We were able to pull the sun bear cubs this morning to have the veterinarians examine them. We are happy to announce that Marcella has both a boy and a girl in this litter! Staff had suspected this for some time but needed to wait for confirmation from our veterinarians to be certain. (See previous blog, Wider World for Sun Bear Cubs.)
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I hope you were able to visit the San Diego Zoo January 16 through 19. If not, boy did you miss a good time! It was the Zoo’s first Discovery Days celebrating koalas with Koalapalooza (see blog, Koalapalooza: A Joey Is Named). Discovery Days events are a great new way for people to learn more about a targeted species.
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Monday, January 26, 2009, was the first day for the connecting door between the left and right panda exhibit areas at the San Diego Zoo to be opened. It’s part of the separation/weaning of Zhen Zhen and Bai Yun. We give them extra space: a new place for ZZ and a familiar place from a different time for Bai.
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Installment #1
Wolf’s guenon babies are new to the primate nursery at the San Diego Zoo. We have had brief and memorable experiences with two other guenon species: spot-nosed and swamp guenon or swamp monkey (see blog, Good Things Come in Small Packages). However, when a female Wolf’s guenon named Gigi arrived in the nursery on November 18, 2008, we were suddenly novices. The tiny female weighed 11.5 ounces (327 grams) and was a bit more lanky and elegant in comparison with other newborn guenons we had cared for. This tiny beauty was also more vocal, exhibiting an early flair for the dramatic.
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The three Sumatran tigers born at the Wild Animal Park on November 13, 2008, are getting bigger every day. It has been incredible to have the opportunity to watch the cubs grow into individuals (see previous blog, Tiger Cubs at the Wild Animal Park). While the little girl, Damai, has stayed true to her ferocious attitude, her brothers have both developed personalities a little different than we first predicted. In fact, if the cubs did not have distinctive markings, it may be easy to question whether the boys were mixed up!
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After months of anticipation and careful planning, San Diego Zoo Discovery Days: Koalapalooza finally arrived: These four exciting days were filled with news interviews and keeper talks featuring not only koalas but our other special marsupials as well, including tree kangaroos, wallabies, and the closest relative to the koala, the wombats. We were so excited to have a long weekend dedicated to our favorite animal, the koala, but I must admit we were a little nervous!
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Today marks a milestone for our fourth panda cub Zhen Zhen: her weaning window has opened. A necessary step in the life of any young animal, weaning an infant from its mother involves an end to nutritional dependence on her. In the case of Zhen Zhen, as with many other species in general and with pandas in particular, this also means an end to extensive social contact with mom as well.
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Today, as promised, we celebrated all things Gao Gao. As an orphan, he has no set birthday, and it was time to showcase the boy who made the last three cubs possible. He debuted here in January 2003, so a commemorative event was long overdue.
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In the comfort and safety of managed care, a two-toed sloth can live 30 years! So at the San Diego Zoo’s Hunte Amphitheater, we have concentrated on a slow, solid training plan with Majica, our two-toed sloth (see previous blog, Meet Our Two-toed Sloth). We began by building a good relationship with her. Once she was comfortable with us, we target-trained her. This is teaching her to touch her nose to our fist or the end of a target stick. You start up very close, only requiring her to move a few inches to connect with the target. Gradually you increase the distance, so eventually you can have her move anywhere you might want her to go.
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After the years, the mating seasons, and the cubs, how wonderful it is to be celebrating Gao Gao! In addition to being a super father-er, he is just the best guy. But for those of you new to him, here is his story.

Found in the wild in March 1993, at less than a year old, Gao was injured and had difficulty walking. His condition indicated that his mother had no longer been caring for him; we’ll never know why. He was brought to the Fengtongzhai Nature Reserve Rescue Center in the Sichuan Province, where his story and progress were followed by children all over China, a tribute to the love that the Chinese people have for their pandas. He recovered well and was returned to the wild in 1994.
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