Brevard Zoo Membership Newsletter Spring 2019 | Page 10

NEW AT THE ZOO
Conservation Near and Far
Our Restore Our Shores team is as
busy as ever with dozens of projects
in the pipeline. In early February, we
constructed a 120-foot oyster reef
along a seawall at a private residence
in Cocoa
Beach. Live
oysters,
raised by
lagoon-
front
volunteers
off their
docks, were added to the installation to
kickstart the population. If you’d like an
oyster reef on your property, contact
us at restoreourshores@brevardzoo.
org for consideration.
Through an innovative partnership
with Brevard County Sherriff’s Office,
volunteer inmates have begun assisting
us in our restoration efforts. Trained
by Zoo staff, the inmates are creating
oyster shell bags that will form the
basis of a new living shoreline to be
installed in the lagoon later in the year.
Upon entry to the Zoo, each guest
is given a token representing 25
cents and asked to “vote” for their
favorite project at the Quarters for
Conservation (Q4C) station. In 2018,
Honoring Our Volunteers
On February 7,
Donna Weissman
was named
Volunteer of
the Year at our
annual Volunteer
Appreciation Dinner.
Staff and fellow
volunteers regard Weissman as one
of the most dynamic, enthusiastic and
creative figures at the Zoo. She has
volunteered steadily since June 2017,
donating more than 900 hours of her
time in 2018 alone. You may have seen
her assisting on the Expedition Africa
platform, handling animals in front of
10
we contributed $100,000 to 12
organizations, benefitting animals as
diverse as snow leopards, bats and
manta rays.
An especially heartwarming Q4C
story came from recipient Pan
African Sanctuary Alliance (PASA).
Chimpanzees face serious threats in
their natural range, where they are
often taken from the wild for sale on
the black market. Infants Bo and Bella,
too little to be killed for their meat,
were bound for the pet trade in the
country of Guinea-Bissau until they
were rescued by law enforcement.
PASA used their grant money to
transport the pair to a sanctuary in
Kenya, where they are now living life to
the fullest!
Paws On or leading other volunteers as
a Day Captain.
We also recognized Carl Applin, Bob
Dieffenderfer, Donna Hylkema and
Cheryl Markham for 15 years of
service, Kristi Anderson, Gabe Denes,
Brevard Zoo News | Spring 2019 | www.brevardzoo.org
New Arrivals
Our dozenth giraffe
calf—and fourth
consecutive male—
arrived in the early
hours of October
19. This little guy,
born to mom Johari
and dad Rafiki,
represents hope for
the future of Masai giraffe, which are
threatened by habitat loss, poaching
and civil unrest.
While we were busy hand-rearing sloth
Tango’s baby, Lorenzo (see page 7
for details),
Sammy
(Tango’s
mom) gave
birth to a
little one of
her own on
January 4!
Fortunately, Sammy took great care of
her newborn from the get-go and we
had no need to intervene.
Not to be outdone by the sloths,
white-faced saki Chuckie delivered her
seventh baby, whose sex is currently
unknown, on
January 6. Dad
is Yuki, who
has fathered
all of Chuckie’s
youngsters.
Bob Emery, Sharie Emery, Jim Meger,
Bertha Navach, Nancy Stewart and
John Wallace for 10 years of service,
and Spencer Anderson for reaching his
5,000-hour milestone.
We are sad
to report the
passing of
longtime aviary
volunteers
Doug Erwin
and John
Wallace. Each leaves behind a legacy of
service, devotion and kindness that will
inspire us for years to come.
If you’d like to volunteer with us, visit
brevardzoo.org/volunteer-programs.