Trumpeting their excitement, the Zoo’s three elephants dashed into their exhibit to see what their keepers had been up to all morning. Tembo was in the lead when she stopped suddenly in complete surprise at the sight of a newly created pile of snow. It didn’t take long for all three pachyderms to discover that the icy hill held an elephant buffet, complete with pears, papaya, honeydew, watermelon, apple peels, and ficus branches of various sizes.
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The guests were lined up with their cameras ready for photo opportunities, the birthday ” cake” and ” presents” were in place, and the birthday boy and his mother were eager for the festivities to start. And then it began to rain! Ever prepared, fellow visitors and I unfurled our umbrellas. A little bit of rain was not going to stop us from watching Vus’musi the African elephant sample his first birthday cake! Sadly for us, a little rain turned into a lot of rain, but for those with good rain gear and fortitude, little ” Moose” put on quite a show on his birthday, February 23!
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Our visit to the new Arnold and Mabel Beckman Center for Conservation Research was a journey into a world of data and scientific jargon that I have never taken before. Thanks to our accommodating hosts I was able to get by with my incomplete high school education. Well, at least I understood enough to write this journal. The journey included chats with Ph.D.s that popped out of their offices, posters highlighting research efforts all along the hallway walls, a trip to the most secure library I’ve ever seen, more types of freezers than I ever thought necessary, and the overwhelming sense that the people working in that building with all their projects and degrees are truly the brains of the Zoo. Most of our tour was conducted by Dr. Barbara Durrant, head of the Reproductive Physiology Division of the department of Conservation and Research for Endangered Species (CRES), but also included visits and presentations from researchers in her division.
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Taking care of a single eight-ton elephant may seem like a big job, but keepers at the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park must care for 14 elephants (six Asian and eight African). Jeff Andrews, animal care manager, who oversees many animals including elephants, let us jump right in and participate in one of the most time-consuming tasks of an elephant keeper, picking up poop. A single elephant can excrete nearly 100 pounds daily, giving their keepers plenty to do.
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Have you ever shoveled elephant poop or seen someone stomp on a pile of elephant dung to compact it? Well, I can tell you, first hand, that these are not the most pleasant of experiences. They are, however, both necessary and part of the elephant keepers’ jobs at the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park.
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When I visited the Reproductive Physiology division of Conservation and Research for Endangered Species (CRES), I was interested and motivated by their work. The subject was right up my alley and gave me an appreciation for the research side of conservation. We met with Dr. Barbara Durrant and two of her colleagues, one who works with bears and the other with kiwi birds. They told us they do not have a job, but rather a lifestyle. Their careers are a practical way to use their amazing levels of knowledge for reproducing endangered species.
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Who would want a backscratcher made out of an alligator’s front foot? I don’t know either, but someone did. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service confiscates hundreds of such things every year from people trying to bring them into the U.S. The display cases in the Reptile Department of the San Diego Zoo are full of such artifacts and biofacts. (Artifacts are things that have been modified by humans into clothing, tools, or other objects, such as the backscratcher; biofacts are animal pieces in a more natural condition.) Once these dead animal parts have made it to customs at an airport, there is nothing that can be done for that individual animal. By contrast, the conservation of live reptiles falls squarely on the Reptile Department at the San Diego.
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For anyone who has lived (suffered?) through a home renovation, you know how frustrating and difficult the process can be. But on the other hand, you also know how exciting and rewarding it can be as you see rotten wood, rusted metal, and crumbling concrete being ripped out (amidst curses and epithets that would make a sailor blush) to make way for new materials.
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What is conservation? Puzzle over that for a minute. Okay, now does your head hurt? Lead educator Wes Mason had us try and answer that very question and through the impending discussion I discovered conservation is a very broad term when applied to zoos, and it holds a different meaning for every individual. Luckily for us, Mr. Mason believes that learning about conservation (and most anything else) starts with fun. For the interns, that fun came in the form of feeding giraffes; for other visitors it may be seeing the sea lion show, or even just walking the grounds with their families.
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Reptile keeper sounds like a dangerous job. Working with hundred of deadly snakes and lizards along with an assortment of geckos, turtles, chameleons, and iguanas that would rather not be touched, right? Ken Morgan, senior keeper, Reptile Department, assured us that he would not be in this field if he thought that there was any real threat. Why then is there a snake bite alarm that runs through the entire department and a refrigerator full of every rare and expensive antivenin (antidote for serious stings, bites, or wounds)? Just as a precaution. In this field there is potential for injury and wounds, but they come few and far between.
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