UCCS Volunteers at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Then Interacts with Mountain Lions

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – After three hours of volunteering, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs men’s soccer team worked with Cheyenne Mountain Zoo to take part in a unique educational opportunity with the zoo’s four Mountain Lions.

UCCS started at 9 a.m., with volunteers in three different areas of the Zoo. One group started in the Asian Highlands area, and worked near Helga’s exhibit on the walk bridge and exhibit sign. Helga, an Amur tiger, frequently visited the student-athletes working on the sign.

Another group worked on the main road through the Zoo between the main administrative building and the developing Encounter Africa exhibit. The group dug holes and planted trees along the roadside with the Zoo’s staff.

The third group started in the Zoo’s Safari Lodge assembling seed sticks for the Budgie Buddies exhibit. The other groups rotated in, and during the three hours, the team put together approximately 5,000 seed sticks for the visitors to feed the more than 100 free-flight Australian birds. The Safari Lodge area also allowed the team to repaint a cart for the Zoo.

Some student-athletes took advantage of the nearby “All About Giraffes” exhibit, where the largest giraffe herd at any zoo walked up to the walkway to meet the athletes. The team ate lunch at the Zoo and took part in an aerial tour with the Sky Ride before meeting the Mountain Lions.

Staff members at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo arranged for an educational opportunity, which allowed the UCCS men’s soccer team to prepare food boxes to hold chicken breast for the four Mountain Lions at the Zoo. The team prepared the eight boxes with logos of the other eight RMACmen’s soccer teams, and the four Mountain Lions in the exhibit proceeded to destroy and tear the boxes apart to close out the day.

Baka-keri: The Eternal Ape

Many of our frequent guests are probably already familiar with Baka-keri, our adult male Sumatran orangutan.  No, he’s not the orangutan who gives “kisses”; that’s Tujoh.  Baka is the handsome, dreadlocked guy who was a great dad to Makan and now Godek. 

We frequently get questions about Baka’s name because the word “baka” means stupid in Japanese.  Baka is one of our smartest orangutans and anything but stupid.  He was named at his birth zoo, the Calgary Zoo, which follows similar naming rules as Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.  We try to give animals names from languages native to their country of origin.  Orangutans are native to the islands of Borneo and Sumatra in Indonesia and Malaysia.  Baka’s full name is Baka-keri - Baka in Indonesian means “eternal”, and the Indonesian word for “ape” is keras.

  

Orangutans are highly endangered in their native rainforests due palm oil production, so right now they are far from eternal.  Click here to see how you can help them when you visit the grocery store.

African Grey Parrot

The most talkative resident of African Rift Valley is Raider, our 18 year-old African grey parrot.  In the wild, birds like Raider can be found in the rainforests of the Congo.  They eat a variety of fruits and nuts. As they digest these items, they disperse the seeds, acting as a "natural farmer," assuring food will continue to be available.

In African Rift Valley, Raider can be seen during the pre-show of the Wings of Africa bird show.  He shows off his climbing and problem solving skills, as well as his ability to mimic sounds and even words…telling us his name, blowing kisses, and expressing his excitement for the bird show with a loud “wow!”

Because African grey parrots have the intelligence of a five year-old child, they constantly need new toys, activities, and challenges to keep them busy and out of trouble.  Recently Raider has become an artist, using his beak to manipulate a paintbrush to create abstract works of art.  He is also learning to identify different colors.  So far, red and orange seem to be his favorites and he’s working on green and blue.

While their ability to mimic has made them popular pets, keep in mind African grey parrots can live up to 70 years, so adopting one is quite a commitment.  If you feel up to the challenge of owning an African grey, make sure your bird is captive bred in the United States and not being taken from the wild where their numbers are declining.     

  

Next time, we’ll meet a pair of burrowing reptiles who are also kept as pets. 

Helpful Hippo Behaviors

Wicket’s keepers are currently working on training her to demonstrate numerous behaviors that Kasai and Zambezi currently illustrate. These behaviors are instilled into our hippos to help manage their care and welfare.

• Stationing is when the hippo faces the keepers and holds their chin up on the top rail of the exhibit. This allows the keepers to get a good look at her skin and medicate some dry/cracked spots if necessary using a spray bottle.

• Target training is where the keepers place a tennis ball on the end of a pole and have the animal touch it with their nose when they hold it out. This is helpful when they are working with more than one animal in the stall at the same time; one can be "led" away from the other so training is less confusing for them.

• The open mouth command is important, so keepers can look inside the hippo’s mouth, check for cracks in their teeth, check for sores, and alleviate tusk problems in case they need to address them. We also brush the hippo’s teeth daily and get any debris out from between their teeth. Oral care is important in hippos so opening their mouth for keepers to perform daily hygiene is a necessity.

•  A to B training is a good way to see how the hippos are moving. We can ask them to come to "point A" (where the keeper is), when they do we reward them, and then we ask them to go to a designated "point B" (across the yard or pool) and back again.

Training Wicket

When it comes to teaching and maintaining desirable behaviors with animals, a positive trusting relationship is the first ingredient. Currently, we are working on building a trusting relationship with Wicket, our new hippo from the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago. She is shy, but does respond to special treats like cantaloupe, popcorn, and bread. Unlike Zambezi and Kasai, Wicket backs away from touch and has been slow to respond to us, her new keepers. While at the Brookfield Zoo she was trained to open her mouth on command, she has continued to demonstrate this behavior, which is a good start. She does allow keepers that she’s "comfortable with", to scratch her tongue and brush her teeth. As with most trained animals, practice makes perfect, so we will continue to practice this behavior with her while we work on building a trusting relationship.

Our overall training goal with Wicket is to instill the same behaviors Kasai and Zambezi illustrate including: stationing, target training, refining the open mouth behavior to allow for proper oral care, and doing some A to B work with her as well. We will post a short blog defining what each behavior consists of and why we train the specific behaviors later this week.

Wicket is beginning to adjust to her new pool and stall. Along with, Zambezi and Kasai, they have all been curious about one another with interaction through the bars several times a day. This interaction is all part of the introduction phase but the stressful part is still to come. Placing a new animal in an already established group will be challenging and there will be an adjustment period.

We have our work cut out for us, but with time and patience we anticipate Wicket to be a happy hippo here at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

African Black Millipede

The smallest resident in African Rift Valley is really quite big for being a bug. Okay, so African black millipedes (aka African giant millipedes) are not actually true bugs, but they do fall into the category of “creepy crawlies.” Unfortunately most bugs and other creatures with more than four legs fall into this category. Having four legs per body segment, millipedes are in their own unique group of animals and the African black millipede is the largest of all, growing up to 11 inches long!

As scavengers, millipedes have an important job of eating decaying plant matter and returning the nutrients back to the soil. They can’t really hurt humans unless they get scared, secreting a liquid irritating to our skin and eyes. This liquid helps defend them from being eaten by birds or meerkats. African black millipedes seem to know they are not very tasty and will often walk around the African Savannah in plain view during the early morning hours. If you go on a walking safari in South Africa, be sure to watch where you step so you don’t accidentally crush a giant millipede!

  

Can you think of any other scavengers who live in African Rift Valley at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo? Join us next time as we take you up close and personal with some birds that LOVE carrion!

Friday Cooking Demo - Labna Cheese

Ingredients

• 3 Coffee Filters
• Perforated Pan
• 1 Container Greek Yogurt (4 cups approximately)
• 2 TBSP. High Quality Olive Oil
• 1 tsp. Salt
• Juice and grated zest of lemon
• 1 TBSP. Chopped Thyme
• 2 TBSP. Chopped Mint

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together well in a bowl.
2. Using coffee filters distribute the mixture evenly between three filters and twist the filter to form a "coin purse" shape. Tie off the coin purse at the top & place in a perforated pan.
3. Place another pan on top of the "coin purse" & place both containers in another to catch the liquid as it drips. Let the mixture set for 24-48 hours. During this process the liquid in the yogurt will slowly drip out & start to clump together forming a delicious cheese.

Yields 3.5 cups Labna Cheese

Your ARV Questions Answered

Friday Cooking Demo - Pineapple Ceviche

Ingredients

• 1/8 cup tequila
• 2 cups chopped cooked shrimp meat
• 1 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1 cup chopped fresh pineapple
• 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, minced, to taste
• Salt & pepper to taste
• Cumin & paprika to taste

Directions

1. Stir the shrimp, bell pepper, pineapple, onion, cilantro, garlic, jalapeno pepper, lime juice, tequila, salt, spices and pepper together in a glass or ceramic mixing bowl until evenly combined.
2. Cover, and refrigerate 1 hour before serving. 

Serve with tortilla chips or crackers.

The Secret Garden

Finding extra space for growth and new structural additions can be a challenge at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. Sometimes that darn mountain gets in the way! The CMZoo’s culinary team took this particular challenge on and designed a unique enhancement to their cooking operation. Without leaving the foot print of the Grizzly Grill, a rooftop garden was created. Through partnerships with Pikes Peak Urban Garden, Ace Hardware, Soil Menders, and Smart Pot Tree Bags, the garden has really made a big impact. Items growing in the garden range from beans, to squash, to lettuce, to fresh herbs, and edible flowers. The staff will be using as much of this produce as possible in the zoo’s restaurants. Garden salads, garden pizzas, and various specials that incorporate the sustainable produce will be featured at the Grill.

Much of this produce can be grown at home and the chefs are happy to answer any questions you may have. Expect the produce to start showing up around the zoo in the middle of June.

Look for recipes from the Chefs coming soon.

How to make Fresh Mozzarella

Each Friday at 3:00pm Executive Chef Nathan Dirnberger hosts a cooking demonstration in the Grizzly Grill. This past Friday he and his cooking team demonstrated how to make mozzarella cheese, below is the recipe he demonstrated. 

Ingredients

•  2 gallons water, divided
• 3 pounds whole milk mozzarella curd (available at specialty Italian markets)
• 4 tablespoons salt, divided, plus more for serving
• Tomatoes-sliced, Basil and Extra Virgin Olive Oil for serving
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. In a large pot, bring a gallon of water to a boil.
2. In a large bowl, break up the mozzarella curd into small pieces. Coat the curd with 2 tablespoons of salt, & set aside.
3. In another large bowl, salt the second gallon of water with the remaining salt & add as much ice as it can hold.
4. This is where it gets a little tricky. Carefully pour the boiling water over the salted curd. As the curds begin to melt, carefully stir with a wooden spoon for 1 minute. Submerge both of your hands in the ice water for as long as you can stand it, because you're about to stretch the mozzarella in boiling hot water. The curd will have settled into the bottom of the bowl, & at this point you have to work quickly or risk over-cooking the curd.
5. Dip your hands into the hot water & begin stretching the mozzarella. By stretching the cheese you insure that all the curds have completely melted. The curds will become incredibly soft & have buttery shine, & also, it smells wonderful. Form the mozzarella into tomato size balls, & then drop the mozzarella into the ice water to stop the cooking process. Work quickly, as the mozzarella will start to become rubbery the longer it sits in the hot water.
6. Wrap each mozzarella ball tightly in plastic wrap & store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
7. Serve the cheese with the best tomatoes & fresh basil you can find, extra virgin olive oil, salt & fresh cracked pepper.

Check back each week for a new recipe straight from the Taste of the Wild Catering team here at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. 

America, how do you really feel about the ocean?

Today is World Oceans Day, a day when people around the globe come together to celebrate our ocean and take action to protect it. And with good cause! The ocean not only makes our world livable, it provides us with food, water, commerce, recreation, and medicine. The ocean has suffered some serious blows lately: 90% of the big fish in the sea are gone, the gyres are filled with more plastic than previously estimated, the Deepwater Horizon disaster dumped 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, and coastal dead zones from agricultural runoff are worse than ever.

The ocean has definitely seen rough times lately, and World Oceans Day is a good opportunity to rally and start turning things around.

Most Americans would probably tell you that they support a healthy ocean—after all, the beach is one of our all-time favorite vacation spots. But how does the Nation as a whole feel about protecting the ocean?  The Ocean Project’s ongoing survey of more than 30,000 Americans, both young and old confirm our gut feeling that Americans care about healthy oceans; and has further insight on what Americans think and feel about ocean conservation.

We don’t realize the ocean is in danger

Most Americans think that the ocean is healthy and “too vast” for individual action to have an impact. (The exception to this is in the wake of catastrophic events such as the Deep Water Horizon disaster – see below). In fact, the American public believes that ocean waters bordering the US are significantly less imperiled than are “foreign” waters.

We have short attention span

In the wake of the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the American public was very concerned about the health of the ocean, believing it to be threatened. But in a few short months (by Aug 2010 – four months after initial explosion), the level of concern was on the decline. See The Ocean Project’s April 2011 blog post for more details.

We feel powerless to affect ocean & environmental issues

‘My actions have little impact on ocean health.’ is the general sentiment when respondents are asked ‘In your opinion, how much of an impact can individual people have on solving our environmental problems?’. Even more troubling:  40% responded ‘None” or – “Not very much.’

On the bright side, we’re the sort of people who care!

We think we’re green

In 2010, 22% considered themselves to be active in the environmental movement, and 57% said they were sympathetic but not active.

We’ll change our buying habits to protect ocean health

The American public expressed strong support for a willingness to change their seafood habits to protect and/or preserve an endangered species

The children are indeed our future

Young people were the most knowledgeable about environmental & ocean issues, and parents look to them for guidance when making green household decision-making. They also were overwhelmingly more likely to believe that the actions of individuals can make a difference!

It’s time to transform that concern and “green-friendliness” into action! Let us come together this June 8^th and take action for our world ocean. There are hundreds of events being held all over the world, find one near you and celebrate with a purpose this World Oceans Day!  Or organize an event yourself! Go to www.theoceanproject.orgfor ideas, free materials, and event listing.

Blog provided by WorldOceansDay.org 

Springtime in Colorado also means time to get your garden growing!

Need a few plants to fill in holes or interested in creating an all new garden this year? Frank Haas, CMZ’s Horticulture Curator, shares three key factors to consider when picking plants.

-          Hardiness – A plant is deemed hardy if it can survive the cold we have in the winter and come back the following spring. If you want plants to come back year after year, select plants rated to do well in your hardiness zone. Colorado Springs is rated Zone 5, whereas slightly higher (and thus colder) elevations west of the city would more likely be rated as Zone 4. 

-          Water requirements – Group plants with similar water requirements in the same planting area. It is often easiest to place plants with the highest water needs closest to the house, where you have ready access to a hose, and place plants with lower water requirements farther away. If you group plants by their water needs, you'll not only save water, but also make it easy to keep your plants happy.

 

-          Sun or shade – While selecting plants for your garden, take into consideration how much sun or shade the plant needs to thrive. While many plants can withstand some variation, too much sun can scorch the leaves of shade-loving plants and too much shade will cause sun-loving plants to go into decline.

The zoo's Annual Plant Sale website is a great resource for growing information. Click here to learn more at https://store.cmzoo.org/SearchResults.asp?Cat=109 

The Hidden World of African Rift Valley

Abyssinian Ground Hornbill - Jekyll

Our female Abyssinian ground hornbill, Jekyll, used to be very shy and nervous when she first came to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in 2007. She was nothing like Petrie, who we introduced you to last week! She soon became more confident and comfortable around her keepers, and now is a star in our Wings of Africa Bird Show!

Zookeepers are training Jekyll a “retrieve” behavior to add to the foraging behaviors she already knows and performs for the bird show, like flipping a rock to find food or sifting through leaf litter where she finds a fake snake and then shakes it to “kill” it.

Watch the video clip below of a recent training session with Jekyll.
 As the training progresses, keepers will switch out the orange dog toy you see Jekyll carrying in the video for a fake rubber snake. She will be trained to take the snake back to a second keeper (who is located “offstage”) and place it into the black tub for a treat as part of the bird show. This will allow keepers to call her out of the bird yard after her role in the show is finished.

Come learn how handy ground hornbills’ bills are for foraging and see how Jekyll does with her new behavior in African Rift Valley at our Wings of Africa Bird Show at 1:00pm daily starting Memorial Day.

Coming up in the next blog in the series, we’ll meet a docile, small African creature with LOTS of legs!

Exercise Improves Mental Health

The “Run to the Shrine” is one of many local events AspenPointe sponsors in its efforts to promote a holistic approach to health and wellness. This summer, AspenPointe was also the volunteer sponsor for the USA Pro Cycling Challenge that kick-started in Colorado Springs in August.

“We at AspenPointe know how important it is to exercise every day, at least ten minutes," said AspenPointe Health Services program manager Penny Frank. "It helps your mind and spirit and helps you achieve your best."

A recent report in Time Magazine states, “That physical activity is crucial to good health – both mental and physical – is nothing new. As early as the 1970s and '80s, observational studies showed that Americans who exercised were not only less likely to be depressed than those who did not but also less likely to become depressed in the future.”

The article sites a 1999 Duke University trial where researchers demonstrated that depressed adults who participated in an aerobic-exercise plan improved as much as those treated with Zoloft.

Numerous other trials have since repeated these results, showing that patients who follow aerobic-exercise regimens see improvement in their depression comparable to that of those treated with medication.

“The trials all seem to point in the same direction: exercise boosts mood. It not only relieves depressive symptoms but also appears to prevent them from recurring,” the article said.

AspenPointe continues to move toward helping clients achieve the best outcomes through a whole-person focus. Health care providers understand with greater clarity that emotional, physical and mental well-being are much more intricately connected than previously thought.

“Being physically fit is part of being well and that’s why we encourage our staff and our clients to eat better and exercise,” said AspenPointe President & CEO Morris L. Roth. “We think wellness also encompasses things like emotional balance, financial stability, career satisfaction, spirituality and social connectedness, to name a few.”

So we hope to see you May 19 at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s “Run to the Shrine.” It’s good for your health.

-Adrienne Anderson

Communications Specialist, AspenPointe

The Hidden World of African Rift Valley

Abyssinian Ground Hornbill

Meet Petrie, our handsome male Abyssinian ground hornbill. Petrie spent a lot of time with zookeepers when he was a chick and because of that, and he now seems to forget he is a hornbill at times! He likes to “share” his food with us, his current keepers, like hornbills do for each other as a pair bonding exercise. He also likes to hang out with us to watch what we do. We have to be extra careful not to accidentally leave scrub brushes or hose nozzles too close to his enclosure as his long bill is especially handy for snatching shiny objects, which he then carries around like a treasure! In the wilds of East Africa, a hornbill’s bill is used to forage for food, flipping over rocks and sifting thru leaf litter looking for insects and small vertebrates.

Come see Petrie fly over the giraffe exhibit in African Rift Valley at our Wings of Africa Bird Show at 1pm daily starting on Memorial Day.

Next time we will introduce you to our beautiful female Abyssinian ground hornbill who also stars in our bird show.

It’s as easy as 1, 2, 10!

In 1969, Senator Gaylord Nelson took a political stance on the effects of environmental pollution by helping organize the first ever “Environmental Teach-In”, held on April 22, 1970. Since then, Earth Day has blossomed into a full month of environmental awareness activities. In 1990, the Earth Day concept went international with 200 million people in over 140 nations participating. Earth Day involvement continues to grow, with over 1 billion people involved in awareness activities today.  

We participate in Earth Month every year and incorporate all of its action steps into our daily zoo routines. Below are 10 simple tips you can integrate into your daily routine to minimize the negative impact on the environment.

1.        Use scrap paper for informal notes to yourself and others.

2.        Start an office recycling program for office and computer paper, cardboard, etc.

3.        If you buy disposable items, buy compostable products rather than plastics or Styrofoam.

4.        When you shop, use one big sack instead of collecting several small ones, or better yet, take your own totes with you.

5.        Turn your car off if you are stopping for more than one minute to avoid wasting gas and polluting our air.

6.        Recycle your vehicle’s and recreational vehicle’s engine oil and battery.

7.        Turn down the heat and turn off the water heater before you leave home for vacation.

8.        When you’re on vacation, hang your towels back on the rack to be used another day.

9.        Compost your food waste. Composting, especially with worms, is an easy and fun project that kids can get excited about.

10.     Take only photographs and leave only footprints when you explore.

"But now, says the Once-ler, Now that you´re here, the word of the Lorax seems perfectly clear. UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." – Dr. Seuss

 *Sourced - History.com

Your Culinary Questions Answered!

We Love Our Volunteers!

Do you ever wonder how we clean, feed and care for hundreds of animals everyday? It is not magic, it is our volunteers!

April is the time of year when we reflect upon the amazing impact our volunteers have had on the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo! Our Docents are over a hundred strong and help shape our education programs. We have fifty adult volunteers who lend a hand anywhere they are needed. This can range from animal care and cleaning, horticulture, education and administrative work. We have large groups of students, military personnel and adults who come in for a day and take on large projects and assist with special event operations. Summer is around the corner and you will soon be seeing teens on zoo grounds helping animal keepers and educating the public. It takes many helping hands to make the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo run smoothly!

We are currently looking for groups to come and volunteer at this year's Run to the Shrine on May 19th. This is one of the zoo’s largest fundraising events of the year. Receive a Run to the Shrine t-shirt when you volunteer.

Do you want to be a part of the volunteer family? More information: http://cmzoo.org/getInvolved/volunteer/

Rocky Mountain Wild Questions Answered