Oregon Zoo - Portland, OR - www.oregonzoo.org
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Oregon Zoo - Portland, OR - www.oregonzoo.org |
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Press
Kits: Press
Releases: NOTE: Dates indicate date of press release, not the date of the event.
August
31, 2006
Young paleontologists put their goggles on and grab a hammer and chisel to find dinosaur bones buried in the rocks. More than 20 realistic dinosaur-bone replicas can be discovered, pieced together, compared and identified -- including bones from a Pteranodon, Spinosaurus, Triceratops and, of course, Tyrannosaurus rex. Goggles, tools, bones and a Dino field guide are provided (while supplies last). After participating in the Dino Dig, visitors can stop by and visit Cascade Outfitters' special Dino Shop, full of dinosaur merchandise. August
31, 2006 PORTLAND, Ore. -- Seniors and their companions (one companion per senior) can visit the Oregon Zoo free of charge and let their inner children out during the zoo's annual Senior Safari, Tuesday, Sept. 19, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sponsored by Providence Health Plan, Senior Safari has been planned with seniors in mind.
Seniors can begin their day at the zoo with complimentary coffee and donuts (while supplies last). Special activities and entertainment throughout the day include free train rides, animal chats, animal feedings, petting zoo and bird displays, as well as dancing and vocal ensembles. The Winged Wonders butterfly exhibit is reopening for the day, and is free to seniors and their companions. A reasonably priced lunch is also available. Providence Home and Community Services is providing wheelchairs free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis. Numbers are limited, so persons needing wheelchairs are urged to bring their own if possible. Volunteers are available to assist with wheelchair navigation. August
25, 2006 PORTLAND, Ore. -- Oregon Zoo visitors have a little more time to see the beautiful tropical butterflies at Winged Wonders, as they flutter by. This temporary summer exhibit, presented by HomeStreet Bank, runs through Labor Day, with more than 450 Central and South American butterflies, including royal blues, Aglaura olivewings, Costa Rica clearwings, false malachites and others.
Visitors can meander through beautiful gardens with water features. Some lucky visitors may have butterflies land on them, making this exhibit truly interactive. "Lingering" areas with benches allow visitors to sit back and be totally immersed in a world of winged wonders. Before leaving the butterfly exhibit, visitors can view a display where dozens of pupae develop and grow. Butterflies that emerge from these pupae are released into the exhibit. "It still amazes me that every day visitors can watch these beautiful creatures eclose from the pupal stage to become butterflies," said Mary Jo Andersen, butterfly keeper. "I feel lucky to witness something day after day that very few people get to see in the wild." Visitors can learn more about butterflies at the exhibit's interpretive center, where hands-on activities show how a butterfly uses its senses of sight, smell and taste. A display highlighting the zoo's field conservation projects with endangered Oregon silverspot and Taylor's checkerspot butterflies is also featured. The display describes how the zoo rears endangered butterflies and explains the life cycle of wild butterflies. Lastly, visitors can learn how to make their own backyards more butterfly-friendly by planting herbs such as fennel and dill to attract the caterpillars of species such as black swallowtail and anise swallowtail. They also learn about the importance of butterfly-attracting nectar plants like asters, zinnia and yarrow -- and the need for sunlight, water, shelter and avoiding pesticides. The tropical butterfly exhibit is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and runs through Labor Day. Admission is $2, in addition to the zoo entrance fee. Web visitors can learn more about butterflies at http://www.oregonzoo.org/Butterfly/moreinfo.htm. Zoo helps save rare butterflies and more The Oregon Zoo and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums have joined 34 zoos and aquariums from around the country to form the Butterfly Conservation Initiative. The Initiative is designed to bring together government and non-government agencies to aid in the recovery of imperiled North American butterflies. The Oregon Zoo and AZA are committed to butterfly conservation. A portion of the proceeds from the Oregon Zoo's butterfly exhibit helps support the zoo's butterfly education and conservation efforts. During 2006, the zoo piloted a new conservation internship program for high school students in partnership with Saturday Academy and the National Forest Foundation/Friends of the Forest. Student interns assisted staff in rearing threatened Oregon butterfly larvae, shared project information with Winged Wonders visitors and worked with Siuslaw National Forest staff in field-based butterfly restoration and repopulation efforts. August
16, 2006 PORTLAND, Ore. -- With gas prices at a record high, a pipeline in Alaska being shut down, and uncertainty in the Middle East, oil is all over the news. As an alternative to conventional, petroleum-based plastics, the Oregon Zoo has begun using environmentally safe bioplastic beer and wine cups during its popular summer concerts. The new bioplastics, supplied by Cereplast of San Francisco, have the added benefit of being 100 percent compostable. " In today's world of tight oil supplies, renewable options offer many levels of benefits," says Tony Vecchio, zoo director. "I believe the public is hungry for options that are more environmentally friendly and sustainable." The zoo's new 100-percent-compostable picnic, available during outdoor events and concerts, features biodegradable cups and flatware. The new "plastic" cups and flatware are made from corn and potato starch, and are comparable to conventional plastic cups in both price and quality. " The zoo is committed to conservation," says Vecchio, zoo director. "We must always offer our guests the most earth-friendly options available. If we can take what used to be garbage and turn it into usable topsoil, then we're on the right path." Zoo employees seem as excited about the change as visitors. " When you think that even biodegradable waste takes years to break down in a landfill, and we are running out of landfill space, the idea of composting more of our trash just makes sense," says Tristan Whitehead of the zoo's Green Team. Spearheaded by the city's Office of Sustainable Development, the "Portland Composts!" program has been encouraging businesses to separate food waste from garbage, and the zoo has already been doing so in its restaurants. The zoo aims to improve its large-scale food-waste composting, using new technologies and programs. The zoo's food waste is sent to the Cedar Grove composting facility, where it is mixed in proper proportions with yard debris, water and air -- resulting in nutrient-rich compost. The compost can then be used as a soil amendment for gardening and landscaping. The zoo is constantly looking at ways to improve sustainability in its overall operations. Of the 2.4 million pounds of waste the zoo generated last year, more than 1.5 million pounds were diverted from the waste stream through recycling or composting. Compared with the national rate of 30 percent and the statewide rate of 52 percent, the zoo recycles or reuses 65 percent of its waste. Cereplast's vision is to offer an environmentally safe and economically viable alternative to conventional, petroleum-based plastics for the manufacture of disposable products. Their mission is to develop innovative, ecologically superior resins and make these resins available to traditional converters to help preserve the environment for future generations. August 10, 2006 PORTLAND, Ore. -- Mooooove over, Packy! Tillie the Cow is coming to visit, as the Oregon Zoo presents Tillamook Cheese Day, Friday, Aug. 25, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the zoo's Trillium Creek Family Farm. " Tillamook Cheese Day is a fun way to bring attention to the importance of farming," says Tony Vecchio, zoo director. "The zoo's heritage livestock breeds take visitors back to a time when Oregon was a vast agricultural center, and we're very pleased that Tillamook Cheese is helping us celebrate this tradition," he added.
Trillium Creek Family Farm is part of the zoo's Great Northwest Exhibit, which replicates several key areas of our region's diverse ecosystem, from the crest of the Cascades to the Pacific Coast and beyond. Tillamook Cheese is sponsoring the Family Farm exhibit through October. " We are delighted to be sponsoring the zoo's Family Farm," said Kathy Holstad, Tillamook Cheese marketing director. "As a 97-year-old farmer-owned cooperative, we are dedicated to maintaining the legacy of our founders. Many of our farmers are second-, third- and fourth-generational -- so sustaining the family dairy farms is very important to us." The Tillamook County Creamery Association, formed in 1909, has earned a reputation as one of the nation's premier brands of cheese. Tillamook is a national marketer of naturally aged cheddar and a variety of other cheeses, butter, and an extensive line of premium ice cream, sour cream and yogurt. TCCA is most famously known for its internationally award-winning Tillamook cheddar cheese. For more information visit: www.tillamookcheese.com. August 7, 2006 PORTLAND, Ore. -- Plena Libre will bring a musical taste of Puerto Rico to Oregon Aug. 23, when they perform in the final concert of the Oregon Zoo's 2006 Wells Fargo Summer Concert Series presented by Fred Meyer. " Plena Libre's optimistic and energetic songs make it impossible not to move your hips and feet to the music," says Krista Swan, event coordinator. "The band is a great finale for our summer concerts."
The group was formed in 1994 by bassist and bandleader Gary Nuñez, who wanted to reinvent and update the genre of plena. In addition to the traditional pandero drums, Nuñez added bass, keyboards, timbales, congas, trombones, more percussion instruments and plena singers to the lineup. Over the past 12 years, Plena Libre has released 10 albums, including their most recent, "Evolucion." The band received a Latin Grammy nomination for best tropical traditional album in 2001, and two years later was nominated for a Grammy in the same category. This summer, Plena Libre will be performing across the nation, with stops in Chicago, New York, Seattle, Oakland and Portland. This year, for the first time, the zoo has been selling 1,000 tickets for each of its Wednesday "Plus" concerts in advance. Tickets for Plena Libre are available online or at the zoo for $9.50. Once 1,000 tickets have been sold, concertgoers can only purchase tickets at the zoo after 4 p.m. on the day of the performance. Concerts start at 7 p.m. and the ticket price includes zoo admission. This year's concert series is also co-sponsored by Willamette Week. To review the 2006 concert lineup and more, visit http://www.oregonzoo.org/Concerts/index.htm. Zoo membership at the Plus level includes free admission to all Wednesday "Plus" concerts, daily visits to the zoo and the ZooLights holiday festival in the winter. Concert revenues support the zoo's efforts to save threatened and endangered species such as Northwest butterflies, western pond turtles, Washington pygmy rabbits and California condors. This year, zoo concertgoers can help bring black bears back to the zoo by adding $1 to their ticket price. In 1979, the Oregon Zoo became the first zoo in the nation to host a summer concert series. Since then, the series has become one of the top outdoor events in the Northwest, and is the region's longest-running outdoor series. Wells Fargo has sponsored the series for the past 10 years and has donated more than $1 million in support of the zoo's conservation and education programs. August 4, 2006 PORTLAND, Ore.-How many glasses of milk can a cow produce in one day? Find out the answer at Moo at the Zoo! Come to the Oregon Zoo's Trillium Creek Family Farm on Saturday, Aug. 19 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to learn all about life on a farm. Sponsored by the Dairy Farmers of Oregon, Moo at the Zoo is an educational event for the whole family and offers a host of fun facts through interactive exhibits, puppet shows, and displays. Visitors will meet Oregon dairy farmers who will describe the life of their cows and the daily workings of a dairy farm. By testing their dairy knowledge, visitors will also have a chance to win "got milk?" T-shirts and other prizes during random drawings, and have their picture taken with an Oregon Dairy Princess Ambassador. Lastly, guests can view pygora goats and Shetland sheep in the zoo's hands-on area. " Oregon is fortunate to have a thriving dairy industry that provides a bounty of healthy, high-quality products," said Nick Furman, executive director of the Oregon Dairy Products Commission. "Moo at the Zoo will give visitors a stronger appreciation of life on a dairy farm, and will provide them with fun facts about cows and the milk they produce." Furman notes that Oregon ranks third in the nation for milk quality, which is directly related to the quality of animal care that Oregon dairy farmers provide to their herds.
Moo at the Zoo is free with zoo admission. Dairy Farmers of Oregon works on behalf of 350 dairy farm families who, with the help of 120,000 dairy cows and 20 Oregon dairy processors, provide award-winning cheeses, milk, butter, and an extensive line of premium ice cream, sour cream and yogurt. The Oregon dairy industry contributes more than $1 billion to Oregon's economy each year. August 4, 2006 PORTLAND, Ore. -- Fur coats are not the usual attire for Portlanders in August, but the Oregon Zoo's newest residents, Ralph and Alice, have no qualms about their unseasonal apparel. In fact, a beautiful fur coat marked with black-rimmed blotches and spots as unique as fingerprints is one characteristic that distinguishes ocelots from other cats. Zoo visitors can check out the felines' fine wardrobe when their new exhibit opens on Friday, Aug. 18.
" Zoo visitors are always asking for more cats, and we've been listening," said Oregon Zoo Director Tony Vecchio. "Adding ocelots gives our visitors what they want, but also provides us with an excellent opportunity to educate the public about the need for preserving this endangered animal and its habitat." Since 2002, the zoo has been working with the Association of Zoo and Aquariums' Brazilian Ocelot Consortium and the government of Brazil to play a role in the ocelot's survival. The zoo hopes to breed the endangered cats, adding new genetics to the North American captive population. The Oregon Zoo is one of only 10 U.S. zoos involved with the consortium. Ralph and Alice were born in 1993 at zoos located in São Paulo, Brazil, and were transferred to the Phoenix Zoo in 1996, where they produced three offspring. The pair arrived at the Oregon Zoo on April 12, 2006, weighing in at 22 and 19 pounds respectively. Their new home is part of the Oregon Zoo's Fragile Forests exhibit, a multi-phase renovation of the Primate Building, which began with the Amazon Flooded Forest. The ocelot exhibit replicates a lush South American rainforest with real and artificial plants, vines, logs and roots, and includes a waterfall and small pond. Artificial rocks with ledges provide a lounging place for the cats. " The cats prefer to hang out in the treetops, so the challenge was to place branches and ledges in such a way that the cats will feel secure yet be visible to our guests," said Vecchio. The visitors' side has a spongy faux-forest-floor treatment, with natural leaves embedded in the terrain, and features a wall of glass for viewing the cats. The exhibit was designed specifically with breeding the ocelots in mind. Off-exhibit holding space for an expecting mother and her kittens was provided, as well as the flexibility to separate the adult cats when required. Hunting and habitat destruction are directly linked to the animal's dwindling numbers in the wild. The zoo exhibits the southern Brazilian species, Leopardus pardalis mitis, which inhabits the tropical and subtropical forests of southern Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. Although known to climb trees and even swim well, the ocelot spends most of its time hunting on the ground. August
2, 2006 PORTLAND, Ore. -- Pet, the Oregon Zoo's oldest Asian elephant and matriarch to the zoo's herd, was humanely euthanized this morning. Pet suffered from ailments associated with advanced age, including arthritis. At 51, she was one of the oldest female Asian elephants cared for in zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. " Zoo staff and volunteers are devastated by the loss of our beloved Pet," said Mike Keele, the zoo's deputy director and former elephant keeper who worked directly with Pet. "We've managed her arthritis for a long time through anti-inflammatory and pain medications, but recently it was clear that the medications were no longer easing her pain. Humane euthanasia was the only option we had left for her." Pet was born near Bangkok, Thailand, in 1955 and boarded at the Oregon Zoo intermittently from 1959 until the zoo officially acquired her in June 1962 from Morgan Berry, a private owner. Berry had been reluctant to split up the herd, which included Thonglaw, Belle and Packy. Pet was second only to the zoo's other famous female, Rosy, for most calves produced by a cow at a zoo. She gave birth to six calves at the Oregon Zoo, including her daughter Sung-Surin.
According to Keele, Pet was his favorite elephant and was extremely popular among the elephant keepers. " She was so intelligent," said Keele. "She enjoyed spending time with her daughter Sung-Surin and the other cows. She was a wonderful ambassador for her species. Millions and millions of zoo visitors have made a connection with Asian elephants because of her." Keele reminisced about Pet and one instance where she revealed her remarkable intelligence. In the late 1960s, Keele said, Pet and the other zoo elephants were involved in a study to test their visual acuity. Using a slide projector and a custom-built box with a screen and large white buttons on either side, the researchers presented a series of slides to the elephants. The idea was, when the researcher presented a white slide, the elephant was supposed to push the right button, and when the researcher presented a barred slide, the elephant was supposed to push the left button. Each correct response earned the elephant a sugar cube delivered down a tube by the researcher. The slides were presented at random so that the elephants could not discern a pattern. Once an elephant got 20 correct responses, the trial concluded and the elephant no longer received sugar cubes. Some elephants figured out the routine quickly, while others struggled. In time, all of the elephants mastered the test. Several years later, the researchers were curious as to whether the elephants remembered. They retested the same elephants. Not surprisingly, three of the four remembered and almost immediately got 20 correct responses. But Pet labored over the trials. She would get 12 correct then make an error, 14 correct then make an error, 12 correct the next day, 17 the next, 18 the next, then back to 13. There really wasn't any pattern to her success or failure, according to Keele. " One of the researchers told me how smart the other three elephants were," Keele recalled. "But poor Pet, he said -- she just didn't have everything in order upstairs. I told him to look at it from Pet's point of view. She'd learned how to do this several years before: Once she hit 20 correct responses, the sugar cubes stopped coming. I told him that I doubted she would ever get 20 correct again -- after all, look how many more sugar cubes she'd scored than her 'smart' classmates!" Keele serves as the Association of Zoos and Aquariums' species survival plan coordinator for Asian elephants in North America. He also works with the World Conservation Union/Species Survival Commission on implementing action plans to save the elephant in range countries. Zoo visitors wishing to honor Pet's memory should visit the front viewing area of the zoo's elephant yard, where today through Sunday staff, volunteers and visitors will be making and decorating paper lanterns to be hung in the trees surrounding the exhibit. The lanterns, many inscribed with personal messages to Pet, will accumulate into a bright, colorful memorial over the week, remembering one of the most esteemed elephant matriarchs in the zoo's history. The zoo has also set up a Web page to honor Pet's memory, where visitors can share their personal thoughts and remembrances of Pet or leave a message for the zoo's keeper staff who've worked with her. The Oregon Zoo's innovative and respected elephant management program is world-renowned in the zoo community. Twenty-seven baby elephants have been born at the Oregon Zoo. Currently, the zoo is home to six Asian elephants: three females and three males. Many Asian elephant discoveries have been made at the Oregon Zoo, including bioacoustic communication among elephants, the exchange of protein signals to encourage mating, and the estrus cycle of female elephants. In addition, significant work has been done concerning the chemical makeup of male elephants' "musth" secretions to identify pheromones and their purpose. Virtually everything that is known about elephant reproductive physiology and cognitive ability comes from zoo studies. In addition, zoo studies have created important breakthroughs in technologies such as elephant communication and satellite tracking techniques. These discoveries not only benefit animals in zoos, but also benefit their counterparts in the wild.
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PORTLAND,
Ore. -- Children become young paleontologists during a Dino Dig adventure
Sept. 9-10, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., in the Tiger Plaza at the Oregon
Zoo. Dino Dig is free with paid zoo admission.
"So
many people associate the zoo with young children and forget the zoo
is here to be enjoyed by everyone," said Tony Vecchio, Oregon
Zoo director. "By offering this unique day for seniors, we hope
older adults can reconnect with animals."
"I'm
always surprised how such a small and delicate creature can have such
a huge impact on our visitors," says Tony Vecchio, zoo
director. "The
exhibit has, again, been a phenomenal success."
Beer and
wine cups are now collected in a bin with leftover food waste and napkins.
In high-temperature composting, bioplastics completely biodegrade
in 50 days, an obvious improvement over the 1 million years it could
take traditional plastics to break down in a landfill.
After enjoying complimentary
yogurt smoothies and Tillamook cheese portions at the zoo's front entrance,
visitors can head down to the Trillium Creek
Family Farm, where the Tillamook mascot, Tillie the Cow, will be on hand
for free photos with the kids, presented in special cow-print frames.
(Don't forget to say cheese!) Children will receive crayons and coloring
books, and young zoogoers can also try their hand at a "Toss the
Cow" game, for a chance to win stuffed beanie cows. 
Plena Libre has
captured the attention of the world music industry, garnering Grammy
nominations and introducing the musical genre of plena to the
mainstream with performances in the United States, Latin America, Europe
and Asia.
"
While the zoo does not exhibit cows in its Family Farm, Moo at the Zoo
highlights the importance of farm animals in our lives, from the milk
we drink to the yogurt we eat and even cheese on pizza," said Charis
Henrie, the zoo's education coordinator. 
The ocelot's gorgeous coat almost led to its
demise. For centuries, ocelots have been hunted for their beautiful
fur. During the 1960s and '70s more
than 200,000 of the cats were taken each year. Ocelots were placed
on the endangered species list in 1982, and it is now illegal to hunt
them
in the United States. 
"
She was such a special animal," said Keele. "I am so fortunate
to have been able to work with her. She represents the end of an era
to me, since she is the last of our original females. I am lucky to have
known and worked with them all -- Belle, Tuy Hoa, Rosy and Pet. This
is a very sad day for the zoo."