Volume 2, No. 12. June 28, 2002
New Arrivals
It’s
elephant and lemur exhibits!
The Indianapolis Zoo in Indianapolis, Indiana, announces the arrival of the
African Elephant Preserve and a Ring Tailed Lemur building, June 22, 2002. Measurements:
African Elephant Preserve, 2 1/2 acres (one hectare), a 15,000-square-foot (4,545-square-meter)
holding building, two yards of 64,000 and 17,000 square feet (19,394 and 5,152
square meters), two exercise yards of 4,400 and 5,800 square feet (1,333 and
1,758 square meters), a 6,200-square-foot training yard, a 400,000-gallon pool
(1.5 million liters) with a 15-foot (5-meter) waterfall, and two mudholes courtesy
of the elephants; ring tailed lemur building, 1,030 square feet (312 square
meters) with three lemur holding pens and one flamingo room.
The
zoo that won awards with its African
elephant breeding program—successfully birthing two calves from artificial
insemination—now has a long-awaited home for the celebrity residents. Capable
of holding up to 11 adults (the zoo currently has five adults and the two babies),
the $7.8 million preserve gives the elephants a sloping savannah on which to
roam and a crystal clear pool of water, thanks to a full-scale filtration system.
That
pool of water could lead to another major contribution by Indianapolis to other
zoos. The water drains to a cistern and goes through a prefilter to skim large
elements like straw, then through two large sand filters. The water is chlorinated
and treated with muratic acid then pumped back to the pool via the waterfall.
“A lot of this is new to us,” Keith Schnell, the zoo’s director
of facilities said of the water system. “We’re learning as we go.”
The elephants have resided in their new home since the beginning of the month,
but the water is refreshingly clear, and the elephants have already formed mudholes
on the pool banks.
While
the elephants moved in to their new home early this month, the zoo waited until
Saturday to celebrate the Preserve’s opening to coincide with the public
debut of the renovated lemur exhibits flanking the zoo’s central cafe.
On the island where gibbons once resided, the zoo moved in two species of lemurs
new to Indianapolis, the blue-eyed black lemurs and red-ruffed lemurs. On the
opposite side of cafe’s outdoor dining area, the collared and ring-tailed
lemurs moved into their new year-round home that they share with pink flamingos.
A wood flamingo holding shed had been torn down and a new cliff-facade holding
house built in its place with three rooms for the lemurs and one for the flamingos.
This will allow the zoo to keep the lemurs on exhibit year round, rather than
removing them to off-exhibit holding pens for the on-again-off-again winters
of central Indiana.
The
zoo took a low-key approach to the official unveilings, foregoing formal ceremonies
for a packed schedule of meet-the-keepers programs at both exhibits. Public
Broadcasting television’s costumed star Zoboomafoo was on hand to honor
his fellow lemurs and thrill his young fans. “When we first put lemurs
out in the zoo, no child in the world knew what those things were,” said
Karen Burns, vice president for external relations. “When were were opening
the exhibit Saturday, the kids were going, ‘Lemurs! Lemurs!’ They
knew what it was, and I think the Zoboomafoo creature had a lot to do with it.”
The two new exhibits certainly struck a chord with the community. Burns said more than 6,000 people visited the zoo Saturday. “Given the fact it was a 90-degree day, it was a very good turnout.”
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