| January
- Stocktaking at both Zoos
All keepers are involved in this annual event and we had a bumper year in 2008 for babies and new arrivals at both Zoos.
- Launch of EDGE Amphibians
ZSL launched the EDGE (Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered) Amphibians programme, a conservation initiative, which highlights some of the world’s extraordinary creatures threatened with extinction.
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| February
- Thermal imaging
A set of thermal images taken around ZSL London Zoo showed the variety of ways that animals use or reserve their own body heat, from hot-headed penguins to cold-nosed sloths.
- Opening of Rhinos of Nepal
The new Rhinos of Nepal exhibit at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo highlights ZSL’s work with the Nepalese government and provides a fantastic new home for these giants. The £1m development features indoor heated pools so the rhinos can enjoy wallowing in muddy water all year round. A spacious viewing area allows the public to get a close-up view of the rhinos indoors.
- Titi monkey makes an appearance
A tiny red titi monkey was the first baby to be born in ZSL London Zoo’s new rainforest biome.
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| March
- Pygmy hippos survive two civil wars
ZSL conservationists set up a network of camera traps to monitor the endangered pygmy hippo, and discovered it had survived in Liberia despite two civil wars.
- Sprinters speed in to open Cheetah Rock
British Olympic sprint hopefuls, Chris Clarke and Joey Duck, cut the red tape on ZSL Whipsnade Zoo’s new £1m exhibit, Cheetah Rock. Visitors have close-up views of the fastest land mammal on their landscaped rock lookout.
- Secrets of the sky revealed
The new £2.5m tropical bird experience, Blackburn Pavilion, brought the beauty and tranquility of the tropical skies to the heart of London. Its opening day was widely covered in the press.
- Rhinos counted from elephant-back
ZSL and in-country partners carried out a Nepalese national greater one-horned rhino count. More than 200 field personnel, with 50 elephants, implemented a standardised system for counting, and found 408 rhinos.
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| April
- Secret seahorses in the Thames
The discovery of short-snouted seahorses in the Thames during routine conservation surveys proved that the water quality of the river was improving – and it was also a reminder to people how important it is to maintain the cleanliness of British waterways.
- Precious monkey gets to grips withsurrogate mum
The tiny white-naped mangabey monkey, Conchita, who took YouTube by storm, was born at ZSL London Zoo and was hand-reared by keepers after an emergency caesarian.
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| May
- Recycled Sculpture Show
ZSL London Zoo showed that modern art is rubbish, showcasing 21 remarkable sculptures made of recycled materials, including discarded hubcaps, plastic bags and old tyres, as part of the Love London Recycled Sculpture Show.
- Painless technique for blood-sampling zoo animals
Vets at ZSL London Zoo employed kissing bugs as part of a revolutionary pilot project, to suck blood samples from animals who would normally need to be anaesthetised for the simple procedure. Kissing bugs successfully took blood samples from a hippo, cheetah, giraffe, elephant and white rhino.
- New female gorilla joins Gorilla Kingdom
New addition Mjukuu, affectionately known as Jookie, joined Gorilla Kingdom and proved popular with all the gorillas on the island. She was a hit with the late silverback, Bobby - the pair consummated their relationship 17 times in just four days.
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| June
- Corncrakes calling again
Hand-reared corncrakes, bred at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo, were successfully reintroduced at the Nene Washes reserve in Cambridgeshire. The distinctive call of this bird that had become scarce in England can now be heard again thanks to the successful breeding programme at ZSL.
- Giant butterflies land at ZSL London Zoo
An exhibition showcasing giant butterfly prints, photographed in microscopic detail, revealing features like cells, hair and scales, launched in BUGS as part of National Insect Week.
- Keeper swaps Father’s Day for feathers day
ZSL London Zoo bird keeper Darren Jordan became a surrogate dad to three young owlets. The first-time father, who’s worked at the Zoo for eight years, rescued the burrowing owl chicks from their underground nest box after heavy rains threatened to flood it.
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| July
- Health checks for the nation’s frogs
ZSL and Froglife called on the public to look for and report sick and dead frogs in an attempt to expand research into the state of the nation’s amphibians. The UK’s amphibians are being affected by two significant diseases – ranavirus and the chytrid fungus. Ranavirus kills thousands of frogs, toads and newts in the UK each year and the chytrid fungus, implicated in extinctions of amphibian species around the world, has been identified in the UK.
- Zoo Nights at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo
Dom the sea lion was the star of the show at Zoo Nights, which was his first late-night experience. Tiger talks, acrobatics and a breathtaking firedance finale made for a memorable night.
- ZSL works to understand strandings
ZSL veterinary pathologists were in the spotlight after 26 dolphins stranded around the south Cornwall coastline. Post-mortem examinations were carried out on 11 dolphins at the scene and more dolphins were transported back to the pathology lab for further investigation.
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| August
- Zoo Nights at ZSL London Zoo
Another fantastic night-time bash, showcasing the Zoo to an evening audience. With a popular bar area on the main lawn and regular talks and feeds to show off the gorillas, tamarins, penguins and hunting dogs, there was plenty for everyone to see and do.
- First Green Fair at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo
ZSL Whipsnade Zoo was the place to have fun and learn about how to be green. The Zoo’s first-ever Green Fair had plenty to inspire and inform, including green trails.
- Excelsior turns 100
The Jumbo Express celebrated the 100th birthday of the engine Excelsior with a special time-warp trip featuring explainers dressed in period costume.
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| September
- Okapi caught on camera for the first time
Camera traps set up by ZSL and the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) captured landmark pictures of the mysterious okapi in Virunga National Park - proving that the species is still surviving there despite more than a decade of civil conflict.
- Flexible elephants
The ZSL Whipsnade Zoo herd participated in a study with the Royal Veterinary College about elephant joints and demonstrated their flexibility and movement by enjoying a kick-about with giant pilates balls.
- BIAZA awards
ZSL scooped a handful of BIAZA awards at the annual ceremony, taking away three awards for Best Field Conservation Project for Project Seahorse, Best Education Project for the development of the post-16 phobias session at ZSL London Zoo and Best PR Campaign for the Blackburn Pavilion. ZSL was also awarded seven commendations, including one for Best Sustainable Collection for the eco-friendly Rhinos of Nepal exhibit at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo.
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| October
- New home for Kenyan rhinos
A milestone was reached in Kenyan black rhino conservation when the Tsavo Intensive Protection Zone was set up and a free-ranging rhino population was re-established in the park by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), ZSL and partners.
- New fish species discovered in the Thames
ZSL discovered a new species of fish in the tidal Thames – the greater weever fish. The fish was found as part of a two-year monitoring programme looking at fish populations.
- New hope for the red squirrel
Scientists at ZSL discovered that a number of red squirrels have developed an immune response to the squirrelpox virus, responsible for huge declines in red squirrel populations.
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| November
- ZSL breeds rare snake for the first time
Zookeepers at ZSL London Zoo captured on camera the moment a rare rhino rat snake emerged from its shell. This is the first time that this species of snake has been bred in a European zoo and has greatly helped with the captive breeding programme.
- ZSL opens photo archives
Elephant rides through Bedfordshire are just one of the incredible images featured in historic photos released from the ZSL photo archive. The images are on sale through the ZSL print store (unfortunately this is currently unavailable).
- Model helicopter catches whale blows
The inventive work of a scientist from ZSL was showcased on a major BBC TV series, Oceans. The innovative method of looking for whale diseases by flying a toy helicopter over whales’ blows to collect the gases and mucus that they exhale is groundbreaking. Scientists can use the samples to find out what pathogens are being carried.
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| December
- Adopt a zookeeper in time for Christmas
For the first time ever, two of ZSL London Zoo’s zookeepers were put up for adoption to help raise extra funds for animal conservation. Mark Habben and Darren Jordan joined the likes of Lucifer the lion and proved to be successful adoption candidates.
- Review of the academic departments
December saw the release of the results of the government’s 2008 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE). The RAE is a six-yearly review of the quality of all UK academic departments and the Institute of Zoology received an excellent score of 2.55, higher than comparable departments at top universities including Bath, Durham, Liverpool and University College London. This score reflects the exceptional quality of research being carried out at the Institute of Zoology.
- Keepers’ Little Helpers return
The keepers at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo were given a helping hand to prepare festive treats for all of the animals at the Zoo. Every weekend throughout December, young visitors were able to become a Keeper’s Little Helper and make a unique Christmas treat for a chimp.
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