Good-bye Harriet

The zoo lost a longtime member of its collection last Thursday. Harriet the Caribbean flamingo had been at Como Zoo since 1970. She was an adult when she arrived here, making her over 40 years old! Harriet is quite famous in the medical world having survived several bouts of cancer resulting in both of her middle toes being amputated. She also went through radiation treatment at the University of Minnesota as part of her cancer treatment. Veterinarians and zoo keepers alike were unsure if she was going to be able to stand and walk when her first toe was amputated in 1999, but Harriet proved to be a trooper and was put back in with the rest of the flamigo flock once her wounds healed. When the cancer came back in her other foot in 2002, again it was unsure if she would be able to stand now that both middle toes were removed, but again Harriet proved to be a tough bird and was once again reunited with the flock. In 2003 we discovered cancer in the inner toe of her right foot. Since she would not be able to stand with only one toe, Harriet went through a series of radiation treatments at the University of Minnesota to reduce the size of the tumor in her foot. She again was returned to the flock. Recently though, zoo keepers had noticed a decrease in Harriet's appetite as well as difficulty standing. Bloodwork showed a systemic infection as well as an abnormality in her heart. After much discussion, the decision was made to put her down. To try to cure her of the problems she was facing would have caused her too much stress as well as a lifetime of treatment and never getting to go out to the Bird Yard again. We are all sad to lose Harriet, she was a great bird and will be missed.

Photo by Jennifer Gleason

The most popular exhibit at the zoo!

I don't know what the fascination is, but visitors to the zoo love to watch zoo keepers work. This past weekend the aquatics keepers and I were in the empty island exhibit breaking up the ice and sweeping up leaves preparing to get seal island open for the season. At times there were larger crowds watching us clean and taking pictures of us then there were at exhibits with actual animals! Zoo keepers are very used to the comments of "what kind of animal are you?" or "Look, a human exhibit!" We've heard most of them before, but that doesn't stop people from saying them. I enjoy getting the more unique comments like "look at the beautiful plummage on that one" or "look a hippie preserve!" Good to know we can entertain the visitors even without animals.

St. Patrick's Day Fun in the Primate Building

Holidays are always a great time in the primate building at Como Zoo because we get to do fun enrichment for the animals. At Christmas, they'll get gift wrapped boxes, for New Year's they'll get party hats and noisemakers. This year for St. Patrick's Day, I went to the store and purchased several festive hats and cups. The primates' morning diet filled the cups as well as green jello and green Gatorade. The hats were placed in the orangutans' and tamarin exhibits and as you can see by the pictures, were a big hit. Jaya ended up wearing one hat and looked like a little leprechaun. Every one is a little bit Irish on St. Patrick's Day, even the monkeys!

Gorillas in the snow

This past weekend was simply gorgeous! The warm weather brought crowds of visitors to Como Zoo and allowed us the opportunity to let the gorillas outside for some fresh air and sunshine. All three came out quickly and while it appeared they didn't really like standing in the snow, they made there way up the rocks in the exhibit grabbing handfuls of snow to munch on and sat on their wooden structure to watch the crowds. It didn't take long until the entire exhibit was ringed with visitors all watching the boys enjoy their "snow cones".

We will be able to let them out for a few more days until the ground starts to thaw then they will have to stay on their inside exhibit until the ground dries in the outside yard.

Mr. Tarantula, are you ready for your close up?

This past week photographer Nathan Lovas, http://www.nathanlovas.com/ came to Como Zoo to do a photo shoot. Many of the animals that are used for education were brought up to the "studio" that had been set up in one of the classrooms. Some were more eager to participate than others. BJ the penguin was a bit shy at first, but eventually began to work the camera. Consuela the armadillo was a superstar and uncurled for the camera in record time. The rainbow boa was a bit more difficult to work with as the feel of the fabric from the backdrop must have felt a bit odd on her scales. The best client by far was the versicolor tarantula. Having just recently molted, her coloration was beautiful and she held perfectly still while Nathan shot frame after frame of her. We are planning on doing another session and bringing more animals for Nathan to photograph. I can't wait to see the final pictures.

Daniel J. Cox

Daniel J. Cox is visiting Como for the opening of the Polar Bear Arctic Ambassador Photo Exhibition this weekend. He is doing public presentations Saturday, March 7 at 10:30 & 12:00 for FREE.

Radio call number retires with zoo keeper

This Friday we will bid a fond farewell to one of Como Zoo's longest working zoo keepers. Roger R. has been working for Como Zoo since 1967! Roger has worked with a wide variety of animals over the four decades he's been with Como, everything from aardvarks to zebras. Roger has a calming presence that animals respond to. He is always able to get animals to come in from exhibits, eat when they aren't feeling well, and just do what he wants.

To honor Roger, Como Zoo has decided to retire his radio call number, Z-9. He was the original Z-9 since the use of radios for communication at the zoo and all the staff agreed that it just wouldn't seem right to give that number to anyone else.

To commemorate this occassion, a banner was made for him and a duplicate will be displayed at the zoo. All of the keepers at Como Zoo hope that Roger enjoys his retirement. We will miss him terribly, but are happy that he is able to go on to the next chapter in his life.