Last week we had a bear escape- actually two bears. Well, actually, not really any bears, or at least not any real bears. We practice and drill so we can prepare for the real thing. Sometimes I use stuffed animals– rather large ones that the keepers have to track down and find and return home. It’s hard to mimic reality with stuffed animals, so this past time I enlisted the help of our Human Resource Specialist, Leslie Fann. She didRead more
Posts tagged: #kimberly
King of the hay hill
During our daily Meet the Keeper program, Gus climbed up on top of a huge hay bale. I thought he looked very handsome. Three of these hay bales were left over from Pumpkin Patch Express, they make great enrichment for the bears. After he finished hanging out on top of this one, he walked over to another one and started tearing into it, ripping hay from it while walking backwards. (the bales are round and roll) You never know whatRead more
Snake Enrichment
On Sunday’s the snake enrichment is to be held. Volunteer Colet is always eager to accomplish this task. After holding this corn snake for awhile she let it crawl on the floor for a bit. Read more
Lemur Super-clean
We clean the lemur house everyday but once a month we get a little crazy! We call this super-cleaning. I took some step-by-step photos from last month’s super-clean. I started this super-clean on a closed Monday afternoon and finished the next morning with Keeper Jessi. First we remove the mulch from inside viewing. This is where the Red Ruffed Lemurs hangout during the day. Basically, we shovel the mulch out, I used a laundry basket this time. We wear glovesRead more
Largest living lemur
Back when people first explored Madagascar there was a 400 lb lemur the size of a gorilla! Unfortunately, due to hunting this species was quickly wiped out. Today the largest living lemur is the Indri. This lemur is two and a half feet in length and typically weighs 13-15 lbs. It’s a diurnal lemur that feeds on canopy fruit and leaves and travels through the tree tops, often leaping 30 feet between tree trunks! They are known for theirRead more
What makes this snake the King?
The King Snake gets it’s name because part of it’s diet includes other snakes. They can even venomous snakes because they have a natural immunity to the pit-venom! Because of it’s white markings it is often called a chain snake or chain king. There are several types of King Snakes and color variations. Eastern King Snakes are medium sized snakes reaching 3 to 6 feet in length. Along with other snakes the King Snake eats a variety of preyRead more