The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium announced the significant birth of several weedy seadragons.  It is the first successful birth of these uncommon animals at Columbus, one of only a handful of institutions that have successfully bred seadragons.  Senior Aquarist Aaron Jeskie, who was instrumental in the successful outcome, describes these unique creatures and some of the reasons they are so challenging to display and maintain.

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Jasmin Graham describes her unique path as a shark scientist at Mote Marine Lab and Aquarium, as well as, her efforts to increase diversity among the biological sciences, especially in marine science. She's also the president and CEO of Minorities In Shark Sciences (MISS), an organization dedicated to "see representation of gender minorities from historically-excluded communities of color and the Global South in shark, ray and other marine sciences is the norm rather than the exception."  Her new book is entitled "Sharks Don't Sink: adventures of a rogue shark scientist."

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Best selling author, Emmy winning actor, and fierce animal advocate, Carolyn Hennesy returns to discuss her recent comments at the annual meeting of the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums (AMMPA) about how zoos and aquariums can begin to build better relationships with entertainers and influencers. In many instances, entertainers and those who work behind the camera inside the film and television industry have to be concerned about what supporting modern zoos and aquariums may do to their careers and future employment prospects. Carolyn encourages us to be persistent, inviting, and accommodating to those we wish to recruit into helping educate the world, including our detractors, about the important work of conservation we do.

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For nearly 100 years, the Sacramento Zoo has operated on approximately 14 acres. As a result of improvements in animal welfare standards, many of the iconic charismatic species the zoo once displayed are no longer featured due to space. Soon after becoming CEO, Jason Jacobs began investigating what it would take to modernize the current zoo or relocate to a larger location. The analysis concluded that modernization of the existing zoo would cost about as much as the first phase of a new facility on 60 acres. A new zoo would permit the return of some iconic species and the care and display of larger populations. Jason provides insights on potential design and guest interaction concepts drawn from visiting hundreds of zoos and aquariums from around the world.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

As the song Collide states, even the best fall down sometimes.  That was the situation in 2020-2021 when one of the premier zoological institutions in the world, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, stumbled as a result of poor judgment by a few in leadership. Stepping into the fray was long time Texas State Aquarium CEO Tom Schmid to answer the call to restore stakeholder trust in the organization. Tom describes his efforts to rebuild the institution's reputation and plans for future growth and reinvestment.  He speaks frankly about the organization's loss of accreditation by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which some have deemed unfair, even as it earned accreditation through the Zoological Association of America and the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums. And no conversation about the zoo's past, present or future can be complete without mention of the contributions by the one and only Jungle Jack Hanna.

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As the newer director of Turtle Back Zoo with an all female senior leadership team, Dr. Jilian Fazio discusses the growing demographic shift in zoological professions towards greater diversity. As more women assume leadership roles, what does she believe are some of the long term implications for the zoo and aquarium community?  Plus, as the leader of her organization how does she adjust to the typical and often rapid-fire highs and lows of working with animals.

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KONG Zoo

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Clay Carabajal got his zoological start as a "show host" at SeaWorld of Texas. While not exactly the role he envisioned at the marine mammal park as a young man, he turned it into one opportunity after another over a 17-year span. The lessons learned served him well as an educator and ambassador animal presenter. Following the examples set by his mentors Julie Scardina and Jungle Jack Hanna, Clay launched his own YouTube channel featuring wild animals and facilities, which he now conducts from his new base camp at the Abilene Zoo.

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KONG Zoo

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About 5 years ago, a month old beluga whale calf from the endangered subpopulation of cetaceans native to Cook Inlet Alaska stranded on a mud flat. Much to the surprise of initial responders from the Alaska Sealife Center, the little male was still alive but in serious condition. Over the next serval days and weeks, members of the marine mammal zoological community rallied from across the U.S. to provide medical resources and staffing to provide him around the clock care. By early 2018, NOAA Fisheries deemed the young whale non-releasable due to his young age, health status, and lack of survival skills. The government decided the best location to continue his recovery was with the large beluga pod at SeaWorld of Texas. Curator Katie Kolodziej  describes this remarkable young cetacean named Tyonek and the process of introducing him to his new pod of beluga whales and the instrumental role one special pacific white-sided dolphin played in his success.

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KONG Zoo

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How do we describe the last of any living thing, plant or animal? Is there even a word for something, some individual that is the last of its kind?  And does it matter? According to scientist and historian, Dr. Lydia Pyne, one useful word may be, "Endling." In her new book, Endlings: Fables for the Anthropocene, she explains why these "last individuals" are poignant characters in the stories that humans tell themselves about today's Anthropocene.  From Benjamin the thylacine to Celia the ibex to Lonesome George the Galápagos tortoise, endlings, Pyne argues, have the power to shape how we think about grief, mourning, and loss amid the world's sixth mass extinction.

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Growing up in the United Kingdom, Will Elgar told his mom he was going to be either an astronaut, dolphin trainer or stunt man.  Given the lack of cetaceans in the UK, working with dolphins seemed unlikely, but Will eventually found a way. It turns out that his real passion was working with and training sea lions, which led him to new opportunities and species around the world. Recently named as the director of Zoo Miami in 2021, Will discusses how learning to train animals with positive reinforcement to develop relationships based on mutual trust has informed his skills as a manager and coach.

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Given the lack of familiarity on the current state of animals in research combined with deliberate misinformation by animal rights organizations, it's no wonder people have doubts about the use of animals for biomedical studies. Dr Cindy Buckmaster, Director of Public Outreach for the National Animal Interest Alliance and host of the podcast, GetReal! describes why animals are still necessary to develop therapeutic solutions for human and animal diseases.  She also discusses the various levels of oversight for animals in research as well as the multidisciplinary approach to ensure the best possible husbandry care and welfare for animals. 

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From time to time Zoo Logic is approached by publishers, animal facilities, and individuals requesting to appear on this podcast. Recently, we were approached by a publisher in what can only be described as the most unexpected guest request ever! The publisher had re-issued an updated 30th anniversary edition of Free the Animals, written by none other than PeTA founder, Ingrid Newkirk. After sending a review copy and scheduling the interview, communications coming from the publisher and PeTA began to decline and eventually cease altogether. Apparently, the team representing Ms. Newkirk developed cold feet. Undaunted, we examine the book which describes the formation of the Animal Liberation Front in North America in the early 1980's. Given the advancements in the law, oversight, and public awareness of animal testing since the book's first release decades ago, the question for Ms Newkirk and the author of her foreword, actor Joaquin Phoenix, is whether their message of resorting to criminal acts and property destruction to achieve animal liberation is relevant today.

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Recently, the IUCN Red List announced its findings that the Monarch Butterfly population had declined between 22% and 72% in just the past decade. As a result of this latest census, which largely attributes the dramatic population decline to habitat loss and overuse of pesticides, the species is now listed as endangered by the IUCN. Butterfly Wonderland's director of education, Adriane Grimaldi helps us understand this amazing species and its incredible yearly migration from Canada to Mexico. Plus, she describes what each of us can do to help preserve and restore the monarch.

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Long time zoological statistician and animal manager, Kevin Willis, returns to discuss dolphin demographics and other mathematical insights into current species populations in human care. The overall population of dolphins in facilities looks promising, but Kevin warns this view is not reality since the animals are not actually maintained as one but several small islands of sub-populations that are not at all sustainable as currently managed. He also argues that zoos and aquariums are in the midst of change from the Noah's Ark conservation model of the 1980s and its SSP's (Species Survival Plans) designed to one day re-populate wild habitats, once humans get their act together, to something as yet still evolving. In fact, the number of managed species has been greatly reduced and the word conservation no longer appears in the description of SSP's on the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) website. When asked what the math tells him about the future of species and genetic diversity of both plants and animals in zoos and aquariums and the wild, he shares that we as a community have some tough choices ahead about what species can and should be prioritized for preservation.

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Emmy winner, best-selling author, and animal advocate Carolyn Hennesy shares news on the launch of her new podcast: Life, Love  and Conservation. We also learn more about her work as an actor and how she's able to channel the light and dark she says lies within each of us to create memorable characters on stage and screen. Plus, she reveals her professional link to the Star Wars universe and her family connection to the original Star Trek series.

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Zoo Logic

After 15 months of constant care to restore JJ the gray whale calf to health and to prepare her for life in the wild, the complex day to return her back to the sea had arrived. Marine mammal expert Keith Yip describes the apprehension he and his team experienced as they attempted to safely transport the largest living creature in history.  

Plus, a moment to remember the passing of a marine mammal medicine and science icon, Dr. Sam Ridgway.

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ZOOmility

A quarter of a century ago, SeaWorld San Diego received a days old, nearly one ton gray whale calf whose mother was nowhere to be found and was presumed dead from a possible boat strike. With no previous data or experience on the neonatal nutritional and husbandry needs of a large species of baleen whale, SeaWorld's Keith Yip and the rest of the animal team set about the impossible task of saving an emaciated and dehydrated calf on the verge of death. What began as a long-shot turned into world wide interest in the first-of-its-kind rescue, rehabilitation, study, and eventual return to the ocean of a 31 foot, 19,000 pound gray whale some 15 months later. Part 1.

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Maricopa County Animal Care and Control is one of the largest municipal shelters in the US. Community Outreach Manager, Gina Martino describes the challenges of operating a nearly full public shelter caring for several hundred animals at a time in the fastest growing county in the country. Compounding matters is the July 4th holiday, which invariably leads to more missing and frightened family pets. Gina offers steps the community can take to improve the lives of animals in their care even as we all work to lower the number of animals in need of forever homes.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

For the past few weeks, the ZooMontana team has been at the center of a local controversy stemming from a scheduled 406 Pride event featuring drag queens reading family friendly stories to children. Executive Director, Jeff Ewelt who has borne the brunt of the criticism by those opposed to the Pride event being held at the zoo, has eloquently and unapologetically posted on social media defending his decision to host this ticketed event because "ZooMontana prides itself in being inclusive of all living beings."

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Zoo Logic

The New York State court of appeals announced its decision this week supporting lower court rulings that Happy, the Bronx Zoo elephant, was not entitled to legal rights held by human beings such as Habeas Corpus. This is the latest in a series of attempts by groups such as the non Human Rights Project to have charismatic animals like elephants and great apes granted personhood, under which they could then avail themselves of legal rights such as Habeas Corpus. Animal Law attorney, Michelle Pardo, describes the court's ruling and criticism of the plaintiff's petition, as well as, the minority opinion.

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Zoo Logic

Dr. Holley Muraco is the director of research at the Mississippi Aquarium. In addition to starting her career training aquatic and terrestrial animals like dolphins and elephants, she has spent her graduate and post graduate time studying reproduction in marine mammals, especially those that are not as prolific in human care. She also enjoys working with students, particularly girls and minorities from her home state, and exposing them to the possibilities of a marine biology research career. Thanks to circumstances stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, she found herself caring for native wildlife like raccoons and most recently, beaver kits. And according to Holley, there's so much to learn about this once nearly extinct species from their physiology to engineering skills.  

Hickman's Family Farms is a family run egg provider almost as old as the state of Arizona where the company was founded. With approximately 10 million laying hens housed across a half dozen facilities in the Southwest, its husbandry and bio-security measures to protect the collection from hazards such as the current strain of Avian Influenza virus dwarf those of any zoo or aquarium. Compliance Manager, Shari Yeatts describes the American Humane certified company's operations, the tracking of current and future animal welfare regulations which often vary by state, and the growing use of cage-free housing and enrichment.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

It's part two of our animal welfare research panel of experts from the recent meeting of the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums held at SeaWorld of Florida. First up is researcher, Dr Jason Bruck describing his diverse study interests including the first published evidence that dolphins utilize urine to identify conspecifics--an extraordinary finding making national and international news and even a mention in Stephen Colbert's monologue on the Late Show! Also featured are scientists, Dr Kathleen Dudzinski and Dr. Heather Hill to discuss animal welfare and the future of the marine mammal community.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

Recently, the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums held its annual meeting at SeaWorld of Florida. We had the opportunity to hear from several researchers on the latest zoo and aquarium animal welfare studies, with an emphasis on cetaceans. In part one of this two part series, we hear from Dr. Lance Miller from the Chicago Zoological Society on how the organization monitors, assesses, and studies welfare across the entire zoo collection. Dr. Miller also provides an overview of the extensive cetacean welfare study conducted in cooperation with dozens of facilities, which has already resulted in 9 peer-reviewed papers.  Plus, Dr. Kelly Jaakkola from the Dolphin Research Center discusses her passion for cognition research, cognitive welfare for animals in human care, and the importance of providing species appropriate cognitive challenges to animals.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

The team from GRAZE (Growing Resiliency for Aquarium and Zoo Employees) Erin McNally and Hannah Fullmer return to discuss a widespread problem in most fields, including the zoological profession. While not unique to animal facilities, bullying takes a tremendous toll on an already beleaguered workforce. If social media content is to be believed, younger professionals seem increasingly disillusioned while senior staff are leaving the field from burnout. Erin and Hannah describe ways to think about and address bullying, as well as, urge individuals to develop coping strategies to improve workplace culture and not to run from the issues. It's a difficult but necessary conversation for individuals and organizations to have in order to build trust and retain experienced staff within an organization.

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In 1988 two veterinarians launched a dolphin facility on the Big Island of Hawaii that would help usher in a whole new experience between humans and bottlenose dolphins. That company, Dolphin Quest, has been a pioneer in creating guest interactive experiences based on science, conservation and education about the ocean environment and its most well-known cetacean ambassadors. Co-founder, Dr. Rae Stone pierced the once male dominated veterinary profession and lead the way in the use of ultrasound technology to monitor animal health and reproduction. Joining Dr. Stone is long time DQ team member and current VP of Animals, Michelle Campbell. Together, these marine mammal leaders discuss the Dolphin Quest culture and its mission to apply scientific and husbandry lessons learned in human care to meet the growing list of challenges wild marine animals face.

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No one is immune from heart-wrenching video clips of animals in dire conditions, particularly a stranded marine mammal or one ensnared in ghost nets, crab traps, and other ocean debris. While most people want to assist wild animals in need, few of us are trained, experienced, and authorized to intervene in what can be an incredibly dangerous situation for both animals and humans. Keith Yip is an experienced animal care professional with decades of experience in husbandry, transport logistics, and government authorization for disentanglement of large whales and other species.

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Zoo Logic

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According to its website, Wildlife ACT is a non-profit trust on a mission to save endangered wildlife and wild places from extinction. Its professionals, like our guest PJ Roberts, work in the field to monitor endangered and critically endangered species, including lesser known and appreciated animals like vultures. To assist in their conservation and fundraising efforts, Wildlife Act incorporates tourists as part of their data collection and monitoring services to protected areas in South Africa and other range countries. Wildlife ACT uniquely advances conservation by initiating, implementing and managing monitoring projects on reserves which do not have existing monitoring programs in place or by taking over existing monitoring projects on reserves that can no longer fund or manage them.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

In a world weary of pandemic, we asked Dr. Yvonne Nadler, long time veterinary expert with the ZAHP Fusion Center, to describe the risks to animals from the latest strain of Avian Influenza. This year's strain appears more active than in recent years, which places the nation's poultry industry at greater risk. Other facilities like zoos and aquariums are at heightened risk of an outbreak due to accidental spread through public visitation as well as the mingling of collection and wild species in open air exhibits.  What are the steps facilities can take to prevent the lethal spread of Avian Flu and what species are most vulnerable?  

Plus, an unusual case of rabies.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

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The animal care and veterinary heroes behind Saving the Survivors  treat wild and endangered animals that are victims of poaching or traumatic incidents. Most of the organization's work has focused on caring for rhinos in the field that have been illegally and horrifically attacked by those seeking to profit from the animal's horns. According to the organization's website, many injured animals have been given a second chance after undergoing various interventions and multiple surgical procedures performed by their team of veterinary experts. Dorota Ladosz, a veterinary assistant to the organization's founder, Dr. Johan Marais, shares stories of some of the animal heroes that have survived unfathomable pain, injury and lengthy recoveries.

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Zoo Logic

ZOOmility

In her new book, After the Forests: Thailand's Captive Elephants and Their People, Dr. Nikki Savvides explores the life and welfare of Thailand's captive elephants. Neither wild nor domesticated, these animals, once utilized in the country's now defunct logging industry, find themselves in a newer and uncertain industry: tourism. The book also examines the people who care for these elephants — including their mahouts, activists, conservationists, and tourists committed to improving elephant lives.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

After the Forests

Should families have long-lived animals like parrots as pets?  Do owls make good animal ambassadors? The founder of Avian Behavior International, Hillary Hankey, works to ensure bird's have better lives and to reduce behavior-caused stress for owners in the home. Bird training is complex and with so much random information online, she believes training them properly with positive reinforcement can be overwhelming to learn and even harder to implement. So she and her team created online and in-person learning experiences at her southern California farm featuring a variety of avian species from macaws and parrots to several types of birds of prey.  

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

Following his work in Kabul and Baghdad rescuing zoological animals caught in war zones, author and conservationist Brendan Whittington-Jones began a seven year stint studying endangered and often maligned African Wild Dogs. In his book, African Wild Dogs: on the front lines, he describes his work examining the behavior of this species once they leave the relative safety of protected reserves and venture out into human civilization. Brendan compares them to the story of wolves in North America rather than their distant cousins, the often urban savvy coyote. Thanks to some public education and rebranding, the future of the African Wild Dog may not be as bleak as once feared.

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Zoo Logic Podcast

Endangered Wildlife Trust

Wildlife Act

Not since Keiko or Tilikum has a killer whale garnered as much attention as the single orca resident of Miami Seaquarium known as Lolita. Estimated to be about 56 years old, she has lived at the park since the early 1970's. To learn more about this amazing animal, one of the park's longtime executives and eventual general manager, Andrew Hertz describes his family's interwoven history with the facility and its grande dame.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

When Coalition Forces invaded Iraq in 2003, the security situation across the country and in major cities like Baghdad was grim. Amongst all the devastation of war, the situation for the Baghdad zoo animals was critical with starvation, dehydration, poaching, and shelling reducing the collection to a few dozen inhabitants. Along with his boss, South African Brendan Whittington-Jones, a game rancher turned captive animal rescuer, researcher and author, travelled to Baghdad with no money or institutional support, but a huge desire to help zoo animals in need. Brendan describes what is was like working for a year with minimal resources and on the "coat-tails" of the US military to save the remaining animals, and what lessons might apply to Ukrainian zoos trying to survive Russia's invasion and brutal war.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

Long time animal trainer and consultant, Jade Fountain from Animal Behavior Matters returns to discuss her latest work in East Africa with a global organization called APOPO (Anti-Persoonsmijnen Ontmijnende Product Ontwikkeling", or in English, Anti-Personnel Landmines Detection Product Development. For the past 25 years, APOPO has been utilizing African Pouched Rats trained for scent detection to locate landmines in war torn countries such as Cambodia.  As a result of their work and the astonishing olfactory abilities of these rats, hundreds of thousands of square meters of land have been rendered safe for people to return to farm and to build new lives. More than 160,000 landmines have been detected and destroyed. Remarkably, no rat has ever perished from mine detection work. Jade describes the training of these special animals and their unique characteristics that make them ideal for use in mine detection, but also wildlife trafficking and identifying positive tuberculosis samples. She also shares some of her doctoral work and how she hopes to validate anecdotal evidence that scent work in dogs has physiological and behavioral benefits.

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Across the globe, few have been spared the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of personal, public, and animal health, business operations, and travel to name a few. As animal professionals know having experienced it firsthand, public attractions like zoological parks were among the first and hardest hit facilities as the pandemic's effects on a mobile society grew. What were some of the earliest steps taken to blunt these outcomes? How did previous regional pandemics and disaster preparedness plans inform zoological leaders staring at the abyss and what changes need to be made for the future? While the human consequences over the past two years have been devastating, what about the behavior and well-being of species in our care and the wild? What are some of the less visible impacts on field research and wildlife conservation? Join us for a live audience panel discussion held at the International Marine Animal Trainers' Association annual conference with three senior leaders, Grant Abel, Dr. Yvonne Nadler, and Bob Wengel, from Seattle Aquarium, ZAHP Fusion Center, and Shedd Aquarium, respectively, tasked with protecting and preserving their teams, their animals, and the public.

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KONG Zoo

Recent news reports of state and federal agencies taking the extraordinary step of providing supplemental feeding to starving wild manatees point to a larger problem, the decline of vital seagrass beds due to runoff, coastal development, and dredging. Seagrass not only supplies nourishment to turtles and manatees, it is also used by countless aquatic species as a nursery and habitat. Beau Williams of Aquaticus Plants and Aquatech Eco Consultants discusses their efforts to sustainably source seagrass products for zoos, aquariums and rehabilitation facilities, as well as, efforts to protect and restore historical seagrass beds. 

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

ZOOmility

Just as the scope of the COVID 19 pandemic was becoming clear, the animal team at OdySea Aquarium realized their latest black-footed penguin hatchling was not achieving normal developmental milestones. While she was otherwise healthy and growing, the team observed "Rosie" was not progressing in her ability to stand or walk. Despite the impact COVID had on staffing, operations and the temporary closure of the aquarium, the team was committed to improving the mobility of this special penguin. Director of Animal Care and Education, Jess Peranteau and Animal Care Manager, Mary Mills discuss the creative steps and penguin onesie the team devised to strengthen Rosie's legs and introduce her to the rest of the colony, adoring children with special needs, and the national media.

That Sounds Wild: Blue Penguin

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Son of famous paleoanthropologists, Mary and Louis Leakey, Richard Leakey was also famous for his discoveries on the origins of early humans, particularly the nearly complete skeletal remains of what became known as Turkana Boy. As a Kenyan of British descent, Richard Leakey lived a fascinating life in East Africa as a researcher and conservationist. In 1989, Leakey was named the head of the Kenyan Wildlife Conservation and Management Department which eventually became what is known today as the Kenya Wildlife Service. At the time, much of Africa experienced historical levels of poaching of elephants for ivory and Kenya's economy was at risk of losing its important wildlife tourism industry. One of Leakey's first decisions was to implement a controversial shoot on sight policy for any poachers. Conservation writer, Jeremy Hance returns to discuss the Leakey family's contributions to science and conservation.

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Zoo Logic

ZOOmility

While not a completely new phenomena, the COVID pandemic has exposed the public's lack of training in and understanding of the scientific method and the process of doing science. Increasingly, one's opinion or online search results are valued as much as someone else's peer reviewed data, according to returning guest, Dr. Jason Bruck. To guard against unsubstantiated, anthropomorphic narratives or rampant conspiracy theories, he argues we need a return to parsimony, the concept that the simplest scientific explanations are often the most accurate because they require as few assumptions as possible. 

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic Podcast

Last year, several major zoological parks named a woman to their organization's top leadership position. In some cases, these appointments mark the first time a woman has ever held the role of director at their respective institutions. As part of our ongoing conversation about increasing diversity in zoos and aquariums, Dr. Brandie Smith, recently named director of the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, discusses what this trend means to her and to future conservation professionals. 

That Sounds Wild: Wildebeest on the Serengeti 

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AMZAP

Biologist EO Wilson has been called the heir to Darwin. His decades of work in evolutionary biology and island ecology has helped shape modern thinking about species conservation and the increased extinction risks associated with shrinking wild habitats. Science author Jeremy Hance had the opportunity to interview Dr Wilson a few years prior to his recent passing and shares insights into the legendary researcher's life, work, and legacy. 

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

As most fans know, the late Betty White loved animals and zoos. She routinely donated her time and support to zoos and aquariums and often shared the stage with her good friend, Jungle Jack Hanna. Conservation Ambassador's, David Jackson returns to describe what working with Betty was like on and off stage. Plus, the passing of another zoological icon.

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ZOOmility

After nearly a 3-year gap since its last annual conference due to the pandemic, the International Marine Animal Trainers' Association (IMATA) will soon host an in-person conference in Chicago. The timing couldn't be better with 2022 marking the 50th anniversary of the animal training organization. Madelynn Hettiger, animal manager with the Shedd Aquarium and IMATA VP responsible for planning the conference discusses the lineup of speakers, workshops, and events.

That Sounds Wild: mini donkey

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Dedicated to preserving animals uniquely adapted to survive the hottest, driest, and sparsely vegetated desert for which it is named, the Sahara Conservation Fund works to preserve habitat and to reintroduce critically endangered species to the wild. SCF CEO John Watkin describes the organization's successful cooperation among zoos, field biologists, governments and supporters to maintain nationally protected areas and build productive breeding and return programs with species on the brink of extinction, including the once extinct in the wild, scimitar-horned oryx.

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Dr. Jay Sweeney, cofounder of Dolphin Quest, returns to discuss the latest strain of avian flu making its way across the globe with lethal effects. It was an avian flu strain that caused the global pandemic in 1918 that killed tens of millions of humans. The current strain H5N5 seems to be mild in infected dairy cows and humans but it has caused thousands of pinniped and a handful of dolphin deaths over the past few seasons as migratory birds move up and down coastlines of North and South America. The strain has already impacted millions of birds on poultry farms and Dr. Sweeney urges zoological facilities to remain vigilant to protect heir avian and marine mammal collections.

Animal Care Software 

Recently, Zoo Logic was invited to participate in an online international Cooperative Care Conference conducted by the behavioral team at ZooSpensefull. Our topic was a focused look at the enigmatic Least Reinforcing Scenario with one of the architects of the behavioral tool, Ted Turner. After more than 30 years, why is there ongoing debate about the LRS? Why do some still conflate the LRS with a timeout? More importantly, what are the behavioral laws that form the basis for the LRS and its resulting effectiveness in reducing frustration and aggression in naive and experienced animals?

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

On a cold day sixteen years ago, a months old bottlenose dolphin calf was severely entangled by a crab trap. Thanks to a quick thinking fisherman notifying rescuers, the young animal was eventually freed from the strangling ropes and taken to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium for recovery. The constriction of blood flow to her tail led to the loss of her flukes and marked the beginning of an extraordinary tale of survival and perseverance by a small cetacean the world would eventually come to know thanks to a Hollywood film. The aquarium's Animal Care Program Manager, Robin Curry describes the life and recent passing of this animal ambassador and the generosity of prosthetic engineers who developed the technology to handle the harsh marine environment that enabled Winter to thrive despite her disability.

That Sounds Wild: Screamers.

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Kong Zoo

Zoo Logic

Animal professionals often experience great highs in their work from the birth of an endangered species to the smiles on the young faces of future conservationists. Yet, animal work is often heavy with the sadness of losing a dear animal or frustration at the slow pace of societal change for the better. To help individuals and institutions better navigate the chronic and acute mental health aspects of animal work, our guest Erin McNally, helped create GRAZE: Growing Resiliency for Aquarium and Zoo Employees.

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KONG Zoo

Zoo Logic

ZOOmility