Welcome Abuto!

Thanks to everyone who has come out this week to welcome our new male lion, Abuto. We thought you might like to know a bit more about our new star, so today’s blog is all about Abuto!

When he was born at the Reid Park Zoo in Tucson, AZ on July 28, 2011, animal keepers didn’t know he was there. As they reported on their Facebook page, “It was several days after Kaya (his mother) gave birth that we finally got a good look into the cubbing den. The third cub, another male, was a total surprise to us!” Because of this, they gave him a special name, which means "hidden."

At 350 pounds, it’s hard NOT to notice him now.

Abuto is curious and laid-back. He enjoys all kinds of enrichment, toys and training. This week, during his 10:30 a.m. enrichment, guests have hooted, giggled and smiled with delight. Watching him pounce on a zebra-striped barrel, bat at a large made-for-a-lion ball suspended from the ceiling, and lick tasty lion treats off the inside of a hollow log, is captivating. During the enrichment demonstrations and keeper talks, many guests have asked how Abuto got to our Zoo.

He arrived on the Colorado mountainside in January. Staff members stood outside in the snow and waited for the “king.” An extended-sized van pulled up around 9 p.m.

They gathered around as the door opened. Inside, a steel crate filled the entire back of the vehicle . Looking at it, you’d never know that it contained a lion – until it roared. The van rocked slightly from side to side as Abuto moved around. The six staff members transferred the crate out of the van and into the building.

Abuto spent the next few months in the Zoo’s quarantine building getting comfortable with his animal keepers while the new Encounter Africa lion building was being finished. Just a few weeks ago, he was moved to the new space.

On Monday and Tuesday, our Zoo’s four lionesses will join Abuto. At first, a mesh barrier will allow them to have protected “howdy” time, and once comfortable, they will be allowed more free contact with each other.

All five lions are scheduled to be introduced to their new Encounter Africa outdoor exhibit for the first time on July 4. Until then, you can look for our lion pride in the indoor “day room” of their new building - Abuto is the handsome one with the growing mane.  

The Painting Pony

At Cheyenne Mountain Zoo we have many artists. Our elephants, penguins and orangutans find painting an enriching part of their day. There’s also a new artist that is turning a few heads - Jose, an eight-year-old Arabian horse.

A pony that can paint is quite a sight. His paintings are Picassoesque with a modern flare. He isn’t the first painting horse, but currently, he’s the only pony painting at the Zoo.

Sunny and Rockette were Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s first painting ponies. After their retirement from giving pony rides, they were adopted out to a loving home, leaving no painting ponies at the Zoo. Diana Cartier, pony animal keeper, wanted other ponies to follow in their hoof prints, so she chose a horse with an artistic side.  

During Jose’s first training session, Diana rewarded him for simply holding a paintbrush in his mouth. After that, he was rewarded for holding the paintbrush for five seconds at a time. Soon he was holding the brush in his mouth, moving his head and returning the brush to Diana, so she could load it with paint for him. In four weeks, he was painting like Picasso.

Using apples and carrots for incentives, Jose has learned to not only paint but to smile, wave with his feet and bow. When you ask him if he is a good boy, he nods his head yes. But ask him if he’s been bad, and he will shake his head no.

“I think a lot of people underestimate how smart our Zoo horses are,” Diana said. “Hopefully seeing a pony that can paint will impress our guests.”

Be sure to visit Jose at his “day job,” which is giving children pony rides near Lodge at Moose Lake. While there, you can also view or purchase his works of art. Guests who book a Pony Birthday Party through the Zoo’s Education Department may have the opportunity to paint with Jose!  For more information about Pony Birthday Parties, visit http://cmzoo.org/kidsFun/birthdays/.

Meet Our Volunteers - Matthew and Malachi Curtis

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo would not be able to run efficiently without volunteers that support our efforts. We utilize their talents and dedication in almost every department and animal area in the Zoo. Over the next few months we will be introducing some of these passionate people and their stories to you.

Matthew (left) and Maliachi (right) Curtis

Matthew and Malachi Curtis have been volunteering at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo for two years. They have over 1,800 hours of service combined.  Within minutes of visiting with them it is apparent that, though soft spoken, they are extremely passionate about animals, volunteering and contributing their time.

“We’ve been volunteering for animal organizations for over 10 years,” Matthew said. “We started volunteering eight years ago in Charleston, South Carolina at a reptile rescue facility. Volunteering is a great learning experience, and it’s an important part of our lives.”

The brothers volunteer around the Zoo wherever they are needed. For events, they enjoy cheering on runners at Run to the Shrine, scooping ice cream at Teddy Bear Days and making vulture “vomit” (chocolate w/ nuts) at Vulture Awareness Day. Every Thursday and Friday morning, they work in the commissary sorting and weighing diets for our Zoo animals.

When asked what brought them to work in the commissary, Matthew spoke first. “I am legally blind,” Matthew said. “This gets me out of the house. Working in the commissary is quiet, peaceful and it’s a place I can focus on what I need to do without making mistakes. I can’t drive so Malachi has to drive me…”

Maliachi quickly chimes in, “I like to volunteer, too! I don’t just drive him.”

 “We love the Zoo,” Matthew said. “The staff is knowledgeable, friendly and professional. They take the time to work with you, and appreciate that we are here.”

Staff feels the same about them. “Matthew and Maliachi are fantastic guys,” Jamie Breitian, Commissary Manager said. “Honestly, I feel blessed to know them on a personal level. The Zoo is so fortunate to have them. They set the bar high for all other volunteers. They are the best.” 

Don’t Be E-Wasteful! Recycle Your Old Electronics.

Don’t be e-wasteful! Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and Blue Star Recyclers are hosting an Electronics Recycling Event at the Zoo on Saturday, Feb. 23 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

You’re in the habit of recycling glass, plastic, paper and cardboard. Why not take the next step and recycle your e-waste? Electronic waste can be classified as anything with a cord or that can be plugged in. Computers, keyboards, printers/fax machines, bread makers, audio/visual equipment, cameras, cell phones…when discarded, these items are considered e-waste. Maybe you just tossed them in the trash in the past, but now it’s more important than ever that you don’t! Here’s why: 

• After a new law goes into effect July 1, 2013, Colorado residents will no longer be able to place the following electronics in the trash for disposal: computers, monitors, DVD players, laptops, notebooks, tablets, printers/fax machines, VCRs, televisions, devices with a cathode ray tube and flat panel screens larger than 4 inches. 
• The nation now dumps between 300 million and 400 million electronic items per year, and less than 20% of that e-waste is recycled.
• E-waste represents 2% of America's trash in landfills, but it equals 70% of overall toxic waste. 
• Only 15% of the population recycles their computers, which means the other 85% ends up in landfills.
• E-waste is the largest source of lead in solid waste.
• E‐waste is still the fastest growing municipal waste stream in the US.
• Animal habitats are being drastically affected by the lack of e-waste recycling.
• Approximately 50 million cell phones alone are replaced worldwide each month, only 10% of those are recycled. The production of cell phones directly impacts gorillas. Columbite-tantalite (coltan) is a crucial metal needed for cell phone manufacturing, but the extraction of this metal is devastating to gorilla habitat.

Be part of the solution by taking these steps!

1. This Saturday, Feb. 23 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. bring your old unused electronics to our annual E-Waste Recycling event. Items will be collected in the parking lot at the Zoo. Most recyclables will be taken free of charge. More complicated and toxic products like televisions, computer monitors, printers, florescent light bulbs and alkaline batteries will be taken for a small fee. Fees range from $5 for printers/fax machines to $25 for televisions over 25”. For a full list of free items, fee items or for more information, visit http://cmzoo.org/docs/E-WasteRecyclingEvent2013.pdf.
   
   
2. The Zoo collects and recycles cell phones, batteries and ink cartridges every day of the year. Bring your recyclable items to a Zoo admission booth between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. daily.  The collected items are shipped to companies that recycle them, and in turn contribute funds to our animal conservation programs.
   
   
3. Share this information with your friends, co-workers and family. If we recycled just one million cell phones, it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions equal to taking 1,368 cars off the road for a year.

Sources – Wikipedia.org & dosomething.org

Up-close with Ouray and Montana!

Picture the last movie you saw that featured a bald eagle. It swoops effortlessly through the air, opens its mouth and you hear a majestic call. You’ve been fooled. The call you’ve heard a thousand times in movies is a red tailed hawk. An actual bald eagle call is loud and ear piercing, but it’s very different than what you think. Ouray, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s female bald eagle, will set you straight in the video below. 

Located in the Zoo’s Rocky Mountain Wild exhibit, our bald eagles’ habitat is just beyond the grizzly bear viewing area. The exhibit was designed so you can view multiple animals at once – eagles, grizzlies and trout.

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has two bald eagles, Ouray and her mate, Montana. They were brought to our Zoo after severe wing injuries required partial wing amputations. The surgeries left them unable to fly, so they would never survive in the wild. Instead of room to soar, their exhibit is full of trees and perches they can jump between them. Their habitat also includes a water tub they like to bathe in and a large covered nest box to keep them warm on snowy days.

They aren’t the only bald eagles living in Colorado during the winter! Colorado is a popular wintering area for wild bald eagles. Eagles are only partially migratory. If they have access to open water, they will stay at one site year-round. If they do migrate, they will return to the same nest year after year with the same mate. In the spring, the female will lay one to three eggs, which will hatch after 35 days of incubation. The parenting duties are shared by both parents. Montana and Ouray have never had offspring, as their wing injuries make it very difficult to mate.

Rocky Mountain Wild animal keepers say Ouray and Montana are a great pair of bald eagles. They get fed once a day with a special bird-of-prey diet full of red meat, trout, chicken and the occasional rat. For enrichment, Ouray loves to catch her own trout out of her water tub. She also enjoys getting showers from the keepers. Montana loves to pull meat off large bones, which gives guests a glimpse at the strength of his beak.

Imperfect feathers of our bald eagles are often used for other animals’ enrichment. Our pallas cats enjoy some feathers in their meatballs.  They smell them, bat at them and even chew on them. When a pristine feather is shed, keepers contact the proper authorities to pass the feathers on to Native American Tribes, which are authorized to keep them. Personal ownership of bald eagle feathers is illegal. The Zoo is also authorized to keep feathers for educational purposes, but they are not removed from Zoo grounds.

Interested in learning even more about Ouray and Montana? Come see them in the grizzly viewing area!