SNN (ScrollingNetworkNews) ✿ ✿ Our Mel and Sydney returned to their nesting box with plenty of bonding occurring..but after 2.5 months of Sydney in the box from Dec 2013 to mid Feb 2014, the lack of prey gifts from Mel ( perhaps due to the severe and historic drought underway in California)and they have forgone the nesting process this year as many other raptors ✿ Compared to other owls of similar size, the Barn Owl has a much higher metabolic rate, requiring relatively more food. Pound for pound, Barn Owls consume more rodents – often regarded as pests by humans – than possibly any other creature. ✿ We remind viewers that sometimes owlets may not survive - the parents will dispose of things in "The Owl Way" -viewer discretion is advised, this is nature and the "Owl way". ✿ ~ ✿ “Animals, like us, are living souls. They are not things. They are not objects. Neither are they human. Yet they mourn. They love. They dance. They suffer. They know the peaks and chasms of being.” ― Gary Kowalski, The Souls of Animals ✿ Each species is a masterpiece, a creation assembled with extreme care and genius." ~ E.O. Wilson

Friday, October 5, 2012

Baby boy panda - Exam 7

Baby Panda Boy is now 67 day old, his length from head to rump is 16 inches & 6.6lbs. The cub is able to see and hear more of the world surrounding him, and during today’s exam, veterinary staff confirmed that his eyes and ears are fully open



Trips out of the den are Bai Yun’s way of exposing the cub to new experiences, sights, and sounds. Most of the time she keeps him cradled in her arms, but on occasion she sets him down and encourages him to crawl. This is easier to do on a solid surface as opposed to a high nest of bamboo. On one particular day she was especially helpful, laying him on the scale in her bedroom so we could get a weight!

 Responses from the Moderator teams-

Panda Team responds: The light you think you see in the den is actually an infrared illuminator that allows us to see in the dark. It’s really black as pitch in that den right now, and even during daylight hours the den is very dimly lit.

 The Panda Cam will continue to show mother and cub as he grows. Den cam will be replaced with garden room cam.

 Voting on the names will begin later this month. I believe about 7,500 name suggestions were submitted, so we are still narrowing them down!

 I look forward to the days, weeks, and months to come when he will get a name, learn to crawl, and eventually follow Mom out into the bigger exhibits.