April - June 2021 in This Issue on the Cover Meet Daisy
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April - June 2021 IN THIS ISSUE On the Cover Meet Daisy . .2 Update from the Zoo Director . .3 The black and white ruffed lemurs The Traveling Zoo Goes Virtual . .4 are the largest of the Zoo’s three What’s New At The Zoo . .5 lemur species, weighing ten pounds Construction Update . .6 & 7 each! Whether enjoying the after- Meet Robin . .8 noon sun on exhibit or through their BAAZK . 9 den windows, you will be envious DZS Ex. Director Message . 10 of their seemingly laidback lifestyle. Upcoming Events . 11 Come visit the NEW Madagascar ex- hibit, where one female and two male Board of Directors lemurs will be cohabitating with the Photo by: David Haring Arlene Reppa, President ring-tails, crowns, and radiated tortoises Serena Wilson-Archie, Vice President when the weather warms up. Beans (the Gabriel Baldini, Treasurer female), AJ, and Reese are excited for Sarah Cole, Secretary those long, lazy, and sunny summer days! Kevin Brandt Cameron Fee Candice Galvis Linda Gray Meet Daisy Amy Hughes Aaron Klein Megan McGlinchey Michael Milligan William S. Montgomery Cathy Morris Matthew Ritter, (DNREC) Richard Rothwell Daniel F. Scholl Mark Shafer, Executive Director Brint Spencer, Zoo Director Support Staff Melanie Flynn, Visitor Services Manager Jennifer Lynch, Marketing & Hello everyone! I'm Daisy Fiore, the new Assistant Curator of Educa- Special Events Manager tion and I'm thrilled to be joining the Brandywine Zoo! I'm coming most Kate McMonagle recently from Disney's Animal Kingdom where I've had many different Membership & Development Coordinator jobs, including primate keeper, conservation education tour guide, park trainer, animal welfare researcher, and animal nutrition keeper. I have a EDITOR WRITERS Jennifer Lynch** Jennifer Lynch** BA in anthropology and ecology and an MA in biological anthropology, Robin Sutker* both from the University of Colorado Boulder. PHOTO Daisy Fiore** CONTRIBUTIONS David Haring Brint Spencer* I'm currently working on my PhD in anthrozoology with the University Daisy Fiore** Mark Shafer** of Exeter. My project focuses on human-wildlife conflict between wilde- Robin Sutker* DESIGN/PRINTING beest and local Maasai pastoralists in Kenya. I'm most passionate about Rebecca Pilkington* Professional Brint Spencer* Duplicating, Inc primate conservation and I love working with high schoolers and adults. * Delaware State Parks Staff Member ** Delaware Zoological Staff Member I'm excited to be here in beautiful Delaware and join the wonderful staff The Zoo News is a publication of the of the Brandywine Zoo as we inspire people of all ages to care about Delaware Zoological Society. nature and act as stewards of planet Earth! www.brandywinezoo.org Update from the Zoo Director By Brint Spencer, Zoo Director 2020 is behind us and we are mov- Our zoological society was hit hard by ing forward with a positive direc- the lack of income from traditional tion. The vaccines bring hope but sources while we were closed and are not a cure. We will still be wear- then opened with reduced capacity. ing masks, disinfecting and social Our guest services staff developed an distancing at the zoo to protect our online gift shop which offers tradi- animals, our guests and ourselves. tional souvenirs and plush along with But there is a new optimism and self-guided discovery tours. These excitement in the world and cer- tours allow children to have a socially tainly at the Brandywine Zoo. distanced educational experience when they do visit the zoo this spring. We have learned a lot about our- A number of larger fund raising selves and done new and exciting events were cancelled last year. This things during the pandemic. Some year the zoo has created a series of of us learned we could work re- evening Sip & Stroll events to allow motely (for better or worse). How- guest to explore the zoo after hours ever, our animal care staff has been with a beverage. Check the website at the zoo every day providing the same excellent animal for additional information about these and our other care they always do. Zookeepers are essential personnel events. We have a new online ticketing system where and regardless of weather events or pandemics, know guests can preorder tickets for different time slots. This that the animals count on them every day. In addition to allows us to maintain an appropriate number of guests daily care they have been improving some of our animal on grounds for social distancing and provide a safe and enclosures and preparing for new species coming in for enjoyable visit for everyone. the season. Covid has changed a lot in the world, but it has not Our education staff has had to be very creative and learn changed our core values. We are committed to excellent new technologies and ways of teaching to reach remote animal care, excellent education programs and excellent audiences. Who had heard of Zoom 15 months ago? guest experiences. This season we will have new species, They created a whole virtual zoo to continue provid- updated facilities and new programming. There are new ing quality programming to former visitors who were adventures waiting and new memories to be created with now remote. Many of our traditional camp programs your family and friends. See you at the Zoo. were canceled, but evolved into Camp in a Box where themed crafts and activities were delivered to participants. Groundhog Day became a live virtual experience that was viewed by >1,200 students. Brazilian rainbow boa is a powerful snake and is a stealthy hunter. They live in tropical climates throughout most of Central and South America, where they hunt at night. The green tree python has very distinct coloration. The adult can be any one of a variety of shades of green. Juveniles can be yellow or red with white spots, and turn to their eponymous green coloring as adults. 3 The Traveling Zoo Goes Virtual! By Daisy Fiore, Assistant Curator of Education The Traveling Zoo is always a fun challenge, but when be our biggest month yet for virtual content and live you can’t travel it’s a bit problematic! We have been events, and we are thrilled to be bringing so much ma- offering virtual programming since COVID began, terial to kids, families, and citizens of Delaware. We’ll but this winter and spring the education department be offering two live virtual events. On April 1st we’ll decided to expand even more into the virtual world. be kicking off Earth Month with a live event starring Using Zoom, Webex, or other video conferencing our animals and featuring fun and creative ways to platforms we are bringing our animal encounters and challenge ourselves to be more sustainable and Earth classrooms programs to kids and classrooms via the friendly. On April 22nd we’ll be celebrating Earth Day internet! by going on a virtual journey around the world with our animals, as we learn about their wild habitats and Our live virtual debut took place the threats their wild cousins face. on Groundhog’s Day with quite a Earth Day is all about celebrating bang! Over 1,200 people (mostly wildlife and wild places, and no one school kids) attended this fantastic does that better than the Brandy- live event. They got the chance to wine Zoo! visit the zoo grounds and animals virtually with education host Meghan We are delighted to offer all-new Hoopes, who asked our animals to virtual programming for a crucial guess whether we were in for six audience—middle and high school more weeks of winter or an early students. Throughout the month spring. We provided themed work- of April, we will be presenting our sheets for classrooms to follow along first-ever Earth Month Sustainability with this event. Feedback from the Series through social media. These event was outstanding and teachers short videos will present different were excited for more. We quickly followed with a environmental problems facing our planet, and they weekend of events for Valentine’s Day and GALen- will challenge students to think critically about solving tine’s Day. In a follow up survey for Valentine’s Day sustainability problems with a positive, we-can-do-this respondents applauded our unique take on the holiday approach. These videos are free, compliments of the and fun atmosphere and asked for more. Brandywine Zoo and Chichester DuPont Foundation Grant. We’ve continued to offer our virtual programming, but in the month of March we took a break from live We have many virtual events planned for this summer, events so we could gear up for the most important so stay tuned as we explore new opportunities in our month of the year: Earth Month! April is going to virtual world! 4 What’s New At The Zoo? By Robin Sutker The frost of winter is finally (hopefully?) wearing off, It is always impor- and flowers are blooming. Spring is always an excit- tant to consider ing time at the Zoo – animals are more active, keepers predator/prey rela- can be seen training and enriching (as they do year tionships as well, so round!), and sometimes even new exhibits take shape! as not to provide With a focus on mixed species exhibits, you will be any undue stress to able to see the new Madagascar exhibit on full parade the animals. Mada- this Spring. Three species of lemurs, radiated tortois- gascar joins South es, and helmeted guineafowl will be out exploring the America and Barn- entire exhibit now that the weather is warm enough. yard at the far end As coinsurers of dirt (i.e. they love a good dirt bath), of the Zoo as the the guineafowl are temporarily vacationing with the three most diverse sandhill crane in the Zoo’s historic stone enclosures, exhibits – including while the new grass and soil continue to settle in the some combination Madagascar exhibit.