Papú the Owl Chick Has An Important Job

Back in April, an egg barely the size of a ping-pong ball arrived at the Woodland Park Zoo from the Sacramento Zoo, where its parents were not able to incubate it.

On April 17, a feisty little Burrowing Owl chick pipped its way out of that egg. The chick, a male, was named Papú. His name, which is pronounced like paw-POO, with emphasis on the second syllable, means “Burrowing Owl” in the dialect of the Yakama tribes of eastern Washington. Little Papú, who also goes by the nickname Pippin, was at hatching barely a few inches long, covered in white downy plumage, and his eyes were not open yet.

Because Papú will be reared by his keepers, it was decided that he will become an ambassador animal at the Woodland park Zoo. In this very important role, Papú will meet zoo guests to help build a strong connection between people and wildlife. Right away, Papú captured the hearts of the animal keepers who will feed him, raise him, train with him throughout his life, and generally just let him become his best little Owl-self.

Papú is now nearly two months old and already adult-size, although he still has some of the downy plumage of a chick. Most baby birds are the same size as their parents by the time they’re ready to leave the nest—and Papú is just at that age. Adult feathers, which are mottled brown and white, are already starting to grow in, including those all-important flight feathers.

At this point, his flights are limited to practice take-offs and soft, but not always graceful, landings on his keepers’ laps or the ground. Within another week or so, he will probably take his first real flight, and by early autumn Papú will have his adult plumage and his eyes and beak will start turning yellow.

Burrowing Owls are small, long-legged Owls found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. These tiny predators—they’re only 8 to 11 inches tall and weigh between 5 to 8 ounces when fully grown—can be found in grasslands, rangelands and throughout the Great Plains.

They nest and roost in underground burrows that might have been dug out by prairie dogs or ground squirrels, although they can create their own burrows if needed. Unlike most Owls, Burrowing Owls are active day or night hunting for beetles, grasshoppers, crickets, mice and small lizards. The Burrowing Owl is endangered in Canada and threatened in Mexico. Although still common in much of the U.S., its population numbers are in decline and they are listed as threatened in several states due to the eradication of prairie dogs and loss of habitat.

See more photos below, including several of Papú right after he hatched.

source http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2018/06/pap%C3%BA-the-owl-chick-has-an-important-job.html

Meet Akeno the Baby Rhino at Chester Zoo

Zookeepers at Chester Zoo have revealed the name of a rare baby Rhino born on May 3.

Meet Akeno, the Greater One-horned Rhinoceros calf – only the second of his kind to ever be born at the zoo. The name Akeno is of Asian origin, meaning “beautiful sunrise.”


Photo Credit: Chester Zoo

Although he is just six weeks old, Akeno has bundles of energy and is proving to be a real handful for his 11-year-old mother, Asha.

Greater One-horned Rhinos can weigh up to 2.4 tons as adults, but despite their bulky size, they can run at speeds of up to 25 mph.

Also known as Indian Rhinos, Greater One-horned Rhinos live in northeastern India and southern Nepal. Like all Rhinos, they feed on grasses and other vegetation. And, like Rhinos in Africa and other parts of Asia, Greater One-horned Rhinos are illegally hunted for their horns, which are mistakenly believed to have medicinal properties in some cultures. In reality, Rhino horns are made of keratin, the same substance that makes up human hair and fingernails.

Due to overhunting and habitat loss, only about 200 Greater One-horned Rhinos remained in the wild by the middle of the 20th century. Steps to protect the Rhinos were taken just in time and today, about 3,500 live in the wild. They are currently listed as Vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

See more pictures of Akeno below.

 

source http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2018/06/meet-akeno-the-baby-rhino-at-chester-zoo.html

Rare White Bison Born at Belgrade Zoo

A rare White American Bison calf was born at the Belgrade Zoo on May 28. White Bison are estimated to occur in only one out of ten million births.

The calf, named Dusica, is the offspring of Jova, an 11-year-old white male, and Iva, a seven-year-old female with a typical brown coat.

Photo Credit: Zoran Rajic

White Bison occur naturally due to albinism, leucism, or other genetic conditions. Sometimes, a White Bison develops brown fur as it ages. Others remain white (or light tan) for their entire lives. White Bison can also result from cross-breeding with cattle. 

Some American Indian tribes consider White Bison to be sacred as part of spiritual rituals.

American Bison are often referred to as “Buffalo,” but that term is misleading. Bison are quite different than true Buffalo species, such as the Asian Water Buffalo or the African Cape Buffalo. But early European settlers and explorers, upon seeing American Bison for the first time, thought the animals resembled Buffalo, and the name has been used ever since.

The Belgrade Zoo has a long history of breeding white animals, including Bengal Tigers, African Lions, Wallabies, Deer, Indian Peafowl, and various reptiles. Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, is known as the “White City.”

American Bison can weigh up to a ton (2,000 pounds) and feed on grass and vegetation.

Before settlement of the American West, hundreds of millions of Bison roamed the North American plains. By the 1800s, Bison were nearly extinct due to overhunting, with only a few hundred animals surviving. Breeding programs and farming have increased the population to around 150,000, but Bison are listed as Near Threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This status is due to the fact that most animals are maintained under conservation programs and only five viable populations exist in the wild. Herds are dependent on wide areas of protected land, including national parks and refuges.  

source http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2018/06/rare-white-bison-born-at-belgrade-zoo.html

Elephant Calf Born Three Months Late Gets a Name

An Asian Elephant calf born three months after its due date has been named Anjan by zoo keepers at Chester Zoo.

The male calf, born May 17, astonished experts when he was born to mum Thi Hi Way last month following an assumed gestation of 25 months.

Because the typical gestation for Asian Elephants is about 22 months, scientists believed Thi, who was already a great-grandmother and matriarch of the herd, had started a natural resorption process. 

Photo Credit: Chester Zoo

Hormone tracking originally showed that Thi Hi Way was due to give birth in February, and after her due date passed, she was slowly returning to her normal weight.  

But, despite the unusual circumstances, Thi gave birth to the healthy baby boy and zoo staff say both mother and calf are doing incredibly well.

Mike Jordan, Chester Zoo’s Collections Director, said, “Thi is a wonderful matriarch to our family herd and a really experienced mum. She has successfully given birth to seven calves before, but this time around circumstances were really quite astonishing.”

“We believed Thi had exceeded her normal gestation period, which we were monitoring closely. Her hormone levels, behaviour and drop in weight gave us every indication that she may have been resorbing the calf – a natural process that some Elephants experience. However, nature always has that incredible ability to surprise you and that was certainly the case,” Jordan said.

Asian Elephants are listed as Endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, threatened by habitat loss, poaching, disease and direct conflict with humans.

Conservationists from Chester Zoo have been working to combat these threats in the Elephant’s native India for more than twelve years, utilising the skills and knowledge developed working with the herd in Chester.

Zookeepers chose the name Anjan in honour of Anjan Nath, one of the leading conservation figures the zoo works with on a project in Assam, northern India, which has successfully eliminated conflict between local communities and the nearby Asian Elephant population, offering a blueprint for the future conservation of the species.

See more photos of Anjan below.

source http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2018/06/elephant-calf-born-three-months-late-gets-a-name.html