About three months ago, a female Palawan Hornbill “disappeared” in the aviary of Zoo Wroclaw. Keepers suspected the bird was secluding herself in preparation for nest building and egg-laying.
The Zoo’s suspicions were confirmed as the new fledgling recently left the nest! Bird keepers at Zoo Wroclaw estimate the chick hatched around April 20th. The sex of the healthy fledgling is not yet known.
Photo Credits: Zoo Wroclaw
The Palawan Hornbill (Anthracoceros marchei), known as ‘Talusi’ in the Filipino language, is a small (approximately 70 cm/28 in long) forest-dwelling bird.
The plumage is predominantly black, with a white tail. The bird has a dark green gloss on its upper parts and a large creamy-white beak, with a casque typical of the hornbill family. It emits loud calls, which can be transcribed as “kaaww” and “kreik-kreik”.
Nine species of Hornbill are found in the Philippines, and the Palawan Hornbill is endemic to Palawan Island, but has also been recorded on the nearby islands of Balabac, Busuanga, Calauit, Culion and Coron.
The Palawan Hornbill is officially classified as "Vulnerable" by the IUCN, and its numbers have reduced by at least 20% in the last 10 years due to habitat destruction, hunting for food, and the live bird trade.
It is usually seen in pairs or small noisy family groups, and it has a communal roosting site. It is most usually observed in fruiting trees at the forest edge, but also feeds on insects and small reptiles.
A tiny male Sea Otter pup, estimated to be just two to four weeks old, is now in 24-hour care at the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Mammal Rescue Centre, after concerned members of the public found it swimming alone in open water off northern Vancouver Island on Sunday.
Although the pup appears healthy, he requires care night and day from the Rescue Centre team, just as he would from his mother. Staff and volunteers are spending shifts feeding, bathing and grooming the newborn pup, which has not yet been named.
“Sea Otters have high energetic needs; after birth they spend about six months with mom, nursing, being groomed by her and learning to forage and be a Sea Otter, so this little guy is still a fully dependent pup. He would not survive on his own, and we’re providing him with the care he needs right now,” said Lindsaye Akhurst, Manager of the Marine Mammal Rescue Centre, which is presented by Port Metro Vancouver.
According to the report provided to the Rescue Centre, boaters collected the Sea Otter pup after it approached and then followed their boat while vocalizing. There were no adult Sea Otters in sight. Once in Port Hardy, officers from Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) arranged for the transfer to the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Mammal Rescue Centre. Although well intentioned, both DFO officials and Rescue Centre personnel say the distressed animal should have been reported first rather than taken from the ocean. “Once they’re removed from the wild it’s impossible to determine if the mother is alive and if they could have been reunited, or if bringing him in was the appropriate action,” said Akhurst.
Paul Cottrell, Marine Mammals Coordinator, Pacific Region, DFO, reminds the public that touching or capturing wild marine mammals is illegal. Decisions about the pup’s future will be made by DFO.
Photo Credits: Vancouver Aquarium
Once extinct from Canada, the Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris) has successfully been reintroduced to British Columbia, and mainly lives off Vancouver Island. Subsequent population growth and range expansion enabled the Government of Canada to change the listing of the species from “Threatened” to “Special Concern” in 2009, as recommended by COSEWIC.
Major causes of death among Sea Otters are lack of food, predators and environmental contamination. A recent study, conducted by researchers from UC Santa Cruz, U.S. Geological Survey and the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, found the energetic cost of rearing Sea Otter pups could also be leading to higher mortality rates in adult females, and more incidents of pup abandonment.
The Vancouver Aquarium Marine Mammal Rescue Centre, a hospital for sick, injured or orphaned marine mammals, is the only one of its kind in Canada. Under authorization from DFO, the team rescues, rehabilitates and releases more than 100 animals each year; in 2016, they rescued more than 170 animals. For every patient, the goal is to treat, rehabilitate and return it to the wild as soon as possible. The veterinary team provides medical treatment to Harbor Seals, Sea Otters, Sea Lions, Sea Turtles, Elephant Seals, Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises.
This year’s rescue season is proving to be a busy one already. As well as the Sea Otter pup, the Rescue Centre has provided assistance and care to a California Sea Lion, a Steller Sea Lion pup, and 29 Harbor seals.
The Vancouver Aquarium would like to remind the public, if you see a stranded marine mammal, do not approach it and keep domestic pets away. Call the Vancouver Aquarium’s Marine Mammal Rescue Centre at 604.258.SEAL (7325) for immediate assistance.
To report abandoned or injured wildlife in the United States, contact the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service at: 1.844.397.8477
*The Vancouver Aquarium is a self-supporting, accredited institution and does not receive ongoing funds to provide around-the-clock care for its rescued and rehabilitated animals. To make a contribution for the care of this Sea Otter pup, please visit support.ocean.org/rescuedotter.
Guests will be seeing double when they visit Brookfield Zoo’s Pinniped Point in a few weeks. Two California Sea Lion pups were recently born, and they are the first of this species born at the zoo in nearly 30 years.
The new pups are currently behind the scenes, bonding with their mothers, and learning how to swim, as well as being monitored by animal care staff. It is anticipated the pups will have access to their outdoor habitat in a few weeks.
The first pup, a female, was born on June 4 to seven-year-old Josephine. A week later, on June 11, Arie, who is estimated to be about nine-years-old, gave birth to a male.
Photo Credits: Brookfield Zoo/Chicago Zoological Society (CZS)
California Sea Lion pups are usually born in June and July and will weigh between 13 to 20 pounds. Pups do not swim for their first few weeks of life, but rather stay in tidal pools until they can go to sea with their mothers. They nurse for at least five months and sometimes for more than a year. In the wild, after giving birth, mother Sea Lions will leave their offspring for a short time while they forage at sea. As the pups grow stronger, the mothers leave them alone for longer periods. Mother Sea Lions recognize their pups through smell, sight, and vocalizations.
The new additions at Brookfield Zoo are very important to the genetic diversity of the accredited North American zoo population for the species because of the unique backgrounds of the two moms as well as of Tanner, the pups’ sire. All three adults were wild born and deemed non-releasable by the government for various reasons. All were taken in and given homes at three accredited facilities: Aquarium of Niagara, Brookfield Zoo, and Shedd Aquarium.
“We couldn’t be more thrilled with the birth of these two Sea Lion pups, which is a coordinated effort between us and our partner facilities,” said Rita Stacey, Curator of Marine Mammals for CZS.
Josephine was abandoned by her mom at the popular tourist attraction, Pier 39 in San Francisco, which is a highly unusual place for a California Sea Lion to give birth. As a newborn, Josephine was helpless and would have starved to death without human intervention. The Chicago Zoological Society (CZS) stepped forward and offered to give her a home at Brookfield Zoo, where she was hand-reared and has resided since 2010.
In 2009, at approximately one year of age, Arie was found stranded on a beach, where she was rescued and rehabilitated three times by a California stranding center before being deemed non-releasable and given a forever home at the Aquarium of Niagara in Niagara Falls, New York. She arrived at Brookfield Zoo in 2016, based on a recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ California Sea Lion Species Survival Plan (SSP). The program manages the breeding of Sea Lions in North American accredited zoos to maintain a healthy and self-sustaining population that is both genetically diverse and demographically stable. Jennifer McGee, Lead Animal Care Specialist for CZS, is the coordinator of this plan and also manages the studbook for the species. In these roles, she is responsible for documenting the pedigree and demographic history of each individual California Sea Lion at each institution and assists in making breeding recommendations.
Tanner, who is estimated to be 14 years old, arrived at Brookfield Zoo from Shedd Aquarium also based on a breeding recommendation. In 2012, Tanner received a second chance at life when Shedd Aquarium staff offered to provide him a new home after he was removed permanently from the wild by NOAA Fisheries for feeding on a federally protected endangered species of salmon in the Bonneville Dam area on the Columbia River. Government officials gave him the distinguishing and permanent ID on his back, “C011,” to be able to accurately identify him should he return to the dam to feed again on the endangered salmon. Despite several attempts to relocate him to another area, Tanner continued to return to the dam.
Although California Sea Lions (Zalophus californianus) are listed as “Least Concern” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the species still face challenges in their natural habitat along the west coast of North America from Vancouver Island in British Columbia, to the southern tip of Baja California in Mexico. These threats include entanglement in fishing gear, toxins they ingest from their prey, intentional dumping of toxic and hazardous waste, and changes in global atmosphere pressure that affects the availability of prey. Today, the 1972 Marine Mammal Protection Act protects all marine mammals, including California sea lions.
Those interested in helping care for the California Sea Lions at Brookfield Zoo can contribute to the Share the Care program. For $35, the recipient will receive the Basic Package, which includes a 5-inch x 7-inch color photograph and fact sheet about the species, a personalized adoption certificate, a Share the Care car decal, and an invitation to the annual Share the Care Evening. For further information, visit: www.CZS.org/SharetheCare .
Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens has an adorable new addition. A male Southern Pudu was born on May 31 to mother, Posie, and father, Little Mac.
This is the first fawn for Little Mac, and he is proving to be an excellent father, doting on the yet un-named male fawn. Keepers often find him grooming his new son or sleeping next to him. Posie is also an excellent mother and shares a birthday with the little one.
Pudu, the smallest species of deer, are around 15 inches tall when full grown. Jacksonville Zoo’s new fawn weighed less than two pounds when born and stood less than eight inches tall.
The two species of Pudus are: Northern Pudu (Pudu mephistophiles) from Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, and the Southern Pudu (Pudu puda) from southern Chile and southwestern Argentina.
Adult Pudus range in size from 32 to 44 centimeters (13 to 17 in) tall, and up to 85 centimeters (33 in) long.
As of 2009, the Southern Pudu is classified as “Near Threatened”, while the Northern Pudu is classified as “Vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List.
Southern Pudu fawns are born with spots, which form strips that will develop into a solid reddish-brown fur as they grow older.
The Pudus at Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens (JZG) are currently housed in the Wild Florida loop, next to the Manatee Critical Care Center. Keepers report they are naturally shy creatures, with the fawn usually hiding in the exhibit shrubbery.
