The Wild

Side

Editor: McKaylei Munden

Deember 4, 2014

African lion cub debut

Born November 19, 2013, the foursomes

are the second litter of female Kiki and male
Kamau, both 10 years old.
Like all newborn carnivores, the cubs were
born blind and entirely dependent on their
mother.
Today, they are rambunctious youngsters
with distinctive traits
and personalities.
Hondo, the largest
of the four at over 200
pounds, is the mellowest
and most independent
of the litter, while
adventurous Zamaya,
the sole female in the
brood, began eating
meat
before
her
brothers did.
African lion cubs generally remain with
their mothers until they are around 18 months
old, at which time it is normal for adult male
lions to grow less tolerant of their male

offspring. While Kamau has shown no overt

signs of aggression toward the cubs, the
youngsters are now housed separately from
their father.
For males Hondo, Hatari and Azizi, the
milestones ahead will be largely physical;
as they grow, they will gradually begin
developing the signature
mane of the adult male
African lion.
Found in most countries
in sub-Saharan Africa,
African lions are currently
classified as vulnerable.
The wild population is
in decline as a result of
habitat loss, retaliatory
killing by humans because
of livestock predation and population
declines as a result of reductions in available
prey species.

Fort Worth zoo welcomes jaguar cub

Fort Worth Zoo officials today announced
the birth of the Zoos newest resident, a
female jaguar cub. This is the sixth jaguar
cub born since Texas
Wild! opened in 2001
and represents exciting
progress for the near
threatened species.
The healthy cub, named
Sasha, was born July 16
and weighed 2 pounds.
Sasha
immediately
began nursing and
bonding with 4-yearold mother Xochi (zoshe). Xochi is a very
protective mother; after
giving birth, she cared
for her cub in a private, off-exhibit area,
mimicking natural jaguar behavior in the
wild. The 2-month-old cub now weighs

13.75 pounds and can be seen exploring her

exhibit in the Brush County area of Texas
Wild!.
In the wild, a jaguar
cub is dependent on its
mother for protection
from predators, for
food and guidance
until it is about 2 years
old. Sasha will stay
at the Fort Worth Zoo
for the next 12 to 18
months and then be
moved to another AZA
zoo to help maintain
genetic
diversity
within the species into
Central America.

Happy Birthday Lun Lun

Lun Lun the giant panda turns 17 on August

25, 2014, and Atlantas favorite celebrity
mom will receive a birthday surprise at
1:30 p.m. in her habitat at Zoo Atlantas
Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Giant
Panda Conservation Center. Lun Lun is
the mother of five offspring, the youngest
of whom are Mei Lun and Mei Huan, the
only giant panda twins in the U.S., born
July 15, 2013.
Her other cubs are male, Mei Lan,, born
in 2006; male, Xi Lan, born in 2008; and
female, Po, born in 2010.
As has become the tradition with giant
panda birthdays, Lun Lun will receive
a handcrafted ice cake featuring frozen
bamboo, fruit and other panda goodies.
Lun Luns male counterpart, Yang Yang,
turns 17 on September 9. Hell receive
a similar surprise around 11 a.m. on that
day.

Interesting Fact:

Panda (Giant)
The giant panda does not hibernate
but it will shelter in caves or hollow
trees in very cold weather

Grant awarded to zoo

Zoo Atlanta has been awarded a $20
million grant from the Robert W. Woodruff
Foundation in a dramatic show of support
for an unprecedented expansion of Atlantas
oldest cultural destination.
The grant will match other gifts for the
project on a 1:1 basis up to and including a
commitment of $20 million.
The campaign, entitled A Grand New View
for
Zoo
Atlanta:
Elephants,
Events
&
Expansion,
will facilitate the
transformation
of
the 1921 Cyclorama
building, entrusted to
the Zoos stewardship
by Atlanta Mayor
Kasim
Reed
in
July 2014, and the
property immediately
surrounding
the
historic structure.
Both Mayor Reed and Arthur M. Blank,
chairman of The Arthur M. Blank Family
Foundation and owner of the Atlanta Falcons,
have agreed to serve as Honorary Chairs of
the campaign.
On behalf of the entire Zoo Atlanta family,
we couldnt be more thrilled by this wonderful
news. Were honored and proud that our
friends at the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation
have deemed our organization worthy of such
a substantial contribution to a truly defining
moment in our history, said Raymond B.
King, President and CEO.

This is a gift thats much more than purely

monetary. Its a very energizing and exciting
demonstration of support and faith in the
Zoos success, stability and future.
Plans for the Cyclorama property include a
world-class special events venue featuring
intimate views of African elephants roaming
the Zoos African savanna, which will be
expanded to more than six acres as part of the
project.
Other
proposed
improvements
include
a grand entry plaza on
Cherokee Avenue.
In a continuation of
one of the citys most
successful public/private
partnerships, the City
of Atlanta has agreed to
fund a significant parking
solution arising from the
Zoos current and future
success.
The campaign is the second major capital
campaign undertaken at Zoo Atlanta in recent
years.
The first, the campaign to fund Scaly Slimy
Spectacular:
The Amphibian and Reptile Experience, set
to open in spring 2015, formed the largest
fundraising effort in Zoo Atlanta history.
That campaign raised more than $23 million,
with $18 funding the new complex and the
remaining $4 million benefiting the Zoos
Annual Fund and Mabel Dorn Reeder
Conservation Endowment Fund.

Recent successes over the past four years

include a 30 percent increase in the Zoos
annual attendance, which is expected to top
900,000 by year-end.
Other accomplishments include a complete
elimination of all debt; Zoo Atlanta has also
reported an operating surplus for the past three
years and is consistently on track for a fourth
consecutive year.

Top 10 zoos in the USA

1. Toledo Zoo - Toledo, Ohio
2. St. Louis Zoo - St. Louis

3. Cincinnati Zoo - Cincinnati

4. Memphis Zoo - Memphis

5. Columbus Zoo - Columbus,

Ohio
6. Henry Doorly Zoo - Omaha
7. Houston Zoo - Houston

8. Brookfield Zoo - Chicago

9. Dallas Zoo - Dallas

10. San Diego Zoo & safari

park - San Diego

Zoo celebrates 1,000,000th

The Fort Worth Zoo celebrates, once
again, more than 1 million Zoo guests,
an attendance benchmark thats been
reached every year since the Fort Worth
Zoological Association assumed private
management in 1991.
The one-millionth guest went through
the Zoo turnstiles on Saturday, Aug 30,
more than two weeks earlier than last
year. Management attributes the years
attendance to the Zoos ever-increasing
profile both regionally and nationally,
milder summer temperatures and the
Zoos wildly popular Asian elephant calves,

Belle and Bowie, whose birthdays were

celebrated in July and August.
The Zoo continues to offer guests a
variety of entertaining and educational
experiences that families can enjoy
year-round, said Michael Fouraker, Zoo
executive director. The elephant calves
are two of the big reasons people are
visiting us and doing so repeatedly.
The nationally acclaimed Fort Worth
Zoo has been ranked the No. 5 zoo in the
nation by USA Travel Guide, the No. 1
attraction in the DFW Metroplex by Zagat
survey and a top 10 zoo or aquarium by

FamilyFun magazine and TripAdvisors

Travelers Choice awards. The Zoo is home
to more than 500 animal species and a
world-famous reptile collection, housed
in the brand new Museum of Living Art
(MOLA).. institutions focus on education and
conservation is second to none, enhancing
the lives of more than 1 million visitors a
year.