Category Archives: Animal Photos

Twin Baby Sea Lions at SeaWorld

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Twin sea lion pups at SeaWorld

On June 17, 2012, twin sea lions were born at SeaWorld Orlando. The pups, and mom, Fable, are doing well. This is the first time twin sea lions have been born at the park.

Last week, SeaWorld Orlando welcomed two bundles of joy: twin baby sea lions! The pair were born to mother Fable, who is nearly 14 years old. Sea lions usually give birth to only one pup at a time, so this is a very rare occurrence in the animal world.

The pups will nurse from their mother until they are between 6-12 months old.

Orangutans Use iPads to Communicate

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Orangutan using iPad

An orangutan uses an iPad at Miami's Jungle Island. Photo by Associated Press.

At Miami’s Jungle Island, the iPad is a huge hit with young orangutans.  They use the handheld computer tablets to draw, play games, and learn new words.

This exposure to technology is part of the zoo’s mental stimulus program. The hope is to increase communication between humans and apes.  Keepers have long used sign language to communicate with orangutans, but the iPad allows people who don’t know sign language to communicate as well.

Orangutans are highly intelligent creatures, but they lack the ability to talk.  According to Linda Jacobs, who oversees the program at Jungle Island, “They are sort of trapped in those bodies. They have the intelligence that they need to communicate, but they don’t have the right equipment, because they don’t have voice boxes or vocal cords. So this gives them a way to let us know what they know, what they are capable of, what they would like to have.”

For more info, see:

To learn more about orangutans, see Animal Fact Guide’s article: Bornean Orangutan.

Mongoose Lemur Twins at Busch Gardens

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Busch Gardens Tampa welcomed a pair of mongoose lemur twins earlier this month! The babies were born to mother Rosalita and father Guillermo. The gender of the new babies has not yet been determined. However, around 6-8 months, mongoose lemurs develop distinguishing characteristics based on their sex. Males start to change color and will grow a red “beard.” Females develop a white beard and have a darker face.

In the wild, mongoose lemurs are considered vulnerable of extinction. They inhabit the island of Madagascar, the native habitat of all species of lemurs. But they are unique in that they are one of two species also found outside of Madagascar, specifically on the Comoros Islands, which are located between Madagascar and Africa.

Mongoose lemur and baby

Rosalita and one of her twins.

Mongoose lemur baby

New arrival: Mongoose lemur baby

Mongoose lemurs

Proud parents Rosalita and Guillermo. Did you know that mongoose lemurs make oinking sounds similar to pigs?

(Photos by Matt Marriott/Busch Gardens Tampa Bay)

 

Young Zoo Visitor Saves Penguin Egg

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On April 3rd, a baby Humboldt penguin hatched at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, Washington. But as the bird was hatching, a young visitor, around 7-8 years old, spotted a second egg exposed on a cliff within an exhibit. The egg was in danger of being knocked off the cliff or being eaten by a crow or seagull. He informed a zookeeper, who then rushed the egg to a pair of foster parents. The little penguin hatched two days later.

The zoo would like to properly thank the boy for saving the baby penguin.  They ask that you email woodlandparkzoopr@zoo.org if you know the identity of the young hero.

Penguin chick at the Woodland Park Zoo

Penguin chick at the Woodland Park Zoo. Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo.

In the wild, Humboldt penguins live along the coast of Peru and Chile.  They are considered vulnerable of extinction by the IUCN Redlist.  Threats include fishing nets, illegal pet trade, over-exploitation of guano (which the penguins use for nesting), and pollution.

For more info about the Humboldt penguin chicks, see the Woodland Park Zoo blog.

Baby Aardvark at Busch Gardens

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On March 26, Busch Gardens welcomed a new baby aardvark!  The newborn currently weighs 4.8 pounds, but it is estimated to grow more than 120 pounds within its first year.   The baby is being cared for by the animal care team behind the scenes at Jambo Junction.  Check back at Busch Gardens’ Facebook page to find out when the little aardvark will make its public debut.

Baby aardvark at Busch Gardens

Baby aardvark at Busch Gardens

In the wild, aardvarks are solitary and elusive. They inhabit various ecosystems south of the Sahara in Africa, and they feed mainly on ants and termites.  They are adept diggers, capturing their prey underground and creating burrows to rest in during the day.  Because other animals use these burrows for shelter, the aardvark is considered a keystone species.

SeaWorld Rescues Two Endangered Baby Turtles

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SeaWorld Orlando‘s animal rescue team is currently caring for two hawksbill turtle hatchlings.  Both are about two months old. One of the babies was found in a weakened, lethargic state on Melbourne Beach in Florida by a tourist.  The other hatchling was found on Cocoa Beach covered in algae and fauna.

Baby hawksbill turtle found lethargic on Melbourne Beach.

Baby hawksbill turtle found lethargic on Melbourne Beach.

Baby hawksbill turtle found on Cocoa Beach covered in algae and fauna.

Baby hawksbill turtle found on Cocoa Beach covered in algae and fauna.

SeaWorld turtle experts (or aquarists), are monitoring and caring for the turtles around the clock. The hatchlings are living in a brooder (a heated shelter) which is kept at a constant 84 degrees F. Although recovery will be tough, the turtles are showing positive signs.

Hawksbill turtles are considered critically endangered by the IUCN Redlist due to loss of habitat and human exploitation.

Zoo Pals: A Gorilla and a Rabbit

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Gorilla and rabbit

Zoo pals: Samantha the gorilla and Panda the bunny. Photo by: Greg Wohlford/Erie Times-News

What do you get when you pair an elderly zoo gorilla with a rabbit? At the Erie Zoo in Pennsylvania, you get a friendship.

Samantha, a 47 year-old western lowland gorilla, was in need of companionship after her “roommate” Rudy, a male gorilla, died in 2005. Zoo keepers decided she was too frail and old to have another gorilla companion, so they introduced her to Panda, a Dutch rabbit.

The two unlikely friends hit it off. Samantha gently pets Panda, and they share food.

According to zoo director Cindy Kreider, “To have something sharing their space that they can observe and interact with is always going to be beneficial.”

For more information, see:
Seattle Pi
GoErie.com

Bret Michaels Meets Harry the Sloth

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Singer and reality TV star Bret Michaels had a photo op with Busch Gardens’ own “hair rocker,” Harry the sloth, on Sunday at the Bands, Brew & BBQ festival. Harry, a two-toed sloth, is the most popular member of Busch Gardens’ Animal Ambassadors team.

Bret Michaels and Harry the sloth

In the wild, sloths inhabit the rainforests of Central and South America.  They have a symbiotic relationship with algae, which grows on their fur. The green tint of the algae helps camouflage the sloths among the trees.

 

Rare Sumatran Rhino is Pregnant

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Ratu the Sumatran rhino

Ratu, a rare Sumatran rhino, is pregnant!

In February 2010, we posted about Ratu, a rare Sumatran rhino, being pregnant. Unfortunately, she miscarried after two months. However, the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary in Indonesia has announced that Ratu is pregnant again! Currently, she is in her eleventh month of gestation. Her pregnancy will most likely last another four or five months.

To help prevent Ratu from miscarrying again, sanctuary staff give her a hormone supplement daily. Within the sanctuary, she is free to roam and graze in a large forested area with natural plants and mud, just as she would in the wild.

Ratu was originally a wild rhino. She was taken into the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary, which offers 250 acres of protected land, after coming in contact with villagers nearby. Andalas, who mated with Ratu last year to produce this recent pregnancy, was a captively-bred rhino from the Cincinnati Zoo.

Sumatran rhinos are in grave danger of becoming extinct. According to the International Rhino Foundation:

The Sumatran rhino is one of the world’s most critically endangered species, numbering no more than 200 individuals in Indonesia and Malaysia. The species is seriously threatened by the continuing loss of its tropical forest habitat and hunting pressure from poachers, who kill rhinos for their valuable horns. Every Sumatran rhino birth – in the wild, in a zoo or in a special sanctuary – represents hope for the survival of this species, which runs the risk of going extinct by the end of this century.

Learn more at the International Rhino Foundation website.