You don’t have to go all the way to Australia to see a koala. Two koalas, Sooky and Kobi, have been at the Phoenix Zoo since October, and will be here through March 31, 2011. Two-year-old Sooky and her four-year-old brother Kobi are on loan from the San Diego Zoo and can be found on the Nina Mason Pulliam Children’s Trail. This means you only have two and a half months to come see these cuddly animals! 

Photo by Steve Roberson

Contrary to popular belief, koalas are not bears. People often refer to them as bears because of their stout body, round tufted ears and dark nose, however they are actually part of the marsupial family, which includes the kangaroo, wallaby and opossum. Marsupials are distinguished from other mammals by a pouch that aids in the rearing of their offspring.

If you are wondering why it seems like Sooky and Kobi sleep so much, that’s because koala’s sleep 18-22 hours per day. These long hours are spent on hard tree limbs. They are able to do this because their bums are equipped with a small nub of thick, fur-covered gristle called a vestigial tail, like a built-in seat cushion.

The best time to see our furry friends active in their home is in the morning when they are eating their breakfast, or in the afternoon when the keepers weigh them in front of the windows of their exhibit. 

Koalas eat eucalyptus leaves, and only eucalyptus leaves. Even though there a hundreds of varieties of eucalyptus, koalas choose to eat only a few species. Koalas do not normally drink water directly; instead, they get their water from eating eucalyptus.

So if you haven’t seen Sooky and Kobi at the Phoenix Zoo, make sure to come visit our friends from down under before they leave on March 31, 2011!

Hadiah, one of the Sumatran tigers at the Phoenix Zoo, correctly predicted the winner of the 2010 Insight Bowl. On Dec. 27, Hadiah predicted that the Iowa Hawkeyes would defeat the Missouri Tigers and the next day, the Hawkeyes defeated the Tigers 27 to 24 in Tempe, at Sun Devil Staduim.

This Friday, Jan. 7, at 1:30 p.m., Hadiah will attempt to correctly predict the outcome of the BCS National Championship game between the Auburn Tigers and the Oregon Ducks.

Come to the Phoenix Zoo and check out some of our beautiful animals. Temperatures were unusually high this past week, but this weekend has brought cool weather back to the Zoo. All the animals are loving the cool down and they are extremely active.

Here’s a sneak peek into how some animals are enjoying this weekend’s weather.

So come to the Phoenix Zoo this weekend and check out the many other animals and see how they are taking advantage of this great weather!

Have you ever pet a stingray before? Well, if you haven’t, come out the Phoenix Zoo’s Stingray Bay and you’ll get the unique chance to pet and even feed a stingray.

If you’ve been to Stingray Bay in the past and you were sad to see it leave for the summer, there is some good news: Stingray Bay is back to stay! This means guests will have the opportunity to interact with these beautiful creatures year round.

If you don’t mind getting your hands a little “fishy,” be sure to take advantage of our daily feedings. For just a couple of dollars, guests can buy some fish and shrimp to feed our school of stingrays.

The 35 stingrays found in Stingray Bay are all cownose rays. Cownose rays are found in the western Atlantic from New England all the way south to the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean and Brazil. They get their name from their unique forehead that resembles a cow’s nose. Stingrays are closely related to sharks and they are sometimes mistaken for sharks because of the way they swim. If you look into Stingray Bay and you think you see a shark fin, it is probably just the fin of one of the rays breaking the surface of the water while they swim.

 And, don’t worry about the cownose rays stinging anyone! They have had their barbs painlessly trimmed – like a long fingernail.

So don’t waste any more time. Get out to the Phoenix Zoo visit Stingray Bay and become a member of our school!

For more information about Stingray Bay, click here.

Now that ZooLights is in full swing and the temperatures are cooling down, it is a perfect time to come out and visit the Phoenix Zoo. People aren’t the only creatures taking advantage of the great weather, the tigers, giraffes and lions are just some of the many animals that are enjoying this winter cool down and are extremely active right now.

Hadiah, one of the Sumatran tigers, loves to explore her habitat now that the heat has subsided. Take a look up in the tree next time you visit her and see if you can spot her relaxing. If she isn’t in the tree, look into the bottom of her habitat and you might find her looking back up at you. She might even give you a roar!

Photo by Rick Pascale

Right across from the tiger exhibit is our Giraffe Encounter. This experience gets you up close and personal with these gentle giants. For a couple of bucks, you are able to feed them and you will have a memory to last a lifetime. Like Hadiah, the giraffes are enjoying the brisk cool down and are much more active. At times, when they get running, they look almost as if they are dancing.

Our pair of lions enjoy this time of year as well, but they can still often be spotted sunning themselves in the main area of their exhibit. They are a brother and sister –a male named Sheik and a female named Cookie. They are both 12 years old and love hanging out together.

Photo by Rick Pascale

With the cooler temperatures in full effect, you may be wondering where our Zoo favorites Duchess and her family are? This family of Bornean orangutans does not take too kindly to the cooler temperatures. Orangutans are from the jungles of Borneo, and we do not let out this family unless it is 60 degrees or warmer! They are not used to the cold and prefer to stay indoors, relaxing in their night house until the temperatures warm up a bit. But, if you do catch them on a warmer day, they are always fun to see! People cannot seem to help stopping for long periods of time to check them out. Duchess, the oldest Bornean orangutan in North America, is still extremely active for a fifty year old. Kasih, our youngest orangutan, is probably one of the most active animals in the entire zoo, not to mention she’s very cute. She loves to play with her family and she never runs out of things to do. There is never a dull moment with Kasih. You might find her hanging upside down, climbing on her family or lounging in the large net. The whole family is anxiously awaiting the move to their new home. It will provide them with more space to have fun and it will provide guests with an even closer look into their daily lives.

If you want to get some exercise while you are at the Zoo, now is the perfect time to come try out our brand new pedal boats. These boats have plenty of space for four and provide shade while you are cruising on the lake. While you are getting some exercise, don’t forget to check out the Siamangs on the island. They love to climb and swing around all day. And if you get to the Zoo early enough you might hear them calling out to each other.

Now is a great time to take advantage of the great weather, and come out to visit the Phoenix Zoo and all the animals.

Your Phoenix Zoo is front page news today!

The Arizona Republic featured an article highlighting our 47 years of historic conservation efforts with the Arabian Oryx! The article is also available online:

http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2010/11/15/20101115oryx-phoenix-zoo-jordan.html

Front Page of the 11/15/2010 Arizona Republic image from newseum.org

By: Paige McNickle

The Hoof stock trail had been waiting for our littlest charge, Gidget the Kirk’s dik dik to deliver her first offspring for a couple of months.  We always worry a little more when it’s a first time mom.  Will she know what to do? Will the delivery go okay? Will Gidget be a good mother? …continue reading Caring For A Brand New Baby (weighing in just under 2 pounds)

PHOENIX- After 3 long months, zookeeper Denise Wagner reunites with the next closest thing to family, the four Bornean orangutans at the Phoenix Zoo.

…continue reading The Love of a Zookeeper – The bond between animal and human

Wow, what a morning. Today I had the privilege of witnessing a very colorful way to view our animals, LITERALLY! Go IR, Thermal Imaging Company was kind enough to drive all the way from Tucson on their weekend off, and donate their time to take some amazing pictures of our animals using thermal imaging.

Before I go any further I just want to point out that I am not a vet or a keeper, just a public relations guru, and so I apologize if my explanation is not as scientific as you might find from someone who has more insight, but thought you may find it interesting to read from my perspective! …continue reading Amazing pictures of our animals using thermal imaging.

Behavioral Enrichment: by Devorah Young

A MasterCard Story – Our Chacoan Peccaries/Tagua are somewhat older and not very active. So we have been working with the Tagua on shift training, manipulation of toys, and overall socialization with people since they are a bit standoffish. What we realized with the temperatures raising is that sometimes the simplest enrichment is the most effective. We started giving the Tagua wallows about 2-3 weeks ago when the temps started climbing past 90 degrees. To our amazement, they all started using the wallows. They even used the wallows while we were around (a rare behavior indeed) and more importantly, their energy levels increased. What seemed a simple idea became one of the best enriching items we’ve given them. Cost of shovel: $20.00; Cost of labor: a lil’ sweat and tears to dig the wallows; watching our aging Tagua act young again: Priceless.