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Alive, the member's magazine.
What’s Happening at the ZOO…
Leap into the Year of the Frog this Weekend
The fun started on Leap Day (Feb. 29) and will stretch all the way through the
weekend. Things will be hopping March 1 and 2 from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.
when frogs—their songs, their leaps and their lives—take
center stage inside the Zoo's Junction Plaza. During the celebration,
visitors may:
Thrill to the trills, rumbles, quonks and snores
sung by 12 species of frogs that live and chorus right here in the
Piedmont.
Fold an origami frog and make it jump!
Bound into a Jumping Contest.
Be sure to pick up a
Frog Scavenger Hunt at the Zoo entrance and follow its clues to greet and meet the frogs exhibited inside the Park.
This weekend's fun will launch the N.C. Zoo's participation in the
Year of the Frog—an
international program that boldly and confidently unites the world’s
zoos in a global effort to conserve and protect the Earth’s amphibians.
Organizers initiated the
Year of the Frog to get people talking and learning about frogs—what they do for nature and what we must do to protect them.
Currently, one-third to one-half of all amphibian species face
extinction within 50 years unless we, the people who care about frogs
and the Earth, step up to protect the air, the water and the soil that
they (and we) need to stay healthy. To learn more click here.
Join the fun and the fight to keep frogs safe by visiting the Zoo this weekend.
Magnify
your fun by buying and sharing our exclusive Zoo Society
Year of the
Frog buttons. You can buy them over the Internet in batches of
five or
10 buttons. Proceeds from the sale of these buttons will be used to support N.C. Zoo programs to conserve North Carolina's frogs.
Join our Vote or I'll Croak Campaign to Elect a N.C. State Frog!
From the lighter side of the conservation column, the N.C. Herpetological
Society is taking a poll to elect a State Frog for the Great State of
North Carolina. (The Herp Society wants to elect a State Salamander,
too, but more about that in a later issue.)
Click here to learn
about the four candidates that have been nominated and
click here to cast your vote.
Wear Green for St. Patty's Day - for the Earth -- or just because it's Fun!
Adopt Hope, a darling little treefrog, to show your support for the
Year of the Frog. Adoptions
are $45 and include a cool green T-shirt. When you adopt
Hope, you will help the Zoo do its part to protect
North Carolina's frogs.
Click here to purchase.
Society Programs for Spring
March 29, beginning at 6 p.m. Hear the Joy!
Sign up for a nighttime walk in the Park with John Groves,
the Zoo’s Curator of Reptiles and Amphibians to hear and
see some of our native frogs. The program includes a light
dinner. Reservations are required. Learn more at:
Frog Walk.
March 28 - 29 beginning at 6:30 p.m. Sat., ending 9:30 a.m. Sun. Snooze at the Zoo!
Sign up for Zoo Snooze, an overnight adventure for Society
parents and children. Join the fun, as kids and parents
explore nature together. Reservations are required and
only a few spaces are left.
Learn more.
March 29 beginning at 8 a.m.
Wake Up With the Animals &
Watani Grasslands Reserve Preview
Join us early (an hour before the Zoo opens to the
public) for
Wake Up and a special members-only preview of the new
Watani Grasslands Reserve. The funs starts in the African entry plaza, where live entertainment will accompany a complementary breakfast from our
Wake Up sponsor, McDonald's.
Guests are welcome to visit the nine rhinos and seven elephants that occupy the Zoo's
Watani Grasslands Reserve.
The new exhibit area is beautifully landscaped and dotted with new
sculptures. We had hoped that, with good weather, zookeepers might be able to treat
Wake Up guests to a special elephant training session. Unfortunatly, the zookeepers will not be able to do that. We apologize.
Wake Up is free to Society members, but
please make your reservation by March 7. (Society members may also
purchase special tickets to bring non-member guests to this very
popular event.) For more information,
click here.
Other Events on the Horizon for Spring
April
12 - Adult Photo Safari with professional photographers
Vinny and Melissa Colucci. (More Information)
May
3 - Geo Caching for Beginners
5 - Zoo Open - Barbara Hobson Memorial Golf Tournament
17
- The Zoo Rocks (Geology in and near the Zoo)
20 - Gardener’s Delight Plant Exploration Tour
June
14 - Children’s Photo Safari
21 - Things with Wings (Butterflies & Dragonflies)
All events and programs (except “Leap Day” at the Zoo) require
pre-registration. Registration opens six weeks prior to the schedule
date. To register or for more information please contact Karen Powell
at kpowell@nczoo.com or 336.879.7262.
What's News at the Zoo
Changing Hours and Places:
The Zoo will reopen its Africa entrance again on Saturday, March 1.
From March 1 until April 1, the Zoo will operate from 9 a.m. until 4
p.m. daily. On April 1, the Zoo will shift to its Summer Operating
Hours and will open at 9 a.m. and close at 5 p.m. every day.
To enter the Zoo, remember to use the Members-Only, Express Entry Ticket Booths (always
on the far left when you face a Zoo entrance).
Zoo Animal Updates: Wilhelm the Polar Bear is back frolicking in his pool again. He is
happy to be home and so are the Seal Lions who
borrowed his exhibit for a few months during the winter. The Sea Lions
moved into the Polar Bear's pool so that Zoo staff could erect a
large shade structure in their exhibit. The new structure is up,
and the bear and Sea Lions are back where they belong.
One of the Cypress Swamp's large female
American Alligators
will head to Florida soon and four small alligators will come in from
Florida to replace her. The four new gators will go into the area just
inside the entrance to the swamp exhibit. They should be on exhibit by
the end of March.
A
Galapagos Tortoise and two
Aldabra Tortoises
will arrive sometime in March, too. All three will go on exhibit inside
KidZone – which is set to reopen March 1. If you are not familiar
with Aldabra’s they are big — second in size to only Galapagos
Tortoises. Aldabra's can weigh up to around 570 pounds, just under the
700 pounds Galapagos Tortoises may weigh. All three tortoises will
share the same habitat in KidZone and will likely get along just fine.
Ring in on Gorilla Conservation
When you buy a new cell phone, recycle the old one!
Turning your cell phone in for recycling will ensure that none of
its toxic components (e.g., lead, arsenic) leach into local water
supplies and will also protect gorillas by recycling the cell phone's
tantalum—a rare metal used in high-tech equipment.
While most tantalum originates from legitimate mining operations in
Australia, Canada and Brazil, a rising percentage of the market is
coming from illicit, environmentally irresponsible mines in the
Democratic Republic of Congo. Rebels are using profits from tantalum
sales to finance a brutal civil war that has already killed more than
10,000 civilians and is slaughtering gorillas, too.
The carnage is so great that high-tech companies are looking for ways
to avoid using tantalum that may be booty from a brutal war. Recycled
cell phones give manufacturers access to blood-free tantalum and will
help make the Congo safer for gorillas.
Read more about gorillas and cell phones.
Read the U. N. Report on Tantalum and the Republic of Congo.
While You're Thinking About Doing Good
Why not consider sharing part or all of your tax rebate with the Zoo? You
can invest your donation in programs that help protect wild elephants
or gorillas, North Carolina’s frogs, injured and orphaned native
wildlife, the Zoo’s animals or education programs. Visit our Web site
to learn more about the ways you can help the Zoo make life better for
wildlife and for North Carolina. Visit our website to learn more.
Mother's and Father's Day Adoptions....
Will go on sale the first week in March. The adoptions are $45 each.
For Mother's Day choose the animal that you want to adopt: a butterfly, a Meerkat or an Elf Owl.
Each Mother's Day adoption will arrive with an insulated
canvas lunch bag, a personalized adoption certificate and a fact sheet
bearing a picture of the adopted animal.
For Father's Day, choose the animal that you want to adopt: a Cougar, a Peregrine Falcon or a Gorilla.
Each adolption arrives with a Society baseball cap, a
personalized adoption certificate and a fact sheet bearing a picture of
the adopted animal.
Earnings from Mother's and Father's Day adoptions will be used to
enrich the lives of the Zoo's animals. For more information, e-mail
kbrown@nczoo.com.
Links of Interest
Do you have questions about estate planning? Planned giving? Your will?
Each month, we feature new articles and interactive features that cover
such topics. We hope it will be a useful resource for you. New This
Month...
Increase Your Income and Leave a Legacy
Danger: "Do It Yourself Wills"
Six Steps to an Effective Estate Plan
Russlings –
Visit the Zoo Society Executive Director’s personal
“blog” site for very current photos and discussions on the N.C. Zoo,
animals and conservation.
Member Reminders
Check out our list of Partner Zoos. Your N.C. Zoo Society
membership allows you to visit over 150 other zoos and aquariums across
the United States for free or for a reduced price. Reciprocal
arrangements can change without notice so it’s a good idea to phone the
institution you wish to visit to see if there are any restrictions.
New Society Entry Policy at the Zoo
The Zoo is implementing
new member entry policies
to help streamline the flow of visitors into the Zoo. The new policy
requires all Society members to enter through our Express Entry,
Member's Only Ticket Booths. These are always on the far left when you
face a Zoo entrance. Please have your membership and a
picture identification card ready to show to the staff person in order to speed your entry. Thank you for helping
us serve you better.
To use the
FOR MEMBERS section of the Society’s Web site,
use the Current Password:
elephant.
Take our Survey and Help us Improve the Program We Offer You!
It will just take a second! There are only three questions. Click here to begin. Thank You.
Travel With Us in 2008
The Zoo
Society offers a travel program that puts our members in the company of
people who care about visiting natural areas and learning about
wildlife. Travel programs still available in 2008:
Tanzania Wildlife Safari, May 17-28
Click here to learn more.
Migration Safari to Kenya, August 29 – September 9 with Zoo Director, Dr. David Jones – Only one space left!
Click here to learn more.
Manitoba Adventure, Nov. 6 - 12
Click here to learn more.
Contact Info
If you have suggestions for topics in the Z-mail or Alive or programs
offered by the Zoo Society, please contact
Jayne Owen Parker at jparker@nczoo.com
Send questions and comments to mmcclanahan@nczoo.com.
To unsubscribe from this mailing list, please e-mail cparks@nczoo.com and type “unsubscribe” in the subject line.
Our mailing address is: North Carolina Zoological Society, 4403
Zoo Parkway, Asheboro, N.C. 27205. Phone 336-879-7250, toll free
888-244-3736. Web address: www.nczoo.com.
Thank you for your continued support of the North Carolina Zoological Society.
