Flight for the plight of vultures

When Jenyva Turner, Lead Animal Keeper in African Rift Valley, heard that there was an opportunity for her to travel to Africa to talk to the people of Botswana about vulture conservation, she knew she needed to go. Vultures have been her focus and a passion for several years. She was the champion of the Zoo’s Cape vulture Quarters for Conservation (Q4C) project from 2009-2013 and, with your quarter votes, raised $30,000 for vulture conservation!

Q4C funds were used to support VulPro, a non-governmental organization (NGO) that has identified an urgent need to protect threatened vulture species and create a partnership between the southern African countries of Botswana, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.  Vultures do not acknowledge international borders, flying between countries in search of food and roosting and nesting areas. Therefore, these countries need to work together to address several issues, especially poisonings, that are affecting their decline – this is how the “Flight for the Plight of Vultures” campaign was born.

With generous help from Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s docents and support from the Zoo, Turner joined Kerri Wolter of VulPro in a week-long awareness campaign that traveled around Botswana, visiting the key communities of Kasane, Maun, Ghanzi, Gaborone, and spreading the word about the plight of vultures today.

“There are not many things that I prefer doing more than talking to people about vultures!” Turner said. “However, the audience that I faced in Botswana was vastly different from the guests I speak to in the U.S.”

Turner and Wolter spoke to members of the Botswana Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Department of Tourism, local police, local safari guides, farmers, members of various NGO conservation organizations and her favorite group to speak with - school children.

“In all, we spoke with 400 people,” Turner said. “Our focus was to help people understand how important vultures are in our ecosystems and how they personally are benefited by the presence of vultures. We also talked a great deal about how we all need to help protect vultures, no matter where we live – Colorado or Africa.”

She reported that the feedback they received was mostly positive.

“There is still a lot of work that needs to be done to educate people all over the world,” Turner said. “We need to work together to find solutions for helping not just vultures, but all wildlife.” 

As Turner was leaving Africa, several people expressed a desire to serve on a task force to address issues that wildlife face, which made her hopeful about the future of African vultures. “I have been asked to return to Botswana by Birdlife Botswana to continue visiting schools and talking with children and educating the next generation of responsible stewards of our earth,” Turner said. “I would also like to continue developing the Zoo’s partnership with VulPro to expand our educational reach in South Africa. After all - together we can make a difference!” 

Recipe for Kuchen, a German Dessert Cake

If you are in need of a dessert recipe for tomorrow’s Easter dinner, look no further! Our chefs at Grizzly Grill assure us their recipe for Kuchen, a German cake, is a crowd pleaser. Check out the Zoo’s blog for all the details.

Kuchen

Topping Ingredients:
1 pt. half and half
3 T flour or cornstarch 1/2 cup sugar
1 cup cultured sour cream

Topping Directions:

Mix together half and half, flour, sugar and cook until thick
Remove from heat and fold in 1 cup sour cream
Let stand [about 2 hours] until Kuchen comes out of oven

Dough Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups milk 1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup shortening 2 T dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water 2 eggs
7 to 7-1/2 cups flour
2 cups fruit* [apples, prunes, cherries] or use 1 can pie filling 

Dough Directions:
Heat milk, sugar, salt, and shortening until milk is lukewarm
Dissolve yeast in warm water
In separate bowl, beat eggs with fork
Add the yeast mixture to the eggs. Then add milk mixture
Add 1/2 flour and mix with spoon
Gradually add remaining flour mixing and then kneading in flour
Let rise until double about 1 to 1-1/2 hours
Pat dough in bottom of 9” x 13” x 2” cake pan

After Topping and Dough is Made:
Place cooked fruit on top of raw dough
Let rise until double in size
Bake in 350 oven for 20 to 30 minutes – Will be lightly browned and inserted knife comes out clean
Spread the prepared topping on Kuchen as soon as it is removed from oven
Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon

Keep leftovers refrigerated!

Giraffe Head Band

We all know that a giraffe’s neck is super long, but did you know they have the same number of neck bones as we do? Your child’s neck may be short, but it’s still fun to pretend it’s a bit longer with our giraffe head band and activity! 

Materials

• Ear and Ossicone (horn) template
• Yellow construction paper for head band
• Glue and stapler
• Crayons

Procedure

1. Cut and color ear and ossicones from the template.
2. Cut two stripes of yellow construction paper (long ways) and staple together to fit around head.
3. Glue ears and ossicones to the headband.
4. Add spots as a final touch

Paradise Cookie

Weekends often mean extra time for cooking and baking! Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s chefs will cure your weekend sweet tooth with their recipe for Paradise Cookies. This sweet and citrusy cookie makes a great desert after a springtime BBQ. If you don’t feel like baking at home, stop by the Grizzly Grill and enjoy one of our many homemade dessert offerings.

Paradise Cookie

Ingredients:

2 Cups Butter

3 Cups Sugar

1 Cup Orange Juice

Juice from 1 Lemon

3 eggs

7 Cups Flour

3 Cups Coconut

1/2 tsp Salt

1 Tblsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Baking Soda

Zest of 1 Orange

Zest of 1 Lemon

Directions:

*Cream Butter and Sugar.  Add Orange Juice, Lemon Juice, eggs, and zests of orange and lemon.  Blend Well.

*Add in Coconut

*Mix in separate bowl all dry ingredients and then add to wet mixture.  Mix well.

*Make into Balls and then roll in shredded coconut.  

*Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 Minutes. 

Tocho Fully Recovers from Leg Surgery

Tocho, one of Cheyenne Mountain Zoo's 8-year-old mountain lions, has recovered from a cruciate ligament surgery and is now enjoying his main yard with his siblings. Tocho received a five-hour surgery on his rear right leg the day after Christmas and has since been resting in his indoor den while his leg healed. A follow-up exam by veterinarians confirmed the surgery was a success.

“Once we got word that Tocho had a clean bill of health, we couldn't wait to give him access to his main yard,” Rebecca Zwicker, Rocky Mountain Wild animal keeper, said. “It was a sunny day, the snow was melting and it was the perfect day to be outside. “

When Zwicker opened the den door, she expected Tocho to run outside, but he just looked at her.

“It took him a few minutes, but he eventually poked his head out,” Zwicker said. “Once he was outside, he began exploring and taking it all in.”

After taking time to smell everything and use a log for a scratching post, Tocho settled in with his two brothers, Yuma and Motega, and sister, Kaya, for a morning nap in the sun.

“I feel so incredibly lucky to get to work with Tocho and work at a Zoo where an accident-prone cougar can get amazing medical care,” Zwicker said. “He’s received not one, but two complex surgeries to heal his back right leg.”  

The day after Christmas, 13 medical professionals from Colorado State University’s James L. Voss Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Colorado Academy of Veterinary Technology and Cheyenne Mountain Zoo performed a five-hour surgery on Tocho to repair his cruciate ligament and replace two bone plates that were previously used to repair a broken leg. Everyone was optimistic and hopeful about the outcome, but only time would tell if it was a complete success.

“During the follow-up examination, he had great range of motion, and we were really happy with how much the leg had healed,” Dr. Liza Dadone, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo veterinarian, said. “We don’t have any concerns about taking him off den rest, and we are ecstatic that he can once again leap around the outdoor exhibit.”

You can see Tocho in the Zoo’s Rocky Mountain Wild exhibit; he is very identifiable because the fur that was shaved for surgery on his right back leg has not fully grown in yet.

We extend a sincere thanks to the team that assisted with Tocho’s successful surgery - from CSU, Drs. Clara Goh, Matthew Johnston, Ross Palmer, Dana Ruehlman, two veterinary technicians and one vet-tech student. CAVT’s surgical team included veterinarian Dr. Dave Rubenstein and a vet-tech student. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s medical team included veterinarians Dr. Liza Dadone and Dr. Eric Klaphake, hospital manager and veterinary technician DeeAnn Wilfong, and veterinary technician Harley Thompson. The two bone plates were donated by DePuy Synthes

To see additional photos of him enjoying the main yard, visit: http://bit.ly/1lBfwvJ.

To read the original story about Tocho, visit: http://tinyurl.com/pwb2pnu.

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