Fozblog

Three elephants celebrate milestone birthdays in 2009

Three of Dickerson Park Zoo’s elephants will celebrate milestone birthdays during Zoobilee on Saturday, May 30. Ol’ C.C., the zoo’s oldest elephant, is estimated to be 60 years old this year. The herd matriarch, Pinky, turns 45; and Patience will be 35 years old. Dickerson Park Zoo’s elephant herd comprises four adult cows (female) and one adult bull (male).

C.C. was wild-born in the Assam region of India in approximately 1949 and came to Dickerson Park Zoo from the Dusit Zoological Park in Bangkok, Thailand, in May 1954. Although she has never given birth to a calf of her own, she has many years of experience as an “auntie” to calves both here and at other zoos. She spent many years in the role of herd matriarch but recently “retired” from that position.

Pinky was wild-born in approximately 1964. She came to Dickerson Park Zoo on November 25, 1981, from the Abilene Zoological Gardens in Abilene, Texas. Pinky fulfills the role of herd matriarch. She gave birth to a stillborn calf in 1985, Kate in 1991 and Asha in 1995. Asha lives with her half-sister Chandra at the Oklahoma City Zoo (currently on breeding loan to Tulsa Zoo).

Patience was born in Thailand in 1974. She arrived at Dickerson Park Zoo from Brookfield Zoo in Chicago in October 1990. Patience gave birth to Kala in 1998 and Haji in 2000.

Setting the record straight on exhibit closures

If you read the article in the Springfield News-Leader or a post from a local blogger this past week about looming budget cuts affecting the Springfield-Greene County Park Board – and more specifically, Dickerson Park Zoo – you might be wondering what you will (or won’t) see on your next zoo visit.

First, be assured, contrary to the information published in the News-Leader’s article, there are not six closed exhibits. Have we reduced numbers of animals among certain species? Yes. Probably the animals getting the most attention were a pair of striped hyenas that had never been on public exhibit and were simply animals living at the zoo in a behind-the-scenes area. To trim expenses and streamline the zookeepers’ workload, those hyenas were relocated to ZooBoise.

We moved out a group of brown lemurs to another zoo. These animals were rarely visible to the visiting public. Another group of ruffed lemurs now inhabit that island exhibit.

In reality, when you visit Dickerson Park Zoo, you will only see one entirely vacant exhibit, not six reported by News-Leader.

The antelope in the large African Plains yard adjacent to the cheetahs were also moved. This was precipitated by two factors, one of which was a cost savings. However, more importantly, these animals needed to move so that work can begin in the exhibit yard to establish rain gardens and other water run-off improvements.

Most of the reductions at the zoo happened behind-the-scenes. Money for travel/training and advertising has been eliminated, and other expense areas for supplies and professional services have been reduced. Some part-time positions at the zoo remain open, as may future vacancies. We anticipate these reductions will continue in the new budget year (2009-2010), although the budget has not been approved and finalized by the City Council.

In trimming our budget, our primary focus has always been two-fold: maintain the highest professional standards of animal care and have the least effect on our guests’ overall zoo experience. Dickerson Park Zoo is very proud to have an 86-year history in the Springfield area. We are YOUR community and regional zoo, with more than 75 percent of our guests coming from within a 120-mile radius.

So, visit Dickerson Park Zoo this summer. We promise you will admire hundreds of animals from around the world, be inspired by the informational and conservation messages, and enjoy an oasis of green in the city.