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New ArrivalsBaby Giraffe Gets a Pretty Name
“A willow is a slender, graceful tree, so it’s the perfect name for a giraffe. Giraffe also love to eat leaves and branches, known as browse, and willow is a favorite,” notes executive director Greg Bockheim. “Plus, although we call him ‘Billy,’ her father’s official name is ‘Willoughby,’ so keepers liked the idea of honoring him, too.” The next step for Willow is to introduce her to the larger giraffe yard. This will be a slow process for this fall baby due to weather. The origins of the Zoo’s Masai giraffe are in Africa. Even though all members of the tower have been born and raised in North America, they don’t like the cold. If it is raining or if the air temperature is below 50 degrees Fahrenheit, Willow and her fellow giraffe will not be released to the outside exhibit. On cold, wet days, Willow and her family can be viewed from the windows in the giraffe and elephant barn at the African boardwalk. “Giraffe are not cold weather animals, so we carefully monitor the outdoor temperatures in the winter before deciding whether they should go outside,” reports Jason Strohkorb, one of her zoo keepers. “Between the soggy, wet weather – including the November nor’easter – and the current cold temps, Willow has not been introduced to the larger yard yet. When the weather cooperates, we will proceed carefully in a way that’s reassuring for her as she adjusts to this new experience and space.” Like many hoof stock species, giraffe can be skittish when facing new situations. To help her with transition, zoo staff has created temporary fences of PVC pipe covered in burlap near the moats. This creates a visual boundary to teach Willow not to go near the water. Keepers are waiting for warm, dry days to begin the introduction to the giraffe yard. They will take as much time as Willow needs to help her feel secure in her new space, which she also will share with a Grant’s gazelle, ground hornbills and ostriches. They expect the process to be smooth – once they get a break in the weather! “Willow has a great temperament. She is playful and frisky. Her mom is an important influence on her, too. We’ve noticed that she often looks to Imara for cues on how to react to new situations,” says Strohkorb. “Because Imara has proven to be a mellow mother, Willow is developing a calm, inquisitive nature. She also shares her night house with the three elephants who live on the other side of that building. Our elephants are big and noisy and enjoy playing loudly to get attention. Since the night she was born, Willow has been accustomed to hearing strange and sudden noises. This experience will probably help make her transition to the public exhibit even easier.” Keepers are really proud of Willow’s mother, Imara. “She’s a first time mother,” says Strohkorb, “And for an animal species known for getting scared of new experiences, she’s taken to caring for her calf like a pro. Imara likes to stand protectively between Willow and staff, so we have lots of pictures of Willow hidden behind a long set of giraffe legs! Occasionally we have to separate them briefly for routine care. When they are reunited, Imara immediately starts nuzzling her calf and licking her face to reassure her.” Updated 12/21/09 This Baby Is Six-Feet Tall!
Parents are 7-year-old female, Imara, and 8-year-old male, Billy. And the new little girl is their first calf. The other adult member of the Zoo’s giraffe tower (another name for a giraffe herd) is 7-year-old Keana. “ Updated 10/22/09 At last! … Final bongo calf born to the Virginia Zoo’s herd of bongo It’s a zoo-born nursery at the Virginia Zoo with a bountiful collection of babies on exhibit. The most recent addition is the long awaited third baby bongo born this week on October 13. For weeks, visitors have been keeping an eye on the heavily pregnant mother, Betty, sending emails to the Zoo asking if the baby had been born. Betty finally went into labor while on exhibit around 4:30 Bongo are very rare – in the wild and even in captivity – but the Virginia Zoo is practically a baby bongo factory with three new babies born since August (including females Elka and Jade). They join the Zoo’s herd of three adult females, one adult male and now five juveniles and newborns for a total heard size of 9 bongos – a very rare site in any Zoo. Updated 10/16/09 Bunches of Bouncing Baby Bongo Female bongo Elka was born August 16 and female Jade was born August 28. Bongo are highly endangered in their native Africa. So properly managed breeding programs are important conservation actions taken to protect the species for the future. Updated 9/23/09 East African Crowned Cranes
Although not endangered, these cranes are considered vulnerable due to habitat destruction in their native Africa. East Africa crowned cranes typically have two to three chicks at a time, and both parents spend time incubating the eggs and then rearing the chicks. Chicks are able to walk soon after hatching and can fly at 10 weeks old. East Africa crowned cranes are social and gregarious outside of the nesting season, the Zoo’s adult pair seem to enjoy watching visitors come and go in their exhibit area and the insects attracted by the growing herd of bongo. Crowned cranes are the only cranes that roost in trees, and they are famous for an energetic courtship dance that involves bobbing, flapping wings and bows. Updated 9/23/09 Lion Cub Foursome Go On Exhibit!
Hampton Roads residents have been eagerly awaiting the debut of males, Ajani, Razi and Dakari, and female, Zarina. The cubs and their mother have been off exhibit since their arrival. This period gave them time to bond and time for the cubs to grow big enough to safely navigate their outdoor exhibit. Their birth represents only the second large carnivore birth at the Zoo in 35 years.
Updated 8/24/09 An Outback Mob Makes Hampton Roads Home Virginia Zoo debuts new Australia exhibit featuring kangaroos courtesy of Zoo train
Australia is the first Zoo exhibit funded by proceeds raised from train ticket sales. Australia was built by Zoo maintenance staff and features a group, also known as a mob, of Eastern and Western gray kangaroos. Their names are Apache, Ashe, Astro, Beans, Heckle, Horatio, Irwin, Kipling, Lobo, Marley and Mick. The kangaroos weigh between 90 to 150 pounds. Future additions to Australia will include emus, kookaburras and cassowary - Australian birds. In a year, Zoo staff plans to turn this into an immersive exhibit experience, where visitors will be able to walk into the exhibit with the kangaroos on a path. (Birds such as the cassowary will be displayed in a holding area separate from the walk-in exhibit.) Updated 8/7/09 Four More! Lion Cubs are Born at the Virginia Zoo!
The first cub was born sometime around 8:00 in the morning, and Zola had the last cub by 12:30 Saturday afternoon. Updated 5/05/09 Meet Oscar -- The Zoo's New Male Red Panda
However, Oscar will have to work hard to win the heart of Yin, it seems. At early introductions of the pair, Yin seemed uninterested in her new mate. This is to be expected, explains Zoo executive director, Greg Bockheim, because red pandas are solitary animals by nature. “In the wild and in zoos, red pandas most often seem to ignore each other throughout the year except for the one day a year when the female is in heat. On that day they can be inseparable but the next day they go back to ignoring each other for the rest of the year,” he says. Oscar and Yin are part of an international Species Survival Plan (SSP), a program managed by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) to manage the captive breeding programs of endangered species. Other SSP animals at the Virginia Zoo include the African lions, ground hornbills and eastern bongos. For more information, Updated 4/28/09 New Meerkat Mob at the Zoo
Updated 4/28/09 Become a parent to any of these babies or their friends at the Virginia Zoo through ZooDoption!
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The baby giraffe born at the Virginia Zoo on October 21 is thriving and growing, and now she has a name! The zoo keepers who care for her and the rest of her giraffe family (also known as a “tower”) have named her Willow.
The Virginia Zoo is pleased to announce the birth of its tallest baby – a female Masai giraffe born Wednesday, October 21 at 9:15 p.m. The gestation period for giraffe is 15 months, so this birth has been long anticipated by Zoo staff. 
p.m., and several Zoo visitors had the amazing opportunity to witness the birth and see the baby take its first steps. Zookeepers named the male calf Baxter.
The other busy parents in the bongo yard are birds! The East African crowned crane pair are parents to a chick that hatched the week of August 20. It’s too soon to tell whether it is a boy or girl, but the baby crane is a welcome addition to the bongo yard.
“Zola has been a great mother,” notes Greg Bockheim, executive director of the Zoo. “She was very attentive to her first set of cubs born in August 2007, and even though she has twice as many babies to manage in this litter, she has been an excellent lion mother. This means that she is quite protective of her cubs and wants them with her at all times!” Keepers have characterized the foursome as playful, curious and feisty. 
