ZooBlog

Our Inner Ape: Are We Chimps or Bonobos?
Frans de Waal, the author of Our Inner Ape, compares and contrasts the social behaviors of chimpanzees and bonobos in terms of relations within families, power, sex, violence, kindness, and morality, in order to figure out how humans are related to these closely related cousins in different perspectives. To make the book more interesting, de Waal uses metaphors of human psychology to describe his previous observations. He concludes that chimps and bonobos behave differently despite they are physically similar. These two species are also representing human nature, in which humans have not one, but two inner apes.

Learn About Mammals

-         4,500 species today

-         Mammary glands

-         Live young

-         Warm Blooded

-         Fur as insulation

-         Finite growth

-         Finite tooth counts

-         Differentiated teeth

-         Skeletal fusion

-         Three-bonded middle ear

Photo © Matt L.

Aquarium hospital gets seal of approval
The animal hospital at the New York Aquarium won't officially open until summer, but the $14.5 million facility already had to admit a few patients. -Daily News, NY

New Monkeys Jump into Action at Prospect Park Zoo
They’re climbers, they’re jumpers, they’re monkeys in motion! And they are the newest additions to the Wildlife Conservation Society’s (WCS) Prospect Park Zoo. Opus and Winola, the zoo’s new saki monkey pair, are boisterous, energetic and always on the go. Saki monkeys are medium-sized primates with dark fur, human-like, eyes and long, bushy tails. Their brawny bodies are well suited for an active life in trees, and this lively primate pair puts a literal spin on “monkey bars.” You can identify Opus, and other males, by his white face. -Brooklyn Daily Eagle, NY

Red Panda Is New Addition to Prospect Park Zoo
No, he's not blushing from all the attention. Mao Mi is a Red Panda and the newest addition to Prospect Park Zoo in Brooklyn. He arrived last week from Michigan's Binder Park Zoo as part of a Wildlife Conservation Society breeding project. Red Pandas are an endangered species with fewer than 2,500 adults thought to remain in the wild in Bhutan, China, India, Laos, Nepal and Burma. -Gothamist, NY

Zoo welcomes little deer with big name
The big news at the Queens Zoo lately is the arrival of Josephine, the new consort of Napoleon, the zoo's pudu. Pudus are the world's smallest deer, native to Argentina and Chile. They're endangered, largely because of habitat destruction and hunting. -Queens Courier, NY 

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Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA)
Founded in 1924, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) is a nonprofit organization that accredits zoos and aquariums that have met rigorous standards.

Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)
USA organization managing national and international conservation projects, research and education programs.

World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
Provides links to WWF national organizations, program offices, and associate offices.

National Wildlife Federation (NWF)
Mission is to inspire Americans to protect wildlife for our children's future.