Smithsonian National Zoo Smithsonian National Zoo News 2022

Well it was never posted here so I'm guessing this is going to be as official as it gets unless something related to the maned wolves gets announced.

 

Because it happened last November and was posted in the 2021 news thread.

 

Still nothing on the Birdhouse?

 

Sometime in 2023 is the tentative timeline for the Bird House's reopening. Because this is a historic building, it does take a significant amount of time to replace aging infrastructure and restore elements that are necessary to restore.

 

On July 25th, the zoo announced that a (0.1) Hereford cow named Rose has passed away due to a decline in health. She was 19 years old.

Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute
Hereford Dies at Smithsonian’s National Zoo

Also should be of note: if anyone uses the Smithsonian email to receive updates about events and news at the zoo, the company they use (Wordfly) suffered a ransomware attack on July 10th and your data might be at risk, though they have said it's been deleted.

Smithsonian Statement: WordFly Data Security Incident

 

A conversation with a keeper from my visit yesterday confirmed the death of the zoo’s Philippine Crocodile back in this spring.

 

On July 26th, the zoo announced that its laboratories at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology have successfully grown the first tropical sea urchin using cryopreserved embryos. The urchin is a collector urchin (Tripneustes gratilla) and has been given the name Spike.

Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute
Tropical Sea Urchin Is Grown in Lab for First Time

 

Really? It is still listed on the zoos website and I saw her back in April

 

Keepers and vets are always accurate when you get information from them but not when others do?

 

They may just be behind on updating the website, that happens plenty. The employee works in the reptile department and is an employee who works with the animals, not just a volunteer or front-office person, so would know best. There's also two more months to spring after April, so that's plenty of time for the death to still have occurred in spring.

 

Garrett, the zoos 12 year old male lesser kudu, has died. The kudu are currently off exhibit as one of them is recovering from an injury(idk which one) and Machi is permanently separated from the group being a growing male. Even though the kudu are listed off exhibit, Machi is sometimes still on exhibit alone with the hornbills. Machi and Garrett used to live together and I saw them both back in April. I hope the plan would be to move Machi to another institution if he is permanently separated(since kudu are social animals.)

 

On August 3rd, the zoo announced that a (0.0.1) golden-headed lion tamarin was born on July 15th.

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There's now a pygmy marmoset (apparently named "Chorizo") on exhibit in the SMH, per photos posted on FB by a couple people.

 

The zoo has a new cheetah named Carmelita (or "Lita", according to the website) and the brother duo Donnie and Copley are gone, no clue where they were sent.

It appears that Chorizo is the only pygmy marmoset they have, as they were the only one I saw and there was a stuffed animal in their exhibit with them.

On my last visit in July, the second tree shrew exhibit located near the cloud rat was converted into an exhibit for degus, with the degus old exhibit across from the goeldi's monkeys being empty. Today the old degu exhibit (by the goeldi's) is now signed for northern tree shrews and the degus were gone, with all three exhibits by the cloud rat (including hers, obviously) having the nocturnal lighting setup, though the cloud rat appeared to only have access to one.

The red ruffed lemur, and the golden lion tamarin/sloth/green aracari exhibits were both empty and had paper covering most of the window. All the animals except the green aracari were signed at the exhibits outside in the back. The golden lion tamarins were back there back in July, but the others weren't. I don't know anything and there wasn't anybody to ask, but I'd guess they're doing some kind of work in those exhibits, otherwise why cover the windows in paper and not just put "nobody home" signs in the exhibits? Somewhat interestingly the sloths were signed in the same exhibit as the red ruffed lemurs (which is the old black howler exhibit) and not with the tamarins, though I didn't see any sloths.

Two new goats named Wilma & Betty are on exhibit at the Kids Farm in the old hog barn.

There are once again red-bellied piranhas exhibited in Amazonia.

Two new exhibits were installed in the reptile house, no clue if the animals signed will be the animals put in them, or those are just leftover from the old exhibits.

 

Donnie and Copley should have gone down the road to Baltimore, with Bud & Davis going to St Louis.

 

Bud and Davis are still at Baltimore

 

They should be leaving, per breeding recommendation.

 

On August 31st, the zoo announced that (0.2) blue-billed curassows named Aluna and Lulo were hatched on August 5th and Augie 28th, respectively.

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Two Critically Endangered Blue-Billed Curassows Hatch at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

 

A sea lion pup was born at the Zoo but has recently been moved to Shedd aquarium with the zoo’s male Charger. The pup is 3 months old.

Shedd Aquarium on Instagram: "Animal arrival announcement! . We are excited to introduce two new California sea lions! Meet 3-year-old Charger, and his 3-month-old pup, who is yet to be named. The newest Shedd residents came to us from @SmithsonianZoo and are now behind the scenes of Shedd's Grainger Sea Lion Cove getting more familiar with their new home and animal care team. Join us in welcoming them! . Stay tuned for more updates and (#pupdates)."

 

That plan must have been altered. I heard the two cheetahs in Baltimore are staying there and the DC pair went to a zoo facility in Kansas (I wasn't told which one).