” he explained. “You can pull one block here and there and the structure is still standing, but you’ll finally pull the one block that makes the whole thing collapse. Our ecosystem is such a delicate balance.”

To learn more about Panamanian frog conservation, please visit: http://amphibianrescue.org/

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