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Winter 2012 Creative Solutions US Postal Tiger Stamp ZOOpendous Drawings of Zhanna Calendar of Events In This Issue IN THIS ISSUE On the Cover Conservation Corner . .3 Our llama (Llama glama) George Creative Solutions . 4,5 is a twenty year old male in our ZOOCamp . 6 herd. When he was fifteen, keepers EdZOOcation Programs . 7 noticed that he was having difficulty Ask the ZOO and meet BeeZee . 8 . Kid’s Corner . 9 breathing George was diagnosed Volunteers make our world . .10 with asthma. We also found out that Zoo Calendar . .12 horses can develop this as well and we were able to use an equine nebulizer to administer his medicine. He receives Delaware Zoological Society this treatment twice a day and has done Board of Directors very well. Michael Allen Raymond E. Bivens Amy Colbourn, Vice President Greg Ellis Larry Gehrke Linda Gray September 28th, Brandywine Zoo visitors, staff and local staff of Dana Griffin the U. S. Postal Service celebrated the unveiling of the new Save Robert Grove, Treasurer Vanishing Species Amur Tiger stamp. Deborah Grubbe Suzi Harris Net proceeds from the sales of John S. Malik the Save Vanishing Species Megan McGlinchey, President semipostal stamp will be transferred Ron Mercer to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Susan W. Moran, Secretary to support the Multinational Species Richard Rothwell Conservation Funds. The funds U.will be S.divided Postal among the AfricanService to Help SaveElephant Conservation Vanishing fund, Asian Species EDItoRS DESIGN/PRINTING Elephant Conservation fund, Great Nancy M. Falasco* Professional Ape Conservation Fund, Rhinoceros Duplicating, Inc. Jill Karlson and Tiger Conservation AssIst. to THE EDItoRS StaFF WRITERS Fund and Marine Turtle Sarah Zweigenbaum* Nancy Falasco* Conservation Fund. PHoto CREDIts Melody Hendricks Nancy Falasco* Jill Karlson The Amur Tiger stamp Lynn Klein* Melody Hendricks features an illustration of a tiger Jill Karlson Sharon Smith* Sharon Smith* Leslie Simpson Brennan* cub by artist Nancy Stahl. These stamps are available for * Delaware State Parks Staff Member purchase at your local branch Post Office. The Zoo News is a publication of the Delaware Zoological Society. www.brandywine- z o o . o r g 2 By Sharon Smith, Animal Keeper, Delaware State Parks In this day and age, there are so many ivory palm endosperm is often used as a being turned into solutions and that environmental issues to be addressed substitute for elephant ivory today, and descendants of pre-Inca cultures dating you’d think it would be easy for me to traded as vegetable ivory, palm ivory, back 10,000 years are proud to know come up with a topic to write about in corozo or tagua. When dried out, it can that they are custodians, for generations my Conservation Corner. The problem be carved just like elephant ivory; it is to come, of a unique part of this planet. is, there are so many topics to choose often used for beads, buttons, figurines In 1990, Conservation International from, that it’s hard to decide which one and jewelry, and can be dyed. More started its first conservation-based to address. recently, palm ivory has been used in the enterprise, the Tagua Initiative®, in production of bagpipes. Vegetable ivory A friend of mine went to Puerto Rico northwest Ecuador, based on providing furthers important environmental and and brought me back a gift. It was a economic incentives for sustainable socioeconomic goals by stimulating the beautiful pair of owl earrings carved out harvesting of the tagua palm nut, local economies and microenterprises in of what looked like ivory. Come to find Phytelephas Equatorialis. About 1,800 South America, provides an alternative out, that is totally not the case. They members of the Comuna Rio Santiago- to cutting down rainforests for farming, were carved out of something that I Cayapas now have jobs that depend and prevents elephants from being hadn’t heard of before. The Tagua Nut. upon keeping nearby rainforest lands killed for the ivory in their tusks. standing. They sustainably harvest tagua The tagua nut comes from palm trees nuts from the forest floor when the that are medium-sized to tall with cabeza containing the nuts ripens and pinnate leaves. In its original state, the falls. Each tree contains several cabezas “nut” is covered with pericarp, which and it may take three to eight years gets removed by various animals. The for the cabeza to fully mature. Other kernel is covered with a brown, flaky employment comes from the hand- skin and shaped like a small avocado, crafted creation of figurines and jewelry roughly 4-8 cm in diameter. by local artisans. While researching the material, I discovered many interesting tidbits So the next time you are shopping for a about its history and uses. Before the unique gift, take a minute and search the use of modern plastics, tagua was a very web for items made out of the Tagua common and popular material. Nut. You will be helping conservation of our planet in so many valuable Historically, it was used to make ways. As always, remember to visit buttons, dominos, chess pieces, www.brandywinezoo.org for netsukes (Japanese carvings), dice, and other valuable ways you help with many other small items. In the 1920’s, Over the last 15 years, villagers have conservation. 20% of all the buttons produced in the invited foundations and volunteers U.S. were made of tagua, and almost to work with them and their children 5 million dollars’ worth of tagua was towards the ecological, cultural, exported into the U.S. and Europe every and economic restoration of the year. In modern day, tagua has fallen region which has suffered greatly out of use for almost all manufacturing from deforestation and biological applications, but is becoming extinction. Today, they are working increasingly popular among craftsman on a rescue plan to reverse the trends and artisans alike. of destruction. Their handicrafts are Given trade restrictions in elephant evidence that a very important process ivory as well as animal welfare concerns, is taking place, that problems are 33 www.brandywinezoo.org By Lynn Klein, Assistant Curator of Animals, Delaware State Parks There are many different attributes that benefit ing, growing tissue. Obviously because of this the a person who works in the zoological field shell could not just be cut out to make room not the least of which is the ability to for Petal’s legs, we needed a more creative “think outside the box”. Whether solution. you are a keeper, manager or vet- erinarian you will be called upon Working with the talented veterinar- to use every problem solving ians at VHUP (Veterinary Hospital skill at your disposal, especially of the University of Pennsylvania) when it comes to solving the we devised a “bumper” system to unique medical problems that elevate Petal higher up off the can affect any given animal ground. Originally these bumpers at any given time. were made from a hard rub- ber dog toy that was cut in half. The Brandywine Zoo Creative SolutionsToday we use a golf ball cut in and its staff have had half and glued to her plastron. their share of challeng- While Petal was healing, because ing cases. One of these it was impossible to keep a ban- involved a Leopard dage on her, we would give her Tortoise (Stigmochelys (Geochelone) pardalis) named daily medication soaks. This process took about two Petal. When Petal was a hatchling or baby tortoise, months to complete but it worked splendidly! Every the theories on what constituted a balanced diet for once in a while Petals bumpers will fall off but we tortoises were very different from what they are just glue new ones back on. During the warmer today. Today we know much more about the nutri- months visitors can see Petal cruising around the tional needs of all animals and so are able to keep exhibit she shares with the other tortoises, ducks them healthier and in turn they live longer, better and porcupines. Even if you know to look for her lives. Because of the diet Petal received when she bumpers you will have trouble picking her out of was young, her shell did not grow properly. Instead the crowd, Petal doesn’t let anything slow her down! of growing in a dome-like shape her shell grew outward and in so doing ended up blocking the Now Petal isn’t alone in her story of overcoming a full and proper movement of her rear legs. This in medical obstacle. Another interesting story involves turn made it impossible for her to completely lift our llama (Llama glama) George. George is a twenty her shell off the ground year old male llama in when she walked. This our herd. When he was caused her bottom shell, fifteen, keepers noticed or plastron, to become that he was having diffi- abraded. Left untreated culty breathing especially she would be susceptible when the temperature to infection. Unlike what and or humidity were many people think, the high. He was taken shell of a tortoise is not by van to New Bolten just a hard unfeeling Center which is part home for the tortoise to of the University hide in, it is in fact liv- of Pennsylvania Vet 4 www.brandywinezoo.org School. After completing arrived and did very well for radiographs and ultrasound a couple of years. However, testing the veterinarians were because of his bumble foot able to diagnose George with he had built up scare tissue on asthma. We also found out both of his feet. We were able that horses can develop this to manage the problem with as well and we were able to medication but we wanted to use an equine nebulizer to find an even better solution administer his medicine.