THE ZOO NEEDS YOU! INSIDE: What prop 202 & 203 mean for the future of your zoo Fall 2017 | Member Magazine Reid Park Zoological Society BEARS OF THE SOUTH AMERICA LOOP Andean Bears, Lucy and Worf, are highlights of the South America Loop at Reid Park Zoo. These bears ZooFriendZ is a very special circle of people who are invested spend their nights resting in the future of Tucson’s Reid comfortably on a cushioned Park Zoo by donating $500 or bed. They choose between more annually. a keeper-made hammock Join ZooFriendZ Today! or a nest they have built For more information, contact Diana on their own from leaves, Whitman at [email protected] twigs, and hay carefully or (520) 837-8217. nosed into just the right spot. Daytime naps are taken in the base of the main tree in their habitat or at the treetop. Generally Lucy, the lightweight bear, sleeps at the top of the tree, while Worf nestles at the bottom of the tree. In the wild these bears make nests and often sleep or rest in treetops. Reid Park Zoological Society 1030 South Randolph Way Tucson, Arizona 85716 When morning brings a burst of energy, they search their habitat P: (520) 881-4753 for fruits, vegetables, and bear biscuits. Unlike grizzly bears, RPZS President Nancy J. Kluge Andean bears eat very little meat. The wild bears eat fruit and (520) 881-4753 many succulents along with limited meat, mostly insects and Reid Park Zoo Administrator rodents. Andean bears in the wild were often mistakenly targeted Jason Jacobs 1100 South Randolph Way by poachers who believed the bears were preying on cattle. These Tucson, Arizona 85716 INFO: (520) 791-3204 poaching events, along with habitat fragmentation, have caused 2017 Directors & Officers: the bears to be classified as a vulnerable species. Chair Susan Beesemyer Mica Bane Shane Burgess Bob Charles Vice Chair The bears at the Zoo rarely eat insects or rodents, rather they Nate Clark George Ball Chad Driedger delight guests when they delicately eat a banana, careful to open Secretary Michael Halle Hanna Miller Mike Hannley and remove the peel as we would. Additionally the bears will Cathy Hutchens Treasurer Sheldon King carefully remove the shell from a hard-boiled egg, only eating Tish O'Callaghan Denice Shepherd Past Chair Anita Simons the inside. A trip to the grizzly bear habitat quickly shows the Tawnya Tretschok Bridget Stephenson Donna Warfield difference between the dining skills of each species. During the summer time, Worf spends his afternoons wading in his pool, while Lucy seeks the shade and sometimes a fruity popsicle. Cooler fall weather results in more active bears. They playfully wrestle and sometimes tumble down the gentle hillside in their habitat. They will chase one another, play with enrichment items, and climb on the tree in their habitat. ReidParkZoo.org While they still play and wrestle like young bears, Worf is nearly 25 and Lucy is almost 23. So, any time of the year they enjoy a good Closed Thanksgiving & Christmas Reid Park Zoological Society’s Zoo & You midday nap. prints quarterly GOOD TIMES AT ZOO EVENTS SUMMER CAMP RECAP: CREATING LIFELONG MEMORIES With nearly 300 participants this past summer, camps reached maximum attendance. Campers were able to create lifelong memories while learning about animals and conservation. Meerkats, anteaters, and many other animals within the Zoo received enrichment items made by the campers to help meet the animal’s social and cognitive behavioral needs. The activities were not just for fun. Campers learned about a variety of adaptations that allow animals to survive in their natural habitat as well as actions we can take to protect wildlife and wild places. Thanks to a generous donation from Zoo supporter, Bonnie Kay, Reid Park Zoo was able to offer 30 children summer camp scholarships this year. IMPROVE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR THE ANIMALS UPDATE CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE Prop. 202 and 203 will fund Most of Reid Park Zoo’s critical a new, much-needed, bigger, infrastructure was built around tiger habitat, create a spectacular NOVEMBER 7, Tucson residents World War II. And in fact, there are rhinoceros exhibit and build Tucson’s virtually no utilities within the Zoo’s will vote on Propositions 202 first “underwater” homes for central area. Modern-day gas, sewer, and 203. Both ballots must pass to hippopotamus and crocodiles. At water and electricity needs to be determine the future of your Zoo. the same time, visitors will enjoy the installed. With Prop. 202 and 203 Safari Lodge, great playground and new fences and shade structures more interactive feeding experiences. would be built making the Zoo an even better place for animals PROP. 202 and guests. Allows for a temporary, MAINTAIN one-tenth of one cent AFFORDABILITY sales tax increase. EXPAND EDUCATION With Prop. 202 and 203, your PROGRAMS FOR KIDS PROP. 203 visit to Reid Park Zoo will remain affordable for years to come while For many local kids, a field trip Officially raises the bringing new attractions for guests to the Zoo provides an experience sales tax for 10 years and habitats for animals. ESTIMATED COST they would not get otherwise and TO TUCSON CITIZENS to improve the quality opportunities to learn conservation of life for the animals. and animal education first hand. SECURE ZOO FUNDING Prop. 202 and 203 would help PER FOR 10 YEARS expand this important work. $.60 MONTH (one-tenth of one percent) these measures will Together, Prop. 202 and 203 would provide ensure your Zoo remains a $8 to $10 million a year to the beloved, affordable community Zoo over the next ten years. Thus asset by expanding educational providing the necessary funds to programming, welcoming new bring new attractions to the Tucson attractions, and replacing and community as well as expand and repairing aging infrastructure. Funds renovate current habitats. can only be used for Reid Park Zoo. YES on BoTH FOR REID PARK ZOO Sketch of future Safari Lodge. Paid for by Future of Your Zoo in Support of Prop. 202 and Prop. 203. Sponsored by Reid Park Zoological Society. IMPROVE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR THE ANIMALS UPDATE CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE Prop. 202 and 203 will fund Most of Reid Park Zoo’s critical a new, much-needed, bigger, infrastructure was built around tiger habitat, create a spectacular NOVEMBER 7, Tucson residents World War II. And in fact, there are rhinoceros exhibit and build Tucson’s virtually no utilities within the Zoo’s will vote on Propositions 202 first “underwater” homes for central area. Modern-day gas, sewer, and 203. Both ballots must pass to hippopotamus and crocodiles. At water and electricity needs to be determine the future of your Zoo. the same time, visitors will enjoy the installed. With Prop. 202 and 203 Safari Lodge, great playground and new fences and shade structures more interactive feeding experiences. would be built making the Zoo an even better place for animals PROP. 202 and guests. Allows for a temporary, MAINTAIN one-tenth of one cent AFFORDABILITY sales tax increase. EXPAND EDUCATION With Prop. 202 and 203, your PROGRAMS FOR KIDS PROP. 203 visit to Reid Park Zoo will remain affordable for years to come while For many local kids, a field trip Officially raises the bringing new attractions for guests to the Zoo provides an experience sales tax for 10 years and habitats for animals. ESTIMATED COST they would not get otherwise and TO TUCSON CITIZENS to improve the quality opportunities to learn conservation of life for the animals. and animal education first hand. SECURE ZOO FUNDING Prop. 202 and 203 would help PER FOR 10 YEARS expand this important work. $.60 MONTH (one-tenth of one percent) these measures will Together, Prop. 202 and 203 would provide ensure your Zoo remains a $8 to $10 million a year to the beloved, affordable community Zoo over the next ten years. Thus asset by expanding educational providing the necessary funds to programming, welcoming new bring new attractions to the Tucson attractions, and replacing and community as well as expand and repairing aging infrastructure. Funds renovate current habitats. can only be used for Reid Park Zoo. YES on BoTH FOR REID PARK ZOO Sketch of future Safari Lodge. Paid for by Future of Your Zoo in Support of Prop. 202 and Prop. 203. Sponsored by Reid Park Zoological Society. REBECCA EDWARDS: CURIOSITY TO CAREER In 1994, Rebecca Edwards was drawn to the Zoo In 2006, Rebecca became a full-time Zoo Keeper because she was fascinated by wild animals and and was soon the primary caretaker for many of the as a teen needed a summer activity. Her curiosity animals in the South America Loop. Rebecca says led her to become a teen volunteer at Reid Park that these animals may not be as popular as the lions Zoo. In Rebecca’s mind, she was set on becoming and giraffes, but they are every bit as interesting. The an educator at the Zoo. Like many teens she began anteaters challenge their keepers daily by digging building her resume through volunteerism. She holes in search of food and fun. Rebecca spent her enjoyed showing Zoo guests the ball python, pine days dragging in rotted logs for the anteaters to snakes, and rainbow boas because guests reacted the tear apart with their claws. The tapirs would enjoy most to the snakes. Even as a young teen Rebecca a long spell of floating in their pool which Rebecca quickly realized she had the ability to change people’s dutifully cleaned for them several times a week. The minds about snakes from creepy to cool.