Students in Mrs. Gentles’ Zoology class took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Little
Rock Zoo in October. The tour was led by Summer Holt and Nicole Darland – former Zoology
students, NPCC alumni and current zookeepers. Brave students were coated with slobber
and giddy after feeding “Jahari” the Black Rhinoceros. They learned first-hand (pun
intended) the difference between White and Black Rhinos. The zoo is currently seeking
a mate for Jahari from Potter Park Zoo in Lansing, MI. (He gave his last mate a heart
attack)
No less interesting, but more painful were the South American wild hogs. The sister
of the pair is shown in the photo .You can tell it’s the sister because the brother
doesn’t have any ear hair – his sister chews it off. The wild hogs rolled over like
dogs wanting their tummies scratched, but got snippy if they weren’t getting enough
attention. They quickly trained us to keep petting or get out of the enclosure!
Students were treated to a short lecture given by the zookeeper assigned to each animal. Every animal is named, has a complete medical file, a special diet and a story. We learned that the elephants get weighed monthly (an hour long process to set up scales for them), and get a pedicure every three weeks.
They learned that the bald eagles are almost 60 years old and the female keeps putting
rocks in her nest to incubate. She’s missing a wing (shot by a hunter) and can’t build
a tree nest, so she won’t ever actually lay eggs. The students realized that anteaters
feel just like they look (coarse hair) and that mane wolves will do anything for an
avocado.
Also this month, Summer and Nicole will visit Mrs. Gentles’ General Biology classes
with some of the more portable animals.
