Our Animals Have a Job to Do

They have feathers, fur, scales or shells but they all have one thing in common – they have a job to do, just like the keepers that care for them. Our Zoo’s hands-on animals are called outreach animals, and most of them live in The Loft.

“We have two types of outreach animals,” Jennifer Diaz, Education Interpretive Animal Keeper said. “They are either ‘working’ or ‘handling.’ Only one of our animals, Tiger Lily, the skunk, is both.”

Diaz explains that working animals demonstrate natural behaviors or learned skills. Marty McFly, an American kestrel, flies from one part of The Loft onto a glove. Remmy, an opossum, shows off his climbing skills by lifting himself onto a stump. Handling animals allow hundreds of Zoo guests to get up close and feel their exteriors. Snakes, tortoises and some really cool insects are the most common handling animals.

“All of our outreach animals are personable,“ Diaz said. “They are also animals that want to ‘work.’ We don’t use animals for outreach if it is stressful for them or if they are scared of the experience.”

They are usually well behaved. Lily likes to open the fridge and take out her own snacks, but for the most part the animals in The Loft follow the rules.  

“We use positive reinforcement to train our animals,” Diaz said. “If they don’t feel like training, they simply don’t get a delicious bug or piece of fruit. Most animals really enjoy training time because it means they get food that tastes the best to them.”

Not only do our outreach animals give guests memorable close-up experiences, they are teaching children the responsibility of caring for an animal. Diaz lets selected children help tear lettuce for the lizards, give water to the tortoises, spray down the amphibians or watch a snake eat a mouse.

“Our outreach animals have a very important job to do,” Diaz said. “They help guests get over their fears of species with scales (mostly snakes), put smiles on their faces, leave lasting memories and, most importantly, they help people fall in love with nature and value caring for it.” 

Greenback Cutthroat Trout Quarters for Conservation Program

Since 2008, your Quarters for Conservation (Q4C) votes at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo have enabled the Zoo to donate more than half a million dollars for wildlife conservation programs around the world! Each year, one of the Q4C projects supports wildlife conservation efforts in or around Colorado Springs. This year’s local project, which started receiving votes from Zoo guests on May 1, is Rocky Mountain Field Institute’s (RMFI) efforts to protect native greenback cutthroat trout.

“We are so excited to be part of the Quarters for Conservation program,” Rebecca Jewett, Executive Director Rocky Mountain Field Institute, said. “Q4C is a great educational platform for our community to learn about our Colorado state fish and its plight.”

Rocky Mountain Field Institute started their greenback cutthroat campaign and on-site work on the  Bear Creek Watershed in 2009. The project started by placing V-shaped structures along the creek that collect sediment from the heavily used trails.

“The sediment catchers are doing their job,” Jewett said. “Now we need to do ours by taking the sediment they are catching and hauling it out of the park.”

Jewett explains that the sediment is collected in 40-pound sandbags that are carried on foot out of the park. The sandbags are then being used to protect houses in the Mountain Shadows neighborhood from potential flooding from the Waldo Canyon burn scar.

“I’ve been telling people, ‘Save a fish. Save a house’,” Jewett said. “We know carrying a 40-pound sandbag (or two) is back-breaking work, but it is vital to save the species.”

Officially, greenback cutthroat trout are listed as threatened on the IUCN Red list, butUS Fish and Wildlife Service is reevaluating the species to determine if their status should be changed to endangered.

“When greenback cutthroat trout were last counted, only 740 remained,” Jake Jachim, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Animal Keeper and staff champion of the project, said. “All 740 of them live in a four-mile section of Bear Creek.”

Jachim is not only the Zoo’s staff champion of the project, but an avid fisherman.

“The greenback cutthroat is an absolutely beautiful fish,” Jachim said. “They are green in the water with bright red gills, their sides are gold and their bellies are covered with trout spots.”

Jachim explains that he can describe many types of fish, and that as a fisherman, it’s important to know what you are catching and what the regulations are.

“If you are unsure of what you caught, let it go,” Jachim said. “Together we can protect the fish of Colorado.”

The Rocky Mountain Wild exhibit at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is home to a hybrid species of greenback cutthroat trout in the grizzly bear pond so guests can get up-close and become educated about the species. The pond also has rainbow trout, but Jachim says to look for the bright red gills to identify the greenbacks.

“I hope the Zoo’s guests fall in love with the fish, and want to support the project,” Jewett said. “We know that fish may not be as ‘sexy’ as leopards, tigers, wolves or orangutans, but it is a unique species, and it’s right here in our back yard.”

To learn more about Quarters for Conservation at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and how you can support native greenback cutthroat trout, visit: http://cmzoo.org/conservation/quarters.

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