Welcome our new litter of lion cubs!

African lioness Kiki gave birth to her first litter of cubs on May 31. Animal Management staff continues to monitor Kiki and cubs closely; so far, the 4-year-old lioness appears to be taking excellent care of her three new arrivals, estimated to have been between 3 and 5 pounds at birth. The cubs are the first African lions born at Zoo Atlanta in over 10 years.

Stay tuned as exciting new chapters unfold in three precious young lives, and be patient as Kiki helps her offspring get their start! Zoo staff anticipates that the cubs will be introduced to Members and guests when they are between 7 and 12 weeks old.

Wartful congratulations to Vern and Shirley on the birth of their first piglet

Georgia P is a miniature of her mama – tiny tusks and all – and she’s a different breed of adorable! Born on April 14, the little one made her outdoor debut on May 17. See her and her proud parents today in the African Plains!

Best wishes, Kashata!

On March 20, Kashata the western lowland gorilla traveled to Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando, where she will join a new gorilla family per recommendation of the Gorilla Species Survival Plan. The 15-year-old female had a familiar friendly face, Primate Keeper Kristina Krickbaum, with her on her trip to Florida. Congratulations to Kristina and the Primate Department for the months of hard work and training that led to Kashata’s successful trip and safe arrival as she embarks on an exciting new chapter.

Welcome back, Bioko!

	Inge with the newborn Bioko

Bioko, the first drill born at Zoo Atlanta, has returned to her birthplace. Born to the Zoo’s highly successful drill pair, Inge and the late Adonis, in 1992, Bioko grew up in Atlanta, later moving to the Columbus Zoo as a young adult. Zoo Atlanta regularly cooperates with fellow AZA-accredited institutions on species survival, often by transferring animals to other organizations for breeding opportunities. After Bioko arrived in Columbus, however, the complex natural behaviors of her highly social species made integration into her new group challenging. In the wild, drills live in family troops numbering 20 or more individuals, each with his or her own status within the hierarchy. When it became apparent that Bioko, never highly ranked within her Columbus troop, wasn’t likely to ever be fully accepted by other group members, it was recommended that she be re-introduced to her Georgia relatives.

Animal care staff welcomed the firstborn of Inge and Adonis back to the Zoo in late November. Now that she has completed her routine quarantine period, Bioko will have opportunities to get reacquainted with her mother and siblings in 2008.

Home on the African Plains

Here a waterbuck family, there ostrich, Thomson’s gazelle and crowned crane, small herds of giraffe and zebra … it’s not Africa, but it’s a remarkable recreation here on Zoo Atlanta’s African Plains. After the arrival of two lofty new ladies and a series of species-to-species introductions, the Zoo’s entire complement of savanna animals are now roaming their habitat together. Don’t miss Abu the reticulated giraffe getting to know his female companions Mona and Glenda; Members and guests can expect an entertaining journey as this young herd grows up together.

Outback Station staff spot Joey #4

Experienced mother Uluru the red kangaroo has yet another joey on the way, confirmed by an unusual sighting by Outback Station staff. Kangaroo joeys are rarely seen at this stage in their development; the tiny creature, barely larger than a bumblebee, was spotted crawling to Uluru’s pouch to attach itself to nurse.

In preparation for supporting her newest addition, Uluru recently denied her third joey access to her pouch. The youngster, who seemed no worse for the wear after his “eviction,” busies himself with playing, hopping and speeding through the kangaroos’ Outback Station habitat, returning frequently to his mother to nurse. Thanks to uniquely adapted reproductive systems, kangaroo mothers can accommodate a nursing joey and a developing embryo at the same time.

Thursday, July 17

One of the questions we often get when we are having our birds fly in the wildlife shows is, "Can't they just fly away?" The short answer is "yes." But why don't they? We spend so much time training the animals in the department that they learn to associate positive things with trainers. We feed them, and when they fly where we ask they get food rewards; it's a very simple system with very tangible rewards. Yet every once in a while, one of our feathered friends still goes AWOL.

Many of you might remember when our Harris hawk left the Zoo for about a month last year. We did get him back, and he wasn't far from the Zoo, which he knows as his territory. I was pondering what to write for today's update when I started thinking about how even just yesterday Jasper, our black vulture, flew out of the theater and onto the main Zoo walkway during a show. We didn't panic, and we used food rewards and the familiar keepers and feed gloves to get him home again. We suspect he just was enjoying himself outside and didn't want to go home. But he didn't go far, and he knew we would keep him safe and have a reward for him, so we were able to get him into his enclosure easily.

Sometimes it's not so easy. About a month ago Quincy, our Eurasian eagle owl, was startled during a show and flew away. We had no idea where. But since as a safety measure we always attach a radio telemetry device to our flighted birds, we were able to use equipment to track him down. We found him in a tree looking over the African savanna yard. He was scared, so it took several hours to encourage him to come down, but we knew that he would come to us for food and safety. And sure enough, about 7 p.m. that night he came out of the tree and to a staff member's glove for food.

So can we stop them from flying away? Only by not having shows at all. Instead, we use technology, training and a great deal of trust to build strong relationships with our avian performers. So no, nothing stops them from flying away. Trust and rewards keep any that stray coming home.

Jay Pratte
Lead Keeper, Program Animals

Tuesday, July 15

There are a lot of exciting things happening in the bird world right now! As last reported, the Chilean flamingo breeding season had begun, and today, we’re hatching out flamingo chicks. We have a long way to go until they’re on exhibit (see James Ballance’s update from June 24 for more on how we rear the chicks), but all are doing well and growing fast!

The Bird Department has also just welcomed a fantastic new species to Zoo Atlanta! Two lappet-faced vultures arrived last week on loan from other AZA institutions and are settling into their new surroundings.

Lappet-faced vultures come from Africa and are one of the largest vulture species, weighing around 20 to 30 pounds and possessing a nine-foot wingspan. Their name comes from the lappets, or flaps of skin, hanging around their heads. They are generally found in arid environments, and because of their large size, they dominate a kill site even though they’re generally the last to arrive. Lappet-faced vultures do not use their sense of smell to locate food. They have extremely keen eyesight and depend on spotting the behaviors of other smaller vulture species to locate carrion. Their massive beaks allow them access to parts of the carrion that other species cannot eat. This species has also been known to raid termite mounds and flamingo colonies for food.

The two lappet-faced vultures that recently arrived at the Zoo are both young males. One their routine quarantine period is over, they’ll be on exhibit, so look for them soon!

Sprina Liu
Assistant Curator of Birds

Thursday, July 10

Exciting times in the Herpetology Department this summer! We are well along in the concept and design of our upcoming entirely new Reptile and Amphibian Building. I don’t want to spoil the surprise, but I’ll just say that Atlanta can look forward to a real architectural and zoological destination soon!

Our two big projects for the summer are achingly close to completion – a brand-new large, sunny exhibit for caiman lizards (currently on display) and an art gallery featuring stunning portraitures from our collections, courtesy of National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore. We hope to see you soon!

Joe Mendelson, PhD
Curator of Herpetology

Tuesday, July 8

The lion cubs continue to grow, and it seems like they are changing on a daily basis. All three are now becoming quite accomplished walkers – just the other day I watched the largest cub make his way across the entire outdoor patio without faltering once! They are walking with a sense of purpose as well. Instead of simply meandering around the patio, they now seem to have missions when they walk, especially if it involves their new favorite pastime, which appears to be climbing into and out of the water trough. At this point the water trough on the patio is empty (we provide Kiki and the cubs with several other shallow sources of water), but the cubs have discovered that the empty water trough on the patio is an excellent place to sleep. The other morning one of the keepers found all three cubs sleeping together in the water trough. Also, the cubs are now teething. To help them feel more comfortable, we’ve provided them with things they would encounter in the wild, such as branches, on which they can chew. Additionally, the cubs are becoming much more focused on their environment and each other, and have begun to pounce on each other. Although it’s clumsy right now, it’s only a matter of time before these three boys are wearing each other out with all of their rambunctious play fighting. 

Megan Wilson, PhD
Assistant Curator of Carnivores

Tuesday, July 1

Happy 4th of July week, everyone! We will be putting on some great shows at the Wildlife Theater and Amy's Tree (formerly known as the Elder's Tree) this week and weekend. While we have separate themes for each show, it's amazing to me how different each show can be from the next. Each speaker brings their own personal flair, style and sense of humor to his or her show. Couple that with a rotating roster of animal guests, and every show becomes unique. At the Wildlife Theater, John brings his years of bird handling and knowledge to the fore, with a quick wit and charm that is always spontaneous and entertaining. Shelley clearly loves the birds, and has an energy and a dynamic that no one else matches. Mat is new to shows, but it's clear why he chose to be a keeper, and he relates his stories and experiences through eyes new to the department that visitors can easily relate to. Me? Well, I'm a trainer from WAY back, and can talk about our Time for Training theme for as long as folks are willing to listen.

The Play the Animal Way show at Amy’s Tree is in a smaller, more intimate setting, and our presenters are developing what is a new show script and animal rotations. There are so many amazing animals in the Program Animals collection, and Jessica knows each one of them like family. Her knowledge of them as individuals is astounding! Becca, like Mat, is new to our department, but has made a clear and decisive choice in her career, and we're glad to have her with us. Both she and Mat will be doing shows at the Tree soon, so come and watch their individual styles and spins on the show. We're glad to have them both in our department.

And to round out our new staff, we welcome an old friend back to the Program Animals team. Georgette worked as an intern and seasonal at the Theater a few years back, worked a couple more years at Outback Station in the Children's Zoo, and even interned with me in my previous life as a giant panda keeper! She accepted a keeper job with us, so watch for her on stage in the very near future. She is another who clearly loves the animals, and like Mat and Becca, will always have a genuine smile as they work with our animal friends and develop their own relationships and rapport.

We look forward to your visit!

Jay Pratte
Lead Keeper, Program Animals