Archive for the ‘Birds’ Category

Dec
26

12 Days of Grub: Day 12 – Twelve Flamingos Flocking

Posted by in Birds,Gift of Grub,Holidays

On the Twelfth Day of Grub, your zoo gift will help to feed…Twelve Flamingos Flocking, Eleven Meerkats Mobbing, Ten Chimps a Chasing, Nine Fruit Bats Flying, Eight Giraffes a Galloping, Seven Snakes a Slithering, Six Mole-rats Mining, Five Golden Frogs, Four Calling Birds, Three Wild Dogs, Two Grizzly Bears, and Darwin the Cassowary! CLICK HERE to read them all!

Chilean Flamingos Feeding at the Houston Zoo

 

Here at the Houston Zoo, one of the most beautiful sights is our large flock of Chilean Flamingos. These brightly-colored birds are social, vocal and highly interesting. Amazingly, the size of our flock is nothing compared to the spectacular gatherings these birds would naturally form in the wild; Chilean Flamingos are known to form flocks numbering into the thousands!

 

Flamingos have grooves along the edges of their beaks used for filtering small food items from the water

Without question, one of the most intriguing aspects of these unique birds is the way they feed. Flamingos have a specialized beak designed to help “filter” small plants and animals out of the water, which are then consumed and metabolized to create the striking pink coloration! Flamingos will take in a mouth full of water (along with whatever happens to be in the water), and then use their tongue to push all the water through special grooves on their beak. The result is a mouthful of food that these birds will then eat!

Here at the Houston Zoo, our flamingos are fed a variety of different pelleted diets (depending on the time of year and their current metabolic needs). These pellets are made to be nutritionally complete, which could easily help contribute to the fact that several of our flamingos are in their forties and fifties!  Our flamingos also receive krill, a small species of shrimp that is relished as a treat.

A large group of animals can prove to be ravenous; Chilean Flamingos are no exception. Our flock of birds readily eats through 50+ cups of pelleted diet per day. In addition, 5lbs of krill per week are consumed by our flamingos. When temperatures hit lows in the winter, these amounts are increased to keep up with the metabolic needs of these amazing birds.

Give the Gift of Grub by December 31 to help provide our flamingos and the rest of the Zoo’s 6,000 animal residents with all the tasty and nutritious grub they need to stay happy and healthy in the New Year! 

Thank you to TXU Energy for generously matching the first $25,000 in donations this year!

Tags: , , , , ,
Dec
07

12 Days of Grub: Day 4 – Four Calling Birds

Posted by in Birds,Gift of Grub,Holidays

On the Fourth Day of Grub, your zoo gift will help to feed…Four Calling Birds (Kookaburras to be exact), Three Wild Dogs, Two Grizzly Bears, and Darwin the Cassowary! CLICK HERE to read them all!

Blue-winged Kookaburra

Anyone who has watched a television show or movie filmed in a tropical location has undoubtedly heard the call of a Laughing Kookaburra (Dacelo novaguineae). While these birds are only found in certain areas of Australia and New Zealand, the call of this bird has become synonymous with untamed wilds and is often added to the soundtrack to create a more “natural” feel. Less melodic but much more visually-striking, our Blue-winged Kookaburras (Dacelo leachii) are also favorites amongst our guests.

The call of a kookaburra may in fact be one of the most interesting things about these birds, with a great deal of myth associated with the vocalization. Aboriginal legend tells us that the Kookaburra is a messenger for the Earth, using a powerful call to alert the Earth of the lighting of the great fire in the sky. In actuality kookaburras will call for a variety of reasons (including territoriality and excitement), and these early morning calls are typically used to assert territorial boundaries. However, this myth does indicate the majesty of the call and the reverence it has inspired.

However, kookaburras have a great many other interesting attributes. While they may appear somewhat fluffy and cuddly, these birds are in fact accomplished predators. Kookaburras consume large food items by beating the prey against a rock or log to break down bones and make the food item easier to swallow.

Laughing Kookaburra

At the Houston Zoo, our birds receive a wide variety of food items to keep them interested in their food and also ensure their nutritional well-being. Our birds eat mice, chicken chicks, anoles (small lizards), crickets, mealworms, smelt, walking sticks and a specialized ground meat diet to ensure optimum feather condition! In the course of a month, these four birds can eat:

  • 50 Mice
  • 50 Anoles
  • 16 Chicken Chicks

A variety of insects are also readily accepted by these ravenous birds. Our Keepers at the Houston Zoo also perform regularly-scheduled feedings so that our guests can learn even more about these fascinating birds. Our Laughing Kookaburras and Blue-winged Kookaburras are on-exhibit daily at Birds of the World, a large outdoor area showing off some of our most interesting feathered residents!

Give the Gift of Grub this holiday season to help provide tasty meals for our Kookaburras and all of the animals at the Houston Zoo!  Between now and December 31, TXU Energy has generously agreed to match all donations, up to $25,000 total, so your gift could go TWICE as far.  That’ll give our birds something to call about.

Tags: , , , ,
Nov
27

A Rainbow in the Swap Shop??

Posted by in Birds,Children's Zoo

Yes indeed there was a rainbow in the Swap Shop.  But this was Rainbo the Electus Parrot.  Rainbo is one of our animal ambassadors here at the  Houston Zoo and often comes out for presentations.  He knows quite a few behaviors and recently spent some time in the swap shop, to the delight of our guests.

Rainbo painting with trainer Amber Zelmer

One of his favorite learned behaviors is painting.  His trainer dips the brush in paint and then Rainbo holds it in his beak and sweeps the brush across the canvas.  He is quite artistic and has his own distinctive  style.   Rainbo is also quite a talker and knows more than a dozen different words and phrases.   He does several animal imitations including cat, dog, snake, and his newest imitation, monkey. 

An interesting thing about  the Eclectus Parrot is that the male and female are VERY different in appearance.  While you can see Ranbo is a beautiful green – the females are a bright scarlet red.  This is called sexual dimorphism.  Electus parrots are so sexually dimorphic that they were thought to be two different species for a long time.

 

You never know who you will see in the Naturally Wild Swap Shop.  Don’t know about the Swap Shop?  Click here for more information. 

 

Tags: , ,
Nov
26

Spotlight on Species: Vultures!

Posted by in Birds,Spotlight on Species

Did you know the Houston Zoo has a pair of Cinereous vultures? They are located right across from the furthest elephant habitat, which is next to our okapis. They have big bodies and cool blue heads.  We also have King vultures in our Fischer bird garden closer to where our sea lions are.

If you haven’t been, you have to come meet them. And to that end, on Saturday, December 3 we’re having a very special day that you might just want to check out! Visit our website for a chedule of Keeper Talks, games and activities.

One of our two cinereous vultures, with their beautiful bright blue coloring

While turkey and black vultures seem so abundant to us here, vulture species around the world range from threatened to critically endangered. By spotlighting our ambassador species of King and Cinereous vultures here at the Houston Zoo, we can bring the ongoing plight to the attention of the public.

The King vulture

The Cambodia Vulture Conservation Project has been since 2004 to restore a healthy population of the three species of critically endangered species of vultures found there.  They are currently the only Asian country to have an increase in their numbers. All proceeds from The Houston Zoo’s celebration of International Vulture Awareness Day will go towards helping them continue to fight the battle.

Come by the vulture enclosure on Saturday, December 3 to enjoy interactive activities for  kids of all ages, as well as educational keeper chats and feedings.

Written by Jessica Clark, Bird Supervisor

Tags: , , , , , ,
Nov
25

12 Days of Grub: Day 1 – Darwin the Cassowary

Posted by in Birds,Gift of Grub,Holidays

Sing along with us!  On the First Day of Grub, your zoo gift will help to feed… Darwin the Cassowary!  (Who needs a partridge in a pear tree, when you’ve got a bird that can eat a pear in one gulp!?)

Our Double-wattled Cassowary, Darwin, may be the most notorious chow hound at the Houston Zoo.

Darwin weighs in at 110 pounds and eats 11 pounds of food daily.  His diet consists of a wide variety of fruit (strawberries are his favorite), vegetables, and a special dry pellet diet, that smells and looks a little like guinea pig food!   That’s over 4000 pounds of food a year, about the weight of a fully grown male elephant!

Darwin doesn’t just eat a TON (or two!) of food, he can eat very large pieces of fruit as well.  He doesn’t chew or break up his food very often; he just tips his head back and swallows the food whole. Check him out:

Due to their impressive eating talents, cassowaries in the wild are known as a keynote species in their native rainforests.  These birds are the only known animals who can distribute the seeds of over 70 different kinds of trees whose fruit is too large to be swallowed by any other animal.

Not only that, but there are 80 species of plants whose seeds have such a high toxicity that only the cassowary can eat and distribute these fruits!  Cassowaries are aided in this by the relatively shortest and fastest digestive system in the bird world, a powerful liver, and a very unique set of stomach enzymes.

This super fast digestion means that very often, fruit will pass through Darwin’s system before being fully digested.  Cassowaries practice coprophagic behavior…let’s just say they recycle the undigested pieces of food.  Waste not, want not!

To see just how quickly Darwin can eat, you must watch this nail-biting video of a peach eating contest between Darwin and his keepers.  It may not end the way you would guess!

 

Give the Gift of Grub this holiday season to help provide tasty meals for Darwin and all of the animals at the Houston Zoo!  Between now and December 31, TXU Energy has generously agreed to match all donations, up to $25,000 total, so your gift could go TWICE as far.  That means you could help provide TWICE the peaches for Darwin!

Tags: , , ,
Oct
28

Meet the Staff: Mollie Coym

Posted by in Behind the Scenes,Birds,Featured,Meet the Staff

Hometown: Houston, TX

Department/Title: Senior Bird Keeper

How long have you worked at the Houston Zoo? About 5 years.

How long have you worked in your field? Over 8 years

Favorite Animals: Blue and Gold Macaw; Attwater’s Prairie Chickens

Do you have any animals at home?: I have a Blue and Gold Macaw named Trinity.

Quote:

“Life is infinitely stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent.” – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Special Interests: I like to travel and I’m a 4th degree black belt in martial arts.

What made you want to be a zookeeper?

I had many pets as a kid and always loved animals…basically, it just seemed like a fun job!

Education/Training: I earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Houston in 2002. I’m working on a Master’s from George Mason University in Zoo and Aquarium Leadership.

Previous Jobs: I worked at the Downtown Aquarium for two years and Moody Gardens for one year. I also volunteered at the Houston Zoo for a while.  I came to the Houston Zoo because I really enjoyed working with the great people and animals.

What advice would you give to anyone wanting to be a zookeeper?

Volunteer or intern in a department with animals you think you’d like to work with.  This will give you hands on experience and lets you see if it is really something you want to pursue as a career.

What’s your favorite animal story?

One of the bird species I work with is the endangered Attwater’s Prairie Chicken.  This year we received the exciting news that several birds successfully raised and fledged chicks in the wild.  Since the captive breeding program started in the early 1990′s, many of the captive raised birds have been released to the Attwater’s Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, Texas City Prairie Preserve, and private land in Goliad, Texas. While many of these birds have made nests, laid eggs, and hatched chicks, this is the first time released birds in the wild have raised and fledged their own young.  This is great news for the captive breeding and release program because it proves that captive raised Attwater’s Prairie Chickens have the ability to be productive in the wild.

 

Tags: , , , ,
Sep
23

Animal Enrichment: Well, They Certainly Have Something to Say About That…

Posted by in Birds,Enrichment,Events

People like to watch animals actively engaged in their environment – it’s true. It’s my opinion that natural behaviors are so inviting because they create the feeling of being somewhere special. Particularly when observed in the presence of our beautifully kept and planted grounds, animals presenting natural behaviors gives the feeling of being somewhere “wild.”

For our part, keepers do our best to encourage a variety of natural behaviors. Not only is it beneficial for our guests to see the amazing natural behaviors that cause us to love every minute of our jobs, it’s enormously beneficial to provide for the mental and physical wellness of our animals by providing enrichment opportunities. Did you know that an effective enrichment program can help to stabilize fluctuating weight, help with mild health concerns and even encourage breeding in some species? It really is that important to the overall well-being of our animals.

These are our Grey-winged Trumpeters (Psophia crepitans) utilizing a basic puzzle feeder. Such items are wonderful because they make enriching animals a much more viable possibility. The simple fact is that there are only so many hours in a day, and when keepers are responsible for such a diverse animal collection (more than 800 avian residents in our bird department, alone!) such readily prepared items are nothing less than magical.

Enrichment Day at the Houston Zoo is Saturday, September 24th.  This is a great opportunity to come and join in the fun.  Come out and see all of the animals enjoying special enrichment, hear keeper chats and loads of  fun games for kids of all ages!  Enrichment Day celebrates the meaning and joy of enriching our animals and visitors!

Find your favorite animals and see what they’re wishing for at Amazon.com. Then just sit back, shop, click and send your animal of choice a wonderful gift to enrich their life!  They really do appreciate it and so does the Houston Zoo!

Tags: , , , ,
Sep
02

St. Vincent Parrots: Who’s Who at the Houston Zoo

Posted by in Birds,Spotlight on Species

One important part of animal care at any zoo is being able to know which animal is which.  In the bird department, where many birds look the same, we accomplish this through leg bands – small plastic or metal bands with different letters and numbers that fit around the leg like a bracelet.  Some larger birds like the St. Vincent Amazon Parrots also have a small, permanent microchip that can be scanned with a special device, much like scanning groceries at the self-checkout line at the grocery store.

But the St.Vincent Parrots have one other way that keepers use more often that the rest: they can be told apart by the pattern of colors on their faces.  Like the human fingerprint, the pattern of each parrot’s face is unique. 

Chatoyer

Bequia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For example, the above two birds live in the same enclosure.  Female “Bequia” has a solid yellow face with broad areas of yellow and white wrapping all the way around under and over her eyes.  Her mate “Chatoyer” has much more blue on his face, in particular a large faint blue area under his eyes starting at this base of his beak and blue directly behind and above his eyes.  Can you see the difference?

To learn how keepers tell the rest of the St. Vincent Amazon Parrot flock apart, join us for our Spotlight on Species on Sunday, September 4th from 11 AM until 3 PM at the St. Vincent building (near Stormy the bird bank).

 Written by Rene Ryan, Mollie Coym, and Danny Keel, Bird Keepers

Tags: , , , ,
Aug
31

Animal Enrichment: Who Does the Parrot Want to Call?

Posted by in Birds,Enrichment,Events

As a child, I absolutely hated macaroni art. The act of gluing food parts to a sheet of paper seemed to me designed as some form of punishment, designed to punish me by having small pieces of pasta glued up and down my arms. Many other craft activities seemed to be along a similar thread, a waste of time with no real purpose. Being a zookeeper, I’ve had to re-evaluate my feelings because of a need to enrich a wide variety of animals.

 Animal care staff are fairly crafty people – we have to be. The simple fact of the matter is that a variety of crafts open up doors to creating new ways to interact with our animals and encourage natural responses. Being able to create our own enrichment has a variety of benefits:

 1) Purchasing enrichment pieces for all of our animals is simply not an option. With an animal collection numbering into the thousands, keepers at the Houston Zoo utilize their craftiness to come up with our own unique enrichment ideas for a fraction of the cost of purchased items.

 2) Items to be purchased are not necessarily meant for the wide array of exotic animals that are housed at the Houston Zoo. While there are a variety of objects available to encourage interaction, they are typically designed with more domestic species in mind. Designed objects can be created with a variety of animals in mind.

 3) Utilizing our creativity is a way for keepers to create many more nrichment opportunities than would normally be available. We can decide to change enrichment items to focus on different sensations or different natural behaviors.

　

This is our Pesquet’s Parrot (Psittrichas fulgidus) interacting with a phone book. As a novel item, this enrichment encourages a great deal of natural curiosity and observation. This bird is clearly observing the item from every feasible angle before finally reaching out to explore further using the nerve-laden tongue of a parrot.

 

 Want to help further? We also have a wish list of items that many people throw away in the course of their day; some days, these few small items can make all the difference in the world in helping to create a “new” zoo everyday

Enrichment Day at the Houston Zoo is Saturday, September 24th.  This is a great opportunity to come and join in the fun.  Come out and see all of the animals enjoying special enrichment, hear keeper chats and loads of  fun games for kids of all ages!  Enrichment Day celebrates the meaning and joy of enriching our animals and visitors!

Find your favorite animals and see what they’re wishing for at Amazon.com. Then just sit back, shop, click and send your animal of choice a wonderful gift to enrich their life!  They really do appreciate it and so does the Houston Zoo!

Tags: , , , ,
Aug
26

Spotlight on Species: The St.Vincent Parrot’s Home

Posted by in Birds,Events,Spotlight on Species

The St. Vincent Amazon Parrot (Amazona guildingii) is found on the small, volcanic, Caribbean island of St. Vincent.  The island of St. Vincent is part of the country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.  Houston is more than four times the size of St. Vincent!  This small island is the only place in the world that the St. Vincent Amazon Parrot is found in the wild.

The Caribbean, where the nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines is located.

The St. Vincent Amazon Parrot is listed as a vulnerable species, with less than 800 left in the wild.  The Houston Zoo has housed St. Vincent Amazon Parrots since 1967 and is currently the only zoo in North America to do so.

The Houston Zoo hatched Vincent Deuxieme in 2008

To learn more about this exotic species, their habitat, and their history on the island of St. Vincent, join us on Sunday, September 4th from 11 AM until 3 PM at the St. Vincent building (near Stormy the bird bank) for our Spotlight on the Species.

Keepers will be hosting fun activities about the island and the St. Vincent Parrot, including a volcano demonstration, flag creation station, face painting and more.  The keepers will also be there to answer any questions you may have about this special parrot.

This is one of the most beautiful birds, and your very own Houston Zoo is the only place they can be seen in all of North America so please mark your calendars and join us!

Written by Senior Bird Keeper Mollie Coym

Tags: , , , , ,

Older Posts »