Creature Feature: Red Wolf Surgery Part 3

This video is the third and final part of a three part series. Watch the first and second part or see all three in the same video. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUhf6ciwZ1E] Well, a lot has happened with red wolf #1227 in the last week or so. Yesterday’s video showed you the procedure of the mass being removed, and today’s video will allow you to see what happened to #1227 after the surgery and how she is doing now. #1227 arrived at the museumRead more

Creature Feature: Red Wolf Surgery Part 2

This video is the second part of a three part series. Watch the first video here. WARNING: This video contains graphic images of surgical procedures that may not be appropriate for all viewers. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo_ejS8Zcmc] In yesterday’s post, I said that I would tell you more about red wolf #1227 for the second part of the video. However, we received the pathology report yesterday afternoon, and I didn’t want to wait until tomorrow to share the results with you. So IRead more

Big word of the month: adapiforms

This month’s instillation of the BWOM is inspired by the recent unveiling of a phenomenal fossil from the Eocene epoch (approximately 55 to 35 million years ago). This period in geological history is notable for the emergence of many modern forms of mammals. The fossil, dubbed Ida by its discoverers, is from the Messel Pit in Germany which has yielded many exceptional fossils. Her scientific name, Darwinius masillae, honors Charles Darwin (one of the founders of modern evolutionary biology) andRead more

Red Wolf pups- lots of pups born to wild wolves

I mentioned a few posts ago about red wolf births. Not that many pups were born in the captive population although I have not heard a final report yet. The numbers are looking much better for wild red wolves. As of May 15, there have been 11 liters with 41 pups, plus the 4 pups that were fostered. I head out for the red wolf SSP master plan meeting in Tacoma the end of July, and will report more specificRead more

Red Wolf Surgery

Yesterday, our female red wolf, studbook # 1227, had surgery to remove a mass from her chest. I am sure Marilyn will be posting about it later. We took a video as well that we’ll get it up soon. For those who follow us and our animals closely, I wanted you to know this happened and that the wolf is doing well. In the photo, Katy is on the left, and Dr. Staab-Carter is on the right (wolf is inRead more

Spotlight: Marilyn Johnson

This is Keeper Marilyn. Marilyn started working in the animal department almost 6 years ago. She started working 10 hours each week, and worked herself into a full time job after about 9 months. (On the right she is trying to get a weight on an opossum). Marilyn’s attention to detail is outstanding. She loves to learn and is always thinking of innovative things for the animals. If you need someone to help you don’t even have to ask, she’llRead more