Our spider monkeys are having a blast at Enrichment Camp!!! If you can hear the screams and giggles those are our little campers!
Woodie Release π¦
Today keepers released 25 rehabilitated wood duck ducklings into our Large Pond at the rear of the Zoo to be free! These duckings came in as orphans from various places around town and after being raised and fed, are able to be released back into the wild. It took some coaxing because freedom can be scary.. but they eagerly swam into the pond after the first brave duckling made the plunge. Enjoy this video!
Keeper Knowledge: the green substance on our ponds commonly mistaken as algae, is actually called Duckweed which is the ducklings' favorite food! It is a naturally occurring aquatic plant that is in full bloom right now. The ducks sure to love to gobble it up as they swim along! π€π
And our enrichment vote winner is... whole cukes for the Camels! π₯π«π«
Bobby Sue seemed to enjoy her healthy snack almost as much as she likes attention from her favorite keeper, Spencer. Qurq the Camel didn't choose to partake so he relaxed in his shelter and sat this one out. π
Thank you for watching and taking the time to vote for this week's enrichment video, hope you have a wonderful weekend and visit the Zoo! π€
You voted and this week's Enrichment Voting winner was Treats hidden in Newspaper Balls for our Umbrella Cockatoo, Fred!
His keeper placed 3 mini Newspaper Balls filled with nuts inside a bigger Newspaper ball to encourage his problem solving abilities. We think Fred had a great time foraging his way to his reward. Thank you all for voting and we hope to see you next week for another Enrichment Voting!
Fruitsicle Time! π«
Your winning vote for the Golden Lion Tamarin's enrichment is Fruitsicles! Which is just a fancy word for popsicle made out of fruit. π in this case, diluted pink lemonade with blueberries frozen in a small dish as a fun treat on a warm summer day! The GLT's were a little shy at first, like the video shows, but after they warmed up to the idea, they actually bickered with the hornbill over who got the blueberries out of the ice as they thawed! I hope you enjoy this little clip and thank you for casting your votes, stay tuned for next week's enrichment voting experience!
PS: we hope to see you at the zoo this weekend and are eager to start Sippin' Safari soon! π€
Our first duckling release! Today zookeepers released 32, 6-7 week old mallard ducklings in our large pond area at the zoo. These ducklings came from our friend and fellow waterfowl rehabber, Mike Hillman in Sioux Falls after he was being over run with ducklings in May. We like to help each other out when its needed to save these orphaned ducklings. The ducks went instantly into the water and started eating their favorite food item, duck weed!
Best of luck ducklings!!
π·= zookeeper Olivia Wulff
The winning item for the weekly Enrichment Voting was Hanging Lettuce Leaf for our Degus Gwen and Mia! We hope you enjoy this video of Gwen getting in a good stretch in order to reach the leaf!
Thank you for voting and don't forget to check back next week for another chance to vote!
Flower snackin' πΌ
Did you know???
Lemurs are amazing pollinators! Although they don't land on plants and carry pollen on their legs like bugs, they open flowers and transport pollen on their noses while also passing seeds in their feces and helping flowers to germinate! Some consider them the world's largest pollinators!
In this video, ours lemur boys are enjoying crabapple browse when it was blooming a few weeks ago-which is always a special time at the zoo since the trees only bloom for a short time! πΈ
Stay tuned tomorrow to see the next pollinator species we feature! π€
Dinner is Served! π½οΈ
Your votes are in and whole quail was the winning choice for the alligators' enrichment vote! Here is Acorn the Alligator chowing down on a whole prey quail. Alabama also had quail for supper today.
Hope you enjoy this video and tune in next week for the next enrichment voting opportunity! Thanks for playing! π€π
Check out the comments below for a special bonus video.. π€
Got a case of the Sunday Scaries?
Let us help! π
Please enjoy this video of our otter boys using team work (even though it appears that one is doing all of the work while the others reap the rewards) to spin the Culligan jug, and empty the fish inside of it out! This is just a small sampling of how smart otters are, and how they can, and will, work together to achieve a common goal! Hope this helps ease your scaries! And remember, team work makes the dream work! π
Have a great night!
Happy World Parrot Day from our Blue and Gold Macaws!
It looks like you all voted and wanted to see hanging bananas!
Well, our boys, Scooter and Dakota, are here to oblige! Please enjoy this video of our macaws wrangling their hanging bananas, and notice some of the skills that they use. Using their breaks to rip, tear, break, and shred things open. Notice how they use their feet to stand, balance, and hold things. Parrots are really amazing animals! Come to the zoo and see the many different varieties that we have! Have a great day, and a great weekend!
Ps. The video will flip around :15 seconds so it'll be full screen. Listen for Dakota saying "hello", and look for where Scooter gets some banana stuck to his break. π
Make plans to visit the zoo!
Memories that will last a lifetime are happening this summer at Bramble Park Zoo in Watertown. π¦ π¦ π¦₯ π¦¦
See more than 600 fascinating animals like otters, kangaroos, bears, leopards, and monkeys. π
π π They even have a tiger and a sloth! π¦ π« π
Visit our KidZoo to feed the goats and pet the alpacas.
The winning Enrichment Voting item was Fruit Slices on Perching for our Lady Ross Turaco, Will!
His keeper chose a couple small cantaloupe slices to hang up for him today. This is one of Will's favorite enrichments, and he always manages to get the fruit off the perching. We hope you enjoy this video of Will with his enrichment and we will see you back next week for another round of Enrichment Voting. Thanks everyone!
Bearded Dragon takes a bath!
Scrub-a-dub-dub, Tango the Dragon is in the tub! ππΌπ§Όπ«§
Tango and her "sister", Rex, our female Bearded Dragons, had birthdays on Sunday! In this video, Tango seems to be enjoying a warm bath and light scrubbing with a toothbrush from her caretaker. What better way to celebrate your birthday than a relaxing spa treatment?!
Tune in tomorrow for a very special birthday celebration for one of our geriatric zoo residents and guest favorite. Who do you think is celebrating their bday tomorrow? Comment below your guesses. π₯³ππ
Maddie and Yeti celebrated their birthdays today with new toys from their secret admirer in New Mexico! Happy Birthday to the snow leopards!
Maddie turned 8yrs old on May 12th and Yeti turns 6 today!
Make sure to stop down to the zoo today and say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our snow leopards!!!
You voted and the winning item for this week's Enrichment Voting was Minnows in Pool for our Waterfowl collection! π¦ It looks like the female Canvasback was the first to show off her fishing skills in the video. We hope you can stop by the zoo this weekend to see them in person! π
