CONSERVATION NEWS BLOG

Stay up with the latest news from our Conservation Department here.

Friday, January 22, 2010

2009-2010 Conservation Report

  Click here to download the 2009-2010 Conservation Report.  This report will update you on the various projects in which our conservation and research team is currently invloved and how their work through your support is contributing to forest health programs in China.         ...
Posted by adane@memphiszoo.org at 10:29 AM

Monday, December 28, 2009

Saving the World's Largest Amphibian - the Giant Salamander

By Dr. Andy Kouba, Curator of Research Salamanders have survived numerous  extinction events throughout history and have even outlasted the dinosaurs. Unfortunately,they have not fared as well in recent times.   Amphibians are currently in an extinction crisis with nearly one third of the species currently threatened with extinction and at risk of disappearing forever unless urgent action is taken. The Zoo’s conservation department has initiated a project to helpsave the...
Posted by adane@memphiszoo.org at 11:23 AM

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Unraveling the Mysteries of Giant Panda Pseudopregnancy

After estrus, giant pandas experience a phenomenon known as pseudopregnancy, where the female exhibits behavioral, physiological and hormonal changes similar to pregnancy. Therefore, monitoring hormonal patterns that are usually different in pregnant animals compared to non-pregnant animals is not effective at determining the pregnancy status of the panda. It has been impossible to determine whether a giant panda is pregnant until about two weeks prior to birth when ultrasound can be used to...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 2:38 PM | 0 comments

Wednesday, September 09, 2009

Conservation Abroad: Mariana Islands Program

The Memphis Zoo has been involved in  conservation of the birds of the Mariana  Islands since 1993. Under a different program  I traveled to the island of Rota in 1993 and 1997 to collect Mariana fruit doves. These colorful doves are endangered by the brown treesnake, as are all Mariana forest birds. These wild-caught birds serve as educational ambassadors and a reserve population if they become extinct in the wild.   In 2004, Peter Luscomb of the Honolulu Zoo and I...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 2:05 PM

Tuesday, September 08, 2009

Spotlight: Conservation interns for 2009

  Congratulations to the Memphis Zoo’s conservation interns for 2009, Daniel Eastlack, Michelle Wilkes, Mitch Taylor, Allison Graham, Kate Baker and Lauren Lieb.   Left to Right: Daniel Eastlack, Michelle Wilkes, Mitch Taylor, Allison Graham, Kate Baker, Lauren Lieb   This year we were...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 10:05 AM

Friday, May 01, 2009

Training award given to Memphis Zoo researchers

https://www.msu.edu/~first4/ Memphis Zoo post-doctoral fellows have received a training award to participate in FIRST IV program supported by Michigan State University and National Science Foundation Research staff, Drs.  Jon Davis, Erin Willis and Jiang Pingping were recently awarded National Science Foundation (NSF) fellow status for an application they submitted to participate in an NSF-funded country-wide educational program called ‘Faculty Institutes for Reforming Science...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 4:06 PM

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Memphis Zoo Biodiversity Fellowship Interns take away top prizes at the Tennessee Academy of Science

Each year, select biodiversity fellowship interns from regional universities and colleges in the Mid-South, conduct research projects at the Memphis Zoo which further their career opportunities and experiences. As part of their training they share their work with other peers at the Western Regional meetings of the Tennessee Academy of Sciences (TAS). This year the Memphis Zoo intern students were awarded top prizes for scientific research on April 4th 2009. Congratulations to Stephanie Cassel,...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 10:59 AM

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Saipan Survival

The Mariana Avifauna Conservation program (MAC) has cause to celebrate! In late April 2008, we captured, banded and transferred 50 Saipan bridled white-eyes. While still abundant on the island of Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, this species like all other forest species on Saipan is under threat from the introduced brown treesnake. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service along with the...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 11:13 AM

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

The Foping National Nature Reserve, China

  The Foping National Nature Reserve, China Foping National Nature Reserve (FNNR) is one of those places you’d feel a bit different about yourself before and after you have been there. I had been told that Foping was amazing before our trip there, but what I didn’t quite imagine is falling in love with it was almost at first sight. The Reserve,...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 1:36 PM

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Mariana Islands Birds Conservation

The Mariana Islands are an archipelago of Micronesian islands that include Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Island habitats are vulnerable to a variety of threats, including habitat destruction and introduced species. Although the vegetation on the islands has been strongly affected by agriculture and the effects of World War II, the birdlife seemed to be able to cope with the changes. However, the accidental introduction of the brown tree snake from Australia and New...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 3:43 PM | 0 comments

Thursday, January 15, 2009

The end of the year of the Frog

In 2008, the Memphis Zoo joined other zoos and aquariums in a nation-wide effort to promote awareness of the amphibian extinction crisis. More than two-thirds of the world’s amphibians are threatened due to habitat loss and disease. Extinctions of this magnitude have not been seen since the time of the dinosaurs. As an accredited member of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA), the Memphis Zoo celebrated the “Year of the Frog.” We have been working collaboratively with many...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 3:36 PM

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Rabies in Bats

This past May, I was fortunate enough to attend a workshop run by Bat Conservation International (BCI). The workshop was held at the Southeastern Research Station in Portal, Arizona — a teeny, remote town nestled in the Chiricahua Mountains, and one of the most ecologically diverse places in the United States. During the daytime, I attended intensive lectures, interspersed with ?eld trips to caves and other bat habitat locations. I learned about all manner of bat-related topics, including the...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 2:16 PM

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

The American Black Bear

  The American black bear ( Ursus americanas ) is thought of by many as the symbol for the Great Smoky Mountain (GSM) National Park. Many visitors come to the park each year with the hope of having the opportunity to see a black bear. However, few know just how much of a symbol this animal is for the well-being of its habitat. Bears have been recognized as a management...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 2:11 PM

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Purseweb Spider Study

Our zookeepers have been studying copperheads that live in the Zoo’s portion of Overton Park’s forest for several years. Recently, the staff spotted another interesting forest resident — the purseweb spider. Last year, zookeepers were doing field study on the copperheads when they came across the elusive spider species. “We looked down and saw a spider that looked very different,” said curator...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 2:03 PM

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

What’s in the bamboo?

The Memphis Zoo conducts intensive nutritional research on one of the most endangered species in the world — the giant panda ( Ailuropoda melanoleuca) . Limited to a small, fragmented fraction of their former range, their numbers in the wild have decreased to approximately 1,500 individuals. Fortunately, the Memphis Zoo and institutions around the world are participating...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 1:58 PM

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Serpents in the City

In the heart of Memphis, the trees and trails of Overton Park have provided a refuge for locals seeking a momentary escape from city life for over a century. For far longer, the old-growth forest has been home to a host of animals, though some settle in to city life better than others. As urbanization enveloped Overton Park, squirrels, rodents, and robins remained conspicuous residents; whereas large carnivorous predators could rarely be found.   ...
Posted by zooinfo@memphiszoo.org at 9:56 AM

CONSERVATION AND RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS

The Memphis Zoo lends it's support to lots of research.  Some of the latest articles are listed below.

"Cat News" Vol 4, 2008:  Jaguar Distribution in Brazil: Past, Present and Future


2006 – 2009 PUBLISHED PAPERS:

Swaisgood, R., Wei, F., Wildt, D., Kouba, A., Zhang, Z. (2009). Giant Panda Conservation Science: How Far
  •   We Have Come. Biology Letters, doi: 10/rsb1.2009.9786

Brait, C. H. H., Filho, N. R. A., Furtado, M. M. (2009): Utilization of wild animal hair for the environmental 

     monitoring of Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Zn. Quim. Nova 32 (6): 1384-1388. 

Li H., Kouba A., Seratt J.L., Vaughan M.J., Browne R.K. (2009): A complex enrichment diet improves growth

     and health in the endangered Wyoming toad (Bufo baxteri). Zoo Biology, 28:197-213. 

Kouba AJ, Vance CK, Willis E. (2009): Artificial fertilization for the conservation of amphibians: Current

     knowledge and future considerations. Theriogenology, 71: 214-227
Kouba AJ and Vance CK. (2009): Applied reproductive technologies and genetic resource banking for
     amphibian conservation.  Reproduction, Fertility and Development, 21:719-737
Hansen, R., Carr, M., Apanavicius, C., Jiang P., Bissell, H., Myers, B., Maury, F., Himmelreich, M., Beard, S.,
     Ouellette, J., Kouba, A. (2009): Bamboo plant part consumption by the giant panda (Ailuropoda
     melanoleuca): Relationship to seasonal changes in bamboo macronutrient composition.
     Zoo Biology, 28:1-14.
Silveira, L.; Furtado, M. M.; Tôrres, N. M.; Sollmann, R.; Uhl, G.; Jácomo, A. T. A. (2009): Maned Wolf
     Density in a Central Brazilian Grassland Reserve. Journal of Wildlife Management, 73(1).
Jácomo, A. T. A.; Kashivakura, C. K.; Ferro, C.; Furtado, M. M.; Astete, S. P.; Tôrres, N. M.; Sollmann, R.;
     Silveira, L. (2009): Maned wolf home-range and spatial organization in the Brazilian Grasslands.
     Submitted to Journal of Mammalogy, 90(1).
Silveira, L., Jácomo, A.T.A., Astete, S., Sollmann, R., Tôrres, N.M., Furtado, M.M., and Marinho-Filho, J.
     (2009): Jaguar density in the Caatinga of Northeastern Brazil. Oryx, accepted.
Wiedower, E., Hansen, R., Bissell, H., Ouellette, R., Kouba, A., Stuth, J., Rude, B., Tolleson, D.(2009): Use of 
     Near Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy (NIRS) to discriminate between and predict the nutrient
     composition of different species and parts of bamboo. Journal of Near Infrared
     Reflectance Spectroscopy, 17:265-273.

Feng, T., F. T. Van Manen, N. Zhao, M. Li, and F. Wei. (2009): Habitat assessment for giant pandas in the 

      Qinling Mountain region of China. Journal of Wildlife Management 73(6):852-858.

Finley, T.G., Sikes R.S., Parsons J.L., Rude B.J., Bissell H.A., Ouellette J.R. (2009). Determination of
     Bamboo-Diet Energy Digestive Efficiency by Giant Pandas. Submitted to Zoo Biology.
Finley, Tommy, Robert S. Sikes, Jinping Yu, and Zhihe Zhang (2009): Giant Pandas Use Daily Metabolic
     Depression to Balance Energy Budgets. In press, Proceedings National Academy Sciences.
Diniz-Filho, J.A.F., Silveira, L., Jácomo, A.T.A., Bini, L.M., Barroso, M., and Tôrres, N.M. (2008): Spatial
     autocorrelation of mammalian richness and abundance along the Cerrado-Pantanal corridor, Central
     Brazil. Neotropical Biology and Conservation 3(3):103-111.
Sims, J. A., H. A. Bissell, J. L. Parsons, J. R. Ouellette, and B. J. Rude.  (2007):  Determination of bamboo
     diet digestibility by giant pandas: estimating fecal output and digestibility using internal markers.
     URSUS 18(1):38-45.
Wang, Wei, Scott B. Franklin & John Ouellette. (2007): Clonal regeneration of arrow bamboo, Fargesia
     qinlingensis, following giant panda herbivory. Plant Ecology 192: 97-106.
Wang, Wei, Scott B. Franklin & Margaret C. Cirtain. (2007): Seed germination and seedling growth in the
     arrow bamboo Fargesia qinlingensis. Ecological Research 22: 467-474.
Furtado, M. M.; Kashivakura, C. K.; Jácomo, A. T. A.; Silveira, L.; Astete, S. E. P.; Lopes, F. M. (2007):
     Prevalence of crown trauma in free ranging maned wolves (Chrysocyon brachyurus) in Central Brazil.
     Journal of Veterinary Dentistry, 24 (4): 231-234.
Wang, Wei, Scott B. Franklin, Yi Ren & John R. Ouellette. (2006): Growth of bamboo Fargesia qinlingensis
     and regeneration of trees in a mixed hardwood-conifer forest in the Qinling Mountains, China. Forest
     Ecology & Management 234:107-115.
Furtado, M. M.; Kashivakura, C. K.; Ferro, C.; Jácomo, A. T. A.; Silveira, L.; Astete, S. E. (2006):
     Immobilization of free-ranging maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus) with tiletamine and zolazepam in
     Central Brazil. Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine, 37 (1): 68-70.
Robert K Browne, Hong Li, Jessica Seratt, A. J. Kouba. (2006): Progesterone improves the number and
     quality of hormone induced Fowler toad (Bufo fowleri) oocytes. Journal of Reproductive Biology and
     Endocrinology, 4:3
Browne RK, J Surrat, CK Vance, and A. J. Kouba. (2006): Hormonal priming, induction of ovulation and
     in-vitro fertilization of the endangered Wyoming toad (Bufo baxteri). Journal of Reproductive Biology
     and Endocrinology, 4:34