Archive for the ‘animals’ Category
August 31, 2010 by LesliePopiel • 3 Comments »
Posted in animals
 As Sakari gets closer to her eight month birthday she continues to learn and develop new skills daily. She grows more and more independent each day, too! Having a very curious nature, she will often swim away from her mother, Takara, to explore environmental enrichment devices- toys and water sprayers- or even the other whales. During sessions, Sakari will stay with her own trainer to learn and play while her mom interacts with a trainer in a different location.
With each show, we laugh and applaud as our little one “takes her first steps.” Sakari has learned several new behaviors by simply following her mother. She seems to have a grasp on bows, jumping right next to her mom, but in other scenarios Sakari just leaps from the water, twisting, splashing, and evoking smiles from every onlooker. She is learning to turn upside down and wave her tail with Takara, too, but watch out! Sakari is learning to splash with that tail! If you haven’t been to a show recently, come on out and see her fun antics!
Sakari has demonstrated an interest in the trainers as well. Often the first one to come over at the start of a session, she seems eager to interact with us. She has learned to line up in front us to receive a good back rub.  More importantly, this behavior allows us to examine her more closely. We are also teaching her to roll over. Once she learns to lay out with her belly to the sky, we will be able to teach her to lay her tail fluke in our laps. This is an essential behavior known as a fluke present which enables us to easily (and for her, voluntarily) collect blood samples that provide valuable information regarding her health and help us care for her more effectively.
While still nursing and receiving daily nutrition from her mother, Sakari now eats a steady diet of capelin. Initially she would play with pieces of fish that Takara would share with her. Where fish-smashing was once her interest, swallowing the fish whole like the big whales is the new norm.
Sakari is our little ray of sunshine. Every day with her is an adventure as she discovers new things she can do, experiments with new vocalizations, learns from her mom and learns with us.
July 7, 2010 by KellyMorales • 4 Comments »
Posted in animals
 Celebrate sharks at SeaWorld during the month of July When I first started working at SeaWorld, I’m not going to lie; I was excited about being around all of the “cute” animals. Dolphins! Penguins! Sea lions! Shamu! I mean, who could blame me? I was eager to learn more about them, and I knew my guests would be eager to hear all I had to say while around their habitats. Win-win!
Then there were the sharks. I mean, I always thought they were cool, but they didn’t tug at my heart like some of the other animals. I’m sure I had the same pre-conceived ideas that most guests have when they think about sharks. Stop for a minute, and think about what comes to mind when you hear the word “Shark”. Scary? Menacing? Mysterious? Danger? It’s easy to think those things, given what we are usually told about them on television and movies.
The truth is, once I got to know more about sharks, different words started coming to my mind. Awesome. Important. Beautiful. And, unfortunately, Misunderstood. There are many myths and misconceptions surrounding sharks, but there are also so many amazing facts about them that it’s hard not to like sharks a whole lot more once you get to know them too. Here are a few of my favorites:
Most people immediately think of teeth when they think about sharks. While looking at their rows of teeth may be impressive, there is so much more to the story. Each species of shark has a different shaped tooth depending on their diet. Their teeth can be broad and serrated like a knife for seizing and cutting, or long and sharp like fork tines for catching smaller prey. Because of their biting force, they often lose teeth while feeding. Some species of sharks can lose and replace up to 30,000 teeth in their lifetime!
Because they are the “scavengers of the sea”, a shark’s senses are well adapted for honing in on prey that is weak, sick, or injured. They have an incredible sense of hearing, and a keen sense of smell, and their eyes are especially adapted for seeing in low light. They have pits on the underside of their snouts called Ampullae of Lorenzini. These sensory pits help the shark sense electrical currents from other animals, and allow them to know exactly when to bite down. They also have a lateral line, which is an adaptation to help them sense vibrations in the water.
 Sharks are important to ocean ecosystems because they keep populations healthy by feeding on weaker animals. This leaves the stronger ones to survive and produce stronger young. Sharks eat far less than most people imagine. Cold-blooded animals have a much lower metabolism than warm-blooded animals. In fact, in a zoological environment like SeaWorld, a shark eats about 1-10% of its total body weight each week. Studies done on wild sharks show that they have similar food intakes.
Over the years, people have used sharks for food, medicines, and vitamins; shark teeth for weapons and jewelry; and shark skin for sandpaper. But today some shark populations are on the brink of extinction. Shark meat is a popular food (with many sharks being caught only for human consumption of their fins). And thousands of sharks are caught by accident, snagged in nets set out to catch other kinds of fish.
Today, I can honestly say that sharks are probably my most favorite animals to talk about. This is why I am very excited that during the month of July, SeaWorld San Antonio will be celebrating sharks! This celebration will include shark talks and activities at our Sharks/Coral Reef exhibit, and each morning, we will be screening our “Saving a Species-The Shark Story” in Sea Star Theater. This 2-D movie delves into the mysteries of these fascinating creatures. You will learn about the variety of shark species, their amazing adaptations, and find out what is being done to protect and preserve sharks worldwide.
Learn more about sharks with our online Sharks Animal Info Book.
Are you a teacher looking for ways to bring sharks to your students? Check out our Shark Teacher Guide.
Want to get even closer? Touch a shark and hand feed their closest relatives, the stingrays, on our Behind the Scenes Tour and our Stingrays Up Close Tour.
We are very thrilled to be able to share these stories with you, and we hope to see you this month!
June 21, 2010 by KellyMorales • 1 Comment »
Posted in Adventure Camp, animals, conservation
 Nurra the Bennett's Wallaby This week, we would like to introduce you to Nurra, our Bennett’s wallaby.
Nurra was named in honor of our Adventure Camp program, as her name means “camp” in Aborigine. If you have ever wondered how we decide on the names of our animal ambassadors, they often refer to something about that animal. It could be something we observed here at the park, or something that pertains to their adaptations or habitats in the natural environment. Their name is usually in the native language of the area they are naturally found. Our resident camp counselors help Nurra’s keepers by assisting with cleaning her habitat and preparing her food. Their camp experience also allows them a chance to hold her and have their pictures taken with her.
Wallabies, like their larger kangaroo relatives, are indigenous to Australia and Tasmania. They use their long tails for balance, and strong legs for jumping. They are nocturnal herbivores, spending a lot of time browsing for grass and plants. They use their sharp front teeth for cutting grasses, and their large, flat molars for grinding their food.
Wallabies usually live alone, except for females and their offspring. They are a marsupial, which means that after the baby, or joey, is born, it continues to develop inside the mother’s pouch for up to an additional eight months.
Wallaby mothers have the ability to conceive while they are still caring for a joey in their pouch, but the embryo will not start to develop until the older joey has left the pouch.
The mother wallaby is able to produce two different kids of milk, a higher fat and energy rich milk for her older joey, and a less energy rich milk for the newborn still in her pouch. Joeys will usually separate from their mothers after about one year.
Not only does SeaWorld take care of Nurra, we also care for her distant relatives. In 2009, Victoria, Australia experienced an unusually strong drought coupled with a severe heat wave. This precipitated major brushfires, devastating southern Australia, its communities, and natural spaces.
The SeaWorld Busch Gardens Conservation Fund awarded emergency grants to places like the Minton Farm Animal Rescue Center, to purchase food, bedding, and medical supplies for the distressed animals, including wallabies, in their care.
You can visit Nurra at the Animal Connections Reservation Center at the front of the park as she visits with guests throughout the day. She also makes regular appearances with our day and resident campers, and tour guests. Stop by and say hello!
 Nurra meets a SeaWorld Camper
June 9, 2010 by KellyMorales • 4 Comments »
Posted in News, animals
 Wheezie and her pup bond at Rocky Point Preserve SeaWorld San Antonio is very proud to announce the newest addition to our California sea lion family! Early Monday morning, Wheezie gave birth to her first pup at Rocky Point Preserve.
After a total gestation period of 11 to 11.5 months, sea lion pups are usually born on land, and are, on average, about 30 inches long, and weigh about 13 pounds. California sea lions are among mammals that have a special adaptation called “delayed implantation”. This allows the fertilized egg to delay attaching to the wall of the uterus for about 2 to 3 months. This assures the pups will be born during the best time of year for good weather conditions and abundant food sources.
Vocal cues, or sounds by the mother and pup sea lions may be the most important factor in mother-pup recognition. The female sea lion vocalizes often during and immediately after the birth of her pup. The pup instinctively replies. This vocal interaction may continue for 20 minutes or more. This helps establish the mother-pup bond. The mother may also smell, nuzzle, pull, and nip at her pup.
Most sea lion pups are born in late June. Pups are well developed at birth. They are born with their eyes open and can vocalize. Within 30 minutes they are able to shake, groom, scratch, and walk. Pups appear to be able to swim a little at birth, although they made need a little help from their mothers. Keepers from our Animal Care department have shared that it is always a fun experience to watch the sea lion mothers give their pups “swimming lessons” as they develop their coordination.
You can visit with Wheezie and her pup, along with the rest of our seal and sea lion community, daily at Rocky Point Preserve. Hope to see you there soon!
June 8, 2010 by KellyMorales • 2 Comments »
Posted in Animal Ambassador, animals, conservation
 Padre the Roseate Spoonbill During your next visit to SeaWorld San Antonio, you may notice some new faces at the front of the park. The former Clydesdale Hamlet is now the Animal Connections: Reservation Center. This is a great place to start your day. Here you can visit the Concierge Team for information about tours, interaction programs, camps, and other animal connections. They can assist you with pass upgrades, cabanas, and dining programs. Or, if you’re new to the park and you just need some advice on how to navigate around and maximize your visit, they can help you plan your day.
This is also a great place to see a few of our Animal Ambassadors who also happen to be native Texans. Each of the animals you will meet here, (right now you can visit with a Roseate spoonbill, American alligators, and brown pelicans), are considered successes stories. This is because the populations of all three of these species were once critically threatened, but because of conservation efforts and responsible wildlife management, they have come “back from the brink” and their numbers are once again stable.
This week, I would like to introduce you to one of these animals, Padre the Roseate spoonbill. Padre hatched here at SeaWorld San Antonio on July 16, 2005, but if you have travelled to the Texas Gulf Coast, you may have seen spoonbills like Padre in the marshy and grassy areas near the water. They are also found in other coastal areas in the southern United States, the West Indies, Central America, and South America.
Spoonbills are one of 14 species of long legged wading birds. Much like flamingos, their feathers are pink as a result of the food that they eat. Like many other bird species with beautiful plumage, Roseate spoonbills were hunted almost to extinction during the 1800s. Their striking pink feathers were popular on women’s hats, and hunters from all over the United States competed for spoonbill plumes. In the early 1900s, roseate spoonbills began to re-colonize areas along the Gulf Coast and slowly increase in number.
Their bill is long and flat, a special adaptation for tactile feeding. They swish their spoon-shaped bills back and forth in the water to find small invertebrates, fish, and crustaceans.
 Padre swishes his bill back and forth to collect food from the water. Spoonbills also make good parents. During breeding season, the male gives the female gifts of nesting material to attract them. Once mated, the pair remains monogamous. Both male and female take turns sitting on the eggs and feeding the young.
You can see Padre here at SeaWorld, but as an Animal Ambassador he also has made several appearances on television shows, schools, and children’s hospitals. Throughout the day, he will assist with conservation talks and guest meet and greets in the park. This summer the SeaWorld Adventure Campers will assist with training Padre to fly to guests so that they will have an opportunity to get an even closer look at this amazing, although unusual, bird. Don’t forget to come out and say hello to Padre the next time you’re in the park!
May 25, 2010 by AprilLuna • 2 Comments »
Posted in animals, conservation
Sometimes, the most interesting conservation stories at SeaWorld are the ones that take place behind-the-scenes. One of the most interesting is our efforts to help a native Texas species, the Attwater’s Prairie Chicken.
The Attwater’s Prairie Chicken is one of the most critically endangered species of birds in Texas. It is estimated that there are only about 75 birds remaining in the natural environment. This bird once thrived in the coastal prairies from Corpus Christi to the Mississippi river.
SeaWorld San Antonio has been working with U.S. Fish and Wildlife and other facilities (Houston Zoo, Fossil Rim, San Antonio Zoo, Abilene Zoo, and Caldwell Zoo ) to help bring this species off the endangered species list. Behind-the-scenes, the chickens live in private pens where they nest, have chicks, and if possible, are released back to the Texas wild.
The APC breeding season is from March through June. At this time the males will do a booming display to attract the females. After breading, the staff watches closely to monitor for eggs. On average, each female will lay 15 to 20 eggs in a clutch.
Once all the chicks in each facility have fledged, which means they are able to live independently, we have a meeting with all the facilities to determine how many and which birds will be released. There are three different protected wildlife reserves where the chickens are released. These are protected areas by U.S. Fish and Wildlife.
Working to help conserve such a vulnerable species can be very rewarding. To be able to see an egg hatch in a controlled environment is amazing, but then to see that chick that you have cared for three months get released into the wild is breathtaking.
The number of the Atwater Prairie Chickens have increased this year alone from 50 to 75 out in the natural environment, with hopes of one day not having to worry the species survival.
SeaWorld is also involved in doing research with collecting semen. It is important to ensure that all eggs are fertile and that no egg is wasted.
The SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund supports Attwater’s Prairie Chicken research and conservation projects in Texas. For more information on conservation efforts, please visit us here.
May 19, 2010 by ChuckCureau • 6 Comments »
Posted in Around the Park, SWSA Insider, animals
As members of the Animal Training department we are fortunate to perform in shows and host animal interaction programs. These duties are obvious but there are some not so obvious things about our career that most would find interesting. I hereby present to you…
Little Known Facts about Being on the Animal Training Team at SeaWorld San Antonio
The most important type of training that we do is called husbandry. It is the science of training animals to cooperate with us to that we can give them excellent care. Husbandry behaviors include voluntarily allowing us to withdraw blood samples, perform sonograms, and collect bodily fluids.
 Katie gets a fluke present from Sikku. From this position we can collect blood, urine, or even milk. Although many think that we have college backgrounds in marine biology, most trainers studied psychology in college. One aspect of psychology is behavior modification and it’s those principles that we use when training animals.
The people who perform in the shows are the same people who train the animals. There are not separate training and performing staffs. Animal trainers do it all! Before each show we have a meeting to discuss show roles, animals, behavioral goals, and troubleshoot and plan for challenges.
We spend a lot of time with fish and even after multiple showers and repeated hand washings we still smell like the capelin, herring, squid, and salmon that we feed to our animals. Occasionally we’ll even find a scale stuck to us hours after leaving work!
 Jason prepares several pounds of herring to be fed to the belugas in the Beluga Interaction Program. On the average, it takes an animal about two years to perform all roles in a show. In contrast, it usually takes a trainer three years to begin performing the most basic roles in a show. Realize that when you watch us in a show, what we do is not as easy as it looks. For every successful sea lion dance or beluga ballet there are many that are less than graceful and many are downright hilarious. Practice makes perfect though and we spend a lot of time practicing. (I wish you could see some of our rehearsal footage. You would be ROFL!)
At any given time we are surrounded by a collective 60 to 150 years of animal training experience. This makes our jobs much more accessible to professional collaboration. Our oldest animal trainer is in his 50s with over 30 years experience in the field and our youngest is 19 and still in college.
 "Old man" Joe mentors Jenny on the finer points of training animals. All trainers must pass a rigorous swim test demonstrating freestyle swimming, a difficult underwater breath hold test, and be able to swim to the bottom of the beluga pool which is 25 feet deep. (BTW… “Old man” Joe is one of the most fit people in the department. He does better on the swim test than some of the trainers half his age. Way to go, Joe!)
Working with the animals accounts for only a small portion of our work day. We’re also busy serving on various park committees, doing computer work, and tons of cleaning. We not only clean fish buckets and pools, but our toilets and shower facilities as well!
It’s a small price to pay for having such a wonderful career.
Editors Note: Read more about the benefits of animal training on SeaWorld.org
May 17, 2010 by NickIreland • 1 Comment »
Posted in Around the Park, animals
Our newest aquarium exhibit, at Sharks/The Coral Reef has recently been opened with some amazing creatures that inhabit sea grass environments. The aquarium features several unique species of fish and invertebrates.
Sea grass communities are home to small, delicate species and often serve as a haven for juvenile fish before they make the journey into the open sea. The sea grass itself can also be food to many larger species of marine animals.
 Banggai Cardinalfish inhabit sea grass beds in Indonesia. Our sea grass exhibit features Banggai Cardinalfish, Pterapogon kauderni, a beautiful black and white species that can only be found in a remote part of Indonesia. You’ll see them hovering still in the water column in a small school. Also, don’t miss the Shrimpfish, Aeoliscus strigatus. You may need to look hard for these, they don’t much look like a fish at all at first glance. Shrimpfish avoid predators by camouflaging themselves around the tall sea grass. They actually swim in a vertical position with the head down.
 Even though it doesn't look the part, this is a fish. Don’t miss some of the fascinating invertebrates (animals without a backbone) featured in the exhibit, such as shrimp, sea cucumbers, and hermit crabs. One of the really cool shrimp is the Skunk Cleaner Shrimp, Lysmata amboinensis, which gets the skunk portion of its name from the white stripe on its back. They are called cleaner shrimp because of the service they provide to other animals.
Cleaner shrimp can occupy many different habitats and fish will recognize that they are not food and allow the shrimp to pick parasites and dead skin off the fish. The fish will even let the shrimp clean the fish’s mouth out. This not only helps the fish remain clean and healthy, but also provides the shrimp with a snack. You may even be lucky enough to see this behavior in our exhibit.
 Like a fish car wash, the Skunk Cleaner Shrimp runs a "cleaning station". So, next time you stop by the aquarium at SeaWorld San Antonio, don’t miss out on the fascinating creatures that call the sea grass beds home.
May 11, 2010 by GeoffBaldwin • 2 Comments »
Posted in Children, Shows, animals
Working in a theme park is not a typical kind of job. This is especially true if your park includes animals, they require care 24/7, open or closed, good weather or bad. The folks that stay around are very dedicated and have decided that traditional summer holidays can be celebrated other days of the week and that not having weekends off can be a good thing for errand running - less crowds on weekdays.
At SeaWorld I am surrounded by just such a dedicated group of people, many that have been with the park 10, 15, 20 or even 30 plus years. Many met their husband or wife while working here. I did, have kids that virtually grew up in the park and then pursued their own careers at SeaWorld. It is a great exciting job, but it is also long days (sometimes nights), missed dinners, sometimes late for family events, yet many of us have trouble picturing doing anything else.
So why do we stay?
I know there are jobs out there with a more Monday to Friday, 40 hour-per-week schedule and probably better pay, so why?
Back in 1988, when SeaWorld San Antonio opened, hundreds of team members worked seven days a week, 12 to 16 hour days for weeks leading up to our April 15 opening, and many of those people are still here.
The night before opening I got home after midnight and was back to work at 6:00 AM the next day. I remember doing my opening rounds to make sure everything was ready. It was mostly a smooth start with a few “oops,” but then it was 10:00 AM and the National Anthem was playing. I got a slight tingle when the first guests entered the park, but it was not really that big of a deal. I kept touring, checking in with my team as the morning progressed, working my way south to Shamu stadium for our first killer whale show.
At show time the stadium was pretty full and the quiet buzz of voices could be heard. I had been with SeaWorld 11 years at that point and seen many Shamu shows, the last few weeks I had attended 15 or 20 rehearsals, but I had forgotten that most of the 4,000-plus guests seated in the stadium had never seen a killer whale, so I was unprepared for their reaction.
 Geoff Baldwin, crowd watching at a "Believe" show When Shamu made his first appearance there was a hush and then the stadium erupted with screams, cheers, laughter and excitement! I looked around at the faces of all the guests, the awe on the children’s faces and the joy of their parents as they watched.
That was when I got a major chill, and that is why we do what we do! The joy and wonder in the faces of our guests.
To this day after almost 34 years, if I am having a less than perfect day, I go see a Shamu show, not to see the whales, but to watch and listen to our guests. It still gives me a chill.
Gotta go, burning daylight!
Geoff Baldwin
May 5, 2010 by KellyMorales • 1 Comment »
Posted in Animal Ambassador, Meet My Friend..., Uncategorized, animals, conservation
 Meet Chloe the barred owl at the Animal Connections Center This week we would like to introduce you to Chloe the barred owl. Chloe came to us from our sister park, Discovery Cove.
Chloe was originally found in a school yard eating from students during lunch. She would land on edge of the tables and wait for food. Because of this behavior, the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey in Orlando felt she was probably a pet that had escaped or been released and they collected her.
It was believed that Chloe had imprinted on humans. Soon after many animals are born, they imprint on their caretakers. Imprinting is a critical behavior that establishes a bond between young animals and their parents. If an animal, such as an owl chick, is cared for and raised by humans at a very young age, it will no longer recognize itself as an owl, and will continue to seek socialization from humans. A bird of prey with this behavior is considered non-releasable because their feeding behaviors are not safe in their natural environment. As a result, Chloe found a home at Discovery Cove.
Barred Owls like Chloe are medium-sized, gray-brown, and they are streaked with white side-to-side barring on the chest and up-and-down barring on the belly. Their eyes are brown, and the beak is yellow and almost covered by feathers. They have a long tail, and there are no differences in coloration between males and females.
Owls are nocturnal hunters, and prey mostly on small rodents. Most owls have unique, comb-like feathers that allow for silent flight. The leading edge is “fringed” so that the feathers, when moving, do not make noise when rubbing together. It is rare for the prey to hear an owl swooping in.
Owls have excellent vision. Their eyes look forward in a fixed position and cannot move from side to side, as the human eye can. In order to see peripherally, the owl must turn its entire head. It is a myth that owls can turn their head all the way around. Owls have 14 neck vertebrae, allowing them to move their head 270 degrees.
Although these birds have excellent eyesight, they are also capable of catching prey using only their sense of hearing. Owl ears are located one higher than the other, increasing sound reception. During flight, the left ear captures sounds below while the right ear focuses on sounds from above. In addition, their face feathers create a disc, which works to trap and focus sound.
 Chloe's face feathers create a disc that trap and focus sound As predators, owls play an important role in the environment by controlling small animal populations. Because mammals are a primary prey item, this can be especially beneficial to humans, reducing the amount of food lost each year to rodents.
If you would like to visit with Chloe, or maybe even take a photo with her, you can meet her at the Animal Connections Conservation Center along with our other Animal Ambassadors. For information about other birds of prey species, visit this link on our ANIMALS website.
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As Sakari gets closer to her eight month birthday she continues to learn and develop new skills daily. She grows more and more independent each day, too! Having a very curious nature, she will often swim away from her mother, Takara, to explore environmental enrichment devices- toys and water sprayers- or even the other whales. During sessions, Sakari will stay with her own trainer to learn and play while her mom interacts with a trainer in a different location.
More importantly, this behavior allows us to examine her more closely. We are also teaching her to roll over. Once she learns to lay out with her belly to the sky, we will be able to teach her to lay her tail fluke in our laps. This is an essential behavior known as a fluke present which enables us to easily (and for her, voluntarily) collect blood samples that provide valuable information regarding her health and help us care for her more effectively.
