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Throughout the year, giant pandas go through fairly large fluctuations in weight. Yang Yang, for example, can go from about 123 kilograms (270 pounds) to about 138-140 kilograms (303-308 pounds) in a year. Right now, as expected, they are on the lower end of their spectrum as we are coming out of summer, and they … Continue reading "Panda Updates – Wednesday, October 10"

Hello – I’m Luke, a keeper in the Bird Department here at Zoo Atlanta! In my department, we incorporate a lot of different technology into our daily routines. We use our phones for nest checks, in a few different ways — usually with video and flash, to see into spaces we can’t quite peer into, … Continue reading "Technology and bird care"

Name: Marieke Cassia Gartner Position Title: Post-doctoral research fellow Education: PhD in psychology Hometown: New York, NY Length of time at Zoo Atlanta: 2 weeks! (start date September 10) Tell us about your job and any projects you are working on. I will be creating an animal welfare program for the Zoo, working with animals … Continue reading "Career Corner: Research & Conservation"

Wild giant pandas typically eat bamboo leaves from April through October when the leaves are fresh and tender. However, our giant pandas rarely eat leaves throughout the summer. They eat a few leaves in early spring when they are brand-new, and then again for about a month in late fall. The rest of the year, … Continue reading "Panda Updates – Friday, October 5"

As many of you who have followed the giant pandas for a number of years know, female giant pandas can exhibit pseudopregnancy. Pseudopregnancy closely mimics pregnancy in terms of behaviors and hormone fluctuations, but is not an actual pregnancy. Lun Lun has recently been experiencing this. This is not a surprise for us in that … Continue reading "Panda Updates – Wednesday, October 3"

What is palm oil? Palm oil comes from the fruit of the African oil palm tree and is grown all over the world in warm and temperate climates. Why are we talking about palm oil? Palm oil is versatile, inexpensive and very commonplace, and it’s found in everything from snack foods and pet food to … Continue reading "Save orangutans on your next grocery run"

Having a camera to remotely monitor Idgie the red panda is the best thing since sliced bread! We have been taking full advantage of this and keep finding ways to encourage her to use her air-conditioned hut in her outdoor habitat. Currently, this involves splitting her diet into many small portions and running over there … Continue reading "Panda Updates – Friday, September 28"

A couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to attend the first-annual Venomous Herpetology Symposium in Miami. What is the Venomous Herpetology Symposium, and why would anyone want to go? There were 169 people travelling from 13 different countries and several different US states to attend. Everyone there was a snake enthusiast. There were herpetologists … Continue reading "Learning more about venom"

Enrichment is something we offer to all of the animals at Zoo Atlanta, and we often prepare enrichment that caters to an individual animal’s interests and preferences. As everyone knows, Yang Yang is our resident 21-year-old cub, and really enjoys playing with jolly balls. I thought it would be fun to offer Yang Yang a … Continue reading "Panda Update – Wednesday, September 26"

President of EcoHealth Alliance will speak on connections between emerging diseases, wildlife conservation and global public health. Zoo Atlanta is honored to welcome Dr. Peter Daszak, President of EcoHealth Alliance, as the guest speaker at the 11th Geoffrey Bourne Lecture on Thursday, October 4, 2018. Dr. Daszak will present “Emerging Diseases, Wildlife Conservation and Global … Continue reading "Geoffrey Bourne Lecture with Dr. Peter Daszak"