A cool new exhibit officially opened at the Topeka Zoo Thursday.

Students from North Fairview Elementary joined officials in cutting the ribbon on the Penguin Plunge. The kids earned the honor and a special tour by collecting the most pennies to support the birds’ visit.

The six African penguins in the exhibit curiously checked out their steady stream of visitors and even entertained with a few “plunges” into the water.

One second grader called it “really cool,” with his favorite part being when the penguins took a swim.

Topeka Zoo Director Brendan Wiley says he’s especially proud of the educational aspects of the exhibit. He says it shows that, even in Topeka, people can make a difference for wildlife.

Wiley also said the exhibit wouldn’t have been possible without the many business and community partners.

The penguins are on loan from the Omaha Zoo. They’ll be in Topeka through September.

Click here to read article and view video courtesy of Topeka’s Zoo Director Brenden Wiley

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AIDG,

Thank you so much for The Future of Frogs!  Everything about the exhibit has exceeded our expectations.  From the very beginning, you were very open to questions and communicated effectively as we made the necessary arrangements.  Your staff’s knowledge and professionalism were evident every time we spoke.

The team that installed the exhibit was clearly passionate.  The Future of Frogs was one of the smoothest installations we have ever had for a traveling exhibit.  They all worked very hard to not only ensure that the life support systems for the frogs were up and running, they also provided us with excellent and intuitive training for their maintenance.  The exhibits are well designed and provide for straightforward care of the animals.

In addition to the exemplary communication and easy installation, the exhibit has impressed our guests.  In fact, during the three months we have had the exhibit, we have seen a 21% increase in paid admissions over last year. We attribute a large portion of this increase directly to The Future of Frogs.  It is hard to walk through the museum without hearing our visitors talking about the frogs.  They have really inspired curiosity and wonder in the minds of all of our visitors—both children and adults.

We would like to thank you so much for all of your help throughout this time, and especially for designing and installing such a great exhibit in our museum.  Our partnership with you has helped us continue to meet our goal of providing learning experiences which are unique, long-lasting, and deeply engaging.

Best wishes for the future,

Julie Runnfeldt
Operations Manager
The Building for Kids

For a detailed proposal please click here or call (708) 369-6342

For a detailed proposal please click here or call (708) 369-6342

Aquarium Attendance Soars!!!  Add Charleston to the list of cities where waddling, feathered fish-eaters are credited for corralling visitors.

Post and Courier Penguin Exhibit articles

“We’re witnessing the power of penguins,” said Kevin Mills, the aquarium’s president and chief executive.

Attendance last month topped out at nearly 59,000, about 21,000 more than April 2008. More than one-third of visitors this year have been locals, compared to about a quarter last year.

Those results align with the aquarium’s goal of bringing in more area residents as vacationers cut back on travel.

The aquarium opened Penguin Planet on March 21 with four male warm-weather birds on loan from SeaWorld San Diego.

The exhibit cost $162,000, but staff listened hopefully to the anecdotes of zoo and aquarium officials in other cities where attendance swelled by as much as 30 percent after penguins arrived on the scene.

Mills said the aquarium has yet to roll out its traditional ad campaign with billboards and bus signs. So far, the attraction has relied primarily on social media to spread the word.

Though billed as a one-year attraction, the penguins could stay a little longer if their success continues and if the aquarium’s partners agree to an extension, according to Mills.

Otherwise, he said, the aquarium will look at bringing in another, equally high-profile aquatic critter.

“I think that we need to continue each year to look at opportunities to provide local families with animals from the other side of the world,” Mills said.

The aquarium said it has gathered more than 500 new memberships since January, with the average member spending about 20 percent more compared with last year.

The attraction began offering a new membership package that includes two guest passes and, in recent months, rolled out two new children’s stations and a touch tank with stingray petting.

Because of last year’s attendance slump, the aquarium required all 82 full-time and part-time employees to take 10 unpaid days off between December and February to save an estimated $110,000. Before that, the attraction froze hiring and nonessential spending.

Given the recent success, Mills said he does not foresee further cutbacks.

“We have weathered that storm,” Mills said, adding that the aquarium is “feeling very bullish” about the rest of the year.

For a detailed proposal for your organization please click here or call (708) 369-6342

Senior Vice President and Chief Animal Officer,

I have many contacts around the world that create habitats, acquire and display animals for educational/conservation programs, train animals, and create life support systems.  What is rare, is a company that can do all of those things.  With AIDG, its principals are savvy in all of the aforementioned disciplines.

Without reservation, I endorse AIDG and any of its projects.  Animal care and health are the greatest priority for AIDG, followed closely by dynamic exhibits that inspire its viewers to learn more through engagement.  This proves to be a winning combination in the world of zoology and conservation.

William Hurley

Sr. VP & Chief Animal Officer

Georgia Aquarium

For a detailed proposal please click here or call (708) 369-6342

Exhibit: Penguin Plunge

Guests can explore an enhanced ice-themed world with dazzling lights, snow and an up-close encounter with live penguins.

For a detailed proposal please click here or call (708) 369-6342

The Potawatomi Zoo welcomed the white rare alligator in 2009

The Potawatomi Zoo has many animals from all over the world, but their collection has recently become even more diverse.

This summer, they have a new resident: Opal is a five-year-old albino alligator, an extremely rare find in zoos.

Less than 50 are in captivity across the country.

They are nonexistent in the wild because their lack of dark pigment makes it hard to hide from predators. And, just like some humans, they can get sunburned quite badly.

“There are several reasons why she’s here: educational, to bring people into the zoo to see something new, and she’s just very cool to look at. You just don’t often see this,”

says Marcy Dean, the society director of the Potawatomi Zoo.

It’s an exciting opportunity for people in Michiana to see the unique animal.

source:  http://www.wndu.com/localnews/headlines/47298782.html#

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FROGS ROCK!  We were busy all weekend, lots of folks asking about the frog exhibit.  My assistant went down to see the completed setup and noticed that folks are spending a great deal of time at each exhibit, interacting with the touch screens, puzzle table and hop rug, everyone from very young to very old excited to find all the frogs!!  THANK YOU!

Sincerely,
Susan M. Garrett
Director of Administrative Services
Lake Superior Zoological Society

For a detailed proposal please click here or call (708) 369-6342

Oregon ZooLights

View the video of the FROGS! exhibit at Oregon Zoo.

As the world’s frogs vanish at an alarming rate, a few species will appear at the Oregon Zoo Sept. 20 in a temporary exhibit designed to teach the public about the perils faced by amphibian populations everywhere.

“FROGS!” will run through ZooLights (Dec. 28) and will feature several different species from around the world. It will also explain what’s happening to amphibians in the wild and why they are dying out so rapidly.

“As many as 165 amphibian species may be extinct,” says Oregon Zoo Director Tony Vecchio. “Without an immediate intervention, one-third to one-half of the world’s amphibian species could become extinct in our lifetime. This would constitute an extinction comparable to that of the dinosaurs.”

Frogs are considered sentinel animals, which means they are among the first to show the impact of environmental contaminants and climate changes. Their decline serves as a warning sign to other species, including humans.

In addition to pollution and loss of habitat, amphibian populations worldwide are being decimated by chytridiomycosis, an infectious disease caused by the chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis). The fungus has rapidly spread from Africa to other parts of the world, including the Pacific Northwest.

The exhibit will offer a look at the Oregon spotted frog, which has captured the attention of conservationists as the most threatened frog in the region.
Not only has it been affected by pollution and the loss of wetlands, but it has become the prey of the American bullfrog, a larger species native to the eastern and midwestern United States that was introduced here in the early 1900s.

This year the Oregon Zoo, in conjunction with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Northwest Zoo and Aquarium Alliance, has launched a captive-rearing and release program in an attempt to restore Oregon spotted frog populations and keep the species from extinction.

“FROGS!” will feature examples of both the Oregon spotted frog and the American bullfrog.

Other frogs on display will include the brightly colored poison dart frog, native to Central and South America, which secretes toxins from its skin that are foul-tasting to predators. Three highly toxic species of poison dart frogs were used by indigenous people to poison the tips of blowgun darts.

The Vietnamese mossy frog is covered with bumps, spines and tubercles, helping it blend in with moss and lichen to avoid predators. This species’
camouflage has been called the most elaborate in the animal kingdom.

White’s tree frog, native to Australia, was one of the first amphibian species documented in the discovery of the deadly chytrid fungus. In dry conditions, it can surround itself with a cocoon of dead skin and mucus and burrow to keep moist.

The exhibit is in conjunction with the Association of Zoo and Aquariums’
Year of the Frog, which began on Leap Day as a way to engage the public in conservation efforts and draw attention to the amphibian crisis.

The zoo is a service of Metro and is dedicated to its mission to inspire the community to create a better future for wildlife. Committed to conservation, the zoo is currently working to save endangered California condors, Washington’s pygmy rabbits, Oregon silverspot butterflies, Oregon spotted frogs and western pond turtles. Other projects include studies on black rhinos, Asian elephants, polar bears and bats.

The zoo opens at 8 a.m. daily and is located five minutes from downtown Portland, just off Highway 26. The zoo is also accessible by MAX light rail line. Zoo visitors are encouraged to ride MAX or take TriMet bus No. 63.

Visitors who take the bus or MAX receive $1 off zoo admission. Call TriMet Customer Service, 503-238-RIDE (7433), or visit www.trimet.org for fare and route information.

General admission is $9.75 (12-64), seniors $8.25 (65+), children $6.75 (3-11), and infants 2 and under are free; 25 cents of the admission price helps fund regional conservation projects through the zoo’s Future for Wildlife program. A parking fee of $2 per car is also required. Additional information is available at www.oregonzoo.org or by calling 503-226-1561.

Source: http://www.zandavisitor.com/newsarticle-246-Oregon_Zoo_Exhibit_Includes_Endangered_Oregon_Spotted_frog_and_its_Predator

For a detailed proposal please click here or call (708) 369-6342