Calves and kittens and snakelets, OH MY!
Births are booming at the OKC Zoo
The Oklahoma City Zoo’s newest giraffe calf walked out on a warm August afternoon, the only member of the herd deciding to leave the shade of the barn. h Kioni, the offspring of 21-year-old Ellie and 4-year-old Demetri, now stands at 7 1/2 feet and weighs just over 300 pounds. h At almost 3 months old, Kioni doesn’t seem to shy away from the curiosities of his world. h “He’s one of the most independent calves I’ve ever seen,” said primates and hoofstock curator Tracey Dolphin.
Kioni is just one of several new additions to the OKC Zoo family, which has recently welcomed a rare clouded leopard kitten, three Eastern massasauga snakelets and four black tree monitor hatchlings, as well as two adult bateared foxes. Another giraffe calf is expected soon, as well as an Asian elephant calf due in February.
“Our animal family is always growing,” said Candice Rennels, zoo director of public relations. “It is very exciting that there are so many right now and that they’re all so diverse in species. ... These new births are ambassadors for their species as a whole and are really
contributing to the longevity of their populations.”
Caretakers hand-rear clouded leopard kitten
The zoo’s 3-week-old clouded leopard kitten, nicknamed “little girl” or “little kitten” by her caretakers, has nearly tripled in size since her birth, now weighing over a pound and a half.
The kitten is the first successful offspring of Rukai and her mate, JD. Rukai and JD are part of a Species Survival Plan, through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, that matches mating pairs based on genetic diversity.
The clouded leopard species is vulnerable to extinction due to poaching, deforestation and the pet trade. This status makes the kitten’s birth extremely significant, and the SSP recommended the kitten be handreared by zoo caretakers.
This consists of bottle feedings every four hours by a team of 11, said carnivore curator Tyler Boyd.
“It’s not just a 9 to 5 job, it’s all the time to get her through this critical period of her growth,” Boyd said. “It’s around the clock feedings, weight monitoring, making sure her temperature is within the normal range.”
The kitten will remain off public view, and unnamed, during her time in Oklahoma City, as the zoo waits for a recommendation for her mate.
She will then be moved to another zoo — which will have the opportunity to choose her name — where she and her selected mate will contribute to increasing the clouded leopard population.
From childhood obsession to part of her job
Rae Karpinski, lead animal caretaker of herpetology, is experiencing a personal life highlight with the birth of three Eastern massasauga rattlesnakes.
Both Karpinski and the threatened rattlesnake species are native to Michigan, and she always found herself fascinated by the elusive predators. She has even paid permanent homage to them — the spotted snake is among several other animals tattooed on her right arm.
“They were always this awesome thing to me,” Karpinski said. “And so when I came here, and we had them at the zoo ... it just made me little kid happy.”
The snakelets, born June 1, are also the result of a Species Survival Plan pairing.
Karpinski, a coordinator for the snakes SSP, said this was the first time in her 10 years at the zoo that there was an approved pairing for the species, as well as for the Black tree monitor species.
The zoo had two male black tree monitors and recently received a female, making the four new hatchlings possible.
Zoo customers always have the option to “Round Up for Conservation” at gift shops and restaurants, and Karpinski said that money goes to supporting conservation efforts for species that have an SSP. Those efforts include sending SSP members like Karpinski into the field to observe populations.
Zoo’s fourth elephant birth eagerly awaited
Now in her fourth pregnancy, 26-year-old Asian elephant Asha is what caretakers describe as the ideal mother to her calves.
Having offspring as an elephant is no small commitment, said curator of elephants and rhinos Rachel Emory. Elephants have the longest gestation period of any animal: 22 months. Once a calf is born, it will be nursed for about the next two years.
Asha’s most recent calf, Kairavi, is 2.5 years and still nursing periodically, Emory said.
Throughout this pregnancy, Asha has gained about 600 pounds, which Emory said is healthy.
The calf, whose gender is unknown due to inability to see much detail in elephant ultrasounds, will likely come out weighing somewhere in the 300-pound range, Emory said.
The calf, expected in February, will not only be Asha’s fourth but the zoo’s fourth elephant birth overall.
Giraffe herd soon to feature two calves
One of Kioni’s favorite things to do is run around with his dad, Demetri, said Tracey Dolphin, primates and hoofstock curator.
“You have dad who is over 15 feet tall, and then you have this little guy running right next to him,” Dolphin said. “It’s probably one of the most precious things I have seen.”
Kionin was gradually introduced to each member of the herd, and once he was 2 weeks old they were able to all be together.
While each relationship with the other giraffes is important, Dolphin said it’s been particularly encouraging to see how Kioni’s 6-year-old sister Julu, who is pregnant and expected to give birth soon, has reacted to the young male.
It’s the first time Julu has been around a calf as an adult, and her maternal instincts have been kicking in, Dolphin said.
If other herd members were getting a little too curious in the beginning, Julu would put herself between them and Kioni; and when Kioni first start going in the barn by himself, Julu would have to go check on him before going back to what she was doing.
“Being a first time mom ... we were watching for how she was going to interact with the calf,” Dolphin said. “And she has done amazing with him. ... So all of that gives us really positive indicators that this might be how she is with her own calf as well.”