|  Toledo
Zoo Welcomes Camels 7/8/2008
It
may not be Wednesday, but with the arrival of two dromedary camels
at The Toledo Zoo, every day can be Hump Day! The Toledo Zoo welcomes
male camels Hank and Deke and invites visitors to come visit them
in the African Savanna. The camels will be on exhibit through Labor
Day.
Native
to northern Africa and parts of western Asia, the dromedary camel
was domesticated thousands of years ago. They are known for their
single hump, which contrary to folklore, is not used to store water.
Camels can go for long periods without water, though, and can drink
as much as thirty gallons at a time. The two-humped camels are called
Bactrian camels.
Dromedary
camels are covered with short brown fur, with heavier fur along
the back, neck, crown of the head and tip of the tail. This longer
fur helps protect them from the hot sun that typifies their native
desert climate. Adult camels can weigh from 1,000 to 1,450 pounds
and grow to heights of six to eight feet.
Zoo's
Tuataras Have New Home in Reptile House 6/26/2008
Imagine
seeing a real live dinosaur at The Toledo Zoo! You can’t,
of course, but the reptile known as the tuatara was around when
dinosaurs roamed the earth. Tuataras have been called “living
fossils” because of the insights they provide scientists into
the lives of its prehistoric ancestors. With all that history, it
makes sense that The Toledo Zoo’s tuataras will now be housed
in the historic Reptile House. The exhibit will be open to the public
on Friday, June 27.
In
the new exhibit, located toward the rear of the Reptile House, the
Zoo’s three tuataras can often be found in the small den-like
enclosures along the front window. Tuataras thrive in cooler temperatures
(inside the exhibit the temperature is 50º-68º F) and
can live to be more than 100 years of age, making many living tuataras
older than even our historic Reptile house, which was dedicated
in 1934!
Scientists
believe that tuataras have remained virtually unchanged for over
140 million years. Currently, though, they are classified as an
endangered species in New Zealand due to habitat loss and the introduction
of invasive species. Tuataras at The Toledo Zoo are part of a cooperative
research and conservation effort in conjunction with the Dallas
Zoo, the Wellington Zoo of New Zealand and the government of New
Zealand.
The
tuataras had been housed in the Zoo’s Diversity of Life exhibit,
located next to the Museum of Science, since 1994. That exhibit
was closed earlier this year to make room for Nature’s Neighborhood,
the new children’s zoo scheduled to open in June 2009.
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