2012 Annual Report - Columbus Zoo and Aquarium

27 Pages·2014·3.9 MB·English

The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium had a busy Phase I on the new Africa region came to a close and we are moving to
Phase II of the construction project. There were 60 large trees planted
year in 2012. Stingray Bay in Jungle Jack’s
throughout the region which really transformed the area. Africa will
Landing opened to guests; we welcomed two
open in the summer of 2014 and will be home to giraffes, zebras and
adorable Amur tiger cubs, in addition to a number lions in addition to many other fantastic animals.
of other baby animals and, we broke ground on
The Zoo continues to make great strides and we look forward to all
the largest Zoo region to date, Africa. that 2013 will bring and want to again say thank you to our generous
donors, partners, members, visitors and neighbors. Without them, we
couldn’t do what we do – thank you for all you do for the Zoo!
The Columbus Zoo is known for hands-on experiences and built on to
the popularity of Animal Encounters Village in Jungle Jack’s Landing
by adding the new experience of Stingray Bay which opened in 2012.
Guests had the opportunity to interact with these incredible stingrays in
the brand new exhibit that features an 18,000 gallon salt-water pool.
We are excited that more guests toured the Wilds this year than ever be-
fore. The additions of the zip lines, horseback rides in 2011 continued
to be popular, as well as, the open-air Safari bus tours. Our experiences
Tom Stalf, President & CEO
were designed to accommodate guests from a general tour to a science
adventure. Expansion of our Nomad Ridge camp took place, as well as,
our summer camp facilities.

Safari Golf Club completed many improvements and was voted the
best public golf course in central Ohio. The longer and improved
course is challenging and fun for the beginner up to the pro golfer.
Nanuq, a 25-year-old male polar bear, joined our Zoo family on a
breeding recommendation. With a little luck the Zoo might be home to
polar bear cubs in the future.
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ANIMAL CARE
Significant BirthS and hatcheS
2 male Amur tigers
1 female bonobo
1 male okapi
1 male black duiker
Significant acquiSitionS
1 male polar bear
1 male Komodo dragon
1 female pygmy slow loris
2 female beaver
animal training
Animals at the Zoo are trained by the professional animal care staff using positive
reinforcement to allow voluntary animal participation in the Zoo’s husbandry, preventative
health care and research projects. Daily keeper talks feature these behaviors to our
guests. Benefits of the training program include greater animal and staff safety, enhanced
preventative and proactive veterinary care, and enhanced guest experience. In 2012 training
highlights included: ultrasounds of male gorillas for cardiac monitoring, voluntary injections
on multiple primate species, polar bear training to aid with introductions to the new male and
ultrasound training of the female sun bear.
animal enrichment
Animal department team members provide daily enrichment to the animals in the care.
Enrichment items, both food and non-food, promote natural behaviors and stimulation for
the animals. The Enrichment Committee organizes events throughout the year in conjunction
with our marketing department to promote our program and educate our guests. Events for
2012 were Eggs, Paws and Claws, Earth Day, KidZfest, Teddy Bear Safari, Jack Hanna’s Fall
Fest, Boo at the Zoo and Santa Paws.
A mAjor highlight of 2012 was the birth of Amur tiger
cubs in June. This birth was significant, not only for the Columbus
Zoo, but also for the Amur tiger population in North America.
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AsiA Quest Food items raised as live-feed will be compared to larval
morphology to determine best feeding practices in this
The Zoo’s new male Asian elephant, Hank, arrived
program. This study dovetails with a larger study at
in December 2011 and spent the past year getting
the lab looking at techniques to induce spawning and
familiarized with his new home including getting to
rearing of specific marine ornamental fish species. The
know his two companions, Phoebe and Connie. We are
overlap allows us to develop fundamental techniques
optimistic that at some point in the next two years we that can be used at all AZA facilities furthering
may see the fruit of these budding relationships. propagation efforts into the future.
shores AustrAliA AND the islANDs
The Zoo’s partnerships in the (Eastern) plains Our breeding program for the North Island brown kiwi
garter snake and hellbender programs have led to continued to excel in 2012. The Zoo sent a female chick
reintroductions of these animals in the wild. In 2012, that hatched at the Columbus Zoo in 2011 to the Bronx
28 plains garter snakes and nine hellbenders (both state Zoo and three fertile eggs made the trip to other zoos to
endangered species) were released. hatch and rear.
Two thousand northern riffleshell mussels (a federally The Zoo received a male Komodo dragon from the
endangered species) were released as well into Big Darby Honolulu Zoo to breed with our female.
Creek in cooperation with , U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Ohio Department of Natural Resources expeDitioN CoNgo
Division of Wildlife, Columbus and Franklin County New residents could be found at the entrance to the
Metro Parks, and The Ohio State University. Expedition Congo region as the Zoo welcomed three
black and white colobus monkeys in July, replacing the
The Zoo has also been a frontrunner for programs such
former Angolan colobus group.
as SECORE (SExual COral REproduction), and our
nationally renowned surrogacy program for the great Guests enjoyed the antics of an okapi calf and black
apes. The continued support of these efforts allows duiker calf; both born in late spring.
us to learn more about the species and support global
In July, the bonobo group grew with the birth of the
conservation efforts.
Zoo’s 13th bonobo baby.
The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is one of eleven
The Zoo said goodbye to long-time resident, gorilla
manatee facilities, and only two outside of Florida, to
silverback Mumbah. Gentle by nature, he was an
both rehabilitate and release manatees back to the wild
integral part of the Zoo’s world renowned surrogacy
under the direction of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
program; accepting 17 gorilla babies into his group over
Long-term sustainability of aquatic animal populations the years and providing them protection and leadership.
has become an important focus for AZA zoos and
aquariums and our aquarists have been rearing
marine larval fish from eggs in cooperation with other
aquariums. Tropical fish and invertebrate aquaculture
has long been impeded by challenges in egg production, IN OCtObER, 2012 the Zoo welcomed the newest member
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Aquaculture Laboratory. At the lab, hatchability and female bears, Aurora and Anana.
larval morphology are tracked to develop optimal
techniques for egg collection, shipping, and incubation.
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ANIMAL HEALtH
The Animal Health department added staff members this year, Dr. Randall Junge, DACZM
(Vice President of Animal Health) and Dr. Priya Bapodra (Staff Veterinarian).
The department continues to collaborate with Ohio State University and the Wilds for
training of veterinary residents to become specialists in zoological medicine.
Veterinary staff assist in a variety of conservation programs ranging from telemetry
transmitter implantation in Eastern hellbenders in Ohio to health assessments of lemurs in
Madagascar.
ANIMAL PROGRAMS
Provided husbandry and enrichment to more than 160 animals.
Conducted 1,368 promotional programs.
Assisted Jack Hanna with over 80 speaking engagements and public appearances.
Assisted Jack Hanna in filming for Jack Hanna’s Into the Wilds and Jack Hanna’s Wild
Countdown.
The department raised over 50 babies from other zoological institutions including but
not limited to Nashville Zoo, Dallas Zoo and Wildlife World Zoo and our very own baby
Amur tigers.
Conducted 367 behind the scenes tours. Raised over $27,225 for multiple
conservation projects.
Presented 366 outreach programs reaching over 48,200 students.
Responsible for interpretation at the newest exhibit at the Zoo, Stingray Bay.
Assisted in the coordination of the “Jack Hanna’s Home for the Holidays” and “A Look
at the Wilds” television specials produced by WBNS 10TV.
Appeared on local and national television over 100 times.
Operated the Animal Encounters Village for a fourth season and added new and im-
proved bird and cat shows.
Assisted the Wilds in their second season of Animal Encounters Tours.
Had a successful first season of Outreach programs at the Wilds.
Continued with the second annual Fighting Faces calendar featuring kids with
terminal illnesses and Columbus Zoo animal ambassadors.
Provided another successful season of Animals on Safari shows.
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2012 INvENtOR y Of SPECIES HOuSEd
At tHE COLuMbuS zOO ANd AquARIuM
SPECIES &
SPECIMENS ENdANGEREd CItES I CItES II
Sub-SPECIES
MAMMALS 497 92 17 24 24
bIRdS 436 131 3 9 37
REPtILES 285 82 4 7 40
fISH 4902 155 0 0 2
AMPHIbIANS 84 12 2 1 4
INvERtEbRAtES 4,060 49 0 1 1
CORAL &
ANEMONES 0 69 0 0 0
tOtALS 10,264 577 26 42 108
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CONSERvAtION
The Columbus Zoo’s long-standing commitment to provide financial
support to outstanding field projects around the globe continued in
2012. The Conservation Committee reviewed 90 individual proposals
and awarded 70 grants to projects based in 30 countries. Over the
past five years, the Zoo has provided more than $4.5 million in grant
money to protect wildlife and wild places.
pArtNerships for CoNservAtioN
By collaborating with like-minded organizations, the Zoo can maximize funding, expand com-
munication, and benefit from the expertise of others while sharing our own. The Zoo provides
annual support to - Amphibian Ark; Conservation Breeding Specialist Group (CBSG); Human-
Wildlife Conflict Collaboration (HWCC); International Elephant Foundation (IEF); International
Iguana Foundation (IIF); International Rhino Foundation (IRF); International Rhino Keeper As-
sociation (IRKA); Manatee Rehabilitation Partnership (MRP); Ohio Wildlife Center (OWC); Pan
African Sanctuary Alliance (PASA); Polar Bears International (PBI); Snow Leopard Trust (SLT);
Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA).
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zOO StAff ARE IN tHE fIELd CONSERvAtION HIGHLIGHtS
The Zoo Conservation Committee maintains a dedicated fund The Zoo became a founding sponsor for the
to support field conservation efforts of Zoo employees. In Turtle Survival Center in South Carolina. The Center will
2012, the Zoo continued support for Project SECORE – an be developed by the Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA), and will
international collaboration to protect endangered coral reefs. provide a dedicated facility for the TSA to create assurance
The conservation committee also awarded a grant to conduct colonies for critically endangered turtles and tortoises.

an Orangutan Health Workshop, and provided support for
The fourth annual Wine for Wildlife auction generated more
three zoo staff members to participate in the Lake Erie water
than $170,000 for the Zoo’s Conservation Fund. The Sibe-
snake census.
rian Tiger Project in the Russian Far East was the recipient
of 2012’s Fund-a-Need campaign with more than $30,000
RAPId RESPONSE
donated to the project. The Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary, Sea
When assistance is needed quickly, the Zoo can respond within to Shore Alliance (monitoring manatees in South Florida) and
one week through our Emergency Conservation Fund. Grants a project to protect elephants in Malaysian Borneo were also
in 2012 provided critical care and infrastructure support in recipients of grants from Wine for Wildlife. We look forward
response to seizures of threatened African turtles at the Limbe to celebrating our 5th anniversary at the next event scheduled
Wildlife Centre in Cameroon, and support to the Cheetah for Oct. 12, 2013.
Outreach Trust in South Africa following severe flooding at
their facility. Year of the Bat - The Columbus Zoo joined Bat Conserva-
tion International (BCI) in celebration of 2012 Year of the
The entire conservation community was shocked and sad- Bat – an international effort to protect bats and educate people
dened in Jun. of 2012 when word came of a devastating attack throughout the world. Bats may be mysterious and misunder-
by mai mai rebels on the ICCN headquarters and Okapi stood, but the earth’s only flying mammals are essential to our
Conservation Project in the Democratic Republic of Congo. global environment. We welcomed Dr. James Eggers of Bat
Six people were killed – wildlife rangers and innocent civil- Conservation International for a public lecture at the OSU
ians - and all 14 okapi at the Breeding and Research Station Fawcett Center, and provided teacher workshops highlighting
were slaughtered. The Columbus Zoo joined zoos across the the ecological importance of bats to instructors in the Zoo’s
country to provide emergency relief to the staff and families Education Department.
who were displaced by the tragedy.
The Columbus Zoo and the Wilds partnered to participate
in EcoSummit 2012 held in downtown Columbus from Sep.
30 through Oct. 5, 2012. EcoSummit brought together the
world’s most respected minds in ecological science to discuss
restoring the planet’s ecosystems. Dr. Marc Ancrenaz
(Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project) and Dr.
Karen Eckert (Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation
Network) – both long-term partners of the Zoo - traveled to
central Ohio to participate in the symposium entitled,
“Contributions of Zoos and Conservation Centers for Global
Biodiversity Solutions.”
The Commitment to Conservation Award was created in 2012
to honor outstanding career achievement in the conserva-
tion of wildlife and wild places. The prize of $50,000 will
be given biennially to a long-term partner of the Zoo who
has received support from the Conservation Fund. The first
recipient, Claudine Andre, is the founder and director of Lola
ya Bonobo – the world’s only sanctuary for the endangered
bonobos of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The award is
made possible through proceeds from Wine for Wildlife.
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PARtNERS IN
CONSERvAtION
The annual Rwandan Fête benefitting Partners In
Conservation (PIC) raised a record breaking $264,308.
All proceeds support conservation and humanitarian proj-
ects in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC) that included the following results:
Paid annual salaries for both Rwandan and Congolese veterinarians that
provided life-saving field care for the endangered mountain gorillas.
Funded annual salaries for gorilla trackers and members of anti-poaching teams.
Planted 103,068 trees as part of a reforestation project in the DRC at the cost of
only 13¢ per tree. Over 200,000 trees were planted during the past two years.
Funded a beekeeping project that is providing over 1,400 people with modern
RIghT: Jack hanna
hives and beekeeping equipment. The hives enable beekeepers to be economi-
cally independent so they do not use forest resources to feed their families and speaks at the
modern equipment makes it possible for beekeepers to no longer accidentally 2012 Rawandan
start forest fires. Beekeepers are now part of conservation initiatives that are sav-
Fête.
ing the forest and wildlife that live there.
Funded the construction of a facility that enables beekeepers to sell and process
The Rwandan
honey from cooperatives that surround the Nyungwe National Park.
Fête has enjoyed
Funded a program to remove 4,400 pounds of metal and 582 pounds of plastic
back to back
from the mountain gorillas’ habitat in the Virunga mountains of Rwanda. Mem-
bers of ex-poacher associations (941 men and 422 women) were hired to remove record breaking
the trash. years. This year’s
Provided annual operating expenses for the Ubumwe Community Center that total was nearly
enables physically and mentally challenged children to reach their full potential $20,000 more
and adults to gain skills that make them economically independent.
than 2011’s.
Provided textbooks and school supplies to over 2,500 primary That’s half a
school children. Prior to receiving these items 23% of the students passed their
million dollars in
national exams; in 2012, 69% passed these tests. The school is located near the
mountain gorillas’ habitat and children of gorilla trackers attend this school. two years!
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The Distance Learning program was named one
of the Teachers’ Favorite by the Berrien Regional
Education Service Area.
6,135 Columbus City Schools students were
reached through the Chase Classroom Safari Out-
reach program. In addition, students celebrated
their achievements with their families at our annual
Zoo Day event. 218 students and their family mem-
bers participated.
The third annual Zoombezi Science Day reached
2,111 students.
356 Adult Volunteers, Docents and Divers donated
39,177 hours of service to the Zoo.
Worked with The Ohio State University to lead a
Certified Interpretive Guide workshop; students
who participated were certified through the Na-
EduCAtION
The previous Zoo School instructor, Laura BELOW: Zoo tional Association for Interpretation.
Henderson, retired. Our new teacher, Emily staff showing an Two staff members participated in National Net-
Here’s a bit of what was new in the Cunningham, started in the Fall. armadillo. work for Ocean and Climate Change Interpreta-
Education department in 2012 Piloted a handheld computer game for new-hire tion.
orientations, called Zooper Heroes. The
ItEMS Of NOtE training focused on our guest service standard,
COMMuNIty INvOLvEMENt
Make it GREAT.
Launched HOOFit Tours in partnership with Ohio
The Zoo engaged 488 people who volunteered
Health. In these tours, Zoo staff and Ohio Health Otterbein University, in partnership with the
2,289 hours as De-Lighters/Community Volun-
physicians led guided walks throughout the Zoo that Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, kicked off a new
teers.
focused on human and animal health. Zoo and Conservation Science major whose
freshman class started in 2012. The Zoo Library responded to 635 reference
We expanded our ZooTots program, which is for
requests.
parents and their toddlers, and began offering Added Jungle Jack’s Landing to Summer
Saturday classes. Experience Day Camp. 22 members of ZooGooders gave 82 volunteer
hours to community events such as Special Olym-
Docents and all other volunteers officially became a Offered programs for 72,401 people.
pics’ Polar Plunge and Adopt-A-Highway program.
part of the Education Department team.
From Memorial Day through Labor Day the
Donated toys and gift cards to The Homeless
We began working with the animal care interpretive staff had 174,328 guest interac-
Families Foundation which delivers programs and
departments to staff the animal contact areas tions.
services to homeless children and families in central
(Kangaroo Walkabout, TouchPool, Reptile Keeper
186 puppet shows were performed at My Ohio.
Lab, Lorikeet Aviary and Asian Pheasant Aviary)
House, interacting with 16,610 people.
with volunteers.
Offered an Olympics themed summer puppet show 27 scholarships were awarded in the amount LOCAL CONSERvAtION EffORtS:
at My House. of $1,435.75.
Five schools participated in Conservation Challenge
Redesigned Girl Scout programs to align with their There were 362 teens in the ZooAide raising a total of $6,882.25 for polar bears, amphib-
new Journeys format. program who volunteered over 18,067 hours. ians and sea turtles. Each group was rewarded with
a celebration to honor their efforts.
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