RATEL Vol. 43 No. 2. June 2016 Journal of the Association of British and Irish Wild Animal Keepers ABWAK is proud to be a founding member of the International Congress of Zookeepers www.iczoo.org RATEL is sponsored by: www.abwak.org www.abwak.org www.iczoo.org The Association of British & Irish Wild Animal Keepers ABWAK is a non-profit making organisation catering for those interested in and involved with the keeping of wild animals. The aim of the association is: “To achieve and advance the highest standards of excellence in wild animal care” We believe that: • We are the professional association representing animal keepers in Britain & Ireland for whom excellent animal welfare is the highest priority • We can have a significant impact in welfare issues by bringing keepers and stakeholders together and by being a strong representative & consultative body • We can make a significant contribution to the training & development of animal keepers thus raising standards and increasing the recognition of wild animal collections • By developing the skills & expertise of our members we can make a unique contribution to conservation Membership rates (2016) - no increase in membership fee this year. (NB current rates are those given on our website, rates are reviewed annually). Professional or Associate £30 Joint Professional £50 Overseas £50 Subscription is for ONE copy of each issue of RATEL Subscription to RATEL only £50 and does not give membership privileges or rights Vice Presidents: Jonathan Barzdo (founder); Dr Miranda Stevenson (retired) Hon. Vice Presidents: Rick Green; John Ray; Stewart Muir; Roger Wheater ABWAK COUNCIL - elected by the Membership (all posts are voluntary). Co-Chair & Editor: Stephen Woollard*, www.ZooStephen.com Co-Chair & Symposium Secretary: Laura Gardner*, ZSL London Zoo Vice Chair (& ICZ) Nick Davis*, NEZS Chester Zoo Honorary Treasurer & ICZ rep Richard Barnett* (retired) Membership Secretary Terri Hill (private breeder) * Executive Committee Other Members of ABWAK Council: Yianna Cooling, Twycross Zoo To contact the ABWAK Council: Lucy Manning, NEZS Chester Zoo General Enquiries Andy Moore, Colchester Zoo [email protected] Tim Morphew, Folly Farm Membership: [email protected] Vicky Snook, Port Lympne Wild Animal Park Mairee Vincent, ZSL Whipsnade Zoo Back Issues & merchandise: [email protected] Articles and advertising: we are currently recruiting and co-opting new members of ABWAK Council [email protected] Advertising Full, half and quarter page advertising space is available (colour or black and white) – contact the Editor for rates. © Copyright 2016 Association of British and Irish Wild Animal Keepers ISSN 0305 – 1218 Contents Vol.43. No.2. June 2016 From the editor 2 Folly Farm Symposium 2016: a fanfare of a success James Brereton 5 Sign Language in Zoos 6 Zara Wigg Breeding management of the short-eared sengi at 8 Chester Zoo Peter Watson Old turtle new tricks. Crate training a Florida softshell 11 turtle Joe Hutchins Some of the Folly Farm team, ABWAK Symposium 2016 Food preference in relation to size and type in a 14 photo: S.P. Woollard breeding group of common squirrel monkeys Debbie Bryson An alternative to netting captive birds 22 Paul Atkin ABWAK Photo Competition 2016 23 Saving the Scottish wildcat - a call for UK zoos 24 David Barclay The changing face of Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm 26 Adam Douglass ABWAK COUNCIL News - Official Report of the AGM Our AGM was held on 5th March within the Symposium at Folly Farm and attended by over 150 ABWAK members with voting rights. A short report on activity over the previous 12 months, along with the Association’s accounts were presented. Members of Council standing down at this meeting to whom thanks were given: Marilyn Beech, Holly Johnson, Liah Etemad Members of Council re-elected: Stephen Woollard, Laura Gardner, Richard Barnett Council recruitment in progress - applications were invited and selected individuals will be invited to attend an ABWAK Council meeting, and may then be co-opted and put up for election in March 2017. Constitution & Byelaws - no changes proposed. However, notice is given that Council is reviewing the definition and qualification of the membership categories (Professional, Associate) and will bring any proposed changes to the next AGM. Membership fee - we were pleased not to increase the membership fee once again last year. Council proposed the AGM approve the mandate for Council to increase the fee if necessary by up to £5 in the next 12 months to secure the continued activity of the Association. TWO votes against this proposal were recorded, however, the motion was carried. Council will review income and expenditure through the year and decide if an increase is necessary. The next AGM will be held at Colchester Zoo, 4th March 2017. From the editor... Our 2016 Symposium at Folly Farm was an astounding success. Not only was it the first in Wales, it was the best attended ever with over 200 delegates! The staff and team at Folly Farm were superb hosts and the weather even behaved itself (albeit being rather cold). Thanks to the support of MAZURI, Folly Farm, and our speakers, alongside the work of Council, we not only kept costs low again but were able to invite guest speaker Steve Leonard, support Barbary Macaque Awareness & Conservation and award a cash prize for the poster competition. And we are producing a new ABWAK ZooKeeper T-shirt designed by Samantha Allworthy - who won the vote for best design. (See our facebook page). Funds from Folly Farm, ABWAK, We received a lot of interest in our recruitment for new volunteer Council our raffle takings, and an additional members and a process of selection and then co-opting is underway. donation, enabled a cheque for Meanwhile we also have ABWAK WORKSHOPS in progress through the £3,000 to be presented to Sian year. A rhino workshop run on 7th May at Marwell and giraffe workshop on Waters for Barbary Macaque 14th May at Yorkshire Wildlife Park are being followed by: Awareness and Conservation Big Cat Keepers Workshop 16th June at Cat Survival Trust Flamingo Keepers Workshop 21st July at ZSL London Zoo This issue of RATEL is packed full of articles - thanks to all the contributors, and a reminder that the deadline for our September issue is 23rd July. Should We Close Our Zoos? (opinion) Many of us watched with interest the BBC2 Horizon programme on 17th April (or on catch up). Not surprisingly many of the concerns illustrated focused upon species such as elephants, polar bears and of course cetaceans, Marius the giraffe too, and interestingly many of the examples used were not about UK zoos at all. The clever/provocative filming in a ‘closed and derelict’ zoo indicated that the presenter and producers were aiming to ‘push emotional buttons’ with viewers. Should we be bothered about such programmes? The audience figures are small, and many of the viewers have fixed opinions on either side. However, when a mainstream respected series such as Horizon covers this topic there are chances people of influence - including elected politicians - will be aware and contacted by viewers and lobbyists, and of course its more fuel to journalists in other media. As a membership association run by volunteers, ABWAK does not represent the zoo community and we do not engage with media or journalistic enquiry and will refer people to the zoos themselves and/or national and international zoo associations. What the Horizon programme didn’t address was the consquences of zoo closure and what would happen to animals; and the overall positive conservation contribution made by zoos in both financial and skills terms. At the same time, such programmes do highlight some of the difficulties in our work, not least in animal management practice and collection planning, and the fact we need the public to pay for the work we do, so have to attract them to our zoos. There undoubtedly will be continuing changes and improvements, and that may well mean closing some exhibits, no longer keeping certain species... and hopefully a much greater emphaisis on having a real impact and involvement in global conservation, not just the ‘ark principle’. Stephen P. Woollard, ABWAK Chair & Editor; Zoo Education Consultant www.ZooStephen.com Please send articles for RATEL by email to: [email protected] 2 www.abwak.org www.iczoo.org Photos ABWAK Symposium 2016, SP.Woollard 3 Leading the way Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1376 511260 Fax: +44 (0) 1376 511247 www.mazuri.eu SDS7778 Mazuri Ad 210x148mm AW.indd 1 11/05/2015 09:26 Folly Farm Symposium 2016: a fanfare of a success James Brereton The 2016 ABWAK symposium took place on the 5th and 6th of March, and was hosted by Folly Farm Adventure Park & Zoo in Begelly, Wales. As the largest ABWAK symposium ever, the event was attended by over 200 delegates, including guest speaker, TV vet Steve Leonard. The symposium kicked off with a fascinating insight into Folly Farm history, and featured a tractor ride I remembered from my own childhood. A range of current topics were featured, including updates on zoological collections in the United Arab Emirates, zookeepers & education, and some surprising updates on enrichment for raptors. Talks were interspersed by refreshment breaks, in which welshcakes, among other local delicacies, were provided. Mazuri had a stand, and issues of Ratel from the 1990’s were provided for interested parties. ABWAK merchandise was also on sale, including the browse identification book, Harpij, and ‘historic’ publications such as big cat management guidelines, and my personal favourite, The Management Guidelines for Bears and Raccoons. As is now traditional for ABWAK symposia, a range of workshops were prepared for all delegates. These practical workshops were highly valuable for exchanging information, and were of practical use for zookeeping.