The last phase of separation is complete with very little stress on Bai Yun (pictured) and Su Lin. It is very natural for a panda mother to separate from her cub at this age. In the wild, the mother would simply walk far enough away that the cub could not find her, and the cub would be on it’s own. Now that Su Lin has become independent, she has her keepers to make sure she eats and gets the proper care now that she is on her own. Remember, a wild cub has just its abilities to survive, so she will be just fine. A panda’s nature is to be solitary; it is hard to understand since we are so close to our families, but that is human nature and we have to think of a bear’s nature and how she handles her life cycle.
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Zoo InternQuest is a career exploration program for high school students. For more information see the Zoo InternQuest Journals. For more photos see the Zoo InternQuest Photo Journal.

You’re crawling across the desert southwest, haven’t had a drink of water in two days, and the sun is beating down on your back. Desperate, you turn your eyes up to the sky, hoping there might be a plane, but seemingly gigantic birds are circling over you! It’s the California condor. Oh no!
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Intern Melissa is picking up reception from the condor transmitter that we were looking for at the Wild Animal Park. (There was not a condor attached to the transmitter.)
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Zoo InternQuest is a career exploration program for high school students. For more information see the Zoo InternQuest Journals. For more photos see the Zoo InternQuest Photo Journal.

A Day in the Life of a Reptile Keeper

This week we met Ken Morgan, a senior reptile keeper at the San Diego Zoo. Being a reptile keeper is not an easy job. You are working in an environment similar to that of the reptiles you work with and, depending on the species, it can be very hot and humid like in the tropical corridor, or even cold and dry such as in the tuatara breeding house. Nevertheless, you must be able to work in these conditions to keep the animals comfortable and in an environment that mirrors their natural homes.
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These golden tree frogs are indigenous to Panama and are being used for breeding prurposes at the Zoo. The species is endangered due to the chytrid fungus that is plaguing many amphibians.
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Since moving Su Lin, Bai Yun has relaxed considerably. She had been increasingly restless as last week progressed, but her behavior has now calmed since she no longer can hear Su Lin calling to her from next door. Interestingly, since Su Lin has been moved away from her mother, she has also stopped calling to her. Perhaps this is a case of ” out of sight, out of mind!”
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So, just how long has it been since you’ve been to the Wild Animal Park, hmmmm? Whether it’s been one week or years, you’re in for a real treat! We have been very, very busy upgrading the Park, geared towards better viewing and learning about all the wonderful creatures we have here. So much has been going on this past year…
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The separation of Bai Yun and Su Lin is complete, and after what we saw on Saturday morning and early afternoon, it was exactly the right time! For more than two hours, Bai rebuffed any nursing attempt by Su Lin, pursuing the cub and sitting on her; pursuing Su Lin and pinning her down with her paws; grabbing the baby with her teeth, usually gently but firmly, but occasionally hard enough to elicit a squeak of protest from the cub. This is similar to what we have seen before as Bai has separated from her two previous cubs, Hua Mei and Mei Sheng, and as of Saturday evening, the door between them closed forever.
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An Andean condor flies over Wegeforth Bowl at the San Diego Zoo, to the amazement of the show audience.
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Zoo InternQuest is a career exploration program for high school students. For more information see the Zoo InternQuest Journals. For more photos see the Zoo InternQuest Photo Journal.

Driving down the road to the back gate of the Wild Animal Park, we looked down below, admiring the beautiful view of the nearly 1,000 green acres of animal exhibits and gardens. After parking, we met up with Frank Escobedo, a lead gardener, and Bonnie Duff, a senior gardener, who were prepared to give us the royal tour of the grounds. Mr. Escobedo has worked at the Park since 1970, two years before it even opened to the public. Because of his passion, lifelong interest in plants, and a lot of stuff he taught himself and learned in college, he taught at community colleges and put together botanical gardens before planting himself at the Wild Animal Park. Ms. Duff attended UCSD and got her bachelor’s degree in biology. She worked for the Wild Animal Park’s Mum Festival for four years, taking care of the elaborate chrysanthemums before she branched out and became a senior gardener.
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