Studies I'm involved with

I said I would write more in-depth about what specific studies I'm taking part in while at the zoo, and I suppose there is no better time than the present! 

Equid Study: This is the comparative study between the mother/foal and social herd behaviors of the Somali Wild Ass and the Grevy's Zebra (who, by the way, share part of the same range in Africa) The study wasn't as sucsessful as planned from the get-go due to the unfortunate death of one of the expecting Zebras; Moju died before her foal was born and so only Tiombi gave birth. The study's direct application to the zoo is for husbandry reasons. 

Observations last for two hours a day; 1.5 hours given to the Somali Wild Asses focusing on a focal pair. For instance, we spend 15 minutes watching 19 and her foal 1, then switch to 20 and her foal 2, and then on to 21 and 3. Then we start back at 19 and 1. Every five minutes we take a scan, that is, an approximation of where individuals are to one another. In the focal pairs we record only the behaviors involving that specific pair. For instance, if 19 and 1 are at the hay pile and they are our focal pair, we would record each time 1 would eat from the pile. If 2 ate from the pile, we would just ignore it. The behaviors we record also include actions directed to or initiated by members of the focal pair; if 21 kicks at 19 we would record that as well. But if 21 kicked at 20, we would ignore it. After an hour and a half we move on to Zebras and record a half hour of data (a half hour for each foal, hence the set up of 1.5 to .5 hours spent) because the foal Kalama doesn't have another foal to interact with we weren't able to collect as much data as we had hoped since the mares are fairly inactive and don't usually show aggression or playing behaviors with the foal. 

A major part of the study is the ability to recognize behaviors and to tell each individual apart. Before a new research intern or volunteer can start taking real data they must take a reliability test. I'm proud to say that yes, I know all six Asses and all seven Zebras apart and by name! 

Channel Island Fox Study: The Channel Island Foxes are a species of fox with a few sub-species that are specific to their islands, located off the coast of California. Due to invasive species, their numbers have been dwindling. Researchers on the islands have kept a few breeding pairs in pens and set up cameras to record their courtship behavior. Back in St. Louis, we watch the tapes and use a computer system to record (called "scoring") data. The time on the tapes are elapsed and the dates may go as far back as February-April 2007. We take data in chronological order depending on what pen we are focusing on. After we finish all the days, the data is compiled, graphed, and analyzed...which is no easy task. The process of compiling, cleaning, graphing, and setting up for analysis (done by a grad student) usually takes about a week to complete. 

Viewing the video data is a major challenge in itself; watching two small foxes on a small black and white screen makes your eyes go crazy. Fortunately with this study we have are able to pause the tapes or play them back in slow motion in case we may have missed or needed to verify some data. 

Mexican Gray Wolf Study: This was a unique opportunity I was able to take part of out at the Wild Canid Center about 20 miles away from St. Louis. I would go out to the center, walk to one of the pens where a male and female were held, and observed their courtship behaviors. The first several weeks I did it the weather was probably in the low 20s...not a lot of fun when its absolutely important to the study that you don't move around a lot so as not to startle the wolves. If their attention is on you then you can't record their natural behaviors. The study was set up very much like the equid study in that I had to recognize specific behaviors and if I observed them being done by the wolves I would record them on a piece of paper on my clipboard along with the hour and minute it was done. Holding a stopwatch with freezing hands is actually a lot harder than I thought it would ever be! This was a really neat experience because on several occasions I heard the male howling and witnessed other wolves in other pens answering back. 

I've been fortunate enough to take part in other activities with the Canid Center; a few times I've been out to help with wolf captures. This is when a specific wolf or pen of wolves is needed to be put into holding pens so they can have shots, get checked out, or anesthetized and put on a stretcher in the case of a semen collection, which is done in a vet trailer. To capture the wolves, which are very familiar with the handlers who work there, the vet techs from the zoo, the interns, and the center staff walk in a slow line towards the wolves, forcing them into a smaller and smaller area until they run into the smaller holding pen. It should be noted that its very true that they are more afraid of you than you are of them. If one should approach, its more out of curiosity or guts rather than anger. 

Great Hornbill Study: This was another courtship behavior study, this time done in the warmth of the Bird House, also for two hours daily (although I only recorded twice a week). The zoo's longtime female, Lady, was in her (I think) 21st year of the study and had produced at least 8 eggs. I'm a little foggy on the specific details right now but I think those are the correct numbers. Lady was an older bird and also had recently been diagnosed with Casque cancer. A new male from San Diego had been introduced and the two did not get along well, resulting in a lot of frustration due to lack of data collection. It was an extremely interesting study to take part in still and I had a lot of fun with the volunteer I was assigned to record behavior with. Unfortunately, Lady passed away due to natural causes before the study could be completed for the year. It's not yet known whether the zoo will get a new female hornbill, but I certainly hope they do so that the study may continue in future years. 

And basically this is what my internship consists of! A lot of interaction on the zoo grounds, a lot of learning opportunities, and a lot of fun...but it still goes into the territory of typical intern behavior; I've spent entire mornings hanging posters in the hall for the tours that come through or running errands or playing chauffeur. 

The zoo is coming back to life

Being in the Midwest, predictably the slowest time of year for the zoo is the winter. With the few nice days we've had lately, it's great seeing the zoo fill up with people again like it was when I started here in August. The equid study will resume shortly and I actually can't wait to begin taking data...live observations are definitely my favorite part. 

The best part about spring is all the babies that will be arriving! I haven't heard of any major confirmed pregnancies but I know a few babies have already been put on display. In the Takin exhibit in Red Rocks there is a brand new calf that likes to sit on the rocks with its mother. This makes three adolescent takins in the exhibit! In December, another baby giraffe was born. On super warm days they'll put the baby out in the yard with the other older baby (who will be a year old next month) and enjoy sunshine. It's odd to say a giraffe can look so small and yet so big at the same time. In the Primate house there is a new Ring-Tailed Lemur who is maybe only a quarter of the size of its mother. I only caught a glimpse of it as it was being groomed by mom high in a basket in the exhibit but it had the cutest little face and the tiniest tail. I've heard from another intern that a Cotton Top Tamarin was born as well, but I haven't seen it yet. 

With everything getting so green and new its odd to think that the "new babies" born last spring, before I even arrived at the zoo, are almost a year old. The Amur Tiger cubs look nearly as big as their mother now and the Somali Wild Asses are getting up there in  size. I went out to their exhibit and was amazed at how big they had gotten. Fortunately they're still retaining some of their infant qualities so its still easy to tell them apart characteristically as well as physically. Kalama, the infant Grevy's Zebra, has a wild mane that won't stay up and the top of it falls into his eyes, almost like an emo hairstyle. Finally, Sophia, the Amur Leopard, has gotten to the point where its getting harder and harder to tell when it is her in the second leopard exhibit or her mother. However, granted she's not napping, if she happily bounces up to the fencing to "play" with the guest then we know without a doubt its her. She just seems to have this happy quality about her and I can't help but take a thousand pictures of her everytime I go past Big Cat Country. 

Equid Observations start next week; we'll be working with a class from Washington University to demonstrate how data is collected. This will be a weekly thing and its exciting to know our work is important enough to have students involved. 

Another thing I can't wait for; Caribbean Cove opens in May! 

Snakes on a table

Sorry for the lame title...it really was the best I could come up with at the moment.

Today I started my internship routine the same as usual; go in, make my breakfast (usually consisting of a banana, yogurt, and a little plastic baggie of cream of wheat/oatmeal, in case you were interested) and get to work watching the Channel Island Fox videos. I'll explain this study in greater detail in a later post; right now I'd like to focus on the big highlight of the day.

About an hour and a half later of watching foxes my supervisor informs myself and another intern that a Burmese Python is in the treatment room undergoing routine surgery due to a chronic respiratory problem. She said we could look through the windowed double doors. We wentr to observe the procedure and was invited into the room by the curator of reptiles. He explained what was going on, showed us the x-rays they had taken of her lungs, and gave us some information on the python. She was 15 feet long and approximately 180 pounds and around 27 years old. I'm not sure what the circumference of her body was but it was massive. The snake took up the ENTIRE operating table and, fortunately, was under anesthesia. (I say fortunately simply because if they hadn't put her under yet I'm not sure I'd want to be in the same room with it!) The veterinarian and the techs were working to find the lung and take tissue samples; they had to cut in from the side because the endoscope was not long enough to put down her throat, as the vet lamented that they don't make them for snakes. The precision and delicacy they used were amazing...this is why I couldn't be a veterinarian. I saw some of the work my family vet at home did when I worked in his office but, of course, I had never seen him operate on a snake which just seemed like a thousand times cooler. The curator told us interns that the "big" lung, the primary one used for breathing, is about 2 feet long. They searched the lung with the endoscope and were happy to report it looked clear; the inside of a snakes lung is actually pretty interesting looking. It kind of looks like a clear honeycomb. After taking a few tissue samples the snake was carefully stitched back up.

The keepers assisting the vets in holding her perfectly still for the operation commented on the fact that her most recent meal had been a baby goat. This explained the huge lump heading for the python's throat. As with any animal coming out of anesthesia, the muscles are going to contract and various messes come out of both ends and so I decided that now was a good time to get back to the fox videos.

I probably stood in there with the other interns for about an hour and a half or two hours; it was slow going but ultimately fascinating. All the work entailed in keeping the breathing steady, measuring heart rate, and of course the care of the actual procedure was just astounding. They made it look so easy.

Lectures given on Equid/Primate genetics

Last week I had the pleasure of listening to Dr. Ollie Ryder, a geneticist with the San Diego Zoo, speak at two lectures. The first, given at Washington University, was solely on equids and focused on the lineage and physiology of the Przewalski's Horse; a species of horse found in Mongolia. This lecture connected the history of the wild equid and domesticated horse with the differences in genetics found between the two (for instance, a Przewalski's Horse has 66 chromosome, a domestic horse has 64. A hybrid will have 65.) The second lecture given at the zoo was about both equids and primates. While both lectures were fascinating I do have to admit I was lost in the terminology at some points probably due to the fact I'm still a young student. I think perhaps I would have gotten more out of the lectures if I had been closer to finishing my degree or already been a graduate but none the less I'm glad I attended both.

2nd Annual St. Louis Zoo ZOOQUEST announced

For anyone in the St. Louis Area who may stumble across this blog I'd like to announce the 2nd St. Louis Zoo "Zooquest" has a date set. Assemble a team of 4 and mark your calenders for May 3rd. Zooquest is a scavenger hunt/trivia challenge around the zoo. This is an event for adults (18 plus, since this thing is HARD) put on by the wonderful education department.

The first zooquest took place last November and I along with other interns got to be a part of it...actually competing! Zooquest is, for good reason, closed to employees but interns are still able to participate. If you think working and being at the zoo everyday gave us an edge though...you are SORELY mistaken. Out of the two groups of interns (three on each team) my team came in second place while the other team didn't place at all. I give our victory to the fact that we hustled around (without running, strictly forbidden) and really had to put our minds together on some of the challenges. Our team really got into it; with our matching t-shirts and team name "THREAT TO BITE" (TTB is one of the behaviors we look for in the equid study) we were pumped up and ready to go. Maybe a little overconfident, but we were quickly put in our place with the sheer complexity of some of the challenges.

While yes the challenges were hard and to an extent frustrating, our feet hurt after three hours, and it was bitterly cold outside we all finished realizing we just had an extremely fun afternoon. When all the teams met back at the start point you could tell every time was feeling the same as we; everyone was smiling and sharing what new things they found out about the zoo. This really became a unique opportunity to get to know the St. Louis zoo and I know everyone who participated had a fantastic time. It's fun to walk remember little things from that afternoon; such as pointing out to another intern as "Remember at zooquest when we walked all the way around Lakeside Cafe searching for the clockface that never changed?"

Already the interns (well, me and one other intern so far) are getting ready for the 2nd one...although we're not sure what to expect. With it being held in May, surely the weather will be more agreeable and even if we don't hold onto our title and take home the gold...er...silver at least we hope to enjoy a nice day at the zoo. Hopefully more teams will enter this time around; only 12 teams participated last time. At the end of the last event the education team that had organized the event were taking suggestions on different directions and improvements in the scavenger hunt so its sure to keep getting better and better.

You can get more information at the St. Louis Zoo website: http://www.stlzoo.org/education/programsforindividualsfami/springprogramsforadults/zooquest.htm

Being an Ass isn't necessarily a bad thing

I'm not sure why it didn't occur to me earlier to blog my experiences working as a behavior research intern at the St. Louis zoo but I suppose the old saying is true; better late than never.

As a research intern working in the Animal and Research Hospital I've gotten to see and do quite a few neat things. I've been able to stand in and watch procedures on various animals take place, I've taken part in studies on the Mexican Gray Wolves at the Wild Canid Center in Eureka, Missouri, and I've gained a lot of experience in the field of animal behavior field research. Visitors to the zoo this past summer and fall may have seen a couple of college students with clipboards and wearing bright red (tacky) vests over by the Somali Wild Asses. With three new foals born last spring the interns were able to observe and record behavioral data pertaining to the social behaviors and the upbringing behaviors between mother and foal.

Let me explain a little bit; the Somali Wild Ass is a wild equid native to the deserts of Somalia, Africa. While it's the smallest of all equine species its most defining characteristic are the distinct stripes on the legs that each member of the subspecies has. The striping is very similiar to that of a zebras although the two are not closely related. The Somali Wild Asses, or Dibokalis as they are called in their native range, stay in small herds. Problems with conserving this species include not just hunting or habitat loss but the extra threats of little genetic purity due to inbreeding and breeding with domestic livestock.

As a research intern observing these animals I get the pleasure of recording (fairly) "original" data; that is, not much is known about the animals in the wild or how they behave socially because its so hard to observe them in their native habitat. It's been a pleasure seeing something, recording data, and changing the ethogram (or list of specific behaviors we're looking for) according to how the foals change and grow and knowing that the work we're doing is a vital step in the conservation of the species that will pave way for future studies.

Of course it helps that the foals, usually called by their I.D numbers during observations (simply for the sake of time) were the cutest things ever. All of the interns really got to know the foals different personalities and what social behaviors one could expect from them; maybe 2 would be a bit more aggressive when her mother would refuse a nurse attempt, or 3 would want to play more. All three were lively; especially little 3 (Haquiem) who was born last and was curious about everything he encountered out in the yard.

With the observations resuming in the spring it definitaly will be a treat (and a challenge) to see how much the foals have changed. I was up at their exhibit in Red Rocks the other day and was astonished at how big they had gotten! Part of the equid observational study also includes the Grevy's Zebras; this is for comparison. I also can't wait to see how little Kalama has grown up. While the zebras are definately the bigger crowd drawers for me the asses definately have their own special place in my heart.