August 2015, Volume 42, No. 8 he Journal of the American Association of Zoo Keepers, Inc. ’ Forum Advance your Career & EDUCATION ONLINE! Our programs tn Zoo & Aquarium Science and Wildlife Rehabilitation give you the training you need to grow and advance in your field. Small class sizes and professional faculty guarantee you a personal education with the individual attention you deserve. START TODAY AND EARN YOUR CERTIFICATE IN AS LITTLE AS SIX MONTHS! partner ASSOCIATION OF ZOOS AQUARIUMSC^ www.Aniiiialldu.coifi (866) 755-0448 Animal Behavior Institute a more personal education ACCREDITED BUSINESS 229 ABOUT THE COVER 230 FROM THE EDITOR 232 COMING EVENTS 234 LERERS TO THE EDITOR 235 CHAPTER NEWS TRAINING TALES 248-251 Training a 1.2 Black Howler Monkey Group for Routine Physical Exam Day Jade Yoho FEATURED ARTICLES 236-238 Parental Provisioning in Captive Red-billed Hornbills {Tockus erythrorhynchus) Kelsey Navins, Grace Shelstad, Susan Lewis and Bryan Kwiatkowski 244-247 Polar Bears {Ursus maritimus): Connections between activity levels, temperature and day length Kim Sanders H S O AUG 1 3 2015 Abbreviated AAZK Annual Report included in this issue! Pages 239-242 Perfect Package. 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E-mail: info@rodentpro.com VISA PayPal COM®- MICE • RATS • RABBITS • CHICKS • QUAIL AMERICAN ASSOCIATION of ZOO KEEPERS MISSION STATEMENT American Association of Zoo Keepers, Inc. The American Association of Zoo Keepers. Inc. exists to advance excellence in the animal keeping profession, foster effective communication beneficial to animal care, support deserving conservation projects, and promote the preservation of our natural resources and animal life. About the Cover This nnonth's cover features a secretary bird {Sagittarius serpentarius) by Dane Jorgensen of Birmingham Zoo. It is a large, mostly terrestrial bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa. It is a member of the order Accipitriformes which includes many other diurnal raptors, but it is given its own family, Sagittariidae. It is believed the secretary bird got its name in the 1800's when Europeans first spotted the birds. During this time period, male secretaries wore gray tailcoats, knee-length pants, and used goose-quill pens that were often carried behind their ears. The feather ensemble of gray breast, black leg, and long, black, quill-like feathers protruding from the birds' heads may have led to its name. ANIMAL KEEPERS^ FORUM TO CONTACT THE AKF EDITOR: Shane Good, Media Production Editor P.O. Box 535, Valley City, OH 44280 330-483-1104 shane.good@aazk.org AAZK Administrative Office American Association of Zoo Keepers 8476 E. Speedway Blvd. Suite 204 Tucson, AZ 85710-1728 520-298-9688 (Phone/Fax) E-mail: Ed.Hansen@aazk.org Chief Executive/Financial Officer: Ed Hansen EDITOR Shane Good GRAPHIC DESIGNER Elizabeth Thibodeaux ENRICHMENT OPTIONS COLUMN COORDINATORS Julie Hartell-DeNardo, Saint Louis Zoo Casey Plummer, Caldwell Zoo Ric Kotarsky, Tulsa Zoo & Living Museum ATC COLUMN COORDINATORS Kim Kezer, Zoo New England Jay Pratte, Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo Beth Stark-Posta, Toledo Zoo CONSERVATION STATION COORDINATORS Amanda Ista, Milwaukee County Zoo Mary Ann Cisneros, Disney's Animal Kingdom The territory of a secretary bird can cover 50 square kilometers and they can cover 20 miles (32 kilometers) or more in a single day of hunting for food. Prey includes small mammals, reptiles, birds and large insects. Designated as "Vulnerable" by the lUCN, the main threat to secretary birds is habitat loss. Articles sent to Animal Keepers’ Forum will be reviewed by the editorial staff for publication. Articles of a research or technical nature will be submitted to one or more of the zoo professionals who serve as referees for AKF. No commitment is made to the author, but an effort will be made to publish articles as soon as possible. Lengthy articles may be separated into monthly installments at the discretion of the Editor. The Editor reserves the right to edit material without consultation unless approval is requested in writing by the author. Materials submitted will not be returned unless accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed, appropriately-sized envelope. Telephone, fax or e-mail contributions of late-breaking news or last-minute insertions are accepted as space allows. Phone (330) 483-1104; FAX (330) 483-1444; e-mail is shane.good@aazk.org. If you have questions about submission guidelines, please contact the Editor. Submission guidelines are also found at: aazk.org/akf-submisslon-guidelines/. Deadline for each regular issue is the 3rd of the preceding month. Dedicated issues may have separate deadline dates and will be noted by the Editor. Articles printed do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the AKF staff or the American Association of Zoo Keepers, Inc. Publication does not indicate endorsement by the Association. Items In this publication may be reprinted providing credit to this publication is given and a copy of the reprinted material is forwarded to the Editor. If an article is shown to be separately copyrighted by the authorfs), then permission must be sought from the author(s). Reprints of material appearing in this Journal may be ordered from the Editor. Regular back issues are available for $6.00 each. Special Issues may cost more. MiMBf RSHIP SERVICBS Animal Data Transfer Forms available for download at aazk.org. AAZK Publications/ Logo Products/Apparel available at AAZK Administrative Office or at aazk.org. MIX Paper from responsible sources FSC'C1 12081 Animal Keepers' Forum is published monthly by AAZK, Inc. Ten dollars of each membership fee goes toward the annual publication costs of Animal Keepers' Forum. Postage paid at Tucson, AZ. BOARD OF DIRECTORS PRESIDENT: Bob Cisneros, Big Bear Alpine Zoo, Big Bear Lake, CA VICE PRESIDENT: Penny Jolly, Disney's Animal Kingdom, Lake Buena Vista, FL Kelly Wilson, Detroit Zoological Society Royal Oak, Ml Bethany Bingham, Utah's Hogle Zoo Salt Lake City. UT Wendy Lenhart, Philadelphia Zoo Philadelphia, PA COMMITTEES/COORDINATORS/ PROJECT MANAGERS BY-LAWS Chair: Ric Kotarsky, Tulsa Zoo GRANTS COMMITTEE Chair: Jessica Munson, Milwaukee County Zoo BEHAVIORAL HUSBANDRY COMMITTEE Chair: Megan Wright, Blank Park Zoo BOWLING FOR RHINOS, NATIONAL PROGRAM MANAGER Patty Pearthree, Cary, NC ETHICS Chair: Penny Jolly, Disney’s Animal Kingdom CONSERVATION COMMITTEE Co-Chairs: Christy Poelker, Saint Louis Zoo, Janee Zakoren, Sequoia Park Zoo, AWARDS Chair: Janet McCoy, The Oregon Zoo PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT Co-Chairs: Melaina Wallace, Disney's Animal Kingdom Ellen Gallagher, John Ball Zoo CONFERENCE PROGRAM MANAGER Victor Aim, Oakland Zoo ICZ COORDINATORS Norah Farnham, Woodland Park Zoo Sara Wunder Steward, Busch Gardens Tampa COMMUNICATION COMMITTEE Chair: Bethany Bingham, Utah's Hogle Zoo NATIONAL ZOO KEEPER WEEK, PROGRAM MANAGER Robin Sutker, Baltimore Zoo ■'A'-ILORG August 2015 I Vol. 42, No. 8 | 229 FROM THE EDITOR Recently nny zoo celebrated the international event known as "Dreamnight at the Zoo". This is an annual event hosted at 300 zoos and aquariums in 35 countries for children with special needs or chronic illness. This special evening offers these children and their families an exclusive experience at each zoo or aquarium. As preparations for our event at my zoo began, I wondered how many zoo keepers realized it was one of their colleagues who created the concept of "Dreamnight at the Zoo". Peter van der Wulp, an Animal Keeper at the Rotterdam Zoo in The Netherlands, created "Dreamnight at the Zoo" in 1996. I first learned about Dreamnight at the Zoo while attendingthe First International Congress on Zookeeping in 2003. The conference was hosted by the ICZ, of which AAZK is a founding member. Ko Veltman, another Dutch Zoo Keeper, presented to the conference delegates, and like me, most were hearing about "Dreamnight" for the very first time. To see the slides of chronically ill children smiling at the opportunity to visit the zoo animals that we get to see every day, and for us to have the opportunity to make such a positive impact on the lives of these families, those of us in the audience were nothing short of inspired. We all went back to our own zoos and asked our directors to join the "Dreamnight" cause. There is a lot to be learned from "Dreamnight at the Zoo". Zoo Keepers can accomplish great things. Peter van der Wulp had an idea and it turned into an international phenomenon; animal keepers are great innovators. You don't need to be a zoo manager or director to make great achievements. Part of why "Dreamnight" was so successful was because Peter and Ko shared their passion with their colleagues. The sharing of information is one of the most important things we can do in this profession, whether the topic is animal husbandry, conservation, or how to brighten the day of a family. "Dreamnight at the Zoo" was one of the best things to come from the first ICZ conference. By helping spread the word about "Dreamnight" to an international audience, the concept quickly crossed borders and became a common name in our zoo vocabulary. I have been privileged to do many excitingthings throughout my longzoo career, but the one thing that always warms my heart the most is participating in "Dreamnight at the Zoo". If your zoo isn't participating yet, ask your director if your zoo can be the next to Join this international program. Meanwhile, think of keepers like Peter and remember that you can achieve great things too. AAZK and the ICZ were created to help you reach your goals. Shane Good, Editor Animal Keepers' Forum shane.good@aazk.org 230 I ANIMAL KEEPERS’ FORUM American Association of Zoo Keepers, inc. >=^NlVO^ PREMIUM NUTRITION FOR YOUR CARNIVORES Swine Resources Your animals are your zoo. Protect and care for them with the most nutritous carnivore entree in the industry. The first all-pork complete diet formulated specifically for zoo carnivores, Carnivore Essentials is backed by years of extensive field research and testing, and proven to be a safe, nutritious diet for all carnivores. Your animals deserve only the very best. Feed them Carnivore Essentials. www.CarnivoreEssentials.com 800-890-7039 sales@CarnivoreEssentials.com O O IWI I N O Fl/F WX^ upcoming events here! tv tin I e-mailshane.good@aazk.org September 9-12, 2015 Association of Zoo Veterinary Technicians' Annual Conference Tacoma, Washington Hosted by Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium For more information visit: http://azvt.org/ conference2015.htm September 21-26, 2015 Zoo and Aquarium Docents Regional Conference El Paso, TX For more information visit: azadocents.org September 9-13, 2015 International Congress on Zookeeping Leipzig, Germany Hosted by Leipzig Zoo and the International Congress of Zookeepers (ICZ). For more information visit: iczoo.org. October 5-9, 2015 Giraffe Care Workshop Colorado Springs, CO Hosted by Cheyenne Mountain Zoo For more information visit: cmzoo.org/index.php/giraffe- ca re-workshop/ September 17-21, 2015 AZA National Conference Salt Lake City, UT Hosted by Utah's Hogle Zoo For more information visit: aza.org. October 11-15, 2015 Orangutan SSP Husbandry Workshop Wichita, KS Hosted by Sedgwick County Zoo For more information visit: scz . 0 rg/ V i s ito r_ti c kets- conferences.php October 12-16, 2015 Zoos and Aquariums Committing to Conservation Conference (ZACC) Denver, CO Hosted by Denver Zoo For more information go to: http://www.denverzoo.org/ZACC October 29-November 1, 2015 Advancing Bear Care - 2015 Hanoi, Viet Nam Hosted by Bear Care Group For more information visit: bearcaregroup.org/#!abc- 2015— vietnam/c227f November 6-8, 2015 Southeast Regional Gorilla Workshop Tampa, FL Hosted by Busch Gardens Tampa. For more information contact: keri.bauer@buschgardens.com AMERICAN ASSOCIATION of ZOO KEEPERS September 27 - Oct. 1, 2015 AAZK National Conference St. Louis, MO Hosted by Saint Louis Zoo and St. Louis Chapter of AAZK More details can be found at: www.stlzoo.org/animals/ soyouwanttobeazookeeper/ americanassociationofzooke/ November 18-22, 2015 New World Primate TAG Husbandry Workshop San Diego, CA Hosted by San Diego Zoo For more information go to: https://www.bpzoo.org/nwptag- conference-registration/ 232 I ANIMAL KEEPERS' FORUM American Association or Zoo Keeners, Ir o. We know you take them seriously, which is why we take their nutrition seriously. Exotic animal nutrition is our business For over 20 years, we’ve collaborated with zoo and exotic animal professionals to conduct extensive ^ research to improve 1 nutrition of exotic I species. Our products ' are proven to support j the health and longevity i >\ of exotic animals. A World of Good Nutrition perfecting exotic prennium formulated nutrition Sign up for our newsletter today at MAZUR1.COM and be the first to learn about: Latest Product Information • Product Promotions • Tradeshows & Events ©201 PMI Nutrition International. All Rights Reserved LETTERS TO THE EDITOR To the Editor Animal Keepers' Forum Taking Issue with the Practice of So-called "Euthanasia for Population Management" This article was written in response to the recent publication in Animal Keepers' Forum of the articles: “Humane Euthanasia of Animals for Population Management” and “Nationv/ide Survey of Keeper Attitudes and Knowledge Regarding Population Management Euthanasia.” Euthanasia is properly practiced only for the benefit of the individual, and only when that individual is in dire and hopeless straits. Euthanasia is not properly a method of killing at all, but rather a means of easing death when an animal’s time to die has come. The argument made by some European zoos that “the death of healthy animals is quite natural and many animals die in the wild” is not a legitimate rationale for the killing of healthy animals in zoos. In the wild, animals are sovereign creatures. They make their own decisions and take their own chances. In the wild, in any given encounter with natural forces, there is always a chance of an animal escaping death to live another day. In the zoo setting, it is we who are sovereign and we who make the decisions about what happens to an animal. Killing a healthy animal in a zoo isfar more similar to a canned hunt or a poaching incident than it is like a lion taking down a gazelle. The zoo animal has no chance to react, no chance to escape the harm. When we take a wild animal into captivity (either literally because the animal is captured from the wild, or figuratively because we are breeding wild animals in captivity), we enter into a contract with that animal, in exchange for a loss of the animal’s freedom and sovereignty, we will give that animal a permanently safe haven— a healthy, happy, and species-appropriate home with plenty of food and no predators for as long as the animal lives. That’s the deal. To renege on that agreement by killing the animal out of hand merely for population management is a breach of the contract we made, and a betrayal of the animal for whom we have chosen to make ourselves responsible. Individuals matter. Indeed, any species has value only insofar as the individuals that make up that species have a value. If all lions were the same lion, there would be no need to have more than one. And if individual lions didn’t matter, there would be no need to have a real lion at all. A stuffed statue or an animatronic robot would be just as good as the flesh-and-blood version, if not better. The same is true of the human species. Why do we think it is wrong to humanely wipe out millions of human beings for population management when we know for a fact that the earth is vastly overpopulated with the human species? It is wrong precisely because those individual people who would get wiped out each have an individual value. Each person is irreplaceable and precious and cannot be killed to address overall population control. Each animal in our collection is likewise irreplaceable and precious. Hmnaiii to be getting across to the public. As places where wild animals are kept in captivity, zoos derive their legitimacy from their primary role in demonstrating to the public that wild animals are valuable and precious and worth saving in the wild. But the killing of healthy animals in the collection teaches instead that wild animals are interchangeable, expendable, throwaway objects that should never be allowed to inconvenience human beings and their institutions. For a zoo to disseminate such a message is a complete betrayal of all that the modern zoological society is supposed to stand for. Furthermore, when some institutions choose to teach this lesson, it gives all zoological societies a bad name whether deserved it or not Finally a warning: If we give up our role as organizations that champion and illustrate the intrinsic value of wild animals and instead devolve into mere menageries that exist solely for the amusement of idle human gawkers, we won’t have a leg to stand on when we are accused by animal rights groups of callously abusing animals for the sake of crass human profit if we give up the moral high ground on which we (most of us) now stand, we cannot defend the legitimacy of our own jobs or our institutions’ right to exist. Zoos worldwide need to get much more creative and intelligent in their animal husbandry techniques so that issues of population management can be dealt with in a humane, responsible, ethical and effective fashion. We need to form more consortia among zoos and aquariums so that when space gets tight at one institution an animal can be moved to another institution where it will become a valuable contributing member of the collection. We need to refine our birth control and artificial insemination protocols so that they better serve our animals and our collection needs. We need to increase the space available for zoo animals to live out their lives. Some small struggling zoos might need to close down in order to combine resources to make a bigger, better, more effective zoo. We are all in this together, and if we work together we can solve population management problems without betraying our principles and our animals. Respectfully submitted, The killing of healthy zoo animals is unethical in another important Sarah Love way— it sends the opposite message to the one that zoos are supposed Brookfield Zoo 234 ANIMAL KEEPERS’ FORUM American Association of Zoo Keepers, Inc. CHAPTER NEWS Starting a New MZK Chapter at the Fresno Chaffee Zoo Katie DeLorenzo Fresno Chaffee Zoo AAZK President I recently started a new AAZK Chapter at the Fresno Chaffee Zoo in California. To me, being a zoo keeper is synonymous with being an AAZK member, and the director at the Fresno Chaffee Zoo was extremely supportive when i mentioned that the keepers would like to start a Chapter. I was anxious at first, wondering if I would be able to figure outall of the details that wentalongwith it. I found out that ail you need is a small group of organized, passionate individuals because AAZK, Inc. has done all the work to spell out exactly how to set up a new Chapter. Here are step-by-step instructions and some helpful hints about our experience during the first few years. Simple Steps 1. Talk to Keepers Make a list of keepers that are interested in joining. You only need a few to get started. We had a group of about ten individuals that said they were definitely going to join. Also ask each person if they would be willing to be an officer. 2. Talk to Zoo Administration Have clear goals of what you would like to accomplish and why. Having your zoo support your Chapter will make a huge difference in what you can do when it comes to fundraisers and advertizing your conservation message. First I spoke with my direct supervisor, then the director of our zoo. 3. Ask for paperwork from AAZK, Inc. After you find out that there is enough interest at your zoo, contact AAZK, Inc. and ask them to mail you all necessary paperwork. This will include an easy to follow step-by-step guide on how to complete the necessary steps to make your Chapter official. AAZK, Inc. can also put you in contact with other new Chapters for advice on how they got started. 4. Elect Officers Go back to your list of interested keepers and have anyone that wants a chance to be on the Board join AAZK National. Anyone that wants to vote for officers must also join AAZK National. Here at the Fresno Chaffee Zoo, we scheduled an informational meeting to explain why keepers should join and what would be involved in being an officer. At a later date, we had nominations and elections and had our first group of AAZK members. 5. Fill out the Paperwork Once you have officers voted on, you may fill out your paperwork that you received from step 3. All officers must sign it before you send it back. This paperwork will include your first By-laws (easy- just fill in the blanks.) 6. Welcome to AAZK You will receive a packet in the mail announcing that you are now an official Chapter. The packet will include your tax ID # and financial expectations. Yes, you will need to do taxes every year by filling out a “Recharter Packet”, which is easy if you have an organized treasurer. You must save every single receipt and have a record of all income/expenses. We suggest that you look over an example of a “Recharter Packet” before you have a single Chapter meeting or fundraiser. This will give you an idea of how to keep structured records throughout the year. We surest using an Excel spreadsheet, but if Excel is not your thing, paper works too. This is the intimidating sounding part of the process, but as long as you are organized (yes, I will keep stressing this word) it really is not that difficult. Helpful Hints ► Recruiting New Members Be welcoming of everyone. We currently have approximately 30 members. More than half of them are docents. Remember, many fundraisers happen at weekend zoo events. How many zoo keepers have weekends off? Exactly. Docents and volunteers are a huge help. They add another perspective at meetings. Love and appreciate them. ► Chapter Fees Fresno Chaffee Zoo AAZK decided not to have a Chapter fee. Most people at our zoo had never been a part of an AAZK Chapter before. Since members already pay to be at the National level, we wanted to stop after that or we were afraid no one would be able to afford to join. ► Starting at Zero We sat around a table one day and couldn’t decide how to have a fundraiser without having any money yet. A docent took pity on us and tossed $20 at the officers. A great fundraiser to have in the beginning with a huge potential for profit is a yard sale. All you need to buy is poster board and markers to make signs. Ask for donations a month or two in advance from staff, docents, and volunteers. Find a good location. You can make $1000 in a day. Yard sales are a great way to establish a checking account for your Chapter. ^ Advertizing and AAZK Updates Ask your zoo permission to have an announcement board in a staff common area of the zoo. We have two, in the main staff break room and in the docent lounge. We have flyers about when the next meeting is, upcoming fundraisers, how to join our AAZK Chapter, good articles from the Animal Keepers’ Forum, etc. We also announce when we give money to conservation efforts. ► Do Presentations at Ali Staff Meetings We talk about Bowling for Rhinos each year. It’s a good way to remind people that their zoo has a Chapter and they can be involved. Even if they do not want to join the Chapter or participate in events like Bowling for Rhinos, including them will encourage them to make donations to fundraisers and make sure they are excited about the Chapter. ► Positive Reinforcement Make the meetings fun. We bring food, have movie nights, and make sure everyone has a voice at our Chapter meetings. I am a member of AAZK for two main reasons: to raise money for conservation and to hang out with people that i don’t normally get to work with on a daily basis. Hopefully this article is helpful. Since 2013, the Fresno Chaffee Zoo AAZK Chapter has given over $5300 to conservation efforts. We are just starting out, but already feel that we are making a difference in the world. Like most zoo keepers, we talk about conservation to zoo visitors every day and are now leading by example. The AAZK Board and Staff thanks Fresno's Chaffee Zoo AAZK Chapter for sponsoring the Animal Keepers’ Forum in 2015. AAZK.ORG August 2015 I Vol. 42, No. 8 | 235 Parental Provisioning in Captive Red-billed Hornbills {Tockus erythrorhynchus) Kelsey Novins^'^, Grace Shelstad\ Susan Lewis^ & Bryan KwiatkowskP ^Department of Life Sciences, Carroll University, 100 North East Avenue, Waukesha, Wl 53186 ^Milwaukee County Zoo, 10001 W. Bluemound Rood, Milwaukee, Wl 53226 ^Current Address: DePaul University, 2400 N. Sheffield Avenue, Chicago, IL 60614 Introduction The level to which parents provision offspring varies across species and may be influenced by factors such as brood size, care requirements of offspring, and the cost of parental investment. For example, a clutch of eggs of some species offish may require little or no care at all, whereas female mammals incur very high costs during both gestation and lactation (Davies et al., 2012). Birds typically employ bi-parental care in raising their broods. Because the female does not lactate, both parents can provide resources to the young, which greatly increases the overall survival of offspring, especially with altricial young (Davies et al., 2012). In some bird species, such as the great kiskadee, both parents participate equally In delivering food to chicks duringthe nesting period (Llambas, 2003). However, males may spend more time providing care if the female’s ability to provide care is compromised or heavy predation requires the male to protect the nest (Markman et al., 1995; Fraser, 2002). The saddle-billed stork also employs bi-parental care of eggs and chicks, however females provide substantially more care than males (Elston et al., 2010). Hornbills (Bucerotidae) have a distinctive nesting behavior that may influence the patterns of caregiving of males and females. The mating pair chooses a small cavity in their environment as their nesting site and, after the female enters the nest, covers the entrance with spackle (a mixture composed mainly of food material, with some fecal matter), and leaves a slit the width of their bills in the spackle. For the entire nesting period (approximately two months in the red billed hornbill), the female remains in the nest cavity, relying on the male for food (Moreau, 1937). After one month of brooding chicks, the hornbill mother will emerge from the nest box and the chicks resea! the hole. Then, both parents deliver food to the chicks. After approximately one to two weeks, depending on clutch size, the chicks will widen the slit in the spackle and emerge from the nest box. Following emergence, the parents will continue to feed the chicks outside of the nest box (A. Waier, pers. comm.). Producing eggs and remaining in the nest box duringthe nesting period can be costly to the female, which could decrease the resources she has available to provide care for her brood after incubation. This would imply that the male, having more resources available, might spend more time provisioning after the female leaves the nest box (Likerand Szekely, 2005). On the other hand, while the females are sealed in the nest box, males are the primary provider of food to both the female and the brood. Because the male decreases his time spent caring for himself during this time, he may spend more time recovering lost resources once the female leaves the nest box and is able to deliver food to the chicks on her own (Stanback et al., 2002). Alternatively, the female and chicks may form a close bond during incubation that continues as they leave the nest box, leading her to spend more time provisioning. There may also be certain characteristics of chicks that can result in differential provisioning by their parents. Slagsvold (1997) found that sibling rivalry could be a major factor in the proportion of care an individual chick receives. Larger chicks in this case are expected to receive more frequent parental care compared to smaller chicks because they are able to push the smaller chicks out of the way and obtain attention from the parents. On the other hand, it has been observed that chicks that hatch last in a brood have a smaller body mass as well as increased begging behavior, which may elicit more food from the parent(s) (Siano et al., 2001). However, no bias may be evident if the brood is small, and thus it is advantageous for the fitness of the parents to provide care equally among all chicks in the brood. Although sex-biased provisioning is seen in some avian species (Ligon and Hill, 2010), there is no literature on the effects of chick gender on the distribution of care by hornbills. This study aimed to determine if the frequency of parental care differs between the mother and father in a pair of captive red-billed hornbills at the Milwaukee County Zoo. In addition, we investigated whether either parent showed a bias for any specific chick. Methods Subjects and exhibit Our focal subjects are an experienced mated pair of captive red-billed hornbills, Tockus erythrorhynchus, housed in the aviary building at the Milwaukee County Zoo, Wl. The exhibit dimensions are 6m x 3m x 3m with a nest box located centrally on the ceiling that could be accessed via branches. The outer facing wall of the exhibit is made of tightly spaced vertical tension wires. The wall separating the focal exhibit from its neighboring exhibit is made of nylon zoo mesh, while the other two are made of painted piaster. The exhibit also contains various plants, a shallow pool of water, artificial and natural rocks/ boulders of varying sizes, and a torpedo sand floor. Two food dishes are provided to the subjects daily and live crickets are provided daily and most often during our sampling periods. All subjects were individually recognizable based on colored plastic leg bands. Nesting timeline The nesting timeline was similar to that observed by Moreau (1937). The mother was sealed within the nest box on July 24'^ 2013. Although it was impossible to determine the specific date of hatching, keepers used chick vocalizations to estimate that the three chicks hatched on or around August 24'^'. On September 25'^, the mother left the nest box and the chicks re-sealed themselves inside. On October 2"'‘, the first two chicks emerged from the nest box, followed by the third chick on October 7*^. Since actual hatching order was not observed, it was assumed that the orderof emergence was also the order or hatching (A. Waier, pers. comm.). Chick sex was determined via analysis of blood samples. The sex of the chicks was not revealed to the observers until all data had been collected in order to prevent any observer bias. Chicks are referred to 236 1 ANIMAL KEEPERS' FORUM AiVierican .Association of Zoo Keepers, Inn. by their estimated hatching order followed by their sex (in parentheses). Chick removal This pair of red-billed hornbilis has raised eight clutches to date. In each of the first seven clutches (2006 - 2012) the breeding male attempted to drive the female chicks from his territory once they were fuily fledged (at about two months of age). Once the breeding male started chasing his female chicks, the entire clutch of chicks (males and females) were removed from the exhibit and placed off exhibit for their safety and to provide companionship for each other. The eighth clutch produced by the red-billed hornbill pair in 2013, (the subject of this paper) produced a different outcome. The adult male began to relentlessly chase and displace chick 2 (later determined to be a male) 10 days after fledging. Knowing that chick 2 had started self-feeding at a very young age, the aviary staff decided that he did not need his mother to help him obtain food. He was quickly removed from his enclosure for his own safety on October 10‘1 He was placed in the adjacent exhibit to allow him to continue to interact with the family. Data collection Data were collected from September 26'^ through November 14‘^ 2013, on Thursday afternoons in 45-minute sessions with approximately 5 minutes between sessions. All occurrences of feeding behavior were recorded during each session. Feeding behavior was defined as one parent carrying food in his/her beak and depositing (or attempting to deposit) it in the nest box or directly in the mouth of a chick, regardless of whether the chick accepted the food offered. Which parent fed and which chick received the food was recorded when possible. Thirty total hours of data were collected. On each day of observation, no more than three sessions (135 min) were conducted. We tested for inter-observer reliability (defined as 85% similarity between data collected during one session) prior to the start of data collection and after 15 observer-hours of data collection. Each observer collected data on one focal bird and the focal bird was alternated between observers for each session to reduce any potential bias. Data analysis All data were analyzed using SPSS. All sessions were treated as independent measures of behavior within a case-study design. Differences in mean number of feedings per session between parents as well as between weeks were analyzed using a 2-way between subjects analysis of variance (ANOVA). Post hoc analyses were made AAZK.OIG using Tukey’s B. Since chick 2 (M) was removed after the third week of data collection, we analyzed the potential parental biases both before and after his removal. A 2-way between subjects ANOVA was also used to analyze potential chick biases for each parent before the removal of chick 2 (M). Since only two chicks remained after the removal of chick 2 (M), parental biases were analyzed using an independent sample t-test. For all figures, error bars represent one standard error. Results Influences of parental gender There was a significant main effect of parental gender on the average number of feedings per session each week (F^^ = 6.592, p < 0.05). The father’s overall feeding rate was higher than that of the mother (fig 1). We also found a significant main effect of week (F^^ = 14.713, p < 0.05). Post-hoc tests showed that both parents significantly decreased their feeding rate after weeks one and two. Interaction between factors was not significant (F^^ ^4) ^ 1-380, p = 0.259). Biases towards chicks We found no significant biastowards a specific chick by the father (F^^ ^7, = 1.176, p=0.335, fig. 2a) before or after (t=0.660, p=0.516, fig. 2b) the removal of chick 2 (M). Similarly, there was no significant bias towards a specific chick by the mother either before (F^^ 17) ~ 1-607, p=0.233: fig. 2a) or after (t= -2.007, p=0.056, fig. 2b) the removal. The mother tended to direct more care toward chick 3 (F) than to chick 1 (F), but this difference was not statistically significant, most likely due to the small number of observations. Anecdotally, chick 3 (F) seemed to be the smallest chick. Discussion Our results indicate that the father did, on average, feed the chicks more often per session than the mother. Our data suggest that the father provides this higher frequency of care for a longer period of time than the mother (fig 1), extending into the fourth, and possibly fifth, week, in contrast, the mother seems to reduce her high frequency of feeding at the third week. This appears to support the findings of Liker & Szekely (2005) who found that because males do not incur the high costs of producing eggs and remaining in the nest box, they are more likely to have the resources available to provide more care after the emergence of the chicks. Since red-billed hornbill females spend over two months in the nest, it is likely that high costs are incurred while producing, laying, and incubating eggs that may hinder the mother’s ability to continue August 2015 I Vol. 42, No. 8 | 237 feeding her chicks for an extended period of time. Due to high levels of aggression by the father towards chick 2 (M), chick 2 (M) was removed from the flock and placed in a neighboring exhibit. Interestingly, this type of forced male-dispersal is uncommon in monogamous species like the red-billed hornbill (Perrin and Mazalov, 2000) since there is minimal local mate competition. Although before the removal of chick 2 (M) the father did tend to feed the male chick less than the two females, the difference was not statistically significant. Although we found no statistically significant bias by the mother towards any chick, her allocation of feedings tended to correlate with the estimated hatching order. Since chick 3 (F) was the last to hatch and appeared to be the smallest, this correlation suggests that the mother may be employing a form of parental compensation. Parental compensation is a strategy in which a parent will allocate the most resources (feedings, for our study) to the youngest or smallest chick in order to reduce hierarchical competition between chicks. This type of care provisioning may also increase the overall survival of all members of the brood (Shizuka and Lyon, 2013). In order to increase the success of captive breeding, one must take into account the differences in parental care strategies employed by each parent, as has been exemplified in this study. In captivity, forced dispersals prove very problematic and may require the removal of certain individuals from the family unit. When these issues arise, it is important to understand the amount of care provided by each parent in order to ensure the health of all chicks in the brood. Although this research provide some insight into the parental provisioning of captive red-billed hornbills, further research is needed to determine if these findings can be generalized to other captive pairs. Acknowledgements We thank the Milwaukee County Zoo for allowing us to conduct research in their aviary. A special thanks to Alex Waier and Carol Kagy for their help and support throughout this project. Literature cited Davies, N.B., Krebs, J.R., and S.A. West. 2012. An Introduction to Behavioural Ecology. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell. Elston, J.J., Unger, K. and R. Dunn. 2010. Reproductive behavior of the saddle- billed stork, Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis and developmental behavior of its chicks. Avicultural Magazine 116:100-108. Fraser, G.S., Jones, I. L., and F.M. Hunter. 2002. Male-female differences in parental care in monogamous crested auklets. The Condor 104:413-423. Ligon, R.A. and G.E. Hill. 2010. Sex-biased parental investment is correlated with mate ornamentation in eastern bluebirds. Animal Behaviour 79:727-734. Liker, A. and T. Szekely. 2005. Mortality costs of sexual selection and parental care in natural populations of birds. Evolution 59:890-897. Llambas, P.E., and V. Ferretti. 2003. Parental care in the great kiskadee. The Wilson Bulletin 115:214-216. [Abstract] Markman, S., Yom-Tov, Y., and J. Wright. 1995. Male parental care in the orange-tufted sunbird: behavioural adjustments in provisioning and nest guarding effort. Animal Behaviour 50:655-669. Moreau, E. 1937. The comparative breeding biology of the African hornbills. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London A 107:331-346. Perrin, N. and V. Mazalov. 2000. Local competition, inbreeding, and the evolution of sex-biased dispersal. The American Naturalist 155:116-127. Shizuka, D. and B.E. Lyon. 2013. Family dynamics through time: brood reduction followed by parental compensation with aggression and favourtism. Ecology Letters 16:315-322. Saino, N., Incagli, M., Martinelli, R., Ambrosini, R., and A. Pape Moller. 2001. Immunity, growth and begging behavior of nestling Barn Swallows Hirundo rustica in relation to hatching order. Journal of Avian Bioiogy 32:263-270. Slagsvold, T. 1997. Brood division in birds in relation to offspring size: sibling rivalry and parental control. Animal Behaviour 54:1357-1368 Stanback, M., Richardson, D.S., Boix-Hinzen, C., and J. Mendelsohn. 2002. Genetic monogamy in Monteiro’s hornbill, Tockus monteiri. Animal Behaviour 63:787-793. Week Figure 1. Overall, the male provided more care each week than the female (ANOVA, p<0.05) and average feedings per session for both parents decreased significantly after weeks 1 and 2 (ANOVA, p<0.05). The male also provided care for a longer period of time than did the female. 1(F) 2(M) 3(F) Chick 1 (F) 3(F) Chick Figure 2. Neither parent had any bias towards any individual chick both before (a) or after (b) the removal of chick 2 (p,=0.23, p^=0.34 and p=0.68 and p^=0.52, respectively). 238 ANIMAL KEEPERS' FORUM American Association of Zoo Keepers, liio. This year, the AmeriGan Association of Zoo Keepers pubiished its first-ever annual report. We are happy to share this abbreviated version with ^ our members. Thank you for Jl^our continued support! Annual Report 2014 Thank You AAZK Chapters! Platinum Brookfield Zoo Chapter Brandywine Zoo Chapter Omaha Chapter $2,000 and Above Topeka Zoo Chapter Greater Orlando Chapter Cape May County Zoo Chapter Greater Cleveland Chapter Louisville Zoo Chapter Palm Beach Chapter Galveston Chapter Zoo New England Chapter Lion Country Safari Chapter Gold New Bedford Chapter Tampa Bay Chapter Committee Support - $250 $1,000 -$2,000 Greater Baltimore Chapter Naples Chapter Awards Lake Superior Chapter Georgia Chapter Mesker Park Zoo Chapter Little Rock Zoo Chapter Greater Kansas City AAZK Chapter Quad Cities Chapter Indianapolis Chapter Ozarks Chapter Heart of Illinois Chapter Conservation Detroit Chapter Jackson Zoo Keepers Association Scovill Zoo Chapter Los Angeles Zoo Chapter St. Louis Chapter North Carolina Chapter Central Illinois Chapter Fresno’s Chaffee Zoo Chapter Omaha Chapter Greater New Jersey Alliance Chapter Little Turtle Chapter Detroit Chapter Cape May County Zoo Chapter New York City Chapter Mesker Park Zoo Chapter North Carolina Chapter Galveston Chapter Rosamond Gifford Zoo Chapter Baton Rouge Chapter Greater New Jersey Alliance Chapter Puget Sound Chapter Seneca Park Zoo Chapter Chesapeake Chapter Seneca Park Zoo Chapter Point Defiance Chapter Columbus Chapter Battle Creek Chapter Portland Chapter Toronto Zoo Chapter Tulsa Zoo Chapter Minnesota Zoo Chapter Greater Philadelphia Chapter Portland Chapter North Carolina Piedmont Chapter Memphis Chapter Silver Pittsburgh Chapter Toledo Zoo Chapter Puget Sound Chapter $500 - $1000 Greater Philadelphia Chapter Greater Cincinnati Chapter Birmingham Zoo Chapter Riverbanks Chapter Oklahoma City Zoo Chapter Communication Phoenix Zoo Chapter Nashville Chapter Wildlife Safari Chapter Detroit Chapter San Diego Zoo Chapter Memphis Chapter Elmwood Park Zoo Chapter Utah Chapter Santa Barbara Chapter Dallas Zoo Chapter Roger Williams Park Zoo Chapter Milwaukee County Zoo Chapter Exotic Feline Breeding Greater Houston Chapter Greenville Zoo Chapter Conservation Chapter San Antonio Zoo Chapter Red River Chapter Professional Development Los Angeles Zoo Chapter Milwaukee County Zoo Chapter El Paso del Norte Chapter San Francisco Bay Area Chapter Fresno’s Chaffee Zoo Chapter Utah Chapter Detroit Chapter San Francisco Bay Area Chapter Bronze Roanoke Valley Chapter New York City Chapter Greater Sacramento Chapter Up to $500 Rainier Chapter Rocky Mountain Chapter Midnight Sun Chapter Assiniboine Park Zoo Chapter Behavioral Husbandry Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Chapter Wildlife World Zoo Chapter Santa Fe Teaching College Chapter Southern Colorado Chapter Tucson Chapter AKF Issue Underwriting - $1,000 Detroit Chapter National Capital Chapter California Desert Chapter Little Rock Zoo AAZK Chapter Battle Creek Chapter Jacksonville Chapter Orange County Chapter Rocky Mountain Chapter ($500) Jackson Zoo Keepers Association Santa Fe Teaching College Chapter Redwood Coast Chapter Indianapolis Chapter South Florida Chapter Beardsley Zoo Chapter St. Louis Chapter 20^ Bowling for Rhinos Total BFR Funds Raised by deadline December 15, 2014 The American Association of Zoo Keepers' (AAZK) Bowling for Rhinos (BFR) program was conceived as a local fundraiser and has grown tremendously over the past 25 years Into a recognized International conservation program. AAZK’s BFR has now raised over $5.4 million since 1990 with 2014 being the most successful year to date with over $581,000 raised by 80 AAZK Chapters, individual donations and online giving. AAZK’s BFR program is fully supported by AAZK, Its Chapters and membership, allowing 100% of all event profits and individual donations to go directly to in-situ species conservation. AAZK’s BFR Program has benefited greatly from American Zoo and Aquarium (AZA) and Zoological Association of America (ZAA) institutional support of their AAZK Chapter’s events, increased support from host facilities/ AZA will benefit both AZA and AAZK through increased event success. Championed by Anna Merz in the early 1980’s, the Craig family established a rhino sanctuary on their cattle ranch in northern Kenya at a time when the black rhino population was facing the brink of extinction. The Ngare Sergoi Rhino Sanctuary has evolved into the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy (LWC) and is now home to 15% of Kenya’s black rhino population, over 60 southern white rhino and the world’s largest population of Grevy’s zebra. Find more information at Lewa.org $578,532.33 Action for Cheetahs in Kenya $44,363.64 International Rhino Foundation $248,138.09 AAZK/BFR Conservation Resource Grant $10,879.70 Lewa Wildlife Conservancy $275,150.90 in 2009, AAZK’s BFR support expanded to include Action for Cheetahs in Kenya (ACK). This support added to the protection of not only cheetah but also rhino through education and conservation of shared habitat, creating a larger buffer zone of protection for critically endangered species. Visit actionforcheetahs.org. in the mid and late 1990’s, AAZK expanded funding efforts to include Ujung Kulon National Park in Java, Indonesia to help protect the Javan rhino, and National Parks in Sumatra, Indonesia to save Sumatran Rhinos, in partnership with the international Rhino Foundation (IRF). In Indonesia, the AAZK/IRF partnership now protects nearly 1.5 million acres of crucial lowland rainforest habitat for the survival of the Javan and Sumatran rhinos and other species living in their ecosystems including Sumatran tigers, elephants, tapirs, Javan gibbons and sun bears in one of the most biologically diverse places on the planet. Learn more at rhinos.org. Animal Keepers' Forum Each year, AAZK dedicates 2% of the funds raised through AAZK’s BFR to fund the AAZK/BFR Conservation Resources Grant which is awarded to an ex-situ or in-situ rhino conservation effort. Recent awards have been granted to support organizations such as RhiNOremedy that create, promote and distribute educational information to counter and eliminate the demand-side for rhino horn, elephant tusks and other illegal wildlife trade products. See rhinoremedy.org for more information. AAZK’s Bowling for Rhinos protects all five species of rhino and by association conserves habitat, protecting everything from orchids to sea turtles to elephants. AAZK, with our BFR partners, now protects over seven million acres of wildlife habitat in some of the most unique ecosystems in the world. AAZK’s BFR program has raised over $5.4 million with 100% event profit and individual donations going straight to conservation in the field where it is most needed to save wildlife for future generations. Readers of the Animal Keepers’ Forum have experienced an exciting evolution of the journal over the last few years. Many of you remember the AKF as a smaller 6” x 9” journal, printed with black and white text and photos. As early as 2007, we started experimenting with color covers on the 6” X 9” format, but exciting things were on the horizon, in July of 2013, we converted the journal into a four-color, 8.5” x 11” magazine with glossy paper. Our goal was simple: continue to provide you with the same educational and informative content that our readers have always enjoyed in the AKF, while presenting it in vibrant color, easy-to-read formats, eye-pleasing fonts, and . highlighted with high-resolution photos and graphics. Our hope 240 I 2014 Annual Repot was that a better product would be more attractive to advertisers, and ultimately, more people in the industry would be reading and sharing the AKF. In 2014, with a goal to improve our product, get it to the membership more efficiently, and keep printing and mailing costs as low as possible, we changed our printing and mail house companies. The journal is now printed by Watt Printers in Cleveland, Ohio and mailed from Weekley Mailing Service in Berea, Ohio. Our goal is to keep costs low while still giving you a great product, while in turn, keeping your membership rates as low as possible. The new format of the journal has proven to be very popular with American Association of Zoo Keepei Til aril/’ Voilf Contributors to the Preservation ^ ^****®^ lUU. of all Species in Asia and Africa Sondaicus $50,000 and Up Los Angeles AAZK Chapter Sumatrensis $20,000 to $49,999 Columbus Zoo Chapter of AAZK* Oklahoma City Chapter of AAZK Portland AAZK Chapter Utah Chapter of AAZK Zarraffa’s Coffee of Australia Unicornis $5,000 - $19,999 Blue Rhino/Ferrell Gas Brookfield Zoo AAZK Chapter Buffalo Zoo Dallas Chapter of AAZK Detroit Chapter of AAZK Greater Cleveland AAZK Chapter Greater Houston AAZK Chapter Greater New Jersey Alliance Chapter of AAZK Greater Philadelphia AAZK Chapter Indianapolis Chapter of AAZK Jacksonville AAZK Chapter Kansas City AAZK Chapter Lincoln Park Zoo AAZK Chapter Mesker Park Zoo AAZK Chapter Nashville Zoo AAZK Chapter National Capital Chapter of AAZK New York City Chapter of AAZK North Carolina AAZK Chapter Ozarks Chapter of AAZK Phoenix AAZK Chapter Pittsburgh AAZK Chapter Puget Sound AAZK Chapter Riverbanks AAZK Chapter Rocky Mountain AAZK Chapter Roger Williams Park Zoo AAZK Chapter St. Louis Chapter of AAZK San Antonio AAZK Chapter South Florida AAZK Chapter Tampa Bay AAZK Chapter Tulsa AAZK Chapter Tucson Chapter of AAZK Toronto Zoo AAZK Chapter Zoo Boise* Bicornis $1000 -$4999 Akron Chapter of AAZK Bay Area AAZK Chapter Battle Creek AAZK Chapter Birmingham AAZK Chapter Brandywine AAZK Chapter Cape May County AAZK Chapter Cheyenne Mountain Chapter of AAZK Elmwood Park Zoo Chapter of AAZK Fresno AAZK Chapter Garden City Chapter of AAZK Greater Baltimore AAZK Chapter Greater Sacramento Chapter of AAZK Heart of Illinois Chapter of AAZK Jackson Zoo Keepers Association Lion Country Safari AAZK Chapter Little Rock Chapter of AAZK Little Turtle AAZK Chapter Memphis Chapter of AAZK Milwaukee Zoo AAZK Chapter Naples AAZK Chapter New Orleans Chapter of AAZK Omaha Chapter of AAZK Point Defiance AAZK Chapter Potter Park Zoo AAZK Chapter Quad Cities Chapter of AAZK Redwood Coast AAZK Chapter Rosamond Gifford Chapter of AAZK Santa Fe Teaching Zoo AAZK Chapter Sedgwick County Zoo Seneca Park AAZK Chapter Zoo New England Chapter Simum Beardsley Zoo Chapter of AAZK Assiniboine Park Zoo AAZK Chapter Baton Rouge AAZK Chapter Laura Ann Benson Heather Borek Zoralys Calle Susan Clark Cynthia Connor Jennifer Diehl Cynthia Dout El Paso del Norte Chapter of AAZK Martin Flagg Galveston Zoo AAZK Chapter Chandra Genitempo Paul Glessner Roger and Barbara Gravlin Greater Cincinnati AAZK Chapter Jill Hancock TB Harrison Andrew Hatch Ian Hogg Brenda Hunt Whitney Jones Nicole Kiley Joan Klein Karin Konoval Diane Kozuh Laura Kozuh Paula Lamb Brendan Mallee Michael Mallee Sandy Manuel JA Maracle Karl Marsack Martin's Flag Shop Denise McClelland/ Tortoise Trot for Rhinos Midnight Sun Chapter of AAZK Kathleen Miller Stanley Miller Toshio Miyashita Tim Moore Kathy Mulvaney North Carolina at Piedmont AAZK Chapter BM O’Conner HB Pearthree Ellie Purcelli Jamie Reis Matt Rhody Kathleen Rich Natasha Rodney Jenna Rosenbury Rebecca Rutkowski George Schellenger Scovill Zoo Chapter of AAZK Joeseph Sitrick Dale and Katesby Suter Sally Takamine Tracy Thompson Toledo AAZK Chapter Ruby Wiggins Judith Zachs Joanne Zammit *lncludes 2013 Event (Late) advertisers, Commercial Members, and sponsors. Revenue generated from the journal has significantly increased every year since it was reformatted in 2013. We created premium placement packages in 2013 and those were so popular that they have sold out for the last three years. The most important thing about the AKF is still its educational content and information-sharing component. The members of AAZK continue to provide the Journal with top-quality articles that highlight best practice and innovation in animal husbandry, and the latest developments in conservation. In the past year we created some popular dedicated issues: (Reptiles and Amphibians) (Gorillas) (Bowling for Rhinos). We are already working with the Prosimian TAG to feature our next dedicated issue on Prosimians later in 2015. Our AKF team invites you to submit an article, update, or photo for the AKF. \ i » Shane Good, Editor | » Elizabeth Thibodeaux, Graphic Designer ; » Enrichment Options Column Coordinators: Julie Hartell-DeNardo, Casey Plummer, Ric Kotarsky » Training Tales Column Coordinators: Kim Kezer, Jay Pratte, Beth Stark-Posta » Conservation Station Column Coordinators: Amanda ista, Mary Ann Cisneros 2014 Annual Repoi 241 Education Professional development continues to move in a forward direction through its revised conference structure and distance learning formats. With over 20 workshops available at each conference, attendees are able to attend morning paper presentations on advances in animal care, as well as select workshops in the afternoon. Afternoon workshops now feature 12-hour certification workshops, focusing on specific, basic and advanced skills. The 2015 AAZK conference's (located in St. Louis) 12-hour certification workshops will concentrate on elephant care and husbandry, ungulate care, and advanced zoo keeping skills. While the elephant and ungulate workshops will concentrate on husbandry and training skills, the advanced zoo keeping certification track will emphasize leadership, decision-making, advanced behavior husbandry, advanced animal health, and communication and problem solving. These 12-hour workshops will be taught by industry leaders, subject matter experts with an emphasis on both instruction, hands-on learning, and skills assessment through our distance learning format. Supplementing the conference iearningformat, AAZK has expanded its animal care education by providing online, distance learning opportunities. AAZK has entered the 21®* century of collaborative learning and communication through distance learning and expanded communication and networking. Using our own branded version of San Diego Zoo Global Academy, AAZK Online provides users with opportunities to learn from subject matter experts at their own pace. Changes to our education components represents a huge paradigm shift for AAZK by not only enhancing our conference learning experience, but also by expanding our learning opportunities through distance learning and collaborative networking. Striving to fulfill our mission of advancing excellence in animal care, AAZK Online will be made available to all AAZK Professional members as a membership benefit. Finances AAZK Online $3,000.00 AKF Mailing $17,868.94 AKF Printing $50,129.92 Banking Fees $233.00 Board Travel/Lodging $3,494.91 CEO Expenses/Travel/Lodging $3,003.89 Committee $7,684.43 Donation $69.00 Insurance $1,030.00 Office Supplies $2,259.06 Office Rent $6,267.30 Payroll $77,601.03 Payroll Taxes $29,761.77 Postage and Delivery $3,487.18 Product Purchase $5,095.40 Professional and Legal Fees $4,276.58 Professional Membership (AZA) $475.00 Refund $49.70 Staff Expenses/Travel/Lodging $1,635.10 Tax and Licenses $935.00 Utilities $2,362.53 Web Management $1,800.50 Total Expenses $222,520.24 AKF Advertising $24,981.41 AKF Sponsorship $1,250.00 BFR Registration Fee $960.00 Business Refund $3,101.54 Conference $37,897.00 Donation $20.00 Membership $116,375.00 Miscellaneous $174.57 Product Sales $10,462.88 Recharter Fee and Duty Obligation $59,948.00 Total Income $255,170.40 Category January 1, 2015 Affiliate 547 Commercial 22 Conservation Partner 21 Contributing 11 Exchange 17 institutional 112 International 27 Library 16 Lifetime 17 Professional 1534 Student 195 Total 2519 Each month we will choose up to 4 photo contest en- tries. If all 4 of the photos are yours, you will receive 100% off of your order up to $5,000! See our website for full details. ¥ MLATME.K TML OTTE.K DAVID H. KOCHD5TDK, NY Your photo could be here! Hollow logs? IMaturallyf There^ just no substitute. Visit us at www.hollowlog.com to see our variety of products and custom options Polar Bears (Ursus maritimus): Connections between activity levels, temperature and day length Kim Sanders, Keeper I Kansas City Zoo Kansas City, Missouri J Abstract: Although polar bears {Ursus maritimus) are naturally found in the circumpolar arctic, they are popular animals at zoos around the world. Ensuringtheir welfare helps capture the attention of millions of zoo visitors and inspire them to care about the conservation of animals in the wild. Currently, there is little information about how temperature and lighting affects zoo-housed polar bears. This study seeks to find if there are certain optimal conditions that these bears should be housed in to enhance their health and behavior. The activity levels of 10 zoo-housed bears at four different facilities were assessed in comparison to temperature and hours of daylight for a four-month period from August-November 2014. The results support the trend that polar bears are more active at the highest and lowest temperatures, as well as on the days with the longest amount of daylight. Although zoos should take this into account to encourage bears to be more active for their visitors, every effort should be made to allow bears to behave as seasonally appropriate. Introduction: Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are one of the world’s largest carnivores and are found around the circumpolar arctic. These bears hunt, breed and den on their annual sea ice habitat (Stirling and Derocher, 2012). They eat ringed and bearded seals, as long as the environment provides ice for hunting. Polar bears’ seasonal and spatial distribution depends on availability of ringed seals (Born et al., 1997). Seasonally, the bears fast for up to four months when the platform of sea ice is unavailable to hunt from (Stirlingand Derocher, 2012). Scientists call this seasonal behavior a form of “walking hibernation” (Robbins et al., 2012). Female bears also rely on the snow and ice season for denning. An observational study of wild female polar bears show that they enter their dens between October and ■ i November then emerge between March and April (Born et al., 1997). Naturally solitary animals, polar bears are only found together during breeding season and while the mother raises her cubs. These examples begin to show how polar bear behavior must adapt to the upcoming and current seasonal conditions. There are 20,000-25,000 wild polar bears left in the world. Polar bears are classified as threatened by the United States’ Endangered Species Act. Hunting during the 1960’s and 1970’s drastically reduced populations until international protections and regulations were placed on the species. Today, climate change is the greatest threat to polar bears. Researchers have shown an increase of 0.5 Degrees Celsius per decade in Churchill, Manitoba. This means the sea ice in 2006 warmed up and broke apart three weeks earlier than it did in 1976 (Stirlingand Derocher, 2012). The accelerating loss of the sea ice directly impacts the polar bear’s survival. Without the ice, the polar bears are running out of space for their most important activities, such as hunting, breeding, and sleeping. Polar bears are also one of the most popular attractions in modern zoos. The polar bear is considered one of the most “charismatic megafauna” found in zoos today (Renner and Kelly, 2006). These are animals that members of the public seem to quickly and easily care about. Zoo visitors can experience seeing a polar bear close up and are often inspired to care about the conservation of their natural habitats (Renner and Kelly, 2006). Quality zoos provide bears with well-designed exhibits that mimic their natural environment as much as possible. Zoo-housed bears are also provided a variety of enrichment and training opportunities to encourage naturalistic behaviors, such as toys, sensory stimulation, novel foods and social interactions. Providing the best welfare and care possible for the bears makes them better ambassadors for their wild counterparts, who are in grave need of help. Complete knowledge of polar bear habitat, as well as their behavior interacting with their environment, is useful for managing them in zoos and designingfuture enclosures (Renner and Kelly, 2006). Summer temperatures in Churchill, Manitoba, are usually about 64 degrees Fahrenheit, but have reached up to 80 degrees Fahrenheit (AZA Bear TAG, 2009). The Polar Bear Protection Act (PBPA, 2002) requires zoos and aquariums housing these bears to supply shade throughout the day. The Bear Taxon Advisory Group recommends other features, such as hills, trees, chilled water, ice piles, air conditioned spaces, and misters or fans (AZA Bear TAG, 2009). ‘ ■ ciatiop r * -'i ■ This study investigates how the activity level of polar bears increases or decreases along with both changes in temperature and hours of daylight. The need to study the effect of different climatic conditions on polar bears was driven by the lack of knowledge “if there is an optimal temperature range for polar bears or if and how they utilize environmental resources to thermoregulate within this wide range of environmental conditions” (AZA Bear TAG, 2009). There is also “no information... known about effects that daily changes in light intensity of seasonal changes in tight intensity and duration have on polar bear health or behavior” (AZA Bear TAG, 2009). The AZA Bear TAG (2009) requests “more research. ..to determine if there is a relationship between changing light levels and behavioral or physiological changes in the bears" and “to determine if there is an optimal temperature and humidity range for zoo and aquarium environments [as well as] on the type of resources polar bears need in orderto regulate their temperatures within a wide range of ambient environmental conditions”. As wild polar bears’ behavior varies seasonally, it would likely mean they are getting some cue from either the natural temperature or light changes that happen with changing seasons. Zoos, then, should do their best to provide these natural signals to their polar bears to encourage natural, healthy, behavior. It was predicted that the activity levels of the polar bears would decrease in both higher temperatures, above 80, and lower temperatures, below 40. They are expected to be most active in moderate temperatures. This is expected because it would conserve valuable energy reserves in extremely cold weather, while keeping the bears cool in extremely hot weather. Many wild animals actto save energy as efficiently as possible. It was also predicted that polar bear activity would decrease as hours of daylight decreased, as bears slowed down for the upcoming season. Name Gender Age Location Berlin F 24 Kansas City Nikita M 7 Kansas City Haley F 11 Memphis Payton M 10 Memphis Suka F 2 Minneapolis Sakari M 2 Minneapolis Neil M 18 Minneapolis Buzz M 18 Minneapolis Berit F 15 Cincinnati Little One M 24 Cincinnati Table 1. The captive polar bear subjects whose behavior was observed. The results of this study will help determine how seasonal changes, such as temperature and day length, change polar bear behaviors. This allows zoos to better provide appropriate conditions for their polar bears. Methods Subjects The activity levels of 10 zoo-housed polar bears from four different facilities were assessed for the purposes of this study. This included six males and four females, ranging from ages 2-24 years-old (see Table 1). These facilities are accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and are located in: Cincinnati, Ohio; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Memphis, Tennessee: and Kansas City, Missouri. All bears were housed in similar indoor/outdoor enclosures, received daily, varied enrichment and take part in training programs. The zoo keepers and zoo managers at these facilities volunteered to participate in collecting data for the study. Study Period The study took place from August to November 2014. Each facility reviewed the research request for different periods of time and began collecting data immediately after approval, in order to maximize data collected. Therefore, each facility collected between 49 and 87 days of observations. Data Sheet An original data sheet was created (See below). The primary goals of the data sheet were to collect the required data in as simple and standardized terms as possible. A 1-4 scale of activity was created, with 1 meaning asleep, 2 meaning aware but inactive, 3 meaning mildly active (such as a slow walk or floating in the pool) and 4 meaning extremely active (such as running or swimming). The information requested for each bear was its activity level, location, and the outdoor temperature. There was also a column in the end of each day for zoo keepers to write any comments they thought relevant. The researcher also independently recorded the time of sunset and sunrise for each location and used this information to calculate hours of daylight for each day, for each location. This information was retrieved online from the Astronomical Applications Department of the U.S. Naval Observatory at http://aa.usno.navy. mil/index.php. Behavioral Observations Every day for the study period, two multi- point scans were taken daily. This method of "behavioral scoring” was based on a technique advocated by Margulis et al. (2005) and used by Canino and Powell (2010). In this “behavioral scoring” technique, keepers collect quick behavioral observations of their animals Polar Bear Temperature-Behavior Study Data Sheet Kim Sanders-Kansas City Zoo kimsanders3@gmaii.com Behavior Code Key: 1: Sleeping (inactive and unaware) 2: Aware but inactive (awake, but not moving) 3: Mildly active (calm and slow behaviors) 4: Extremely active (moving excitedly and energetically) Date PB Name Time Temp (F) (outdoors) Behavior Code Location (in/out & water/land) Comments (not necessary) A.M. P.M. A.M. P.M. A.M. P.M. A.M. P.M. A.M. P.M. A.M. P.M. AAZK.ORG August 2015 I Vol. 42, No. 8 | 245 Polar Bears' Average Temperature for Each Activity Level 19 18 a> 17 2 16