Viva Belize! Week One

Hello everyone! Firstly I wanted to start with where in the world I am and what I am doing while I'm here. I am staying in Belize, a tiny Central American country settled between Mexico and Guatemala and although English is their first language, everyone knows Spanish and most default to speaking Creole. I am living at the Tropical Education Center which is conveniently located across the road from the Belize Zoo. The only internet access is in the dining room, and isn't always reliable, (which is why I have to cram my first week into one post... Sorry bout that!)

This is the dorm I am living at, and although it has no AC, they have given me a nice big fan and a bike for the mile trip to and from the zoo everyday. 

This is the beautiful gravel road I bike down everyday. 

My first day started right away. I met the keepers and curator, Sharon, all of whom are incredibly accepting and very funny. I am finally able to tell when they are making fun of me now. They also showed me the resident 'non-display-animals' like Bella, the Blue and Yellow Macaw. She lives in the back because she is not native to Belize and they only showcase native wildlife. 

And Amber the dog. She lives in the back because well... She's a dog.

After that I met Tim, who was in charge of the JAGUARS that day. I couldn't believe it. Day one and I working with the most important animal to this country. Anyway we started by chopping chicken for the 13 "problem jaguars" the zoo has. They are housed in the back away from the public and were taken from situations where they were causing problems, usually hunting livestock, and would normally be killed without a home at the Belize Zoo. This is what food for 13 jags looks like. 

Yummy right? Next it was time to feed them. All of the cats are hand fed, through the fence of course. 

They are incredibly strong and more beautiful than I imagined. Most had scars where people had shot at them trying to protect their cattle. Many of the cats also knew "tricks" like "high five" and "roll over" for food. 

The rest of the day was spent cutting up more chicken for their second evening meal (jaguars eat a lot of meat, go figure) and cleaning their enclosures. We sprayed down their indoor sleeping areas and scrubbed their pools. 

It was a lot of work, but incredible, and I got to do it all again the next day!

The day after that, so Wednesday now I got to work with a different keeper who was in charge of all the birds the zoo has. Many of then were either donated or seized from the pet trade.  

We started the day again by preparing their food, consisting mostly of local fruits, watermelon, papaya, banana, and mango... Apparently it's mango season here! The parrots and toucans also receive dog food, peanuts and occasionally hard boiled eggs. Here is all of their plates ready to go out for the morning. 

There are many beautiful and exotic birds at the zoo, but the super stars are their scarlet macaws. 

This pretty lady was very interested in eating my phone. 

I personally was amazed at how colorful the toucans were up close. 

And how quickly a playful parrot can go from sweet... To tearing your skin off...

Next we moved onto the birds of prey. The zoo is home to several BOP including several species of owl, hawk, vulture and of course the Harpy Eagle. 

Most of the smaller birds enjoy meals of baby chicks... Like this cute little guy :(

The Harpys eat chicken and are also hand fed. They have two, a male and a female. Both are enormous but the female is a little larger and is named The Queen, the male is called Panama. 

That's Panama... He looks huge right!? 

The next day I started out with birds in the morning but ended up helping another keeper with mammals at the end of the day. My dreams came true when I finally was able to feed a kinkajou. His name is Fuzzy and used to be someone's pet. 

I was a little excited...

I also got the experience of feeding their blind tapir named Bullethead. 

All in all it was an incredible, exhausting, hot, humid, itchy week and I can't wait to see what else this place has in store for me!

Creepy Salt and Calamari

Hello, everyone! I'm here with more updates and suchlike from the land of salt, water, and a combination of those things. I've been interning 3 days a week the past couple weeks, and because of that, I've been able to get the greatest grasp and understanding of the different things that go on to make the aquarium work so well. Have I put on a wetsuit and jumped into the shark tank? Disappointingly, no. Because apparently you have to be "trained" and "scuba certified" to do that. But don't you worry! That's another goal of mine for this wonderful 2014 year. ;) But I did make friends with a penguin. Her name is Simon. She's crazy adorable and loves flapping her wings.

BUT I know you guys do want to know all of the cool things I have gotten to do over the last few weeks, and honestly, one of the biggest things I've been doing is cleaning. SO. MUCH. CLEANING.

Just like the health inspector is to restaurants, the AZA is constantly checking in and making sure the aquarium stays in line and is continuing their excellent practices. One of the things we recently were told to clean up a bit was our salt creep. Now, as one can figure, with a basic understanding of the water cycle and knowledge that the aquarium contains salt water, it isn't a secret that when the water evaporates, it leaves behind the salt. The biggest areas we have the most problem with salt creep, are on these bio tanks, (they’re essentially just part of each tank’s filtration system) which are up high above your head, and is usually only reached with a ladder or standing on a nearby deck of a tank. From me to you, trust me when I say that salt creep is a SUPER BIG PAIN IN THE BUTT.

A giant chunk of salt creep that fell on my face.

Close your eyes (but not really) and imagine me standing on my tippy toes for about 30-45 minutes with a tiny shop vac, trying to vacuum up thick layers of salt on this cylinder about two feet above me. Got that mental picture? Good. Now add me trying to not drop the salt all over the floor and create more work for myself, and instead, getting salt ALL OVER THE PLACE; in my hair, in my eyes, on my shirt, on the deck I'm standing, and on the ground. My skin was incredibly red and shiny from all that salt. I’m surprised I didn’t dry out and shrivel up like a raisin right there on that deck. Talk about hectic. At one point, my poor legs and arms couldn't stretch anymore, so 3/4 of this cylinder is salt creep free, and then it's just complete solid salt! Oy; a clean freak's nightmare/biggest pet peeve.

High-tech transportation for our fish.

 And now I have some good and some more good (bad if you’re a fan of stonefish) news. This past week, I was given the duty to prepare for the shipment of our two stonefish. I had to measure some boxes and essentially have a sort of practice run to assure that they would fit properly in their boxes to be shipped off to their new destination. For those of you who don’t know, stonefish are one of the most venomous fish on the planet. Their antivenom is CRAZY expensive ($$$) and doesn’t have a very long shelf-life. Let me just say that I, personally, am so excited for those fish to go. They FREAK me out. Look them up. They look exactly like the coral/rocks around them, and they just stare at you when you’re trying to feed the lionfish. It’s like they’re staring into your soul, and it’s really uncomfortable. I’ve had both of them less than a foot away from my hands, and it gives me the shudders just thinking about it! So yeah, glad to see those guys go soon.  My other good news: we were able to introduce some new fish to our exhibits this past week. We now have a rather large tank dedicated to paddlefish, and they’re very energetic in their tank. I personally am not responsible for them, but I walk by their tank every day! I do, however, have a new fish in one of my tanks. I’m not sure what kind he is, but he’s super beautiful. A mix of reds and oranges, and the guy even changes color. His tank is a deep, royal blue, so he stands out well. He’s new to the tank, and even though he’s the 2^nd biggest critter in there (after our baby sea turtle, Josie) he gets pushed around and bullied for being the new guy. In fact, I found out he changes colors by watching him get pushed around by an angelfish, when he turned all pale white except for his face. It was quite hysterical, and I assure you he is doing better now, and we’re hoping it stays that way! I actually got to be the one to transport our fish from his quarantined tank to his new, current home. If you want to know how this was done, we honestly used a trash can. Yes, it was clean, and it actually had never been used as a trash can. It was just something that was big enough and could easily be wheeled around without causing awkwardness and difficult transportation.

Real quick, I also want to add this really cool bit of information I learned this past week. One of our biologist vets, Jolene, over the past year or so has been conducting research with our freshwater rays and birth-control. Now if you’re like me, you initially thought “heh, come again?” Yep, that’s exactly it. Jolene informed me that freshwater rays have absolutely NO preference and will breed with literally just about anything. You might be thinking “okay, kinda weird, but what’s the problem?” This is a problem because this can create hybrid species, which is a species that is a mix of two distinctly different species that aren’t typically bred together; a common example of this is a liger (tiger+lion) or a mule (horse+donkey). Hybrid species lack the ability to reproduce, and therefore are just kind of a nuisance and can cause problems on the “regular” species. So, Jolene was suggested to try out the effects of the birth-control on the rays, to see if that prevents the formation of hybrid species. We don’t have any official results yet, but either way, this research will be extremely helpful, but it will either inform us that: 1) yes, this BC does help, and can be used on our rays to prevent the forming of hybrids in our enclosures, or 2) no, this BC doesn’t seem to have any effect, but maybe this other particular BC will show changes. As a reliable facility that wants to help the growth, conservation, and breeding of rays, the best way to do this would be to assure “true” rays, and not hybrids that won’t be able to reproduce themselves and be successful in their environments. I can’t wait for Jolene to conclude her experimentation and share her results. I really enjoy getting to shadow underneath her from time to time, because she’s incredibly knowledgeable about all kinds of things, and I love listening to the different stuff she does, day-to-day, for the aquarium.

For your entertainment, and patience for reading all of my crazy adventures and blah-blah stories, here's a video of us feeding one of our eels in one of the tanks I help take care of. He's actually eating a piece of squid, and as you can see, he doesn't like to share! 

Now, who wants some calimari? 

22 Months and Hard Labor

Semba our pregnant elephant 

Matt and I have been busy reading about elephants and preparing for Semba's birth watch and training. We have been put in charge of scheduling docents and volunteers for the birth watch. Starting June 29th, daytime birth watch will begin and on July 8th we will begin 24 hour birth watch! The keepers have already begun weighing Semba daily as opposed to the usual weekly weighing. According to previous elephant births, the cow may drop a good amount of weight before the birth. So far Semba's weight is keeping steady. 

On Tuesday, Matt and I hosted our first docent training session. For those not familiar with this term, a docent is a zoo volunteer that educates visitors at different exhibit locations through out the zoo. Morning through early afternoon birth watches will be slightly different than those over night. Instead of tablets, afternoon volunteers will use a time sheet and record location, behavior and proximity to another elephant, every five minutes. They are given different locations through out the pool yard, and a list of behaviors to choose from. We will have two more training sessions before June 29th. 

We have started taking turns watching Semba throughout our daily shifts. We are using the same methods we created for the docents/morning watchers. This is so we can determine a baseline of Semba's normal behaviors. Once we can recognize what is normal for her, it will be easier to determine what isn't, like the subtle signs of labor. 

Side view of Semba

Speaking of labor! The baby is due between July and August. Due to the long gestation of elephants (22 months!) often times it can be difficult to determine a due date. We can only make an educated guess as to when the baby will be born using urine tests and based on when Semba and Mabu mated. Another option would be to take blood samples daily and test them for progesterone levels. Right before the birth those levels would increase. However, because of the long gap of when the baby could be born, the keepers haven't done blood sampling because they could end up doing it each day for over a month! This most likely this would not be comfortable for Semba. Without any other indications by Semba of being close to labor, it doesn't seem logical to begin blood testing at this time.

The keepers have been keeping busy "baby proofing" the exhibit and barn. The exhibit wasn't originally designed to have such a small elephant running around. There is fencing that separates the pool and grass yards, and contains the elephants to separate them from keepers. The first and second rows of chain are about a foot or so apart but the baby could easily roll through that opening to the opposite side of mom, causing a panic for everyone. So the keepers took more chain and added it between the first two rows. This should keep the baby safer!

Soon we will be starting our 24 hour observations and Matt and I will be doing night shifts. And if the three hour time difference wasn't enough to throw us off, working from 10PM to 7AM will definitely take some getting use to! 

That's all for now here at Reid Park Zoo! 

Semba and her second born; Sundzu 

Wild Encounters at the Wilds

Name: Rachel Dalton

Class Year: 2016

Hometown: Columbus, OH

Internship: Conservation Science Research Intern, the Wilds

Location: Cumberland, OH

Hello again from beautiful Cumberland, OH! It’s been warmer here over the last couple of weeks, interspersed with the occasional monsoon (when it rains here, it rains pretty impressively!). I just came back inside from standing on our deck and listening to the wood thrushes sing. They are very abundant in the treed areas around here, and I love hearing them in the evenings. The other night I also heard a barred owl hooting, which was neat.

 One of the things I have been working on this week is finishing/proofreading the Intro section of my paper. All of the interns are required to write a full scientific paper about their project, which if you are not already familiar with this, includes Introduction, Methods & Materials, Results, and Discussion/Conclusions sections, as well as an abstract, works cited, etc.  We also have to format our paper according to the requirements of a primary literature journal that publishes work similar to our project. I decided to write mine with the formatting requirements of the Journal of Wildlife Management, as there are several papers about eDNA monitoring published in it. We will also be responsible for making a scientific poster and PowerPoint presentation to share the results of our studies. The 8 students with the best posters as selected by the Chief Science Officer at the Wilds, Dr. Barbara Wolfe, will present them at the Columbus Zoo on the last day of our internship. 

I have also been perfecting my DNA extraction skills as of late, and am now to the point where I can do it independently (woohoo!). I recently did a DNA extraction from Indian rhino tissue! I am also learning how to do qPCR right now, which I am excited about. Looking forward to applying these skills with Indian rhino eDNA very soon!

Speaking of some of favorite perissodactylids…  Last week, fellow interns Katie and Evan and I had the opportunity to visit the rhino barn and spend some time with Julia the white rhino! 

Needless to say, I was more than a little excited about this! Julia is a beauty, and seemed quite content to receive some pats and scratches behind the ears from interns who were all too happy to give them. It was a really neat experience. 

Something I have been realizing more and more is just how much I am learning during my time here. I’m learning a lot about eDNA and rhinos of course through my research, but I have also had opportunities to  learn from quite a few people here at the Wilds who are not only extremely knowledgeable, but also very willing to share their knowledge (something I am very thankful for and have benefited greatly from!). 

A hellbender!
 Image courtesy of the Wilds' Facebook page.

As an example of this, last Friday after completing  hellbender morning care I had the opportunity to observe Dr. Don Neiffer, who is a veterinarian here at the Wilds, do physical exams on four adult hellbenders. I am very interested in pursuing a career in zoo veterinary medicine, so I was excited about this. I was expecting to simply observe quietly in the background, but Dr. Neiffer was really great about making it into a fantastic, interactive learning experience for the other interns and I. He taught us about various aspects of amphibian biology, common problems in amphibian medicine, etc by asking us questions. He would ask us things like “What can you tell me about the ammonia cycle?” or “What are the names of the major groups of amphibians?” or “Do any mammals have cloacas? Which ones?” I really appreciated that he took the time to do this, as it kept me on my toes and I learned a lot!

As another example of learning cool things from really neat people, Mollie and I had the opportunity to tag along with our supervisor/instructor, Joe Greathouse, and fellow intern Katie on a trip to the giraffe barn later that same day. Katie is working on a project that involves developing alternative browse sources for the giraffes. On our way there, Joe told us all about different diet-related health issues that can occur in giraffes, previous experiences he has had in caring for them during his time as a zoo keeper, different nutritional aspects of different browse sources, etc. I was fascinated. And getting to feed two of the giraffes was a lot of fun, too J It is truly hard to appreciate just how tall they are until you are on ground level right next to them! 

One of the Indian rhinos residing at the Wilds.

I've decided for the remainder of my posts I will close with a fun fact or two that I have learned related to the biology of rhinos! Many people assume that all species of rhinos have essentially the same diets, but this is actually not the case. The two species of rhinos that live at the Wilds are a great example of this. The southern white rhino is a strictly grazing species, whereas the Indian rhino is both a grazer and a browser (able to eat leaves off of trees). This is because the Indian rhino has a skeletal build that allows it to lift its head higher than the southern white rhino, as well as a prehensile upper lip that is very handy for stripping leaves off of branches. 

A Million Gallons of Fun and Countless Grains of Salt

I love the water. It's almost an obsession I have. It's something that completely fascinates me. The only thing that might be cooler than water, are the things that live in it. The ocean has it all; and probably more. The ocean is so mysterious that we know more about the surfaces of the moon and Mars than we do the ocean floor. Say whaaaat?!
I've wanted to be a marine biologist since I was six years old. Being from and living in Ohio, I can't tell you how many times people told me "good luck with that," or "how's that gonna work out for you?" Because, ya know, Ohio, home of the corn and cows and not sandy beaches or marine things, poses a bit of a challenge. So, when I was offered this internship at the Newport Aquarium-- honestly to my surprise-- I couldn't accept this opportunity fast enough. I didn't know what I would be getting myself into. All I knew was that I had the official title of being an 'aquatic animal care intern.' Whoa. So surreal.

THE INTERN'S FIRST DAY:   The intern. Ooohhhhh the dreaded life of an intern. I could only imagine what kinds of things I would be doing. All the odd jobs that no one else wanted to do? Organizing a freezer? Preparing a shark diet? BEING the shark diet? Anything was possible, if you asked me as I walked in for my first official day of training. I finally put a face to my wonderful mentor, Jen; or as we call her, Haz. Little did I know that she would end up being the greatest mentor that I could ever even hope for. On the very first day, she greeted me with a big smile and said that she looked forward to spending the summer with me. The ultimate goal of my internship, and this summer, is to, by the end, be able to do exactly what she does--no holding back. And that's exactly what I'm already starting to learn. I'm learning about diets, cleaning, filling and emptying tanks for water changes, different filtration systems, etc.
Let me just get something out there for everyone:  this internship is hard. It is. Of course it's fun, and I love being here every second. But it certainly isn't a cakewalk and it’s physically demanding, which I expected anyway. To some of my dismay, I actually have to use my absolute worst subject, chemistry. I have to be super careful with these animals. They aren't pets; they're wild animals, and some are dangerous. It's important to get things done efficiently and to understand when things are "normal" or not. Communication is important, just as you would expect it to be.

My first few days have been so informational, I could probably fill a textbook with everything I’ve learned already. I’ve done things like cleaning out the protein skimmer (super important, by the way. It makes sure that aquarium tanks don’t become sewers), feeding some of the critters, and being introduced to the crazy maze that is the behind-the-scenes of the aquarium. There are doors and stairs and hallways that I’m convinced didn’t exist the day before-- I’m STILL learning those tunnels. But I have to say, I’m the luckiest girl on the planet. On my very first day, I got to stuff some lobsters with vitamins and then watch, front and center on the 'catwalk,' as they were fed to the shark rays! Talk about cool.

I managed to make it all the way to the (almost end) of my second day before I got my first injury on the job. For those of you that don’t already know, I was getting ready to clean some windows, by myself instead of with a partner like earlier that day, and I underestimated the strength, and distance between the 2 pieces, of the magnets on the window scrubber we have. I’m not even joking when I say that I momentarily thought my finger was as flat as a pancake when those magnets slammed together with my fingers between. I don’t remember what words came out of my mouth when it happened, but I can say that I’m glad no one was around to find out, as I’m positive they weren’t the nicest of words. I’m not sure what hurt worse: getting my fingers slammed, or having to pull the darn magnets off my hand. From that, I have since started to become an expert on aquarium glass/windows. No kidding, I think I might know the windows more than the people who actually work there. From repairing scratches, to clearing smudges, I’ve observed every inch of the tanks my mentor is responsible for. SG8, one of the tanks Haz cares for, and I have become the best of friends. I’ve had to crawl in and out of that thing multiple times the last 2 days, filling in scratches that have been accumulating over the last 15 years (Happy Anniversary, Newport Aquarium!!), cleaning off some algae, and even rearranging the fake plants. The first time I crawled in (wearing the most flattering waders around), I had a crab crawl on my foot. He just sat there for a while. Whether he thought I was a new rock, or just checking me out, it took me a second to realize that hearing your boss say “there’s a crab on your foot” is a totally normal thing here.

The taste of salt is inevitable. It’s everywhere; the floor, the side of the tanks, your shoes, your hands, everywhere. I’ve had my fingers smashed, covered in krill, and holding such a large lobster that I don’t even want to know how much it would cost if you ate it at a restaurant. For the first time in my life, I’m glad I’m not any taller than I am, because I’ve hit my head a million and one times already. I had more people wave at me while I was inside a tank that I started to feel like I was a celebrity; I even had a few people take pictures of/with me. Talk about awkward. One lady mouthed the words “what kind of fish are you?” To which I answered back to her “a very rare one.” I’ve been splashed by a sea turtle and a shark or two, I’ve seen an entire lobster swallowed whole, I’ve seen an otter so close they chirped when I said hello. Need I explain more? I have the coolest internship in the entire world. These opportunities are incredible. And I can’t wait to see what lies ahead. I love it.

Welcome to Arizona, the Grand Canyon State!

Greetings from Tucson, Arizona! 

Hello, my name is Amanda Stilwell. I'm a fifth year student and in the Zoo and Conservation Science program. I originally transferred to Otterbein from Syracuse University in 2012. This will be my third and final year in the program and it has been an amazing experience thus far. I was lucky enough to have been chosen by the Biology and Earth Sciences department, for internship at the Reid Park Zoo in Tucson, AZ, with fellow zoo student, Matt Vieth. Together, we will be spending the next ten weeks working at Reid Park Zoo working on the elephant baby watch team and much more. 

Photo taken right before we began our decent into Tucson. 

I've only been here for four days but it seems as though I'm finally getting use to the three hour time difference! Which may not seem like much (as I first thought) but when all your friends back in eastern standard time go to bed at eight o'clock, you start to notice! 

Matt and I arrived on Sunday though I got in around noon and he didn't arrive till that evening. My day started at 2:30 am to catch a flight at 6 am. Phew, was I exhausted when I arrived. Upon arrival I was instantly struck by the beauty of the land scape. Various types of cacti and palm trees and beautiful mountain ranges all around me. It's definitely not Ohio, and a far cry from my hometown in upstate New York. My lovely host for the summer showed me around town and took me by the zoo. The next two days, Matt and I spent time lounging, enjoying our central air, but occasionally venturing out into the 100+ degrees. 

Today, Matt and I had our first day of orientation with a couple of other fellow elephant baby watchers. It was the usual safety regulations and all about Reid Park Zoo. We were able to tour the grounds and meet other people from education, the zoo director and other keepers on elephant staff. The newly constructed elephant facility is the largest I've seen and more is being added on for the arrival of the new baby! Mabu (the bull of the heard) and Semba are expecting their third baby together. Punga and Sundzu are their first two calves together and also live with them at the Reid Park Zoo. However this new baby if the first to be born at the Reid Park Zoo. There is another female in the herd, Lungile that acts as an aunt. Often she is seen playing with the young males, as we were able to see today! 

*Photo taken from the Reid Park Zoo's webpage. 

*this information about the elephants was taken from the zoo webpage, news articles, education signs and brochures 

here is the link to learn more: http://reidparkzoo.org/animals/elephant/

This summer will definitely be a great experience that I will never forget. I've already seen a real armadillo so check that off the bucket list! More to come on experiences we are allowed to share and cross your fingers the BIG bundle of joy comes soon!

FUN FACT: The Reid Park Zoo's logo is an anteater because they have a very successful anteater breeding program! Yay breeding!

Meaghan Graver - San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research - Conservation Education

Meaghan Graver - San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research
Class: 2016
Hometown: Enon, Oh
Internship: Conservation Education Intern
Location: Escondido, CA

Blog #1!

Hi!

So it has been an incredibly crazy couple of weeks, but here I am, writing from sunny Escondido, California, after my first official day as an intern with the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research – Conservation Education Department!

I first off just want to say a big thanks to Dr. Mathias Tobler, Samia and Diego for letting me, and fellow intern Macie, stay in their cute little house. Although their cute little cat Michi likes to make sure I do not even think about sleeping in, the house the house and everything about Escondido is pretty perfect.

Macie and I arrived here a week early and like typical girls have made sure to hit up the beach, twice, sample many different froyo options, and find all of the closest shopping centres. We have also had the chance to just explore the hidden wonder that is Escondido; from the weekly farmer’s market to Daley Ranch, the local hiking hot spot (It was a new form of hiking for me all sand and sun, no trees) to the fruit stand on the side of the road, we've left no corner untouched. And now sun-burnt and tired, we official start our internship.

On Friday May 30 2014, Macie and I went in to the Beckman Center for Conservation Research to meet the Conservation Education team, and get a tour of the facility including a brief trip into the Safari Park. We passed the Frozen Zoo – It is so cool looking! After that, we headed over to HR to get our official IDs.

And finally it arrived, June 2, 2014 the first day of our internship. Macie and I spent the day in our office, which is pretty snazzy if I do say so myself, diving into the core of what the Conservation Education department does – learning about how to change people’s behavior. This week will be spent really researching and getting to know what conservation really is before we move onto our individual projects. I’m pretty excited.

Well that’s enough for now, I’ll let you know how the rest of this week played out especially since we have a jam-packed next couple of days.  Bye!