It is not uncommon to see the local people (Malagasy) in Madagascar creating eco-tourism opportunities using lemurs and other species.  They know where the lemurs are and they know foreigners like to see them!  The people do appreciate nature, but as populations grow and the need for food increases they seek any means possible to survive.  There is a great need for conservation that can provide sustainable solutions for Malagasy people in Madagascar.  

Our next speaker for our call of the Wild Speaker Series is Dr. Jonah Ratsimbazafy, who is a Malagasy primatologist and conservationist.   Early in his career he studied Archaeology and Paleontology in Madagascar, spending many hours digging up ancient lemur fossils.  He once told me he spent three days digging up a full skeleton of one of the giant extinct lemurs that were the size of humans.  This work brought him in and around villages where he saw people eating lemurs.  He told me one day he looked at the bones he was dusting off at the time, then at a small species of lemur being placed in a cooking pot over an open fire, and said to himself, “The lemurs in the ground can wait, but the lemurs in the trees need my help now!”.  That was when he decided to commit himself to conserving species in Madagascar.        
 

Come to the Zoo to hear about primatologist Dr. Jonah Ratsimbazafy’s work saving lemurs and other species in Madagascar on February 15th at 7:00 pm.    Be one of the first to hear all about his recent discovery of a brand-new lemur species!  Enjoy beverages and tasty appetizers from Houston’s own Beaver’s restaurant and meet some of the Houston Zoo’s animals from Madagascar up-close.  CLICK HERE to purchase tickets.

If you are interested in journeying to this amazing land, join the Houston zoo on our trip to Madagascar in 2013. For more information CLICK HERE.

When I was a keeper, I often spent my free time observing our large group of ring-tailed lemurs. They have a relatively peaceful, but comical society. Often disagreements are settled with the females with babies clinging tightly to their backs at the front lines (that’s how risky the disagreements are). And, their most effective weapon is..…smell. Males arm up their tails with scent from glands on their wrists and fling it in the opponents’ general direction with great vigor. The whole event usually involves some dancing around each other until a smell wins out. It is all very entertaining.

I worked with a researcher that studied ring-tailed lemurs. She studied a group of lemurs living in caves in Madagascar. They actually looked quite different from the typical ring-tailed lemur. DNA work revealed they were in fact the same species but had evolved to have much puffier coats to keep them warm in their unique setting. During her studies with this group she also discovered the local Malagasy people in the area had created their own eco-tourism project using this group of cave dwelling lemurs. They charged to bring tourists to see these mysterious lemurs in the caves.

Dr. Jonah Ratsimbazafy is a Malagasy conservationist working to save lemurs and other species in Madagascar. Come and listen to his amazing stories on February 15th at 7:00 pm at the zoo. Be one of the first to hear all about his recent discovery of a brand-new lemur species! Enjoy beverages and tasty appetizers from Houston’s own Beaver’s restaurant and meet some of the Houston Zoo’s animals from Madagascar up-close.   CLICK HERE to purchase your tickets.

If you are interested in journeying to this amazing land join the Houston zoo on our trip to Madagascar in 2013. CLICK HERE to learn more.

One of my zoo keeper friends was one of the fortunate few that got to join the researchers in Madagascar to assist in tracking the Carolina Five.  I treasure the stories she shared with me about following the group through the thick forest.  One of the lemurs, unfortunately, remained in a captive mind set at first and tended to prefer the ground.  It is very dangerous for this species of lemur to spend extended periods of time on the ground in the wild, so she described continuously pushing his fuzzy rump up the tree trunks until he started to recognize the yummy fruit he could find higher in the trees.

Her job was to watch the lemurs’ every move and her description of trying to keep her eye on these agile creatures high in the forest canopy travelling at brake neck speeds while struggling to navigate the forest floor riddled with trip vines was priceless.  When they rested in a tree she was instructed to document what they were doing, the angle of the tree branch, and collect any feces deposits.  This sounds a lot easier then it was. She was often quite a distance behind the lemurs and by the time she staggered huffing and puffing to the point of “rest” the lemurs would leap off on their merry way once again.

She said the front of her shirt would fill with bugs of all shapes, sizes and colors during her mad dashes to keep up with the lemurs and described trying to dump these out in mid run.  She often lost track of the group after a face plant or two and would then have to follow their calls to relocate them. 

Through it all it was, of course, a highlight of her life to document captive lemurs living in the wild.  This project was the first example of reintroduction I remember hearing about and was definitely one of the stories that inspired me to get into this wonderful career.

Dr. Jonah Ratsimbazafy worked with this project early in his career.  He actually earned his PhD from Stony Brook University in 2002 for his study of Black and White Ruffed Lemurs.  CLICK HERE to purchase your tickets to hear about Jonah’s work saving lemurs and other species in Madagascar on February 15th at 7:00 pm.    Be one of the first to hear all about his recent discovery of a brand-new lemur species!  Enjoy beverages and tasty appetizers from Houston’s own Beaver’s restaurant and meet some of the Houston Zoo’s animals from Madagascar up-close.
If you are interested in journeying to this amazing land join the Houston zoo on our trip to Madagascar in 2013. For more information CLICK HERE.

If you are interested in the previous  post of this story CLICK HERE or scroll down.

Ruffed lemurs came onto my radar in the mid 90’s after watching a documentary with John Cleese describing a re-introduction of captive ruffed lemurs back to Madagascar. The project was the first lemur reintroduction effort of its kind. Five animals were carefully selected for genetics and personality from Duke Primate Center in North Carolina, a world class lemur facility.  They kept the lemurs in very natural settings to encourage natural behavior.

They were nick-named the Carolina Five and were flown to Madagascar, then carried to a remote park.  All five of the lemurs were collared and released into the reserve with researchers following close behind. 

To be continued….

This month’s Call of the Wild speaker, Dr Jonah Ratsimbazafy has assisted with this and many other conservation efforts in Madagascar.  Purchase your tickets now to hear about Jonah’s work saving lemurs and other species on February 15th at 7:00 pm.    Be one of the first to hear all about his recent discovery of a brand-new lemur species!  Enjoy beverages and tasty appetizers from Houston’s own Beaver’s restaurant.  CLICK HERE to purchase tickets.

If you are interested in journeying to this amazing land, join the Houston zoo on our trip to Madagascar in 2013. CLICK HERE for more information.

It is often hard to believe that species discoveries are still being made in this day and age, but new species keep miraculously revealing themselves in places like Madagascar.  Last month there was yet another exciting addition to the lemur family.  This month’s Call of the Wild speaker, Dr. Jonah Ratsimbazafy, a Malagasy primatologist, was one of the scientists to find it.  Come and be the first to hear about this brand new species on Feb. 15th at 7:00 pm at the Houston Zoo.  CLICK HERE to purchase your tickets.

Do you want to see lemurs in the wild?  Join the Houston zoo on our trip to Madagascar in 2013. CLICK HERE for more information. 

HOUSTON! We had no winter. This is clearly the fault of some burrow dwelling rodent, but most likely no the fault of the Groundhog but please feel free to debate that issue with friends and colleagues. Since you most likely need a little background to win the winter vs. rodent argument, I thought it would be a good idea to re-broadcast some Groundhogs Day (Feb. 2nd) information. Groundhogs by the way are favoring the Giants by 4 over the Patriots in Super Bowl 46. We know this because they came out of their burrows and noticed Tom Brady’s hair was all disheveled and groundhogs are very observant about these things and what it could mean.

Lets get something straight, “Groundhog” are not the Nostradamus of the rodent world. They can barely remember which drawer they left their pants in, let alone predict the changing of the seasons.

We do not hear much about this in Houston as we only have two seasons: Hot and humid or gonna be hot and humid soon, but folks in the North go nuts over this critter every February. According to folklore, if a groundhog emerging from its burrow on this day fails to see its shadow, it will leave the burrow, signifying that winter will soon end. If on the other hand, the groundhog sees its shadow, the groundhog will supposedly retreat into its burrow, and winter will continue for six more weeks.

Tradition has it that the early German settlers in Pennsylvania thought the groundhog to be a particularly sensitive and intelligent creature. They decided that if the sun shone on Candlemas Day then a wise animal such as the groundhog would see its own shadow and hurry back to its burrow for another six weeks of winter. The origins go back to ancient European weather lore where they relied on a badger or a bear to help them determine the change of the season. Actually Germans used a hedgehog to predict “a second winter”. Who wants to be standing out in a field when a Badger or a Bear wakes up for the season and is hungry?

This is not a Groundhog, Marmot or "Whistle Pig", but it is a whistling pig...

What is a Groundhog anyway? Also known as Woodchucks or Whistle Pigs, they are actually Marmots of which there are 14 species and at up to 13lbs, the largest member of the Squirrel family. Woodchucks are true hibernators, relying solely on body fat for winter survival. This begins at the first frost of the season and ends in early Spring. Is there a reason they wake up in early February other than to celebrate this tradition (envision groundhogs in party hats ringing in the new year…)? Emergence is determined by the outside daily temperature and an internal circannual clock which governs biological seasonality. Soon after leaving hibernation, sexually mature woodchucks begin the reproductive process. In essence, they are out looking to protect their territories from other males as well as find a mate. Humans manage to disrupt some of this by parading around their fields trying to figure out where a shadow is.

A few parting points here. On the news every year we see someone in Gobblers Knob, Pennsylvania with a Top Hat from the Groundhog’s Club Inner Circle (yes, this is for real) picking up Punxsutawney Phil to make his prediction. Do not try this at home! I repeat, keep your hands out of hibernating mammal dens. Next – did you know one of the most critically endangered mammals in North America is a Marmot? The Vancouver Island Marmot to be exact – link over to their website for more information and to see one of the cutest rodents on the planet.

By: Rachel Godambe, Natural Encounters Keeper

At the request of Painted Dog Conservation, I traveled to project headquarters in Zimbabwe to assist in the implementation of a new conservation education program called “Kids for Science”. Accompanying me on this visit was Cullen Geiselman PhD (HZI Board Member member and bat biologist), and her friend, Leighton Dancy, a professional photographer who documented PDC activities and programs. During our visit we would pilot the first ever Kids for Science program for eleven, 14 year old students from Nechilibi High School, the students’ full time teacher, their school’s Conservation Club Coordinator, the entire education staff from Painted Dog Conservation, Dr. Gregory, one master’s student, and a game warden from Hwange National Park.

It might seem unlikely that a conservation organization focused on a large charismatic carnivore would be interested in using frogs and toads to teach students about research, biology and conservation. Amphibians lend themselves to classroom study as they are an ecological indicator species in a habitat in which the Painted Dog depends on survival, are relatively abundant, easily handled, and observed by students. Amphibians are a model organism in which to cover taxonomy, biology, adaptations, ecological concepts, environmental threats and how students can help implement conservation action.

Before the students from Nechilibi High School were to arrive at the Painted Dog Conservation Iganyana Bush Camp, Dr. Cullen and I had to scout out potential study sites for the Kids for Science camp and become familiar with the native amphibians and bats we would be teaching the students about throughout the course. I conducted nightly visual and audio searches to document the presence of amphibian species in the area and became familiar with their natural history and behavior through observation and field guides. In addition to visual searches, I employed the use of a “Frog logger”, a wildlife acoustic recording device at a pan adjacent to our lodgin accommodations to record vocalizations for 10 minutes every hour throughout the day and night. I recorded close to 2,000 minutes of amphibian and bird calls over the course of our stay at Painted Dog Conservation and documented 16 species of amphibians.

Here are a few photos of some of the special frogs and toads that call Zimbabwe home.

Rain frogs, these are burrowing, frowny faced little frogs whose tadpoles develop directly from egg to small frog without metamorphosis

Foam Nesting Grey Treefrogs, these frogs communally deposit their eggs into this rich foam that is whipped up by their back legs. The eggs are protected by this foam until they hatch and the tadpoles fall into the water below. Amazing adaptation!

Marbeld Shovel Nosed Frog. These pointy nosed little burrowing frogs are great moms. They protect their eggs in underground burrows and when they hatch, tadpoles are carried on moms back from the burrow to a nearby pond.

More frogs photos coming over the next few days, I hope you can sleep until I post more!

Cullen with bat that lives in the roof of the guest housing at Painted Dog Conservation

Cullen Gieslman is a Houston Zoo conservation board member.  She has been studying bats for quite some time and volunteered to accompany Conservation Programs Manager, Rachel Rommel to Painted Dog Conservation in Zimbabwe to educate staff there about bats.  Painted Dog Conservation’s (PDC) education program for the local communities focuses on the eco-system.  PDC was very eager to have Rachel  and Cullen contribute an amphibian and bat component to this program.   Enjoy Cullen’s bat update from PDC in Zimbabwe.

Cullen weighing bat

This is a brief bat update and photos that Rachel took of me and the bats living in our house. It’s really the only batting we have done besides wandering around with bat detectors. We’ll try to get more photos with the camp kids when we show them the bats next week. The housing for visiting scientists at Painted Dog Conservation in Zimbabwe shelters a large colony of bats that we hear squeaking and moving about day and night. To find out what species we are cohabitating with, we devised a plan to capture a few.

Rachel, Cullen and Greg Mist-netting for bats

We taped a very short mist net (2.6 meters long and about 2.6 meters high) to some poles and, once it got dark, we observed the direction the bats were taking as they flew out of their roost. We quickly positioned the net right in their path and, after intercepting four, swung the net out of their way because we would only need a few to confirm species. I gingerly extracted each from the net and placed it in its own cloth holding bag. I could tell from the shape of the face and ears and presence of a free tail extending beyond the tail membrane more than one-third of its length that we had captured a species of free-tailed bat in the family Molossidae.

Cullen measuring bat

I then consulted Bats of Southern and Central Africa to determine the species based first on forearm measurement and then on description. Our cohabitants turn out to be Mops midas, or Midas free-tailed bat, a large species (forearm = 61 mm, mass = 45 g) associated with hot, low-lying savanna and woodlands in southern Africa. We captured two lactating females, one pregnant female, and one scrotal male suggesting that our house is being used as a maternity roost and that the noise we hear during the night are mothers coming back to feed their young.

Adults of this species eat insects, mainly beetles, which are very abundant in the area. After measuring and weighing our captives, we released them to go about their nightly forays.

The Houston Zoos good friend, conservation board member and bat biologist, Cullen Geiselmen is also with me on this adventure with another colleague, and professional photographer from Austin, who will be photographing the kids in action during Toad Trackers. Cullen hopes to be able to mist net for bats so the kids will be able to learn about these creatures as well. She should have plenty of bats to choose from as there seems to be hundreds sleeping in the ceiling above our beds, sqeaking and chattering away. A little unnerving at first, but now quite peaceful when you are falling asleep. I wonder what they are saying to each other? Sounds important.

So first, things first, before the kids come, we need to do some reconaissance. The next several nights will be spent becoming aquainted with the local frogs, as I have never been here before! I have set up frog recording devices at local pans (ponds created by the wallowing of large animals). We are getting important data all day and night and will be able to identify many of the species from their calls. When the kids get here, they will go through this information as well and learn the frogs by sight and sound.

We have been out the last two evenings looking for amphibians and have been quite lucky thanks to the rains. Several unique and strikingly gorgeous species have been found. Whenever we go to the pans at night we go as a group and have a guard with us as well because of the likelihood of predators skulking about. Not something I generally have to worry about in Texas. Maybe thats why there doesnt seem to be too many herpetologists in this part of Africa…perhaps they were all eaten by lions?

Stay tuned for Amazing Amphibian photographs.  Here is one of our night guard who actually was a great frog spotter as well, he really got into it! Holding the Bocage’s tree frog that he found.