When the weather gets nasty and we can watch the mercury in the thermometer rattle around single digit temperatures, what happens at the zoo?
Well, just like anyone else, we try to stay warm – but that means keeping animals warm too. On a day like today NO ONE goes out – even the Snow Leopards, who generally enjoy cold weather, stay inside. Keepers give out extra enrichment, but for the most part, the animals are content to stay in and stay cozy when the wind blows.
High winds like the ones shaking the window in my office present problems of their own. Like most homeowners, we too look anxiously at the trees on zoos grounds and hope that none of the enormous limbs decide to come down on a building. That’s another reason to look animals inside. The zoo’s buildings are old, but pretty solid. The outdoor exhibit enclosure are another story. Built of mesh and wood or mesh and metal, they could be more easily crushed by a falling limb – which could either hurt an animal or worse, allow it to escape.
Zoo staff also tries to stay indoors if at all possible. Certainly there is some outdoor exhibit cleaning to do, but on a day like today, animal care staff focus on projects inside the buildings. The same goes for operations staff. The only thing moving outside is the occasional brave visitor and squirrels.
Melanie S – Curator of Education
