Archive for the ‘News and Updates’ Category
Happy Birthday, Pooka! Today is Pooka’s 1st birthday!
He is one of our African Crested Porcupines. The crested porcupine is a species of rodent from various parts of Africa. They are terrestrial; they very seldom climb trees, but can swim. They are nocturnal and monogamous. When bottle-raised they can be very sweet and follow you like a puppy, or very demanding, or both :) These guys are the largest and heaviest rodent in Africa.
Pooka’s favorite food is carrots!
Here are some interesting things to know about the African Crested Porcupine
Anatomy
These porqs can get up to 60 pounds and can live 15 years. They are recognizable by the long, thin quills that run along the head, nape, and back that can be raised into a crest. There are also sturdier quills which run along the sides and back half of the body. These sturdier quills are used for defense and are usually marked with light and dark bands which alternate. These are not firmly attached.
This porcupine has a short tail which has rattle quills at the end. The rattle quills are hollow. When these quills are vibrated they produce a hiss-lik rattle. If continually bothered, the crested porcupine will stamp its feet, whirr the quills, and charge the disturber back end firt trying to stab the enemy with the thicker, shorter quills.
Their teeth grow constantly. To keep them from growing out of control they eat non-stop. As a rodent, they are able to chew through almost anything!
Reproduction
Most of what is known about reproduction in the crested porcupine comes from individuals in captivity. In the wild, females usually have one litter every year. One or two very well developed young are born in a chamber within the burrow that is usually lined with grass, but only after a 66 day gestation period, on average. The babies leave the den after one week. At this time the spines begin to harden. Crested porcupines are sexually mature between 1-2 years of age. Burrows are often extensive and used for many years. In captivity, breeding occurs year round and babies must be pulled immediately to avoid being eaten by the parents. No on really knows why they eat their young.
Diet
The crested porcupine is for the most part herbivorous, eating roots, bulbs, crops. But occasionally they do consume insects, small vertebrates and carrion
Fun Facts
- African crested porcupine attacks are known to have killed lions, leopards, hyenas, and even humans!
- Porcupine quills are often used as ornaments and talismans.
- The meat of these animals is considered a delicacy, and thus they are illegally hunted.
- The word porcupine means “quill pig” in Latin; however, they are not related to pigs at all.
Summer Camp 2010
June 7th-11th 8:30am-1pm (Ages 8-13)
Summer Camp 2010 is for kids who love to be outdoors, who love to get dirty and who can’t wait to learn more about Earth’s amazing creatures!
These camps are uniquely formatted to give animal lovers ages 8-13 the opportunity to explore the world of animals in a hands-on, interactive setting overseen by Sharkarosa keepers and educators. Not only will your child learn about animal behavior and management in the wild & in captivity, they’ll experience what it’s actually like to care for these amazing creatures!
PARENT FRIDAY TOUR:
On Friday of each camp week, we will have a “Parent Tour” in which parents/siblings are invited to join us at 12:30 for a “camper-led” tour of the front portion of the ranch. The campers will present their animal handling skills and facts to their audience, much like our educators do during event presentations.
COST:
$225 per camper/$50 discount for families sending 2 or more campers.
10% Late fee added for registrations not received by May 31st.
Includes: Official Summer Camp 2010 T-Shirt & a daily light snack
**We will NOT have an overnight campout this year.
Michelle, our White-Faced Capuchin Monkey finally has the man of her dreams. Please welcome Miguel to the Sharkarosa family!
He arrived late last week. When we first put them together everyone watched in anticipation to see how well they would take to each other. We are delighted to announce that all has gone extremely well and the two are very happy with each other’s company.
Here’s a little video clip of Michelle grooming Miguel. Grooming doesn’t mean that one or the other has bugs or anything dirty on them. Grooming is a major social activity in primates. They do it as a means of reinforcing social structure, family links and building relationships and trust. Of course, it also maintains good hygiene and health. All in all, grooming is a wonderful thing!
In larger groups of primates, social grooming plays an important role in establishing and maintaining alliances and dominance hierarchies, for building coalitions, for reconciliation after conflicts, and is a resource that is exchanged for other resources, like food and sex. The act has been shown to reduce tension and stress, sort of like how a good massage affects humans. It is often associated with observed periods of relaxed behavior, and primates have been known to fall asleep while receiving grooming.
So on that note, please enjoy!
We’ve had lots of snow here at the Sharkarosa the past 2 days. In preparation for the snow, ranch staff was kept busy adding hay/straw, tarps and additional housing to outside habitats. Delicate animals and youngsters were kept indoors on the coldest days. As the snow begins to melt, everyone seems to have made it through the snow just fine. We will be uploading pics of our snow days at the ranch to our Facebook Fan page soon, so be sure to check them out!
Sharkarosa is proud to announce the addition of two new species of lemurs. You can now see six different species of lemurs on display here at the ranch. Joining the species we currently have on display: Ringtails, Black & White Ruffed, Red Ruffed and Red Fronted Lemurs, are a Black Lemur and a Brown Lemur. We are very excited about the new additions! Be sure to check out their pictures in the photo gallery.
Our Sharkarosa T-shirts are now available both on-line and in our gift shop! Currently there are 2 designs to choose from. Design #1 is a red shirt with black logo & Design #2 is a blue shirt with silver logo. Check out pics on our on-line gift shop. You can order them online or just pick one up on your next trip to Sharkarosa!
Also in our gift shop, you will find some new fair trade items like tagua nuts, animal finger puppets, gourd bowls & gourd ornaments. These items are not yet available in our online gift shop.
Sharkarosa is proud to announce the addition of a Macaw exhibit to our ranch! Big Bird, a Scarlett Macaw and Morgan, a Blue & Gold Macaw have been off exhibit patiently awaiting the construction of their new habitat. The boys will now be on display at the entrance by the ticket booth.
Sharkarosa is proud to announce the birth of our first camel baby for 2009! Born Tuesday April 14, 2009, this little guy is quite a cutie. His mom is Clementine, whom some of you may recognize as our first bottle baby camel of 2005. Although we have not settled on a name yet, “Count Chocula” is at the top of the list.
Other newbies here at Sharkarosa include: Jam, a 5 week old Miniature Zebu and Kinetta, a 3 year old White Nosed Coatimundi!
Spring is just beginning for us & we hope to have many more babies born in the next few months. Keep checking back for more updates! Come visit the new babies on Open to the Public Saturday’s. See the visitors guide for details!
We are in the process of switching over to a new website format, so please bear with us as we get everything updated and functional. Some of the new additions to our website will include: an online gift shop, discussion forum for everyone to post reviews of their visit, a weekly blog written by one of the Sharkarosa staff & an animal sponsorship program.
On Friday November 14th we received a call from our friends at Snake Farm in New Braunfels, TX. A heat lamp had malfunctioned and the monkey area was on fire. While Sharkarosa’s owner, Scott Edwards, headed down to Snake Farm to assist in rescue and recovery efforts, staff at the ranch prepared cages & medical supplies should any animals need to be temporarily relocated. Two Mandrill Baboons & three tortoises perished in the fire. They also lost all of their animal food and some other supplies. Snake Farm staff is now in the process of cleaning up & designing new habitats. Anyone who would like to make a donation can visit their website at www.exoticanimalworld.com.
Here at the ranch, staff & volunteers have been busy winterizing all the animal habitats. This year, the residents of the small animal barn all received new heat plates in their nest boxes for added warmth. The Kangaroo loafing sheds were filled with hay & we added a north wind block for extra warmth.
November 29th will be the last Open to the Public Saturday for 2008. We will reopen on Saturday’s in March 2009. Keep checking back for more details. During December-February, Sharkarosa will be open by private reservation only. If you would like to schedule a field trip or private tour, you can email the ranch manager at sharkarosa@sharkarosa.com with the dates and times you are looking to book. We do book up about 2 weeks in advance! Teachers, we are currently taking reservations for Spring 2009 field trips. Last year we booked up 6 weeks in advance, so please, if you’re thinking of bringing your school out this spring, make your reservations early to ensure a spot.
OUR CHRISTMAS LIST
Many of you have been asking what is at the top of Sharkarosa’s Christmas List. As many of you know, the past few months we have offered a “sample” gift shop during field trips and open to the public days out of the end of our dining room. The feedback was astonishing! Gift shop sales from the 20 items we offered brought in enough money that we were able to purchase the new heat pads for the small animal barn and contribute to the funds that laid the foundation for the new (permanent) gift shop and concession stand! We are so excited about what this means a full sized gift shop could do in terms of contributing to the monthly income of the ranch! We are currently accepting donations for the 2nd phase of our construction: the walls, plumbing, electrical, etc. This will all be done in house, by Sharkey’s Construction & volunteers. The 3rd and final phase of the gift shop: the wood interior, shelving, etc, has been graciously donated by local Denton County small businesses. Thus, all we need to complete phase 2 is $5,000! Every little bit helps, so if you feel you could contribute, please send it on in! Remember donations are tax-deductible and we will issue a tax donation receipt upon request.
Thank you and Happy Holidays!