Search Results for: jp

Happy Women’s History Month! While I’m in awe of women every single day, I’m grateful for a designated month to reflect on the countless contributions women have made to move our world forward, often while having to juggle and overcome a litany of social pressures and limitations.   When thinking of quintessential conservation heroes, a lot … Continue reading "Who Run the (Natural) World: Girls"

Hi Everyone! It’s Dr. Joe Mendelson, the Director of Research here at Zoo Atlanta, and today we’re talking about some research we’re currently doing on play behavior in diamondback terrapins. Play behavior is exactly the way you would interpret it as a human- something that’s fun and silly and sometimes is for a purpose and … Continue reading "Do turtles play?"

Thanksgiving means many things to many people, but the core of the holiday is a big meal shared with family and friends. Traditionally, of course, the meal is centered around a roasted turkey. Domestic turkeys were derived from our native wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), and are considered to be the same species. Turkeys apparently were … Continue reading "Who are you calling a turkey?"

Ask any child what sound a frog makes, and you’ll get an adorable, enthusiastic croaked “Ribbit” probably matched with a hopping motion. Your kid pretty much got it right, except for the annoying reality that in nature there always are loads of exceptions. And frogs, like fish and insects, really have explored exceptional boundaries of … Continue reading "Exactly how many ears do frogs have?"

Hello everyone!  It’s Kelly here, Lead Keeper of the Herpetology Team. This past March I got the amazing opportunity to volunteer for a week at the El Valle Amphibian Conservation Center (EVACC) in El Valle de Anton, Panama.  Zoo Atlanta has been working with this organization for several years now but, with COVID we haven’t … Continue reading "Salva lo que amas!"

Hark, O reader of the Keeper Blogs! I—Daniel!—have come to talk about iguanas. And not just any iguanas, but some particularly cute ones: the Grand Cayman blue iguana (Cyclura lewisi) and the San Salvador iguana (Cyclura rileyi rileyi). I’m going to go out on a limb and assume that, given that you’re the kind of … Continue reading "Iguanas!"

If you’ve been keeping up with the wonderful world of our petting zoo population, you’re likely familiar with Pickles, Avocado, and Wasabi. Our extremely precious Nigerian dwarf goat babies turn a year old THIS WEEK, but they’ve recently hit another exciting milestone: their first leash walk!  Walks around the Zoo are an exciting way to … Continue reading "These goats are made for walking"

Zoo Atlanta is renowned for our conservation breeding program for what is arguably the most endangered lizard species in the world, the Guatemalan beaded lizard (Heloderma charlesbogerti). This species was discovered for science by my former graduate advisor, Dr. Jonathan A. Campbell, after hearing about it from local villagers in an obscure desert valley in … Continue reading "The Guatemalan beaded lizard and its complete genome"

It’s hard to believe how fast this year has passed, and that we have already arrived at the holiday season! Of course, with increased consumerism around the holidays comes increased waste: between materials, packaging, food, energy consumed in transit etc., the holidays are the most wasteful time of the year. In fact, studies show that … Continue reading "Tips for Holiday Sustainability"

By Robert Amrhein, Keeper III Ambassador Animals Illustrations by Summit St. John, Ambassador Animals Intern One day two, fluffy, sheep best friends were just waking up from their afternoon nap and were thinking about what to do. That’s when Sven, a young excitable sheep, had an amazing idea! “Benson!” Sven exclaimed to his silly little … Continue reading "Sven and the Mysterious Nutrition Kitchen"