On Thursday, we met with Tod Chee, a GIS specialist at the San Diego Zoo. When I walked into the room, I had no idea what a GIS specialist was, but I quickly found out through a challenging (but interesting) first-hand experience. GIS stands for Geographic Information Systems.  There are many different aspects of this job, including project planning, 3-D markups of terrain, and map topography. Basically, a GIS specialist spends most of his or her time making maps of the Zoo. In order to collect the elevation information, the Zoo owns an airplane equipped with LIDAR (light detection and ranging), which sends a laser to the ground and measures how long it takes for the reflected signal to return. This amazing technology has measured the elevation of all the land owned by the Zoo and the Wild Animal Park, which is very useful to GIS specialists.
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When you visit the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park you are fascinated with the many exotic and endangered species that the Park has in its collection. However, rare rhinos and endangered equids are not the only animals that the Park’s 1800 acres is home to. Only 900 acres of the land is developed, meaning there is still an additional 900 that is empty; empty of structures and people that is. The undeveloped 900 acres, or the “Back 9,” as staff calls it, is made up of an endangered habitat known as coastal sage scrub. This habitat is one of the rarest in North America and is found right in our own backyard!

Biodiversity is the variety of life living within a habitat. Ecosystems with high biodiversity are more productive and thus are more able to cope with change, which insures survival. The coastal sage scrub at the Park is rich in biodiversity and home to 23 reptile species, five amphibians, and numerous birds and mammals. This habitat is just one of the many in San Diego County that makes it a biodiversity hotspot; meaning we have a large variety of habitats and wildlife species that are found nowhere else on the planet. Just in our county we have beaches, deserts, mountains, rivers and lakes, wetlands, and grasslands. We also have 144 mammal species, 492 birds, 82 reptiles, and fifteen amphibians! Who would have thought that such as urban county was so rich in wildlife and biomes?

At the Park there are animal ecologists that monitor the biodiversity of the coastal sage scrub habitat in the “Back 9.” Their work includes keeping records of individual reptile and amphibian species, which are their main focus. The ecologists set bucket traps that allow them to safely and humanely catch critters in order to identify individuals and take information from them. They work closely with programs such as the Multiple Species Conservation Program (MSCP) in order to use the information they collect to better protect the habitat and the species within.

Many of us are unaware of the crisis just miles from our homes in San Diego County: there are many species within the coastal sage scrub habitat that are threatened due to the constant shrinkage of this precious biome. We are often mistaken and think that conservation efforts are only required in foreign countries to protect exotic and charismatic species. However, there is wildlife near us that is in need of our help too. It is important that we as San Diegans communicate and appreciate the dyer circumstances faced by this habitat and its wildlife.

Wildfires caused by humans are a major cause of the loss of the coastal sage scrub so it is important that we be careful and make informed decisions. By putting trash where it belongs in the garbage and disposing of hazardous waste properly help to reduce pollution and fire hazards. It is our responsibility to preserve this local biome in order to keep our county as productive as it should be. After all, conservation starts in our own backyard.

Jonah, Real World Team

When we walked towards our session with Geographic Information Systems at the Zoo, we were not really sure of what to expect. I mean, it is at the Zoo, but it does not

quite relate to biology, and animals are not directly involved. As soon as we sat down we were handed paper, pencils, and a map. We were then thrown for a loop when Tod Chee, GIS Specialists asks, “So how’s your math?” The paper and maps we were given are used by specialists at the zoo for topographical surveys. We then learned firsthand how they turn a surface map into an exhibit.
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Jean-Pierre Montagne, senior research technician at the Diego Zoo’s Institute for Conservation Research, taught and showed us the importance of maintaining biodiversity. Biodiversity refers to the variety of life within an ecosystem, for example the coastal sage scrub ecosystem. A wide collection of life within an ecosystem boosts productivity of the area, and ensures that it will be able to rebound after a disaster. Every species plays a role in an ecosystem, even down to the microorganisms living in the soil.

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mountain yellow-legged frogs

The term “guardian” typically applies to people such as parents, police officers or bodyguards. Of course, there are other types of guardians, and I met one in what may seem like a surprising place: the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park.

This guardian is Jean-Pierre Montagne, a senior research technician at the San Diego Zoo’s Institute for Conservation Research. Mr. Montagne holds a bachelor’s degree in ecology and evolution and has been working for the Zoological Society of San Diego since 1995 and has experience in other science fields besides animal ecology, including animal behavior and pathology. Now he works primarily in studying and protecting the biodiversity (variety of plant and animal life) in the area surrounding the Wild Animal Park.  Read the rest of this entry »

Zoo InternQuest is a career exploration program for high school students.

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It’s been my experience that Murphy’s Law (anything that can happen, will happen) is not only true, but is an active part of my life. On the same day Zoo Internquest planned to visit the Reptile House, my mom called me with the news that she had rescued a large tortoise, which was now residing in the back seat of her car. The next half hour was a frantic rush as I got the tortoise settled in a temporary house and then headed for the Zoo. As I hurried toward the Reptile House, I was eager to meet the best people possible to identify our find: the reptile keepers!   
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The first thing we noticed when waking into the Reptile House at the San Diego Zoo was the heat. The facility is kept at a high temperature to accommodate all of its ,

inhabitants, most of which would normally live in much warmer places than San Diego. But as we follow Brett Baldwin, the senior keeper, through the maze of cages and terrariums, we begin to notice what is special about the species inside.
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During our trip to the Paul Harter Veterinary Medical Center, we met with Dr. Russ Burns, an associate veterinarian with the Zoological Soicety of San Diego. Dr. Burns has loved animals since he was young and always knew he wanted to be a veterinarian. He received a degree in biology at the University of Wisconsin at Green Bay and went on to four years of veterinary school in Madison. It was in vet school where he realized that he wanted to work with wildlife and nondomestic animals. I found it interesting that because of his schooling, he can practice almost any type of veterinary medicine he chooses. Before coming to the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park, he completed an internship at a zoo in Washington, D.C., taught at the University of Wisconsin, and worked for a variety of zoos across the country.
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