Zoo Matters Spring 2014 by Colchester Zoo

Spring 2014

Day in the life of a Bear Keeper by CZ Bear Keeper, Bex Brown Srey Ya and Jo-Jo’s daily routine

CONSERVATION IN THE GARDEN

You can help save wildlife too!

Zoo News

inside CYNthiA IS A MUm to BE!

False Tomato Frogs

Action for the wild news Kingdom of the Wild welcomes the Maneless Zebra Black and White Ruffed Lemur lLamas and Alpacas are joined by the Darwin’s Rhea Australian Rainbows – Opening Summer 2014 PLUS LOTS MORE...

Poster

Contents 3. Adopt an Animal 4. News Animals 5. Keeper Experiences 6. News Enclosures and Developments 7. Be Social 8. 2014 Year of the Bear 10. News Animals 11. Get Closer 12. White Rhino Poster 14. News UmPhafa Private Nature Reserve 16. Day in the Life of a Bear Keeper 18. News Action for the Wild 20. Conservation in the Garden 21. Upcoming Events 22. Shopping at Colchester Zoo

Welcome A very warm welcome to the latest edition of Zoo Matters. Following on from the excitement of last year’s 50th birthday celebrations, we are as always determined to see the zoo striding forward into the future! Certainly over the last 30 years we have prided ourselves in our programme of re-growth, regeneration and evolution. This philosophy very much continues into 2014 and beyond. We are proud to say that we were probably the first zoo in the UK to truly recognise the value of our younger visitors. By this, I am not necessarily referring to our role as educators of wildlife (zoos have always played an important role in this respect), but to ensuring that the facilities we provide for our younger audience are interesting, dynamic and fulfilling. We were certainly one of the first zoos to provide a dedicated indoor play space for the under 13s. Regular visitors will have noticed that the Kalahari Capers building has been closed for the last couple of months and whilst I appreciate that this may have caused some inconvenience, it is truly for a good cause. As part of our evolution, the building has been stripped out, extended and a brand new play space is being fitted. This refurbishment is to drastically improve and modernise the play equipment and to provide more comfortable facilities for adults and children alike. Due to open in time for Easter, we very much hope that our younger audience will enjoy the changes we have made.

Celebrating the opening of our new bear enclosure...

In addition, other developments like the “Bears of the Rising Sun” enclosure have been completed and we have designated this year as “Year of the Bear” in celebration of the opening of this super new enclosure.

Page 8 & 9

Keen eyed visitors will have noticed the closure of the Wild About Animals Theatre and I promise that the new lorikeet exhibit due to replace it later in the year will give a fantastic new dimension to everyone visiting the park.

‘Bears of the Rising Sun’

Let us hope for good weather during the spring and summer having lived through such a damp winter. I hope to see many of you enjoying the new facilities on offer during that time, hopefully accompanied with some long overdue sunshine!

UMPHAFA Private Nature Reserve

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Anthony Tropeano Zoological Director

Adoptions

Adopt one of our Amur Leopards If you have seen our Amur Leopards here at Colchester Zoo you will be able to appreciate just how wonderful this species is and how devastating it would be to see it become extinct!

Less than 40 individuals left in the wild!

The Amur Leopard is listed as critically endangered by the IUCN red list.

Amur Leopard Distribution: Russian Far East, along the Russia China border. Habitat: Temperate forest with areas of cover. Diet: Roe and sika deer along with hares, badgers and musk deer Longevity: 10 – 15 years in the wild and up to 20 years in captivity. Gestation: 12 weeks, with 1 – 4 cubs born.

Other species adoptions are available. Which animal will you choose?

To book or make an enquiry 01206 331292

www.colchesterzoo.org

Or if you’re visiting call into Guest Services

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Zoo News Animals

Cynthia is a mum to be! We are pleased to announce that White Rhino, Cynthia, is pregnant with her second calf! Cynthia conceived in March 2013 through a natural mating with male White Rhino, Otto. This will be Cynthia’s second calf, although it is her first natural mating with Otto, resulting in their first calf together. Cynthia’s first calf, Zamba, was born through artificial insemination and fathered by Colchester Zoo’s late White Rhino, Simba.

Right image: Cynthia’s first calf, Zamba. ©Chris Elsey Middle image: Mother Cynthia with her first calf, Zamba. Left image: Male Rhino Otto, father to be.

False Tomato Frogs now in our collection! The False Tomato frog is one of Madagascar’s largest frog species! You can visit them in the Kingdom of the Wild building.

Black and White Ruffed Lemur We now have a breeding pair of Black and White Ruffed Lemurs, female Adelie and male Manja. We are hopeful they will form a very important part of the breeding programme for this species as they are now listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List, mainly due to habitat loss.

Action for the Wild has supported the Lemur Consortium, AEECL, since 2004. Our annual donation helps support lemur research in Madagascar and local management structures needed to run Q National Park in Sahamalaza to protect endangered lemurs.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Keeper Experiences

Amazing up close animal experiences!

Always fancied being a Zoo Keeper?

Why not book one of our many keeper experiences which we have to offer! Turn a dream into reality and find out what it’s really like to work with amazing animals behind the scenes.

Keeper for the Day

Keeper Shadowing

Zoo Academy

VIP Experience

Full day with a range of keepers and species from mucking out to training the animals!

Perfect for the young budding zoo keepers out there who have a love for the animals!

30 minutes with your favourite species and one on one time with the keeper!

The Colchester Zoo VIP package allows up to five people to experience a day like no other...A unique journey behind the scenes to explore the heart of Colchester Zoo for a full day!

All make perfect presents and are available as a gift voucher! To book or make an enquiry 01206 331292

www.colchesterzoo.org

Or if you’re visiting call into Guest Services

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Zoo News Enclosures and Development

Kalahari Capers becomes Jungle Tumble We have put the old Kalahari Capers play equipment to good use as our animals have been having great fun playing with new interesting enrichment!

Rele ase wild your side!

Jungle Tumble: Above is an artists’ impression of how we are transforming our previous play area into the new and exciting Jungle Tumble play area.

Images: Kate Broad (Sealion Keeper) with sealion, Winnipeg on old play area mats. Penguin playing with old play area equipment.

Old Kalahari Capers play equipment: To make way for our new play area, we recycled the old equipment into enrichment for many of the animals.

Australian Rainbows Opening Summer 2014! Journey down under to discover the colourful native birds of Australia...the Rainbow Lorikeets! You’ll even have the chance to feed them a treat of nectar yourself! The Wild About Animals Theatre has been redeveloped into an exciting new walkthrough aviary! The brand new aviary will be Colchester Zoo’s own ‘paradise’ of Australia as the atmosphere and surroundings mimic the Lorikeets’ natural surroundings, including tranquil waterfalls and colourful gardens.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Be Social

Be social Join our fans and followers on Facebook and Twitter!

Why not share photos of your visits on our social media pages and interact with other zoo fans?

Image: Summer enjoying her day at Colchester Zoo (Photograph: Jenni Watts).

Plus keep up to date with the latest zoo news and events, enter competitions, learn fun facts about different species, and be in the know when it comes to conservation and endangered species.

colchester_zoo

ColchesterZoo

Colchester Zoo

Tweets from our visitors...

Share your feedback and reviews with others and tell us about your visits! like to say a big thank Had another lovely day out “ Would “ you to the rhino keeper @ColchesterZoo it never @ColchesterZoo for making my daughter’s day today! Keep up the good work.

fails to deliver and our little girl loves it :-) we will be back soon!

@Joiscool1

@speedwayjules

“

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

In celebration of the opening of our new enclosure ‘Bears of the Rising Sun’, a number of special events will be taking place in 2014. There will be opportunities to find out more about bears in the wild, as well as see the bears in their wonderful new environment. A programme for schools will enable children to get involved in a competition, with the winning school designing a permanent piece of artwork at Colchester Zoo. Fundraising will also be taking place to assist the charity Free the Bears in their work to assist and protect, preserve and enrich the lives of bears throughout the world.

Free the Bears: Your support helps provide enrichment for bears in Cambodia.

18 months

was spent b “Bears of t uilding the he Rising S un” enclosure!

Why not pick up our n” “Bears of the Rising Su e enclosure leaflet at th new enclosure? ch time Find out all about how mu ing this and effort went into build . PLUS state of the art enclosure Ya’s Story. read about Jo-Jo and Srey

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Now OPen!

Brand new exhibit, Bears of the Rising Sun: Sonny Bear Mascot at our new bear enclosure.

Saturday 5th - Monday 21st April

aLl about bears

You are invited to take a stroll through the ‘A Bear’s World’, a fun, themed walkthrough where you can learn all about these wonderful creatures. Or, why not try your hand at tracking a bear and making bear-themed crafts in the Discovery Centre. There are also lots of opportunities to meet our mascot, Sonny Bear, and enjoy some fun story telling with ‘Bear Tales’ in the Kalahari Theatre.

Sunday 1st June

Teddy Bears’ Picnic

To celebrate 2014 Year of the Bear, we are hosting our very own Teddy Bears’ Picnic! Don’t miss out on the fun!

Srey Ya and Jo-Jo: Enjoying enrichment at their temporary enclosure.

t ’ n Do ss! mi ! s il ta e d t n e v e r e h t r Fu r o f Check out our website www.colchesterzoo.org

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Zoo News Animals

Santa recruits more reindeer!

Llamas and Alpacas are joined by the Darwin’s Rhea! Darwin’s Rhea Status: Near threatened. Distribution: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru. Diet: Plants, grasses, fruit and seeds. Also, lizards, insects, birds and other small vertebrates. Threats: Hunted for meat, eggs and feathers and habitat loss.

We now have three young male Reindeer! These youngsters will be trained and mixed with our older reindeer ready for helping Santa in Christmas 2014!

Did you know? They rarely drink as they get their water from the succulent plants in their diet! Once we have a female companion for our male, we will be looking to participate in a breeding programme for this species.

Fin and Sami are just over 9 months old and Gironimo is the eldest at 1 1/2 years old. They all have their very own cheeky personalities and are building a strong relationship with their keepers. Please note that they are being cared for off public display.

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Kingdom of the Wild welcomes the Maneless Zebra As we say farewell to Troy, Dash and K’Tusha as they leave on their adventure to Manor House Park in Wales, we say hello to a new group of Maneless Zebra! The Maneless Zebra is a subspecies of the plains zebra. We have 1 male foal and 4 female Maneless Zebra joining our collection from Denmark. We will import a stallion in the future and it is hoped that they will be a successful breeding group! The Maneless or Uganda Zebra are a managed subspecies and the programme coordinator was looking for holders who had the facilities to house and breed them, so we offered to get involved. At the same time Manor House were looking to expand their herd and we know 100% that their two animals are Damara Zebra, as their female is Troy’s mother and their male came from us originally. Unfortunately neither Troy nor the male at Manor House are entire males so the herd is currently not breeding, but they may look to bring in a stallion in the future. We have also welcomed a new male Ostrich into the Kingdom of the Wild paddock.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Experiences

Get Closer!

Birthday Parties

Team Building

Perfect Proposals

Not only is a Birthday Party at Colchester Zoo superb value for money, with a full day out . . .

Enjoy an unforgettable team building day that will improve communication skills and strengthen your team...

Planning on popping the question to your loved one?

It is also unique in that it gives the birthday child the amazing opportunity to get close to some of the animals! Plus, one adult goes free with every 8 paying children!

Whilst providing a fun and rewarding day out for all! From as little as £35.00 per person.

Why not take a look at our Perfect Proposal packages to make it an unforgettable moment!

To book or make an enquiry 01206 331292

www.colchesterzoo.org

Or if you’re visiting call into Guest Services

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Contents

Status: Near Threatened and listed on Appendix I of CITES. In 2013, 1,004 rhinos were poached in South Africa compared to only 13 in 2007. By the middle of March 2014, over 170 have already been poached.

What we are doing to help! Action for the Wild has supported rhino conservation in South Africa since 2006. We have donated over ÂŁ56,000 to help provide equipment to prevent poaching of this iconic species. UmPhafa Private Nature Reserve: Our UmPhafa Reserve in South Africa is home to 7 White Rhino. Since we released them in 2008/2009, we have had four calves born.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Southern White Rhinoceros Ceratotherium simum simum

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We need to tackle wildlife crime with a concerted global response as vigorous and forceful as the trade itself. We need to set aside differences, speak with one voice and act as one global community.

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Words by HRH Duke of Cambridge Illegal Wildlife Trade Conference, London 2014

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

News UmPhafa Private Nature Reserve

Leopard Population Continues to Increase UmPhafa field staff were very excited to discover the presence of yet another leopard individual on the reserve. This amazing photograph was taken by a camera trap placed in the aptly named â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Leopard Gorgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; region of UmPhafa and recorded this beautiful individual that seemed to be almost posing for the shot! Though the sex is unclear, it appears to be a much younger leopard than the others previously recorded providing proof of a third leopard within the area.

UMPHAFA Private Nature Reserve

Another leopard on UmPhafa: New camera trap image confirms the presence of a third leopard on the reserve.

Spotted Hyena Return As conditions have improved on the reserve and antelope numbers have increased dramatically, UmPhafa has seen the return of a second large carnivore to the area. The first signs that spotted hyena had arrived were back in May 2013 when the characteristic low, whooping call was heard. Further evidence from camera traps identifies only one individual currently, scouting out new territory. This marks the return of this species to the area after an absence of around 100 years and we hope that many more will follow in the future.

Vultures arrive in force: Huge numbers of cape vulture arrive from as far away as Mkuze Game Reserve.

UmPhafa assists with vulture conservation With large carnivores becoming increasingly more active on UmPhafa, vultures have become common on the reserve with these majestic birds often seen circling the skies overhead. Vultures are an incredibly important species for conservation on the African savannahs and are crucial in clearing up old carcasses and preventing the spread of diseases amongst animal populations. Unfortunately vultures have declined massively over the past two decades and many species now face extinction over much of their range within 50 years. Staff and volunteers on UmPhafa were recently able to camera trap some of the individuals and found that many had rings with identification numbers. These birds were tracked back to a survey carried out in Mkuze Game Reserve 400km away, providing very useful information on the ranges of these birds. Staff will continue to work closely with the vulture study group to report sightings and conditions on the reserve. Spotted hyena: Hyena are still active on UmPhafa.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

ate

The UmPhafa Priv Nature Reserve

Background: o purchased three old In 2005 Colchester Zo y a nature reserve purel cattle farms to create s. cie spe of African for the conservation Where: Africa. KwaZulu-Natal, South Size: 0 acres) 4,500 hectares (11,12 Species: African animals A huge range of South affe, leopard, kudu, gir , including white rhino ldebeest, zebra, spotted hyena, blue wi ny more! warthog and many, ma Giraffe translocated: Ten giraffe successfully relocated to the second portion of the reserve.

Giraffes Moved to New Pastures Ten of UmPhafa’s giraffes have been moved to the second portion of the reserve following the huge breeding success amongst the population. Three males and seven females were relocated in a carefully coordinated operation which saw the release of giraffe for the first time ever on to this area of UmPhafa. This move was crucial in ensuring that the population remains healthy and in good condition, and also to help to control the growth of acacia trees naturally and provide a well maintained habitat for all species on the reserve. All ten giraffe have since settled very well into their new surroundings and in March, we celebrated the arrival of a new calf.

Population increases exceed expectations The past year has brought with it a huge number of new offspring on UmPhafa with many populations far exceeding the expected growth rate.

Good news for rhino conservation: Another two rhino calves born in 2013.

Wildebeest, blesbok and kudu are all species that have increased significantly, but white rhino and giraffe populations have also been successful with the birth of another three giraffe calves and two more rhinos. The rhino calves come at a time when all 5 remaining rhino species are under huge threat from the rise in poaching for their horn so these births are not only an achievement for UmPhafa’s population, but also for the conservation of these incredible animals.

Get involved in UmPhafa’s work! Want to experience first-hand what it’s like to live and work on a game reserve in South Africa? UmPhafa offers opportunities to do just that as an intern to the reserve managers. These internships are particularly suited to anybody that’s looking to pursue a career in conservation but are also open to anybody that has a genuine love of nature and wants to get involved in a hands-on way.

More details and an application form can be found on the website: www.umphafa.org/placements/internships

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Feature Day in the Life

Day in the

Life of a bear keeper by Colchester Zoo Bear Keeper, Bex Brown

My day starts at 8am collecting the bears’ food from the kitchen and going to check that the bears are ok... Usually Jo-Jo will greet me first at the window, followed by Srey Ya. In the first few minutes of seeing the bears, I watch their movement and behaviour to make sure they don’t have any injuries. I also give their inside and outside enclosure a quick check, as the bears can be very mischievous and I need to make sure they haven’t broken anything overnight.

Breakfast After cleaning the windows, I prepare the bears’ first meal of the day; egg boiled rice. Jo-Jo and Srey Ya respond well to their names, allowing me to call them into their house and to lock them into one room of the house. I then go into the other indoor house and put out the bowls of eggy rice. Whilst the bears are locked indoors, I then go into their outside enclosure, pick up any uneaten food from the previous day and lots of big bear poo! I clean and fill the water bowl and rake the bark on the floor. I then pile the bears’ logs and scatter out some of the bears’ fruit and vegetables, before letting the bears outside.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Srey Ya: Our female sun bear Srey Ya posing for the camera! (Photograph: Ivor Dallinger)

Sun bear enrichment: Srey Ya loves to rub fish dinner all over herself before eating it!

Jo-Jo: Our male sun bear Jo-Jo exploring his enclosure (Photograph: Scott Davey).

Enrichment I have an enrichment board for the bears, so that for every day in the month, the bears receive a different piece of enrichment, which can range from food such as honey, leaves or coconuts to different smells like perfume, or just unusual objects, such as bed sheets and shoes. Enrichment encourages the bears to explore something new. I use the time after cleaning to prepare the day’s enrichment. At my first public bear feed and talk, I hide some more of the bears’ fruit and vegetables and place out their enrichment. Using my microphone, I then tell the public about the bears while they enjoy their enrichment. The bears receive four fruit and vegetable feeds a day, as well as three or four dry scatter feeds that can consist of pellets, that contain all the bears’ vitamins and minerals, as well as raisins or mealworms. I space the scatter feeds throughout the day between the fruit feeds. I often present these feeds to the bears by scattering them across the enclosure to encourage natural foraging behaviour.

Zoo Cadet & Keeper for a Day Part of my day is taken up with one or two visitors being a ‘Zoo Cadet’ or ‘Keeper for a Day’, when I take them into the empty inside

Sun bear enrichment: Jo-Jo loves coconuts and makes light work of opening them!

enclosure and put out some enrichment for the bears, before Jo-Jo and Srey Ya rush in to enjoy their goodies.

Exercise After lunch, the bears receive another fruit and vegetable feed, placing it strategically around the enclosure to encourage the bears to climb up high and work a little harder for their food. I encourage the bears to be as active as possible to keep them fit and healthy. Jo-Jo and Srey Ya are very good at standing on the weighing scales for me, for a few peanuts as a reward, so I can monitor how much they weigh. Both bears currently weigh around 80kg.

Bedtime The bears usually put themselves to bed after the last public feed. Srey Ya has a hammock in the house she likes to lay on her back in, while Jo-Jo snuggles down on a bed of straw. It is at the end of the day I write the day’s events in my daily diary, so that there is a record of the bears’ lives since they arrived at Colchester Zoo. I then say goodnight to the bears, hand in my radio and keys and head home.

Sun Bear Encounters Life in a zoo is safe and comfortable for a sun bear. F or highly intelligent species, it doesn’t take them long to work out when regular feed times take place! W e’ve developed a new way of delivering our programme of interactions, feeds and enrichment activities.

How?

We’ve made them completely random b y deciding on the roll of a dice! This reflects the random, unpredictable a nd uncertain nature of life in the wild.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Action for the Wild News

Fundraising Success Action for the Wild had a very successful year in 2013. The charity donated £332,827 to its 20 chosen conservation projects. We would like to thank all of supporters for their generous donations over the course of the year.

Map: 21 AFTW projects worldwide in 2014.

Orangutan Foundation’s Work Fundraising: Zoo crew climb Kilimanjaro for penguins and polar bears!

2013 has been an incredible year for the Orangutan Foundation, which has been supported by AFTW since 2010. They have translocated and rescued 10 orangutans from oil palm plantations and local villages and reintroduced six orangutans into the Lamandau Wildlife Reserve. Six orangutans have also given birth on the reserve, joining five youngsters already being well looked after by their mothers. The Foundation also held a workshop on human-orangutan conflict mitigation, where 21 oil palm companies committed to a communication forum and signed up to protect orangutans in concession areas. It is positive that oil palm companies have held their own workshops and that the Foundation was asked to give several presentations.

Fundraising: Zoo staff sky dive13,000ft for Leopard and Tiger conservation, over £1500 was raised!

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

AFTW is proud to be supporting this project again in 2014, by donating towards the vet’s annual salary and some of the costs for orangutan translocations, such as transport fuel, medication and food to ensure the future safety of these great apes.

21 Projects Worldwide In 2014, Action for the Wild has chosen to support 21 projects worldwide, covering a wide range of species from Elephants down to the Fisher’s Estuarine Moth. Many of these projects are receiving continuing long term support from Action for the Wild, to ensure their success. However, with the successful breeding of the red pandas at Colchester Zoo in 2013, we also wanted to celebrate our new arrivals by supporting a new red panda project.

Image: A couple of Red Panda showing their courtship behaviour in the wild, Eastern Nepal.

Red Panda Forest Guardians Elephant Orphanage Project Many of you will have seen the Elephant Orphanage Project featured on Paul O’Grady’s Animal Orphans. AFTW has supported the project since 2010, providing annual donations to rescue, rehabilitate and release orphaned elephants back into the wild. Their goal is to provide a refuge for calves abandoned, mostly as a result of poaching and human elephant conflict. They are now caring for 13 orphaned elephants at their Lilayi Elephant Nursery in Lusaka and their Kafue Release Facility. Recent rescues include Suni, paralysed in the right back leg by an axe attack, who is now sporting an ergonomically designed brace to support her leg enabling her to walk. The Lilayi Elephant Nursery is open every day to visitors and in 2013, welcomed over 5,100 people to see the elephant orphans and learn about their plight. Action for the Wild is proud to be donating £5,000 to this project in 2014.

Increasing human populations are leading to greater exploitation and fragmentation of the red panda’s forest home and the Red Panda Network uses community conservation to protect red pandas in Nepal. This project brings employment to remote villages, protects local community forests that have no state protection and makes people proud of their natural heritage. It also raises awareness and provides good information on the status of the pandas. Action for the Wild, along with other members of the EEP breeding programme, are providing donations to adopt a group of forest guardians; local villagers hired to protect and monitor the community forests with €1000 required to train, clothe and pay a forest guardian for a year.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Conservation and You

CONSERVATION IN THE GARDEN How to make a bug hotel Summertime brings a number of insects to your garden; building a home for them can be a fun and educational activity to do with your kids. Viewing the insects up close can give your children a greater appreciation for nature. It is easy to make and will cost you very little; you will also be giving nature a helping hand by providing the perfect habitat for insects such as spiders, ladybirds, lacewings and bees.

What you will need:

How to make it:

• Untreated timber • Wood saw • Nails and hammer • Screwdriver and self-tapping screw • Hollow canes, twigs, stones, pine cones, small pieces of wood/bark, grass/straw

When to do it: year round. Time: approximately 2 hours to make.

Step 3

Fit the canes, pine cones, twigs, stones and/or other materials you have collected in your bug box – the different materials will attract different insects. Make sure your materials are tightly packed to avoid them falling out. Adding grass or straw to the box will help to hold them in place.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Step 1

Step 2

Step 4

Step 6

Make a simple box using scraps of untreated timber approximately 2cm thick. Nail them together, leaving the front end open.

Drill a hole into the back of your box.

Step 5

Find a sheltered spot in your garden, but don’t hide it too well or the insects won’t find it.

Cut hollow canes into short lengths, collect pine cones, twigs, stones and any other materials you can find to fit in your bug hotel.

Fix the bug box into place using the selftapping screw.

Zoo Events

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Wake Up! Saturday 14th June 2014

Special Senses Day Saturday 21st June 2014

EXCLUSIVE Colchester Zoo Passholder event!

We are hosting our annual Special Senses Day, which is aimed at making the zoo fully accessible for people of all abilities. Many of the feeds and shows will be BSL interpreted.

We’re inviting our valued gold and platinum passholders to see the zoo in a different light as our doors open from 7.30am with a number of exclusive early morning feeds and demonstrations! Please note that you have to be a valid passholder on the day of the event.

Throughout the day, there will be fantastic opportunities for visitors to get more involved with additional activities and displays!

Summer Late Night Openings Saturday 9th August 2014 & Saturday 23rd August 2014 Enjoy a summer evening with us as we host extra events as opening is extended into the evening with special feeds, displays and training sessions. Do bring a torch with you for extended opening events. Animal viewing, except for timetabled additional feeds, cannot be guaranteed after dark.

Starlight Safari Night Saturday 20th September 2014 Enjoy a magical twilight spectacular with us at an extended opening into the evening. See your favourite animals in a whole new light as some bed down for the evening, whilst for others, their shift is just beginning. Do bring a torch with you for extended opening events. Animal viewing, except for timetabled additional feeds, cannot be guaranteed after dark.

Please note: Tesco Deal vouchers are not accepted for Shriek Week & The Magic of Christmas events.

For event dates and details, visit: www.colchesterzoo.org.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Shopping

Visit the Ark and

for a wide range of ide

Year of the Bear Mugs

Celebrate Year of the Bear with us...check out our collection of bear souvenirs!

Year of the Bear T-sh r Pin Badges

ea Year of the B

2014 Year of the Bear Souv enir Book

The latest edition of Colchest er Zooâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Souvenir Book give s an introduction to Colchester Zo oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Year of the Bear in 2014. Plus amazing images and inte resting facts about the animals at Colchester Zoo!

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

Acacia gift shops

eal souvenirs and gifts.

Colches ter Postcard Zoo Pack

h our Shop online wite! new websit

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Adoption Boxes

Great as a gift for any animal lover! You will receive a photo and certificate of your adopted animal, a species information guide, a Colchester Zoo mug and a soft toy!

Colchester Zoo Gift Vouchers With a wide variety of gift vouchers available from monetary vouchers to animal experiences, treat someone special to an unforgettable gift with long lasting memories.

Zoo Matters Spring 2014

d n u o r r a e y l l a o o Z r e t s e Visit Colch

! s s a P o o Z a h t i w Nearly 60,000 Pass holders ca

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Visit more than tw

ice a year and it’s cheaper to buy a Zoo Pass ! Benefits Include: - 10% off in Ark and Acacia gift shops. - Entrance to selected major Zoos free of ch arge. - 20% discount for pa ss holders purchasin g an animal experience. - Exclusive Pass Holde r’s Adoption opportun ities. - PLUS further benefit s for Platinum pass ho lders! - Including complimen tary day tickets.

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Colchester Zoo Maldon Road Stanway Colchester Essex CO3 0SL T: 01206 331292 F: 01206 331392 E: enquiries@colchesterzoo.org www.colchesterzoo.org www.actionforthewild.org www.umphafa.com