Zoological Society of Milwaukee
Annual Report 2011-2012
CEO Letter The mission of the Zoological Society of Milwaukee is to participate in conserving endangered species, to educate people about the importance of wildlife and the environment, and to support the Milwaukee County Zoo. 2011-2012 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Scott Redlinger Directors Thom Brown Michael G. Carter Dr. Robert Davis Michael M. Grebe, Jr. Karen Hung Katherine Hust Karen Peck Katz Maria Gonzalez Knavel Joe Kresl Caroline Krider James Kuehn Thomas (T.J.) Marini Allen Martin Quinn Martin Jack McKeithan Jay McKenna Kat Morrow Jill Grootemat Pelisek Gina Alberts Peter Joan Prince, Ph.D. * Chair of the Board
Tom Dempsey Richard A. Gallun Edward A. Grede John A. Hazelwood Robert A. Kahlor Ann McNeer Sandi Moomey William G. Moomey Jeff Neuenschwander Bernard J. Peck Kurt W. Remus, Jr. Jay Robertson John W. Taylor Allen W. Williams, Jr. Paul Wong Bernard C. Ziegler III
James C. Rowe Barry Sattell Kim Schaffer Rick Schmidt Ryan Schultz Thelma Sias Billie Jean Smith Judy Holz Stathas David Strelitz Rich Tennessen* Brookellen Teuber** Gregory Wesley Jane Wierzba Ray Wilson
Honorary Directors William J. Abraham, Jr. John B. Burns William M. Chester, Jr. Stephen M. Dearholt ** Associate Board President
2011-2012 ASSOCIATE BOARD OF DIRECTORS Michael Sheppard Directors Anthony Baish Brian Boecker Bill Bussler Matthew D’Attilio Cherie Eckmann Mary Ellen Enea Darryll Fortune Joseph Frohna Gigi Gamboa Tammy Scully Garrison George Justice Karen Loth Maureen Mack Pat McQuillan Kristin Occhetti Jim Olson Kent Oren Meghan Shannon
Quinn Martin Kat Morrow Katie Pionkoski Richard J. Podell Bunny Raasch-Hooten Arlene Remsik Barry Sattell Dan Schwabe Randy Scoville Judy Holz Stathas Jeff Steren David Strelitz James Szymanski Kathleen Toohey Jane Wierzba Ray Wilson
Tricia Shinners Brookellen Teuber* Laura Vogt Eido Walny Mark Zimmerman
Honorary Directors Bob Anger David Batten Lori Bechthold Nora Dreske John Fleckenstein Mike Fox Linda Grunau Eli Guzniczak Lee Walther Kordus Peter Kordus Joe Kresl
Milwaukee County Zoo director Chuck Wikenhauser (left) and Zoological Society President Robert Davis admire life-size dinosaur models at the premiere of the Zoo’s special summer exhibit May 24, 2012. Guests at the VIP premiere of Adventure Dinosaur!, sponsored by Sendik’s Food Markets, viewed robotic dinosaur models such as this Dilophosaurus mom and baby in the background. The exhibit featured 22 dinosaurs.
Likewise, many of our education programs would not be possible without sponsorship or grants. The live theater program run year-round by the ZSM Conservation Education Department would not have developed or expanded without major grants (see pages 4 and 8). Our education programs that reach out to children in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods also are made possible by numerous generous donors (see page 9). Our conservation programs – especially Zoological Society support of bonobo conservation in Africa and here at home (see page 5) – are funded by a wide variety of grants and donors. These range from the U.S. Agency for International Development to individuals who share our passion for saving endangered species. Zoo Director Chuck Wikenhauser and I feel lucky to have such a wonderful relationship with foundations, corporations, community groups and individuals who help us meet our missions of conservation, education and the presentation of a first-class zoo. To all our supporters, we say: Thank you!
Dr. Robert (Bert) Davis, Chief Executive Officer
CONTENTS
* President
2011-2012 Annual Report summary ...........3-11 Serengeti Circle ......................................................................12 Platypus Circle.........................................................................12 Simba Circle/Endowments ........................................13 Annual Appeal ..........................................................................14 Sponsor an Animal ...............................................................14 Financial Summary .............................................................15 Back Cover: Lody the Bonobo .................................16
2011-2012 FOUNDATION FOR WILDLIFE CONSERVATION, INC.** BOARD OF DIRECTORS Michael Guzniczak, Chair Judy Derse, Past Chair Gerald Gerndt, Vice Chair John Heindel, Secretary/Treasurer Gil Boese, Ph.D., President Robert M. Davis, DVM
Michael Grebe Scott Haag Leander R. Jennings Karen Peck Katz Maria Gonzalez-Knavel Charles A. Krause
**FWC has partnered with the Zoological Society to carry out and advance some of its major conservation, education, and research programs.
2011-2012 ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY MANAGEMENT STAFF President/CEO Dr. Robert M. Davis Communications, Marketing & Membership Robin Higgins, Vice President
From dinosaurs to dynamic, live theater, the Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM) helped make the Milwaukee County Zoo a fun place to visit in the 2011-’12 year. We welcomed Sendik’s Food Markets as the sponsor of the Zoo’s special summer exhibit, Adventure Dinosaur! As many of you know, the Zoological Society secures the sponsors for most Zoo events and special exhibits as well as all ZSM events. Thanks partly to the ZSM’s efforts, our Zoo has more events than many zoos – usually two to four events on grounds each month. Several of those events run multiple days. Without sponsorship, many events would not happen.
Development Karen Von Rueden, Vice President Finance/Administration John Heindel, Vice President Creative Marcia T. Sinner, Director
Education James Mills, Director Technology/Membership Services Dominic Schanen, Director
The 2011-2012 Zoological Society of Milwaukee’s (ZSM’s) annual report is published online as of Oct. 18, 2013. It is available in a PDF file for download at www.zoosociety.org/annual reports. The ZSM has headquarters at 10005 W. Bluemound Rd., Milwaukee, Wis. 53226-4383. Call (414) 258-2333 for information.
Editor Paula Brookmire
Graphic Designer Marcia T. Sinner
Photographer Richard Brodzeller (unless otherwise noted)
On the cover The Milwaukee County Zoo’s fennec fox pair had kits (not shown) in January 2012. 2 Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012
Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report for Fiscal Year Oct. 1, 2011, through Sept. 30, 2012
Animals of Our Lives It’s all about the animals, we often say. Yet it’s about us humans, too. Animals or humans – we share the air, the water, the trees. Protecting and caring for animals – whether it’s at the Milwaukee County Zoo or in the wild – involves protecting the environment. When you think about the conservation and education missions of the Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM), remember that conservation helps us as much as it helps wildlife. While the ZSM is educating people about gorillas and giraffes and their African habitats, we’re also saving the species here at this Wisconsin zoological park. By telling the stories of individual animals and individual conservation projects in ZSM media, we show the value of and the path to preserving our planet. Let’s look at the success of our mission during 2011-2012 in terms of animals. As we heard about the decline of lions in Africa, we watched three lion cubs, born at our Zoo in 2011, grow up during 2012. As we heard about endangered gorillas killed in Africa, we welcomed a new female gorilla, Naku, to the Zoo. We also celebrated 61 years of affection for Samson, the Zoo’s most famous gorilla (who died in 1981), with a book “I Remember Samson.” The author is Darlene Winter, a member of Zoo Pride, the ZSM’s volunteer auxiliary. She has dedicated the profits from the book to the Great Ape Heart Project, an ape-health project that the ZSM helps support. January 2012 also marked the 30th anniversary of the Zoo’s Samson Stomp and Romp, a wintry run-walk in memory of Samson. The Zoological Society gets involved not only by providing general funds to the Zoo and recruiting sponsors for this and other Zoo events but also by telling the stories of these animals and projects in ZSM publications. Naku, for example, was the cover star for the April 2012 Alive, the ZSM’s member magazine. A story on the Great Ape Heath Project appeared inside. Stories on the lion cubs, Samson book and Samson Stomp appeared in Wild Things, the ZSM member newsletter. And Wild Things marked its 100th issue in June 2012. Then there’s the ZSM’s long-term project to help the endangered bonobo, a great ape that’s found in the wild only in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Dr. Gay Reinartz, the Zoological Society’s conservation coordinator, has promoted the conservation of bonobos for more than 25 years. She directs the ZSM’s Bonobo and Congo Biodiversity Initiative (BCBI). Created in 1997 by the Zoological Society, BCBI is a multi-faceted conservation program in the DRC focusing
Naku the gorilla was the “cover girl” for the April 2012 Alive magazine. A story inside described her welcome to the Milwaukee County Zoo.
A giant inflatable gorilla watched over runners starting a 5K race at the Milwaukee County Zoo’s Samson Stomp & Romp on Jan. 15, 2012, which drew more than 2,090 participants. The annual race is named after Samson the gorilla.
on the study and protection of wild bonobos. Dr. Reinartz spends six months a year in DRC’s Salonga National Park conducting field research. Based at the Etate Research Station and Patrol Post, Dr. Reinartz also collaborates with the DRC’s park authority and other conservation partners to conserve bonobos, forest elephants and other endangered animals. The project has become an example of how to protect wildlife while improving Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012 3
the lives of people who live nearby (see Conservation section). In 2012, Dr. Reinartz received the Excellence in Journalism Award from the American Association of Zoo Keepers for an article titled “Perspectives in Poaching: A Park Guard’s Story.” Her article detailed the daily reality of park guards who put their lives at risk. Meanwhile, Zoo Pride has done its part in conserving animals. Between 1993 and the first part of 2012, Zoo Pride’s conservation committee raised nearly $55,000. Anna Wascoe, chair of the conservation committee in 2012, explains how they did it: “We raise funds for animal causes by selling S.O.S. – Save Our Species – buttons to zoogoers. On average we raise about $2,500 for each cause.” In 2012 they supported Polar Bears International. The Zoological Society’s Creative Department designs the S.O.S. buttons as a service to Zoo Pride. In its April 2012 issue, the ZSM’s Wild Things newsletter presented an overview of the conservation projects and groups that Zoo Pride has aided, from bats and bonobos to black rhinos and bald eagles. Go to zoosociety.org/wtapril2012 Telling the story of animals and conservation is part of the purpose of the ZSM’s Conservation Education Department. In nearly year-round classes, children and families get to meet animals close up. In age-appropriate activities, they learn how animals adapt to their environment and how people can pitch in to protect animals. ZSM programs for school classes take advantage of the Zoo as a “living museum” as they take children on Zoo tours or bring Zoo “education animals” into school classrooms. For more information, see the Education section. The Zoological Society helps animals and the Zoo through a variety of programs such as our Sponsor an Animal program and our Annual Appeal. Each part of the ZSM’s three-pronged mission of conservation, education and support of the Zoo is covered in the following pages. The ZSM’s total Zoo support in 2011-2012 was $6,580,974 (including
By April 2012, the three lion cubs that had been born in July 2011 were nearly grown. An earlier photo shows them in the cute-cub stage.
4 Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012
Addi Jean the Bactrian camel was born May 4, 2012, to parents Moses and Sanchi. A story on the youngster ran in the September 2012 issue of Wild Things newsletter.
direct project costs). For a financial summary, see page 15. Funding for our mission comes from a variety of sources, including: • Membership: The ZSM brought in $5,328,243 in Zoo Pass memberships in fiscal year 2011-2012. • Platypus Circle: Members of the ZSM’s premier annual-giving group donated more than $620,730 in cash or in-kind services to help the Zoo. • Sponsors, grantors & supporters: The ZSM acquires sponsors for most of the Zoo’s major events and attractions, and ZSM 2011-2012 direct cash sponsorship support to the Zoo was $311,767. Grants support education and conservation programs, and other projects. Grants brought in $694,746 last year. Additional support of $396,669 funded the ZSM’s live theater program (see Education section). In December 2011, the ZSM was awarded $32,841 by the Potawatomi Bingo Casino Miracle on Canal Street program; the funds went to support ZSM education programs serving children from economically disadvantaged areas of Milwaukee. • Fundraisers run by the ZSM Associate Board: The 29th annual Zoo Ball, sponsored by American Airlines, raised more than $476,000. The 23rd Annual MillerCoors Birdies and Eagles Golf Tournament raised $115,216. All other fundraising events run by the Associate Board – ranging from a Zoo campout to a September bike ride – raised $192,590. • The ZSM’s Sponsor an Animal program raised $160,599 in the last fiscal year to support the Zoo’s animals. • Annual Appeal: The ZSM’s annual appeal raised $176,585 to install Web cams in several animal exhibits and to provide cash support to the Zoo.
Conservation The Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM) supports or directs important conservation programs and research internationally, in Wisconsin, and at the Milwaukee County Zoo. Its expenses related to research and conservation totaled $585,930 in fiscal year 2011-2012. Following are descriptions of various projects: Photo by Hugo Warner For more information, go to www.zoosociety.org/conservation
Wild Bonobos
interior forests where elephants are still found. The Zoological Society provided start-up supplies and rations to get the patrol post operational, and we also secured grants for the first year to enable year-round surveillance. In July-August 2012, the ICCN constructed the first buildings at Lotulo and stationed the first guard team. Meanwhile,at Etate, guards increased their surveillance area from 500 square kilometers to more than 1,000 square kilometers over the year. The guards focused patrols close to and along the Yenge River where elephants still dwell. Even though Operation Bonobo cleared the Yenge of elephant poaching gangs, guards continued to find evidence of extensive, illegal fishing (camps, abandoned nets, etc.). BCBI’s other park-support efforts included:
Dr. Gay Reinartz, the Zoological Society of Milwaukee’s (ZSM’s) conservation coordinator, has spent more than a quarter-century workRations for anti-poaching patrols: Throughout the year, ing to protect the endangered DRC’s national army maintained a presence in the Salonga bonobo. She directs the ZSM’s and provided an ongoing deterrent to poachers. BCBI proaward-winning Bonobo and Congo vided basic food stocks – rice, beans, salt and sugar – to Biodiversity Initiative (BCBI), cresoldiers in the Watsi Kengo Sector. ated in 1997. Bonobos are great apes found in the wild only in the Equipment for guards: At Etate, we supported park guards Democratic Republic of Congo with equipment and supplies, such as field shoes, batteries, (DRC). The Zoological Society medicines, cameras, sleeping bags and pads, flashlights and maintains a research station, called mosquito nets. A young female bonobo looks down on researchers. Etate, in the DRC’s Salonga National Support to the Watsi Kengo Station (northern park headPark; the station also serves as a quarters): This included machetes, tarps patrol post for park guards. The BCBI works in collaboration with the and other field supplies. We also purICCN (Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature) and other conchased and delivered fuel stocks and a servation partners to study and protect bonobo and forest elephant popunew outboard motor specifically for lations and their rainforest habitat. Through BCBI, the Zoological Society Yenge River patrols and guard rotations supports park anti-poaching programs, trains and supplies park guards, at Lotulo. To enable communication supports primary schools, and provides adult literacy classes for villagers near Etate. Dr. Reinartz and Patrick Guislain, ZSM field-site coordinator, work from Etate and are aided by a Congolese project team consisting of research assistants, logistics specialists, river pilots and a camp cook. The 2011-’12 fiscal year was particularly successful for BCBI partly because of continued security in the Watsi Kengo Sector – the area in the Salonga where we work – and the purging of elephant poachers from many parts of the national park, especially along the Yenge River. Since October 2011, a joint military and ICCN anti-poaching operation, known as Operation Bonobo, has been in effect. As a result, many poachers have been arrested and security has been restored so that our field surveys could re-commence and park guards could once again patrol the forests. Here are progress reports regarding a variety of our projects.
A dugout canoe (pirogue) holds barrels of fuel for anti-poaching patrols in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Photos by ZSM staff
Guards stand proudly in front of the new patrol post at Lotulo in a Congolese national park.
Park Support, Anti-Poaching Efforts and Guard Training One of the highlights of the year was the new Lotulo Patrol Post. Located near the mouth of the pristine Yenge River, Lotulo provides a strategic and important “choke point” for poachers entering the park via the Yenge. They have to pass the patrol post to access the park’s
Guards build a new patrol post at Lotulo. Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012 5
among distant patrol posts, we acquired a new two-way radio and communication equipment for the Biondo-Biondo Patrol Post – a remote post 200 kilometers upriver of Watsi Kengo. Training: During the year, we held training sessions for guards and park officials. The training sessions covered the basics of compasses, GPS units and map reading used in forest navigation and bio-monitoring.
Surveys and Research The BCBI team continued to survey the land between the Yenge and Salonga Rivers (Watsi Kengo Sector). The region, we believe, harbors 4,000 to 6,000 bonobos and a remnant herd of forest elephants. The sector appears to be one of only a few areas left in the huge Salonga National Park where bonobos and elephants occur in substantial numbers and where elephants still influence regeneration and growth of the rainforest. Led by our Congolese research assistants, Ngomo Mozart and Basele Michel, our team increased its survey area to about 2,500 square kilometers. Close to the Yenge River, our team found no evidence of returning elephant poachers since the start of Operation Bonobo; however, they found many reminders of previous poaching activity, including abandoned camps and two elephant carcasses. Michel and Mozart have formed a strong team with the help of park guards from the Etate Patrol Post, who continued to provide assistance during surveys. The guards not only help provide protection from accidental encounters with poachers, but they also help find bonobo nests and identify animal signs. Aside from evaluating the status of bonobos and forest elephants, the survey team reported instances of rarer mammals such as hippopotamus, leopard and forest buffalo.
Community Assistance The Zoological Society continued its support of community education in the Etate region. The BCBI provided four schools in three communities Photo by ZSM staff with salaries for nine teachers and classroom supplies (pens, notebooks and chalk). The funds and supplies were delivered to parent committees, which oversee the schools and serve as liaisons with BCBI. Student enrollment increased over the past year from approximately 350 students to more than 400. We also continued to support adult literacy instrucVillagers at Bofoku Mai rebuild their school. tion in the three villages, with If the school is maintained, the Zoological funds for teacher salaries, pens Society of Milwaukee provides wages and notebooks. Due to lack of for teachers and classroom supplies. proper reporting and irregular teacher attendance, however, we scaled back the program to only one village by the end of our fiscal year. Etate Field Day: In April 2012, as a pilot project to help ameliorate resentment by neighboring villagers toward Salonga National Park and build greater awareness about the park’s value, we held a field day at the Etate Patrol Post. Four teachers and 20 children from nearby villages joined us for a day to learn about the park, its animals and the reasons why conservation is important. The Etate guards conducted the entire program; they spoke about the park, its history, their work, key animals and conservation. Led by the guards, the students later went into the forest to see their 6 Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012
At the Zoological Society’s Etate research station, children from nearby villages learn about animals they have never seen, such as forest elephants. Photos by ZSM staff
first bonobo nest. Then they enjoyed a brief competition to find the most bonobo nests. We ended the day by giving each student a green baseball cap, a pack of Children on a field trip to the Etate crayons and images of animals to research station venture into the forest color. We were surprised to see with a guard, who points to a bonobo that some children did not know nest in the trees. how to correctly align the image of the elephant (because they had never seen one). They finally agreed that the animal looked best upside down. We plan to conduct another field day in 2013.
PRESENTATIONS, PAPERS, AWARDS • Dr. Reinartz spoke at a meeting of the Milwaukee (Wis.) Rotary Club. She also appeared as a guest on Wisconsin Public Radio’s Kathleen Dunn show and WUWM’s Lake Effect program. • Dr. Reinartz and Steven Seyfert, BCBI program steward, received the Excellence in Journalism Award from the American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK) for an article in AAZK’s monthly newsletter: Perspectives in Poaching: A Park Guard Story. • Dr. Reinartz and Patrick Guislain contributed data, photographs and technical comments to a new conservation plan for bonobos in Congo. The plan, Bonobo (Pan paniscus) Conservation Strategy 20122022, was published by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature/ Species Survival Commission Primate Specialist Group and the ICCN.
Captive Bonobos Dr. Reinartz helped create the Bonobo Species Survival Plan (SSP) in 1988 and has coordinated the plan through the AZA ever since. The Bonobo SSP is headquartered at the Zoological Society of Milwaukee. In 1985 Dr. Reinartz helped bring bonobos from Europe to the Milwaukee County Zoo. At the time, the captive-bonobo population in the U.S. was critically small. Under her leadership, that population increased and genetic diversity improved. As of September 2012, there were 78 bonobos at seven AZA-accredited zoological institutions in North America. Dr. Reinartz and ZSM conservation staff work with zookeepers and other officials at North American zoos to manage and maintain a healthy and self-sustaining captive population of bonobos. The Milwaukee County Zoo has one of the largest captive groups in the world, 16 as of September 2012. The Bonobo SSP contributes to conservation of the species through research, health-care initiatives, education of the public about bonobos, and training of bonobos to help in their own healthcare. Within the Bonobo SSP, there
were two deaths and two transfers but no births between Oct. 1, 2011, and Sept. 30, 2012. In the 2011-2012 fiscal year, the Bonobo SSP helped plan and coordinate a joint meeting of the Bonobo SSP and the European Endangered Species Program (EEP). The meeting, held in January 2012 in San Diego, discussed the management of the global captive population of bonobos. Topics at the three-day meeting included: animal transfers between the SSP in North America and EEP institutions in Europe, bonobo management, bonobo health and reproductive issues, bonobo exhibit design, and research at bonobo institutions. Representatives from six European zoos in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom attended. Dr. Vickie Clyde, a Milwaukee County Zoo veterinarian who is veterinary advisor to the Bonobo SSP, gave a presentation on treating ape heart disease.
Apes and African Animals The Zoological Society’s primary conservation support goes to its own great-ape program, the Bonobo and Congo Biodiversity Initiative (see above). The ZSM funds numerous other conservation efforts, however, including spending $8,919 in the 2011-2012 fiscal year to support these projects to help apes and other African mammals: • Ape Heart studies, $2,315: The most common cause of death in captive great apes is enlargement of the left ventricle of the heart due to fibrotic scar tissue. In humans, this change is most often related to high blood pressure. The Zoo has worked to train several bonobos to accept finger cuffs that measure indirect blood pressure while the apes are awake (see back cover). In 2012, with Zoological Society help, the Zoo purchased a new indirect blood pressure monitor that allows quicker blood pressure readings. • Ape studies at the Zoo, $1,500: Dr. Sarah Boysen, a great-ape behavior researcher, did intensive testing in 2011-2012 to gain insight into the cognitive abilities of our Zoo’s three great-ape species: bonobos, gorillas and orangutans. To see a 2012 Alive magazine story on her research, go to www.zoosociety.org\Alivespring2012. • Bonobo heart-pathology studies, $1,064: In an effort to delve more closely into the similarities and differences between heart disease in apes and humans, human-heart-disease specialists have analyzed preserved bonobo hearts from the Milwaukee County Zoo. This work has spurred additional research into methods to measure indirect blood pressure in awake apes, thus avoiding the dangers of anesthesia. • Lola Ya Bonobo, $1,000: This bonobo orphanage in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, accepted eight new orphans in 2011-2012. It also purchased an island in the heart of bonobo territory for the future release of bonobos with physical or psychological handicaps. • Kibale National Park Forest Conservation, $1,000: This park in Uganda is one of the last remaining expanses to contain both lowland and montane forests. It is home to chimpanzees and 12 other species of primates. The goal of this project is to teach people energy-saving technologies and sustainable forestry, reducing their need to cut trees for firewood. • Reintroducing bongos to the wild, International Bongo Foundation, $1,040: By 2013 this group hoped to reintroduce the critically endangered eastern bongo to Mount Kenya. Bongos from North American zoos (including our Zoo) were transported to Kenya in 2004 and managed by the Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy until a herd was formed for the reintroduction. Funds from the ZSM will help with radio telemetry and surveillance of the bongos. For more details, go to www.internationalbongofoundation.org.
• Sahara Conservation Fund, fennec fox preservation, $1,000: This group is trying to save these big-eared foxes from being poached for the pet trade and from being poisoned by Saharan people.
Amphibians, Coral Reef Wildlife, Reptiles Zoological Society funding of more than $14,000 supported 2011-2012 conservation projects and research involving amphibians, reptiles and fish. Milwaukee County Zoo staff were involved in most of these projects, which included: • Grenada frog research, $5,424: Conservation efforts have focused on helping a native frog species on the Caribbean island of Grenada fight off threats to its survival from an alien frog species and from a deadly frog-killing fungus called chytrid. In 2011, Grenada frog populations had stabilized, but 2012 data were still being analyzed, reports Craig Berg, the Zoo aquarium and reptile curator. • Grenada Coral Reef Study, $1,300: Since 2009, our Zoo staff, with Zoological Society support, has joined the Wisconsin Lutheran College’s reef-monitoring program in Grenada to compare the long-term health of coral reefs and ocean wildlife in marine-protected areas with areas that receive no protection. “We hope to demonstrate the economic benefits of protected areas to the tourist industry and fishing communities,” says Berg. • Grenada Wildlife Film Production, $5,000: The Zoological Society is supporting production of three- to five-minute films that teach people about the value of conserving Grenada’s frogs, snakes and lizards (which many people fear). The films, created by a video company that has worked for National Geographic, are slated to be shown on national TV in Grenada. • Iguana conservation, $2,132: Milwaukee County Zoo staff, with ZSM support, have been involved for several years in projects to raise iguanas and release them back into the wilds of Grand Cayman island and Jamaica. In 2012, the Zoo sent veterinary technician Joan Maurer to assist in iguana health screening on Grand Cayman and zookeeper Stacy Whitaker to survey blue iguanas on one of the Lesser Cayman islands. Dawn Fleuchaus, a Zoo area supervisor, has been involved with Jamaican iguana conservation since 2002. • Ornate box turtle head-start program, $203: Since 1996, our Zoo has helped raise baby turtles, which grow faster in a zoo environment, to a size that made them more likely to survive in the wild. Zookeeper Chad Pappas and other staff have raised 336 turtles over the years (24 in 2012), and then released them into wild areas in Wisconsin.
Birds Projects to protect and study Humboldt penguins have received key ZSM support for 14 years. Since the 1998-’99 year, the ZSM has given more than $181,505 to Zoo-staff-coordinated research or education on Humboldt penguins in Chile and at our Zoo, including about $5,147 in 20112012 to install artificial nesting burrows that can resist flooding and storm destruction along Chile’s coast. In addition, the ZSM gave $3,324 in 20112012 to have a keeper from the Milwaukee County Zoo travel to Peru to participate in a project to monitor Humboldt penguins and other wildlife during traditional guano harvesting. (For more information on the penguin monitoring, go to the ZSM home page at www.zoosociety.org/guano.) Other bird-conservation projects funded by the ZSM in the last fiscal year were: • Migratory Bird Collision Abatement, $750: The Zoo is an active stopover or nesting site for 176 species of native migratory birds. To prevent birds colliding with windows of Zoo buildings, Zoo and Continued on page 11 Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012 7
Education For more information, go to www.zoosociety.org/education
Zoo. Its second summer season featured new shows and past favorites. Beyond the shows, audiences were thrilled to see new bleacher shading, thanks to an additional donation from Kohl’s Cares. By the end of the Of the three missions of the Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM) – summer season (which ends with Labor Day), Kohl’s Wild Theater presenconservation, education and support of the Milwaukee County Zoo – tations at the Zoo had reached 70,885 Zoo guests. The two new plays education often is the linchpin of the other two. By educating children were “Journey to the Rich Coast” and “The Strange Case of the Alien and adults about protecting animals and the habitats they share, we teach Invasion.” The returning favorites were the orangutan musical “A Climb conservation. By offering extensive education programs nearly year-round, through Time with Clues and Rhyme” and the penguin/pirate musical the ZSM helps the Zoo maintain national accreditation from the Associa“The Treasure of the Sea” (which premiered in October 2011 as part of tion of Zoos and Aquariums. Our offerings range from animal-science A Tale of Two Hemispheres). Conservation topics covered in these four classes and summer camps to programs for disadvantaged youth, either shows included the palm oil crisis, sustainable seafood, migratory bird taught in our eight-classroom facility on Zoo grounds or brought directly conservation, and invasive species. Among the audience comments was to schools. In 2011-2012 the ZSM Conservation Education Department this: “The opportunity for audience interaction was excellent, especially once again expanded our programming significantly – launching commufor my younger child. He was captivated. The songs were very catchy. I nity outreach programs with Kohl’s Wild Theater. We began providing live, loved it!” Another audience member said, “Information was awesome and professional, conservation-themed theater performances at no charge to helpful. Characters were fun. Our kids are grown, but we enjoyed it as venues within an hour of the Zoo. Thanks to the multi-year partnership adults.” In addition to stage performances, actors could be found throughwith Kohl’s Cares, the ZSM was able to reach audiences with our conserout the Zoo performing skits such as “The Biodiversity Pep Rally” and vation messaging through shows performed at libraries, community centers, “The Bachelor-Pette.” Actors also traveled to a variety of Zoo exhibits, schools and festivals such as Summerfest and Wisconsin State Fair. Here bringing with them puppets and magic to engage children and families are summaries of ZSM educational programs’ successes: zeller in thinking about conservation issues for some of rd Brod y Richa Photo b the animal species exhibited at the Zoo.
Kohl’s Wild Theater
On the heels of an excellent inaugural summer season, Kohl’s Wild Theater continued its success by launching outreach programming. From October 2011 through September 2012, teams of actors delivered 637 shows featuring a wildlife conservation message at schools and community events. Over 83,000 audience members were served in this period, making Kohl’s Wild Theater one of the most expansive educational theater programs in the United States. Show offerings included “The Reach of the Rain Forest,” “Wild Wisconsin,” and “A Tale of Two Hemispheres.” Audience responses were very positive. One teacher responded by saying, “I thought the content was great. Very relatable to kids. Gave them very easy action steps…to help them reduce their [carbon] footprint!” Another teacher said, “The clever script helped the actors present the concept with humor. It also allowed the students to draw on prior knowledge and personal experience.”
Ongoing evaluation of Kohl’s Wild Theater continued to demonstrate positive results. Summer audience surveys showed that 88 percent of adults and 66 percent of children aged 6-12 years were able to name a threat the featured animal faced in the wild; and 92 percent of adults and 55 percent of children aged 6-12 years were able to list an action that could be taken from home to help the environment. Kohl’s Wild Theater outreach shows at schools and community events also garnered a positive response, with 90 percent of teachers saying they would be extremely likely to recommend the performance to others. During the summer Zoological Society staff also made preparations for future seasons of Kohl’s Wild Theater. Three new outreach shows were developed to debut in October 2012. For more information on Kohl’s Wild Theater, go to wildtheater.org.
Summer Camps
egan The Zoological Society’s summer camps n, and M obinso R k o th e t ic r y r e e n h r S u , ) program is among the largest zoo- or Jo ft is r play “ rich (le heater Theate T a Sosta d d h il t il n W a W aquarium-based camp programs in the ohl’s Sam ooKohl’s Actors in the K d th e Z ty Zoo. ares an perform e Coun p C y nation. The camps have the same lively e u s k k l’ s p u h d in a Kam ngs an een Ko e Milw m a , so t” at th a ip betw o s r h t a d s s r o format as our classes during the acah e e g C g n Rich a pa r t of all a . Throu iences (ZSM) sible by d s e u e o e r a p k u e t demic year, including songs, games, u e mad ys fea s inspir Milwa iety of free pla former r c s e r e o h e p S T l r ff . a e o t ld art, hands-on science and Zoo tours a logic also ral wor ild The e ZSM ur natu ohl’s W mer. Th y m bout o it u a (for most classes and camps). Camps n s petry, K e u r in o m m d com he Zoo nd care ms at t ools an a h r c g learn a s are offered for ages 2 through 14, o r r ep s free fo eractiv rogram p live, int r e In May 2012, Kohl’s Wild Theater t and some offer adult participation a d The hl’s Wil o K . d n resumed live plays at the Milwaukee County u (with children aged 2-5). Our 2012 summer camps year-ro events 8 Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012
drew 11,231 participants: 8,570 children and 2,661 parents in 529 camp
Photo by Richard Taylor
Programming for Disadvantaged Youth Animal Ambassador program: This program teaches children about wildlife conservation over a semester. Then they graduate to become ambassadors for animals, able to teach family and friends what they learned. Thanks to corporate, foundation or civic-group sponsors for each school, our Animal Ambassador and Continuum programs, which serve schools in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods, reached 618 second-grade students and 723 third-grade students at 12 schools, and 1,188 fourth-grade students at 21 schools. An additional 623 students in five schools with smaller classes experienced a modified program.
Rickey A., 10, of Brown Deer, reaches out to touch – through glass – an Amur tiger at the Milwaukee County Zoo. Rickey was attending the Zoological Society’s Zooper Heroes summer camp on July 24, 2012.
sessions. Our summer college-student intern program provided 20 students (including three college-student teaching interns) hands-on job training, thanks, in part, to generous support from the Alice Kadish Foundation, the Antonia Foundation, the Jerome and Dorothy Holz Family Foundation, and the Brady Corporation.
September-May Programs Programs for the Public: In fiscal year 2011-2012, the ZSM served nearly 12,000 people in individual child or parent-child classes. These classes are offered six to seven days a week from September through December and February through May. They include art and learning projects, songs, games and Zoo tours. Education staff offer hands-on, interactive classes for families and children ages 2-14. Class curriculum addresses the intellectual, social and emotional development of child participants through science, conservation and art-based topics. Younger children (ages 2, 3, 4 and 5) attend class with an adult. If they’re ready, 4- to 5-year-olds have the option to attend without an adult. Classes for ages 6-14 are offered on weekends along with classes where entire families can attend. School Programs: Zoological Society-led programs offered at the Zoo or delivered as outreach classes reached 23,190 schoolchildren* in fiscal year 2011-2012. An additional 85,494 schoolchildren visited the Zoo on field trips and had ZSM curriculum available to them during self-directed tours. ZSM school programs help teachers meet science requirements set by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. Making science fun by teaching about animals is the goal, with hands-on activities and Zoo tours. Education staff offer grade-appropriate programs for 3-year-old preschoolers through eighth grade, as well as conservation-focused talks for high school groups. Programs for schoolchildren were funded in part by gifts from the Ladish Company Foundation; U.S. Bancorp Foundation; A.O. Smith Foundation, Inc.; Wells Fargo; the Posner Foundation; and ADM Cares. *(In addition to students reached by Kohl’s Wild Theater outreach shows). Scout Programming: The ZSM’s Conservation Education Department continued to expand programming designed specifically for scout groups to help children earn badges. In fiscal year 2011-2012, the ZSM served 487 Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts.
Summer Camps with Community Centers: Children who normally couldn’t afford to attend summer camps could attend our 2012 camps, thanks to renewed support from U.S. Cellular®, the Evinrude Foundation, the Peters Foundation and the Milwaukee Urban League’s Safe Alternatives for Youth fund. In summer 2012, we served 447 children from nine Milwaukee-area neighborhood and community centers. Big Brothers & Big Sisters: The Zoological Society also partnered with Big Brothers & Big Sisters of Greater Milwaukee, thanks to funding from U.S. Bank. We arranged a day for the paired adults and children – 218 people in all – to search the Zoo in a scavenger hunt, enjoy the attractions, and see Kohl’s Wild Theater performances. The children also received school supplies. Photo by Richard Brodzeller
Volunteers Members of Zoo Pride, the ZSM’s volunteer auxiliary, assist with numerous classes and summer camps. In summer, high school students volunteer to help with our camps (see photo) and are trained to assist both college-student interns and Zoo Pride adult volunteers who conduct tours. In the last fiscal year, these high school assistants contributed 2,943 volunteer hours.
In total, our conservationNew Berlin residents Trevor Foren, 16, and education programs served Julia Hertig, 17, were in their second year as 302,021 people in fiscal year high-school-aged volunteer assistants with 2011-’12. We reached thouthe Zoological Society’s summer camps sands more with educational when this picture was taken on June 25, 2012. They’re standing next to a welcome messages about conservation sign in the Karen Peck Katz Conservation through: Education Center. • E-mail news to members • The ZSM website, which averaged 23,873 visits per month (an increase of more than 4,000 visits compared to last fiscal year). • ZSM publications (each issue of Alive magazine and Wild Things newsletter reached more than 53,000 households, an estimated 150,000 - 200,000 people) • ZSM-designed signage, displays and videos at the Zoo • Zoological Society education programs in Africa (see Conservation) • Stories in the media about ZSM projects, and • Networking sites such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012 9
Zoo Support Photo by Richard Taylor / Ari Rosenthal Photography
In a remarkable public-private partnership, the Zoological Society and Milwaukee County, which runs the Zoo, work together to raise money for new exhibits and buildings, to coordinate many events, to provide tours, and to plan for the future. While Milwaukee County cares for the animals, pays the staff and keeps the park grounds beautiful, the Society recruits sponsors and donors, helps support the veterinary program, runs an eight-classroom “school” and provides support services such as publications, graphic designers, informationtechnology expertise, and a host of volunteers.
• Exhibits and buildings: The ZSM gave $260,710 in direct cash support to Zoo exhibits, including $50,000 for the 2012 special summer exhibit: Adventure Dinosaur!, sponsored by Sendik’s Food Markets. The ZSM helped upgrade the Bonobo Exhibit ($20,619), the Northwestern Mutual Family Farm entrance ($47,000) and the Black Bear Exhibit ($44,063, thanks to a grant from MillerCoors). Also, the ZSM donated payments for maintenance contracts on various Zoo buildings ($144,028). • Fundraisers run by the ZSM Associate The ZSM’s Conservation Education DepartBoard: The 29th annual Zoo Ball, sponment runs almost all the education programs at sored by American Airlines, raised more the Zoo. The ZSM’s Creative Department – in than $476,000. The 23rd Annual Milleraddition to its ZSM projects – produces Zoo Coors Birdies and Eagles Golf Tournament signs and banners, creates numerous educaraised $115,216. All other fundraising tional videos and displays, keeps a photo dataevents run by the Associate Board raised base, and takes on special projects that enhance $192,590. Zoo Ball 2012 co-chairs Brookellen Teuber (left), of the Zoo. Zoo Pride, the ZSM’s volunteer auxil• Platypus Circle: Members of the ZSM’s Waukesha, and Trisha Shinners, of Pewaukee, welcomed iary, makes possible numerous events that the annual-giving group donated more than Rich Tennessen, of Brookfield, to the 29th annual ZoologiZoo holds, provides Zoo tours and animal talks, $620,730 in cash or in-kind services to cal Society of Milwaukee (ZSM) Zoo Ball on June 23. promotes the Zoo to the public through a help the Zoo. American Airlines sponsored the event, which was called speaker’s bureau, aids ZSM education programs, • Publications: The Zoological Society’s Animal House and was held at the Zoo. Tennessen is chairstaffs fundraisers held by the ZSM and raises Communications, Marketing and man of the ZSM Board, while Teuber and Shinners are funds for conservation and Zoo exhibits. Membership Department produced members of the ZSM’s Associate Board. publications and other materials that The Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM) provided total Zoo support in promoted Zoo events and conservation 2011-2012 of $6,580,974 (including direct project costs). Here are reports programs and described new exhibits and animals. These included on various ways the ZSM supported the Zoo. Alive magazine, Contributors, Wild Things newsletter, and Platy Press. • Annual Appeal: The ZSM’s annual appeal raised $176,585 to install • Signs, videos, interactive displays, Zoo printed materials, special Web cams in several indoor animal exhibits and to provide cash projects: The ZSM’s Creative Department of five artists and a Photo by Richard Brodzeller support to the Zoo. researcher provides • Conservation and research: The Zoological Society’s total expenses graphics and design supin this area were $535,494 for the last fiscal year. A portion of that port to the Zoo as well went to support the ZSM’s international bonobo-conservation projas to the ZSM. In the last ect in Africa (see Conservation section of this report). That project 15 years the department helps the Zoo in several ways. As part of the Zoo’s mission and also has added more advanced for accreditation with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), equipment to increase the Milwaukee County Zoo supports conservation efforts in the field efficiency and allow to help endangered species. The ZSM’s bonobo project helps the Zoo artists to do more projmeet its commitment to conservation. The ZSM supports the Bonobo ects “in house,” such Species Survival Plan, headed by the ZSM’s conservation coordinator, as the animations and A tomato frog at the Zoo Dr. Gay Reinartz; this program helps manage the health and breeding videos for many events. success of bonobos in zoos. The Zoological Society also provides Among the hundreds of projects the department produces or designs funding to conservation projects proposed by the Zoo, many involvannually are ads, animations, animal-information signs, brochures, ing Zoo staff (see Conservation section). That funding in 2011-2012 cards, flyers, invitations, publications, even T-shirt designs. totaled about $33,170. • Sponsors, grantors & supporters: The ZSM acquires sponsors for • Education: By offering extensive education programs nearly yearmost of the Zoo’s major events and attractions, and ZSM 2011-’12 direct cash sponsorship support to the Zoo was $311,767. Grants round, the ZSM helps the Zoo maintain AZA accreditation. In total, supporting education and conservation programs as well as other ZSM conservation-education programs served 302,021 people in projects brought in $694,746 last year. Additional support of fiscal year 2011-’12. $396,669 funded the ZSM’s live theater program (see Education 10 Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012
section). In December 2011, the Photo by Richard Brodzeller ZSM was awarded $32,841 by the Potawatomi Bingo Casino Miracle on Canal Street program; the funds went to support ZSM education programs serving children from economically disadvantaged areas of Milwaukee. • The ZSM’s Sponsor an Animal program raised $160,599 in the last fiscal year to support the Zoo’s animals. • Veterinary help: The ZSM provided $112,629 in funds to the Zoo’s veterinary staff by paying for veterinary residents ($52,457), a pathology resident ($54,172), and an animal-nutrition intern ($6,000). All of them provided aid to the Zoo’s veterinary staff. • Volunteer help: Zoo Pride volunteers helped with events, education programs, Zoo tours, and much more. Of 597 Zoo Pride volunteers, 433 active members donated 46,973.5 hours in 2011-’12. In addition, high school student volunteers contributed 2,943 volunteer hours to help adults with 2012 summer camps. • Websites and social media: The ZSM’s website, which averaged 23,873 visits per month in 2011-2012 (an increase of more than
Zoo Pride volunteer Priscilla Kuehn served hot chocolate to Milwaukee siblings Brianna , 11, and Londyn, 7, on Oct. 27. Brianna and Londyn were attending the Zoo’s Halloween Spooktacular, sponsored by Sendik’s Food Markets and held Oct. 26 and 27. Zoo Pride volunteers donated 46,973.5 hours in 2011-’12. Photo by Richard Taylor
Lowell Warshawsky, a Zoo Pride volunteer for 24 years, has been a member of the Zoological Society’s major donor group, the Platypus Circle, even longer. He was honored Sept. 27, 2012, at the Milwaukee County Zoo with a framed gorilla handprint to mark his 25-year membership in the Platypus Circle.
4,000 visits compared to last fiscal year) provides much information about the Zoo, its animals and its staff. That includes self-guided tours, event details, feature stories, and an archive of publications dating to 1951. You also can find details about volunteering for Zoo Pride, descriptions of conservation projects, and children’s activities. The ZSM’s Facebook page and its YouTube channel help promote the Zoo, as do ZSM “tweets” on the social-networking site Twitter. The ZSM also assists with maintenance of the Zoo’s website. • Additional cash support: The ZSM provided $337,575 to the Zoo in a Zoo Pass price increase and $424,365 additional cash support to the Zoo.
Conservation continued from page 7
Society staff have applied predator decals and other distractions to windows, especially in larger buildings such as the Peck Welcome Center. • The Piping Plover Recovery Project, $320: A Milwaukee County Zoo staff member assists United States Fish and Wildlife Service biologists in Michigan with the monitoring of active nests and the rearing of abandoned piping plover eggs and chicks. • Hornbill Feather Conservation, $500: To reduce the hunting of hornbills for their feathers (used in ceremonial dress and dance in parts of Southeast Asia), this project distributes free feathers that have molted (shed) naturally from hornbills in zoos, including our Zoo. • Hornbill Nest Box Adoption, $150: The Hornbill Research Foundation, which hires Thailand villagers to monitor and protect hornbill nests while collecting biological and ecological data for research purposes.
Conservation programs supported by the Foundation for Wildlife Conservation, Inc. (FWC), a partner with the ZSM Belize: The FWC manages a 6,125-acre Runaway Creek Nature Preserve (RCNP, called a Reserve in Belize). The reserve has been the site of several conservation programs, most managed by university researchers and done in collaboration with FWC and its Birds Without Borders/Aves Sin Fronteras® (BWB/ASF) staff. Here are summaries of research, filming and conservation studies on RCNP: • Two filming projects were carried out: The Kratz Brothers of Canadian Public Television spent 10 days filming the natural history of RCNP. This program aired in the United States on PBS and in Canada. Researcher Omar Figueroa’s long-term radio-tracking study of jaguars at RCNP was featured on National Geographic Wild in the film “Hunt for the Shadow Cat.” ✦
✦
• University of Calgary (Canada) researcher Kayla Hartwell, who has studied spider and howler monkeys at RCNP and how these primates survived a major hurricane, was accepted to the Ph.D. program at Calgary to continue primate studies at RCNP. • Lincoln Memorial University in Tennessee discovered a new snail species on the RCNP and has developed a major research program focusing on land snails and crayfish. • BWB/ASF staff continued to monitor the natural history of RCNP, which features orchids, neo-tropical birds, bats, crocodiles, monkeys, jaguars/pumas, Jabiru storks, caves and Maya archeology. The staff have partnered with other Belize non-governmental organizations to develop a natural history workshop in 2013 for European universities. The staff also participated in regional bird counts, hosted field trips on the reserve and lectured at universities. Africa: • In Tanzania, the FWC joined with the Momella Foundation to develop a conservation program at a school for orphans. FWC also hosted a Natural History Safari in 2012 to Tanzania with an extension in northern Kenya. • To reduce the use of poison to kill lions in the cattle country of Kenya and Tanzania, the FWC supported programs of “Guardians of the Lion.” • In Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the FWC supported the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International’s efforts to save the mountain gorilla. In northern Kenya, the FWC supported Lewa Wildlife Conservancy conservation, education and anti-poaching projects. FWC president Gil Boese serves on the boards of both groups. Wisconsin: The FWC president began a multi-year study of avian population dynamics on Pewaukee Lake in the metro-Milwaukee area. This study was funded in part by the Kettle Moraine Garden Club. Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012 11
Photo by Lila Aryan
Platypus Circle The Platypus Circle is composed of individuals, corporations and foundations who share in the Zoological Society’s passion for supporting the Milwaukee County Zoo, conserving endangered animal species, and teaching the importance of preserving wildlife and its natural environment. Thanks to generous annual donations, the Zoological Society is able to offer programs ranging from summer camps for disadvantaged youth to bonobo-preservation missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The support of Platypus members also helps maintain Zoo exhibits and sustain our ongoing animal-conservation efforts. Platypus members receive unique benefits that include access to behind-the-scenes tours and invitations to exhibit premieres (see photo) and VIP events. For more information on becoming a Platypus member, please call the Development Department, (414) 258-2333, or check online at zoosociety.org/platy. Photo by Richard Brodzeller
Deborah Musante (far left), of Brookfield, and her family are amazed by realistic dinosaur models at the Milwaukee County Zoo May 24, 2012. They attended the Platypus/VIP premiere of the Zoo’s special summer exhibit, Adventure Dinosaur!, sponsored by Sendik’s Food Markets. From Musante’s left are daughter Melissa; Steve White, also of Brookfield; granddaughter Petra, 2; and husband Peter. The Musantes and White are members of the Platypus Circle. Guests previewed the exhibit before it opened to the public on May 26.
Katherine Hust of U.S. Cellular® received the Zoological Society of Milwaukee’s (ZSM’s) highest award, the Emu Egg, at the Platypus Circle Recognition Dinner Sept. 27, 2012, at the Milwaukee County Zoo. Presented since 1982 to people who have given outstanding service to the ZSM, the award is a real emu egg encased in glass. Hust is U.S. Cellular’s vice president of sales for the mid-central region. She is a ZSM Board member, Platypus member, former Zoo Ball co-chair and an active member of the ZSM education committee.
Serengeti Circle The Serengeti Circle is a valued group of corporations and foundations that support the Milwaukee County Zoo and the non-profit Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM) at the $2,500 level and above. Every year, numerous civic leaders choose to associate their companies or foundations with Wisconsin’s No. 1 single-venue attraction: the Zoo. This partnership with the Zoo and ZSM is accomplished through grants and sponsorships of our special events, traveling exhibits, attractions, conservation initiatives and education programs. This support of the ZSM and the Zoo puts our partners in touch with the Zoo’s almost 1.3 million annual visitors, demonstrates commitment to our community and identifies our partners with the fun, family lifestyle/culture the Zoo represents. All business partnerships include opportunities for inclusion in measured and nonmeasured media (advertising, signage, website promotion, etc.), promotional presence on Zoo grounds, VIP customer hosting, Zoo admission and parking tickets, and negotiated consumer offers. For more information on sponsorship opportunities at the Zoo, please call Patty Harrigan Mills, (414) 918-6185. For information on grant opportunities, please call the Development Department, (414) 258-2333. Sendik’s Food Markets is a Serengeti Circle member that has sponsored events and attractions at the Milwaukee County Zoo. In October 2011, Sendik’s sponsored the Zoo’s two Halloween weekends at the Zoo: Boo at the Zoo, Oct. 21 and 22, and Halloween Spooktacular, Oct. 28 and 29. Here, zoogoers admire a storybook scene on Oct. 21.
12 Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012
Photo by Richard Brodzeller
Simba Circle The Simba Society honors donors who have included the Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM) in their estate plans through a will, charitable trust, or beneficiary designation of their retirement plan or insurance policy. When you make this type of gift, you create a legacy of support that lasts through your lifetime and beyond. When we receive your gift, it becomes a permanent asset of the Zoological Society’s Endowment Trust (see endowments list below). Each year, the earnings from your gift, along with other contributions to the fund, ensure that the ZSM is able to continue its mission to support the Milwaukee County Zoo, educate the public, and conserve wildlife for future generations.
Members of the Simba Circle enjoy the following benefits: • Invitations to VIP premieres of new exhibits, lectures and special events Circle • Invitation to the Annual Simba Recognition Dinner • Recognition on Zoo grounds as well as in ZSM publications and website If you have already included the ZSM in your estate plans and are not listed here, or if you would like additional information on planned giving options, please contact the Development Department at 414-258-2333 or e-mail simba@zoosociety.org.
SIMBA CIRCLE MEMBERS 2011-2012 Linda & William J. Abraham, Jr. Charles & Dorothy Aring F. Michael & Laura Arnow Dick & Yuko Baldwin John T. Bannen Dr. Gil & Lillian Boese Ronald & Jean Braund Jerry Brown William & Nancy “Ginger” Browne Diane L. Brunner Greg & Mary Budde * Judy Cafmeyer Mary Jo Crawford Cindy & Gary Datka Carl Diedrich Mary Dohmen Dr. Kay M. Elsen Jessie Franz David Glenn Lavonne M. Grenlie David & Kerry Grosse Linda L. Grunau Gary Hackbarth Jerry & Sandy Hafemann Arlene Hansen
Elaine V. Heckman John & Jeannie Heindel Roxy Heyse Linda J. Hill Nancy Lee Horwath Kimberly Houk Carole F. Houston Maddy Howard Rose Marie Jashaway Dr. Lee & Susie Jennings Richard Johnson Rachel J. Jones Bonnie & Leon Joseph * Joan Kalinoski Mary Kazmierczak Robert Koch Caroline V. Krider & Paul A. Smith Rachel A. Lauber Ginny Levenhagen Richard D. Lutz Dr. John & Kristie Malone Quinn & Jane Martin John & Judy McGourthy Joseph & Christine McMahon Don & Shelley Mechenich
Bary & Amber Morgan Family Donald & Nadine Mundt Fund In memory of Christopher Nast Nancy A. Neuwirth * Judy O’Callaghan Dr. Laura A. Owens Lygere Panagopoulos Margie Paur Mary T. & Konstanty Pawicz Jr * Michael Pazdan Terrie Peschman Gina A. Peter Mark S. Poker Jim & Kathleen Polaski Betty Purdy Gordana & Milan Racic Jim Redding Jane E. Reilly & Jeffrey C. Glock Tomm Renk Jay Robertson Elizabeth Roesler Gayle Rosemann & Paul McElwee Al Rudnitzki Family Gayle Rzany * John & Linda Sapp
Judy & Barry S. Sattell Ronald L. & Debra Schmidt * Laura Skoff John & Carole Steiner Susan Steinman Dan & Patti Stotmeister Christine A. Strauss Chip & Joy Stringer Lois Tetzlaff Mary Krause Thiry Roselie A. VanDeuren Judy Van Till William J. Volkert * Karen Von Rueden Anne Wandler Lowell Warshawsky Kurt & Lisa Weisman Family Raymond & Kelly Wilson Darlene Winter Deborah J. Woelfel Dennis & Robin Zdroik Jill Meri Zimmerman Robert & Sandra Zodrow *designates new members in fiscal year 2011-2012
Endowments The following donors are individuals whose legacies demonstrate their commitment to the Zoological Society in its support of the Milwaukee County Zoo. The Bertagnolli Endowment • Zoological Society Support
Mary Ellen Bush & Donna Larsen Estate • Ornithological Intern
Philip Orth Family Fund • Annual Appeal Support
The Lynde & Harry Bradley Foundation, Inc. • Grants for Graduate Student Research
Bill Borchert Larson • Florence Mila Borchert Big Cat Country • Idabel Wilmot Borchert Flamingo Exhibit and Overlook
Gordana & Milan Racic Endowment • Student Intern Program Endowment
Liz Little Endowment • Student Intern Program Endowment
Roswell N. & Leona B. Stearns Foundation, Inc. • Apes of Africa
Herbert & Nada Mahler Family Aviary Endowment Fund • The Aviary
Zoo Pride Endowment • Zoo Pride Support
Roland & Florence Schroeder Cron Charitable Unitrust • Bonobo Species Survival Plan (SSP) Endowment Gretchen & Andrew Dawes Endowment Fund • Veterinary Intern Program Dohmen Family Foundation • Hippo Home Exhibit Robert T. Foote Charitable Trust • Zoological Society support Halbert & Alice Kadish Foundation Inc. • Student Intern Program Endowment
McGourthy Family Endowment • Giraffe Exhibit
Elizabeth LaBahn Roesler Endowment • Zoo Support
Zoological Society General Endowment • Zoological Society Support
The Dorothy J. Nelson Living Trust Endowment • Student Intern Program Endowment Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012 13
Annual Appeal Web cams Bring Animals to You In an ongoing effort to bring Zoo animals directly to you on your personal computer, the Zoological Society of Milwaukee’s 2011-2012 Annual Appeal raised $176,585 to install Web cams in several indoor animal exhibits and to provide cash support to the Zoo. Feel like hanging out with the orangutans? You can – just click on the Web cams aimed at their exhibits and see where the action’s happening. Other animals that are covered by Web cams are lions and hyenas, the gentoo and rockhopper penguins,
and the fish in Lake Wisconsin. Donors of $100 or more got early access to the Web cams as they were phased in and before they were available to the public in December 2012. Donors of $2,500 received individualized recognition on a bench in the Zoo. Donors of $75-$249 had their names listed on a sign; donors of $250-$499 received larger recognition on a sign; donors of $500-$999 received individualized recognition; and donors of $1,000 or more received larger individualized recognition.
Get down and funky with Tommy the orangutan. Watch him and companion M.J. right from your home computer.
Sponsor an Animal The Zoological Society of Milwaukee’s (ZSM’s) Sponsor an Animal program kicked off its 30th anniversary in late July 2012. In addition to offering individual and group sponsorships of animals at the Milwaukee County Zoo, this program raised money for Zoo animals through: • the ZSM’s Beastly Bowl-a-Thon in February 2012 • special animal sponsorships during the year (such as for Valentine’s Day, Christmas, etc.) • the Kids Conservation Club • Animal Safari in August 2012, which offered behind-the-scenes Zoo tours to all animal sponsors and recruited several new animal sponsors. The Sponsor an Animal program also teaches people about animals and conservation through: • fact sheets about the animals they sponsor • annual workshops for members of the Kids Conservation Club and also via baseball-card-style animal cards offered to club members • a kids’ Green Art Contest open to all youth who are animal sponsors, with entries displayed at Animal Safari 14 Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012
The Pacific giant octopus was one of the Zoo’s animals featured in special animal sponsorships during fiscal year 2011-2012.
Animal sponsorships range from $20 for membership in the Zoological Society’s Kids Conservation Club to $2,500 for individuals who are the sole sponsors of one animal. In the 2011-2012 fiscal year, the Sponsor an Animal program raised a total of $160,599. For information, go to www.zoosociety.org/sponsoranimal.
Financial Summary Zoological Society of Milwaukee County (ZSM) – Year ending September 30, 2012
SUPPORT & REVENUE
COST OF SUPPORT AND REVENUE (Support Services)
MEMBERSHIP DUES
MEMBERSHIP DUES
from all Zoo Pass and Platypus Circle members . . . . . . . . . . . . . $5,948,973
Expense of providing benefits to all Zoo Pass and Platypus Circle members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,574,563
CONTRIBUTIONS toward capital projects, specific programs and support . . . . . $613,220
SPECIAL EVENTS/PROGRAMS
SPECIAL EVENTS/PROGRAMS/SPONSORSHIPS
Expense of providing and promoting ZSM special events/programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $456,639
including animal sponsorship, Zoo Ball, education, ZSM and Zoo special events, and sponsorships . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,403,062
TOTAL COST OF SUPPORT & REVENUE (Support Services) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,031,202
INTEREST INCOME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $45,807 GRANTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $694,746
EXPENSES
TOTAL SUPPORT & REVENUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $9,705,808
DIRECT PROJECT COSTS Expenses relative to capital projects and specific programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $210,943
ZOO SUPPORT
RECEIPTS 61%
MEMBERSHIP DUES: 61% SPECIAL EVENTS/PROGRAMS: 25%
25%
CONTRIBUTIONS: 7%
7%
GRANTS: 7%
7%
Direct cash and in-kind support to the Milwaukee County Zoo, expense of providing, promoting and supporting education, graphics, special-exhibit projects, and Zoo special events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $6,370,031
RESEARCH/CONSERVATION Expenses relating to state, national and international programs supporting species preservation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $585,930
EXPENSES ZOO SUPPORT, CAPITAL & DIRECT PROJECT COSTS: 69% SUPPORT SERVICES: 21% RESEARCH/CONSERVATION: 6% GENERAL & ADMINISTRATIVE: 4%
69% 21%
6%
GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE Expenses relating to daily ZSM operations
......................
$397,737
TOTAL EXPENSES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $7,564,641
4%
TOTAL COST OF SUPPORT AND EXPENSES . . . . . . . $9,595,843
Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012 15
A Big Heart Lody the bonobo was a pioneer. He was an original member of the Milwaukee County Zoo’s bonobo group. He was a patriarch and leader for a quarter-century. He was so loving that he used to carry his bonobo friend Kidogo up exhibit stairs when Kidogo’s diseased heart left him too weak to walk. Lody set several “firsts” in animal healthcare. In the zoo world, where heart disease is epidemic among great apes, Lody was known as the bonobo who had lived the longest – six years – after being diagnosed with heart disease, specifically an enlarged heart. Lody died Jan. 20, 2012. Yet a week later he was still making news at an international meeting of bonobo specialists. They viewed a video, taken not long before Lody died, of him having his blood pressure measured with a finger cuff. At the time he was the only bonobo to have this done while awake. Lody was truly a rare example of success in treating ape heart disease. Most apes hide their illnesses and are not diagnosed with heart problems until they die. It was the
Zoo’s primary bonobo keeper, Barbara Bell – who had trained Lody to participate in his own healthcare – who first noticed that Lody tired quickly and was not himself. She alerted veterinarians. He was diagnosed in 2005 and put on a low-calorie, low-salt diet and on blood-pressure medications. (Blood pressure is connected to heart disease.) Soon Lody had more energy, says Bell. Adds Zoo veterinarian Vickie Clyde: “His appetite was better, his muscle mass came back, and he could function as the alpha male in the troop again, providing discipline and directing some of the bonobo social life. He was once again in the thick of things. After we saw how well he improved, we put all of the bonobos on a low-salt diet.” Dr. Clyde also notified the bonobos’ food supplier that its food had too much salt. “Through our efforts, a major producer of primate food biscuits significantly lowered the salt level. So thanks to Lody, all the colonies of zoo primates that get this food are benefiting.” This is an excerpt from a story by Paula Brookmire in the April 2012 Alive magazine.
Here Lody is shown in his younger days (in the 1980s) and in a 2004 photo when he was painting at the Milwaukee County Zoo. Lody’s case has been important to the Great Ape Heart Project, a multi-zoo effort with the goal to figure out the cause (and prevention) of heart disease in apes. The Zoological Society of Milwaukee has helped support the project
10005 W. Bluemound Rd., Milwaukee, Wis. 53226-4383 (414) 258-2333 www.zoosociety.org Zoological Society of Milwaukee Annual Report 2011-2012