ZV Mag

CONTEMPORARY THINKING ON WILDLIFE & ZOO-BASED CONSERVATION

ISSUE #9 SPRING/SUMMER 2020

ZOOS VICTO RIA MAGAZINE

Giving back to nature

Positive human intervention

Precious pollinators Wildlife’s best friend After the fires

Our Endowment Fund will ensure that Zoos Victoria continues to be at the forefront of wildlife protection and conservation for many years to come. Join us as a contributor to the Zoos Victoria Endowment Fund and start to see the real returns on your investment through our work today.

Photo: Cormac Hanrahan

O U R PA S T I S R I C H .

O U R F U T U R E I S W I L D. Y O U C A N M A K E A D I F F E R E N C E T O D A Y. ZOOS VICTORIA ENDOWMENT FUND

Make a difference for tomorrow, today.

Heather Kiley Relationship Manager Philanthropy 0408 515 380 | hkiley@zoo.org.au

CONTENTS

Hello!

In our final edition of ZV mag for 2020, we reflect on the Victorian bushfires and the incredible stories of hope and survival that have emerged.

We were deeply touched by the goodwill and generosity of more than 34,000 donors who gave to the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund, allowing us to respond, rescue and care for injured wildlife.

We received $8.8 million in donations that will aid the long road to recovery and ensure we are prepared in the unfortunate event that we are again called on as a key supporter of wildlife in Victoria.

The global pandemic presented a new set of challenges. Our world, and the way we live our lives, has changed profoundly.

We rallied together as a community and bunkered down through the winter months.

Although our zoos closed for a second time, our priority remained focused on keeping the animals in our care, and our staff, safe. We stayed connected through virtual zoo tours, keeper talks and livestreaming cameras that brought a little piece of the zoo into homes around the world.

As we approach the year’s end, we choose to celebrate the overflowing love, humanity and kindness that has prevailed.

We hope you enjoy this edition of ZV and thank you for your ongoing support.

Kate Vinot / Chair, Zoos Victoria

Sonia Kent / Chair, Zoos Victoria Foundation Advisory Board

04

Giving back to nature Human intervention to save endangered species

20

After the fires Rebuilding ecosystems after devastation

08

A uniting cause

10

Precious pollinators

12

Staying the course

Plus

16 Wildlife’s best friend 23 Partners and donors 3

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

CONSERVATION

Giving back to nature When done in a considered and informed way, human intervention can help animals survive and thrive.

WORDS Stephanie ILLUSTRATIONS Phil

T

he Crucifix Frog only mates during a rainstorm.

The tiny, bright yellow amphibian – named for the multicoloured spots that speckle its back in the shape of a cross – lives most of its life underground, wrapped in a protective cocoon and burrowed in the soil of semi-arid floodplains. Until the rain comes, that is. Heavy downpours in their habitat – in south-western Queensland and northern New South Wales – flood the frogs’ desert burrows and rouse them from slumber, whereupon they shed their protective cocoons and head to the surface. There, they’ll feast on bugs and worms swimming in the temporary pools of rainwater – and find a companion frog to spend some quality time with.

ZVMAG

4

Convery Constantinesco

Breeding Crucifix Frogs in captivity, however, has proven a challenge. How to recreate the rainstorm conditions that encourage the frogs to mate? At Melbourne Zoo, the Crucifix Frog population had remained stubbornly celibate until a friend suggested to keeper Raelene Hobbs that, rather than wait for an actual thunderstorm, she try playing the frogs an audio recording of a storm instead. She found a 10-hour YouTube track of a tempest and left it on for the frogs overnight. And before long, Raelene had three clutches of eggs.

Humankind has been the cause of so much environmental trauma and loss, it’s easy to think that all people have been able to do when it comes to the natural world is wreck things.

But with continued research, intervention can assist species under threat and save potentially critical populations in the wild. Positive human

POSITIVE INTERVENTION

intervention can be something as simple as planting a tree or constructing a fence around a wildlife reserve to keep out feral predators; or it can be as complex as developing a captive breeding program.

Insurance programs are a particular form of breeding program focused on ensuring the survival of some of the most critically endangered species in Australia, says Dr Kim Miller, Life Sciences Manager, Conservation and Research, at Zoos Victoria. “The intention with an insurance population is that you have enough duplication of the wild population that if the species went completely extinct in the wild, the captive population would be demographically and genetically robust enough to start the whole population again.” But they’re not the only kind of breeding program targeted at maintaining wild populations of endangered species.

The critically endangered Helmeted Honeyeater, a bright yellow passerine (song bird), is only found in one place in the wild: in narrow scraps of swampy stream-side forest along Woori Yallock, Cockatoo and Sheep Station creeks, about 45km east of Melbourne.

The area has been a nature reserve since the 1960s, thanks to birding groups that noticed a marked decline in Helmeted Honeyeater numbers and lobbied the government for the conservation of its habitat. The establishment of what is now called Yellingbo Nature Conservation Reserve is one of the key reasons the bird survives in the wild today.

Unfortunately, this remnant habitat is very limited – a particularly bad thing for birds as territorial as the Helmeted Honeyeater in breeding season – and degraded in some parts of the reserve. As a consequence, volunteers trek out there every single day to feed the birds.

This supplementary feeding program isn’t the birds’ only source of food, but such human intervention is necessary for their survival.

“There’s a lot of work going on to improve the habitat at Yellingbo,” says Craig Whiteford, Zoos Victoria’s General Manager, Threatened Species. And it’s not just habitat. Melbourne Water has undertaken work on the drainage

If we believe animals have the right to exist and that biodiversity is a goal, then there’s a role for captive breeding and for putting effort into it.

CRAIG WHITEFORD / GENERAL MANAGER, THREATENED SPECIES, ZOOS VICTORIA

5

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

CONSERVATION

FACT FILE and water quality; Zoos Victoria has partnered with geneticists at La Trobe and Monash universities to help with a breeding program; and the community group, Friends of the Helmeted Honeyeater, coordinates tree planting programs.

The population of Helmeted Honeyeaters is very small and vulnerable, consisting of approximately 200 birds. This figure actually represents huge strides towards the bird’s recovery; at its most critical, there were as few as 50 Helmeted Honeyeaters in the wild.

The increase in numbers is thanks to a very carefully constructed captive breeding program run out of Healesville Sanctuary since 1989.

“The remaining habitat doesn’t have capacity to support a large population of birds,” says Kim. “It requires a large amount of intervention.

Because of the small population size, there are ongoing problems where you have occasional events of inbreeding, but what’s more common is that in a really small population over a long period of time, you lose genetic diversity.”

The lack of genetic diversity compounds over generations of birds, culminating in far fewer birds hatching and, ultimately, population decline.

One of the ways Helmeted Honeyeaters maintain a natural level of genetic diversity in the wild is through interbreeding with a closely related subspecies, the Yellow-tufted Honeyeater. Kim explains that these ‘migrant’ interbreeding events ought to occur about four times in every bird’s generation. They haven’t happened in the wild for a long time, most likely due to habitat fragmentation. The reserve at Yellingbo is surrounded by farmland, isolating it from other honeyeaters’ habitats. So, one of the key strategies for restoring that genetic diversity is a technique called genetic rescue.

“What we do is take Yellow-tufted Honeyeaters from populations around Victoria that are no longer able to cross over with Helmeted Honeyeaters’ territory, and we breed those Yellow-tufted Honeyeaters with the Helmeted Honeyeaters here at the Sanctuary,” says Kim. The offspring of those birds are then released into the wild. “That mimics the natural migration of Yellow-tufted Honeyeaters into

ZVMAG

Name Crucifix Frog Class Amphibia Status Least concern

Region Northern New South Wales and southwestern Queensland

Name Helmeted Honeyeater Class Aves Status Critically endangered

the population, and we can do it in such a way that we know just how much of that genetic material is being passed into the population.”

This year, Healesville Sanctuary coordinated a release of 14 birds at the beginning of autumn, after the breeding season had ended.

The onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and statewide lockdown added an extra logistical challenge to this year’s release and meant that Healesville Sanctuary staff who had bred the birds couldn’t be there when the boxes were opened. Nevertheless, the release went smoothly and the newly released birds are still being seen regularly about the reserve. The key thing researchers will be looking for, though, is how many of the released birds participate in breeding this spring – thereby working some of their diverse genetic material into the population at large.

“The Helmeted Honeyeater program is quite unique in that we know the individual breeding history of almost every bird in the wild population and we have genetic samples of almost every bird from the last several decades,” says Kim. “We have more robust information than almost any other animal, and that’s because of the significant investment in research on this bird.”

“We have to be judicial about intervening,” says Craig. “If we believe that animals have the right to exist and that biodiversity is a goal, then there’s a role for captive breeding and for putting effort into it.”

GET INVOLVED Support Zoos Victoria’s efforts to save the Helmeted Honeyeater by purchasing a Totes for Wildlife tote bag. For every tote sold, a tree will be planted for the Helmeted Honeyeater.

Buy a tote at any of our zoos or online: zoo.org.au/totes-for-wildlife

WANT MORE?

Region Yellingbo Nature Reserve, Victoria

Meet the Crucifix Frogs.

Watch it here See the Helmeted Honeyeaters’ release into the wild.

Watch it here

6

THE FUTURE IS IN YOUR HANDS. LEAVE A GIFT IN YOUR WILL FOR A FUTURE RICH IN WILDLIFE. Contact Heather Kiley Relationship Manager Philanthropy 0408 515 380 | hkiley@zoo.org.au

COMMUNITY

A uniting cause We speak to two supporters who have adopted our Snow Leopard family at Melbourne Zoo. WORDS Kate

Schmitt

IMAGE

Alex Storer

JANE PONTING Jane Ponting lives on Raymond Island, home to a thriving koala population and more than 130 species of native birds. But her favourite animal, the Snow Leopard, prowls mountain ranges on the other side of the world.

Jane became interested in Snow Leopards in the 1990s — a time when both Melbourne Zoo and the numbers of wild Snow Leopards were very different from today. In 1997, Jane’s partner Tom gave her a portrait of Shimbu, Melbourne Zoo’s eight-year-old Snow Leopard (who has since passed away). The painting still hangs above Jane’s bed.

“Shimbu was an idiosyncratic animal,” says Jane. “She had a bad temper, a huge ego and the most incredible spirit – Shimbu had a style of her own.”

More recently, Jane experienced a special behind-the-scenes encounter with Miska, Melbourne Zoo’s four-year-old Snow Leopard.

“It was the best birthday present I’ve ever had.”

Jane has read widely about the Snow Leopard, prompting a lot of soul searching about endangered animals and how she can play her part. “I believe we have a responsibility to contribute in a small way, to look after wild animals everywhere. I’m fortunate that I’m in a position where I can support a vulnerable animal and contribute in a small way.”

ZVMAG

8

SNOW LEOPARD

Catriona Rowntree has visited zoos all around the world in her role as a reporter on the popular Getaway travel series.

“I’ve done stories on zoos in dozens of countries. I’ve been to the home of the Snow Leopard, literally. But I couldn’t wait to visit Melbourne Zoo with my own children.”

Catriona lives in rural Victoria, but she takes her two sons to the Zoo as often as she can. She has found that becoming an Animal Adopter of the Snow Leopard (through the zoo Philanthropy program) provides a great way to continue her connection with the Zoo. “I like the fact that you can take the Zoo home with you. I love the letters we receive from Melbourne Zoo. We pass them around the dinner table. We stick things up on the fridge and we go online to have a peek at the cubs.”

For Catriona, adoption was a good way to show her children how to help others and have fun while learning something in the process. “Yes, it’s altruistic. Yes, we’re earning our karma points.

But if you’re looking for a tiny way to be a good role model for your children and lead by example, this is a great step. From a young age, my boys saw the importance of community service.”

Catriona’s family has, in turn, followed the family of Miska and Kang-Ju and their cubs.

“We’ve gone on this incredible journey with our beautiful adopted animals. And I have to say, it makes for a very impressive show and tell.”

While parents often talk about giving back to the community, they sometimes struggle to find ways to achieve this in a way that engages with young, busy minds. “My kids know that I’ve sponsored a child overseas, but they can’t really connect to that.

However, a cute little animal — and the soft toy version from the Zoo shop that they sleep with each night — offers an immediate physical connection.

“My family pays a monthly donation to have this close connection, and the whole experience has been really heart-warming.”

ADOPT AN ANIMAL! You can adopt an animal too by visiting: donate.zoo.org.au/adoption

WANT MORE?

IMAGE: AGEFOTOSTOCK.COM

CATRIONA ROWNTREE

INTERNATIONAL CONSERVATION Snow Leopards are among the world’s most elusive and solitary animals and are classified as vulnerable in the wild. They live in harsh mountain environments in Nepal, India, China, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Threats include poaching and habitat destruction due to mining developments. In 2020, Zoos Victoria awarded Nomadic Guardians Foundation a grant to protect Snow Leopards in the wild and support local communities. The foundation operates the Mongolian Bankhar Dog Project, which works in collaboration with the Snow Leopard Trust.

Bankhar dogs are placed with herder families to assist in the protection of livestock from predators (including the Snow Leopard) – eliminating the need to kill predator animals in order to protect their livelihoods.

FACT FILE Name Snow Leopard

Status Vulnerable

Class Mammalia

Region Himalayas

Check out the Snow Leopard live cam Watch it here

9

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

ANIMAL

The plight of the pollinators They’re the unsung heroes of our backyards, bushlands and farms, but the birds and the bees (and many other pollinating creatures) need our help.

WORDS Beth

Wallace

IMAGE Jo

Howell

T

wo years ago, a Facebook post grabbed global attention, instructing members of the public to leave sugary water outside for tired bees.

Supposedly written by Sir David Attenborough, the post claimed that bees were on the brink of extinction and that their future was in our hands.

As it turns out, the post had nothing to do with the acclaimed naturalist and its message, though probably well intended, was wrong. The information included in the post, if followed, could have a disastrous impact on bees. Sugar water, although potentially helpful in reviving a single collapsed bee, does not have the nutrients needed to feed larvae and will stop bees from doing their vital job as pollinators, collecting nectar from nearby flowers.

Nevertheless, the post did highlight one truth: that bees and their fellow pollinators

ZVMAG

10

are in trouble. Though European honeybees are probably the best-known pollinators, this diverse group also comprises wasps, butterflies, moths, beetles, ants, flies, birds, flying foxes and Australia’s own native bees – of which we have nearly 2,000 species.

Not only do pollinators play a vital role in agriculture, pollinating around a third of everything we eat, they also make an invaluable contribution to the biodiversity of our planet.

According to Kate Pearce, Ectotherms Coordinator at Melbourne Zoo, Australia is far behind other countries when it comes to monitoring local pollinator populations.

“Especially here in Victoria, we’ve got a lot of work to do to even know what native species are out there, let alone what the numbers would’ve been 250 years ago,” she explains.

“Unfortunately, there’s not a lot of funding for taxonomy of invertebrates like pollinators. If you go into your back garden and pick up a beetle, there is a chance it hasn’t been scientifically

POLLINATORS

named yet. Scientists might know about it, but it may not have been named.”

Despite the lack of official data, Kate says it’s clear native pollinator numbers aren’t what they once were, particularly in urban areas. “These days, people tend to have well-manicured lawns, with succulents, yuccas and other droughttolerant plants. But our native bees, butterflies and moths need native flowering plants.”

Kate explains that anyone with a garden can create a pollinator sanctuary. “Leave your grass to grow a bit or replace lawn with flowering plants and leave some logs and leaf litter around to attract beetles and bugs.”

Kate hopes it’s the emotional buy-in that turns visitors to Melbourne Zoo’s iconic Butterfly House from admirers into ‘citizen scientists’ – everyday people who assist with ongoing public conservation efforts. “Citizen science is a really cool one because we can get an idea of what’s out and about this year and what patterns there are – especially with invertebrates,” says Kate.

The Ectotherms team at Melbourne Zoo works tirelessly to breed almost all of the species that live in the Butterfly House on site – including a nursery of thousands of potted plants managed

by Horticulture staff that caterpillars are reared on. “The idea is that people come into the Butterfly House, see beautiful butterflies flying around and link into the conservation messages afterwards,” says Kate.

It’s the citizen scientists who Kate and the team at SWIFFT (State Wide Integrated Flora and Fauna Teams) are counting on this spring to help track the Bogong Moth migration to the alpine regions of Victoria through the Bogong Moth Tracker website.

Taking over the nightshift from day-time pollinators, moths such as the migratory

IDENTIFYING THE

BOGONG MOTH

Bogong Moth – which makes its way to the Australian Alps from breeding grounds in southern Queensland, northern and central New South Wales and western Victoria – have seen a steep decline in numbers in recent years. Whether it’s due to droughts, climate change or distraction from artificial lights in cities, scientists don’t know why the moths aren’t reaching their intended destination.

“The Bogong Moths themselves are not listed as threatened or endangered, but they are food sources for many threatened and critically endangered species, like the Mountain Pygmy-possum,” says Kate. “If they’re not coming in any numbers, that leads to a failure in pouch young for the Mountain Pygmypossum, Australia’s only hibernating marsupial.

Bogong Moths aren’t just possum food, they’re also the pollinators of Swamp Heath, a white, star-shaped flower that is found scattered throughout eastern Australia.”

The goal of this grassroots conservation effort is to collect data through the tracker webpage and raise public awareness about the dwindling numbers of Bogong Moths. “If we see the numbers turning around, that’s great. But if we don’t, then we can look at the data and see where the issues are and what issues need to be fixed.”

A team of scientists – including Kate and the Melbourne Zoo Ectotherms team – will identify whether the moths uploaded to the page are in fact Bogong Moths and compile the data collected.

It doesn’t require much effort to play a part in the preservation of local pollinators. “Rip up a bit of turf and plant a flowering plant for the butterflies or moths,” she suggests. “You’ll have already made a difference.”

Bogong Moths hold their wings

flat over their body

An adult’s wingspan is usually

4-5cm long

11

PARTNER WITH US Become a Conservation Partner and support Zoos Victoria’s pledge to fight wildlife extinction. Make a gift to one of our conservation projects and see your contribution create real change for animals facing extinction. zoo.org.au/donate/ conservation-partners

MOTH TRACKER To help keep an eye on some of Australia’s precious winged creatures visit the Moth Tracker website: swifft.net.au/ mothtracker. Take a photo of a moth you’ve found and upload it to the online moth tracker – along with where you found it.

WANT MORE? New MothTracker video

Their body length is up to

2.5cm long

Watch it here

They are mostly

active at night SPRING/SUMMER 2020

ANIMAL

Staying the course Border closures and other recent restrictions haven’t stopped Zoos Victoria from continuing vital conservation work.

WORDS Jo

Stewart

ILLUSTRATION Phil

Constantinesco

ZVMAG 12

CONTINUED CONSERVATION

E

ven though Healesville Sanctuary, Melbourne Zoo and Werribee Open Range Zoo experienced temporary closures during coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions, Zoos Victoria’s conservation programs couldn’t be put on hold. When the fate of several native species is hanging in the balance, the show must go on.

With planned releases, monitoring efforts and animal transfers all integral to the Fighting Extinction program, the Zoos Victoria team came up with new ways to continue its work when coronavirus (COVID-19) complicated conservation efforts.

IMAGE: RICK HAMMOND

Precious cargo

With only 50 Southern Corroboree Frogs left in the wild, the recovery program run by Zoos Victoria and its partners in New South Wales is vital to the survival of this striking alpine amphibian species.

Deon Gilbert, Zoos Victoria Threatened Species Biologist, explains that each year Melbourne Zoo and Healesville Sanctuary breed thousands of eggs, which are released in Kosciuszko National Park just before winter.

Deon and other members of the recovery team would normally be present for the egg release, but this year things were a little different. Due to border closures preventing movement between states, Deon had to hand over the eggs to David Hunter from the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) at the VIC–NSW border.

Driving from Melbourne to Albury-Wodonga with 2,000 rare amphibian eggs may sound like a tough task, but Deon explains that it’s easier than it sounds.

“Fortunately, the eggs are quite easy to transport. As terrestrial eggs, we didn’t have to worry about water splashing around.

Beforehand, we cooled the eggs to prepare

them for release into cold, wild habitats. We then packed them into an esky lined with moist substrate called sphagnum moss. As long as the temperature is kept stable, they transport really well,” Deon says.

David received the eggs at the border and transported them to the site where they were successfully released before snow started to fall in Kosciuszko National Park.

Deon notes that this release was particularly important since Southern Corroboree Frog numbers were impacted by the bushfires that swept through their habitat earlier this year.

“This year’s release was really critical for the species so we could supplement what was lost through the fires,” says Deon. “During winter, they bunker down underground completely covered by snow, then resurface in spring. They’re highly toxic so they have no natural predators.

They’re quite tough but unfortunately new threats like climate change, bushfires and introduced disease have resulted in their population crashing down to critical levels.”

The breeding program has successfully supplemented wild population numbers while establishing fungus-free populations that are kept in enclosed areas in the wild.

“Without fundraising and support from the public, we wouldn’t be able to continue this crucial work,” says Deon.

13

FACT FILE Name Southern Corroboree Frog Class Amphibia Status Critically endangered

Region Kosciuszko National Park, NSW

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

ANIMAL

Another border run was undertaken by Yvette Pauligk, Natives and Species Coordinator at Werribee Open Range Zoo, who escorted six critically endangered Plains-wanderers to the South Australian border in May. The captive-bred birds were due to be transferred to a new facility at Monarto Safari Park when COVID-19 hit, causing interruptions to transportation and delaying the arrival of equipment needed to establish a facility for the birds to live and breed in.

“We looked at flying as an option, with the birds going onto passenger planes as special cargo. But those flights ceased due to the pandemic, so we decided to drive them instead,” says Yvette.

After permits were organised, vets conducted a visual health check before carefully placing the birds in boxes, ready for the six-hour drive to the border.

Meagan Thornton, Werribee Open Range Zoo Keeper, accompanied Yvette and the birds in the back seat of the vehicle for the drive to the border – maintaining physical distancing during the trip.

Since Plains-wanderers tend to flush (fly up suddenly) when frightened, padding on the roof of the boxes offered protection.

Yvette and Meagan also kept their voices down and ensured the car remained at a

FACT FILE

Name Plains-wanderer Class Aves Status Critically endangered

Region South-western New South Wales

ZVMAG 14

steady temperature throughout the journey.

Once at the border, Yvette pulled off into a police-check area, popped some gloves on and placed the boxes on the ground for Monarto Safari Park staff to pick up and transfer to their own vehicles.

Having overseen the Plains-wanderer breeding program since 2016, Yvette loves working with this little-studied, ground-dwelling species of which there are fewer than 1,000 left in the wild.

“I love their animated movements and quirky behaviour. They make the weirdest sounds when they display. The work that we’re doing is ground-breaking because we’re recording new behaviours.”

So, how are Monarto Safari Park’s new residents faring?

“They’ve been tracking really well,” says Yvette.

“One of the males was feeding from a food bowl within 24 hours, so that’s a positive sign.”

“We’re really excited to be working with Zoos Victoria and the other Recovery Team partners and appreciate the support Yvette and the Zoos Victoria team have provided,” says Dr Liberty Olds, Monarto Zoo Safari Park’s Conservation Manager. “We’re so pleased they have settled in really well.”

A welcome return

Winter’s approach heralded the highly anticipated arrival of Orange-bellied Parrots back to their seasonal home in Victoria, after migrating across the Bass Strait from southwest Tasmania.

Given that this is a huge journey for a small bird to undertake, many Victorian eyes were on the lookout for the critically endangered species that Zoos Victoria and its partners, such as the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP), BirdLife Australia, Moonlit Sanctuary and Melbourne Water, have supported with monitoring, captive breeding programs and other recovery efforts.

“The latest information from our Tasmanian partners indicated that almost 100 birds were set to head north from the breeding site at Melaleuca – the largest number to leave this site for over a decade,” explains Dr Michael Magrath, Senior Research Manager at Zoos Victoria. “These birds included almost 50 juveniles that were bred in captivity and released at Melaleuca in February.”

IMAGES: JO HOWELL

Wandering west

CONTINUED CONSERVATION

KEEPING ACTIVE

The good news is that some of these migrants from Tasmania have taken up residence in saltmarsh habitat in the area of the Western Treatment Plant, joining captivebred birds that have been released into the area over the past few years, as part of a four-year mainland release trial.

However, Michael explains, mainland releases had to be scaled back somewhat this year due to coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions. One of the three release sites planned for this year, on the Bellarine Peninsula, had to be dropped to focus on the other two sites on the southern boundary of the Western Treatment Plant and near Moonlit Sanctuary on North Western Port.

“The primary aim of the mainland release is to attract migrating birds to high-quality wintering sites, so it’s exciting to see five wild migrants join the flock in the Western Treatment Plant area – the most since the mainland release trial commenced in 2017.

Three of these migrants are captive-bred juveniles from those released at Melaleuca in February. Hopefully most of them survive the winter and the journey back to Tasmania for the spring breeding season.”

GET INVOLVED To aid Zoos Victoria in its conservation work to help fight extinction, please donate to donate.zoo.org.au

FACT FILE Name Orange-bellied Parrot Class Aves Status Critically endangered

Region Spring breeding takes place in Tasmania. Winter migration is to the southern coast of mainland Australia.

15

When Zoos Victoria had to temporarily stop welcoming visitors, the keepers came up with new ways to keep the animals occupied and enriched throughout the closure. Encouraging animals to explore, interact, move and behave as they would in the wild, ‘enrichment’ is a term used to describe activities and environmental modifications that promote natural behaviours. It’s an essential part of everyday life at the zoo, regardless of closures.

Without their regular visitors, some species noticed the absence more than others – with the primates clearly missing having visitors to interact with.

As a highly intelligent species, Sumatran Orang-utans need to be given opportunities to use tools to solve problems. The team at Melbourne Zoo got crafty by stuffing food into short lengths of fire hose, which encourages the clever primates to use tools to extract the food from the narrow openings.

Food is a great motivator and animals such as lemurs and giraffes rose to the challenge of working out how to get healthy treats out of puzzle feeders. Designed to increase dexterity and encourage problemsolving, puzzle feeders mirror the natural environment, where animals must forage for food in the wild.

At Healesville Sanctuary, dingoes Dargo and Maliki were given closed cardboard boxes stuffed with newspaper and dry treats. Their keen sense of smell soon alerted them to the kibble inside. The pair had great fun tearing apart the boxes to access the food stash within.

Beyond food, keepers also introduced new objects designed to encourage movements animals would make naturally in the wild. At Melbourne Zoo, the Asian Elephants were given a large ball that helped to help stimulate play. Ten-year-old Mali particularly enjoyed using her trunk and legs to kick and push the ball around.

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

CONSERVATION

Wildlife’s new best friend Zoos Victoria’s latest recruit, Moss the ‘unicorn dog’ is learning life-saving lessons to help protect endangered species.

WORDS Madeleine

L

De Gabriele

IMAGES Rick

Hammond

ike most 18-month-old Labradors, Moss is a hurricane of energy. Unlike most, however, he will use that energy to help save some of Victoria’s most critically endangered species.

Moss is the first recruit to Healesville Sanctuary’s Detection Dog squad. This squad, which will eventually include five fully trained dogs, will be deployed across Victoria to help sniff out highly elusive animals, helping Zoos Victoria and its conservation partners monitor crucial populations in the fight against extinction.

“It took a long time to find Moss, the perfect first recruit to our Detection Dog squad,” explains Naomi Hodgens, Wildlife Detection Dog Officer and one of Moss’ trainers.

“Detection dogs need to have a very special and rare personality, which is why we call them ‘unicorn dogs’. They have to have a lot of energy, be very motivated to work with people and want to solve puzzles. At the same time, they can’t be at all interested in other animals. He needs to stay focused on us even with distractions.”

It took months of searching to find Moss, and more than a dozen in-person visits to different rescue dogs looking for a forever home. Moss

was living with a foster family on a farm, as his tireless energy made him unsuitable to be a family pet.

“When we saw him on the farm, totally ignoring free-range chickens, that was a really good sign,” says Naomi. “Right away he was more interested in looking at us. He loves to engage with people, so we make all his training a big game. Now he has a job and new challenges every day, he’s absolutely thriving.”

Moss is still in training, but soon he’ll be working towards detecting endangered species such as the Baw Baw Frog and the Plainswanderer – both critically endangered, and extremely difficult to find in the wild.

The tiny Baw Baw Frogs burrow underground, sometimes as deep as one metre into the mud. Until now, the only reliable way to find them was by listening for the mating calls of the males, which can take four years to mature (sometimes longer).

Using dogs means scientists can locate female and juvenile frogs and frogs recently reintroduced to the wild, says Threatened Species Biologist Deon Gilbert. “We need to be able to tell if captive frogs released into the wild are surviving in their new homes.”

It’s not just searching through alpine regions

ZVMAG 16

Right Moss is the newest recruit to the Detection Dog squad.

DETECTION DOGS

17

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

CONSERVATION

ZVMAG 18

DETECTION DOGS

where detection dogs shine. “Plains-wanderers, small grass-dwelling birds, are extremely well camouflaged, and during the day they blend in seamlessly with their grassland habitat,” says Chris Hartnett, Threatened Species Project Officer.

“Researchers instead have to rely on spotlighting at night, which is an effective but time-consuming method. Detection Dogs offer a complementary and highly flexible addition to the conservation toolbox.”

Detection Dogs can also be deployed after natural disasters – such as major bushfires – to swiftly assess the level of harm to native species and identify potentially crucial remnant populations for protection.

The common theme through all these projects is the ability of dogs to sense the information-dense natural scents in the world around them and translate for their people.

Many animals use smells to communicate with each other, but our poor human noses leave us unable to detect, let alone decode, this hidden language. Dogs have noses up to 10,000 times more powerful than humans and are happy to share their findings.

Detecting hormone traces in the faeces of Female Tasmanian Devils is a non-invasive way for scientists to know when the females are in oestrus – and it’s a scent that dogs can easily pick up. Where male Tasmanian Devils can already pick up on the subtle cues a female is sending them – such as pheromones, an extra roll of fat around the female’s neck or quieter behaviours – the detection dogs allow scientists to more accurately ascertain the reproductive status of a female.

Dr Marissa Parrott, a Reproductive Biologist at Zoos Victoria, is working with the Detection Dog squad on world-first research to train the dogs to detect the presence of these hormone traces in endangered Tasmanian Devil scat.

“The dogs should theoretically be able to

When we saw him on the farm, totally ignoring freerange chickens, that was a really good sign.

NAOMI HODGENS / WILDLIFE DETECTION DOG OFFICER

alert us to whether a female devil is receptive to mating, is pregnant or is even lactating for joeys in her pouch. That way we can stay as hands‑off as possible at these crucial times when devils are settling in to becoming new mums,” says Marissa. This information will help the Sanctuary manage breeding programs for the greatest success – both to improve breeding success, and for the devils’ welfare.

Moss and his future comrades have an eclectic list of potential jobs. Working across grasslands and mountains, in the wake of disaster or in sensitive research, these dogs are the Swiss Army knives of conservation.

The secret is none of these jobs feel like work for Moss. He tackles each day with the joy of a young pup whose life is filled with endless games and treats with his favourite people. Right now, he’s learning vital foundational skills, like perfect recall and a rock-solid safety stop, entirely through positive reinforcement and rewards.

He’s also learning a more complicated game: finding scents. Moss has been trained to use a passive alert, never interacting directly with the target – whether that’s a tiny frog or a scat sample.

Moss’ handlers are still building his foundation skills and learning which environments he thrives in. What is certain is that Moss will always be showered in care, whether he’s working in the field in a race against extinction, or wriggling on his back in the grass, happy to be taking a well-deserved snooze.

19

GET INVOLVED Make a contribution to help Zoos Victoria’s conservation efforts.

Visit zoo.org.au/donate to help us in the fight against extinction.

WANT MORE? Meet our newest recruit, Moss Watch it here SPRING/SUMMER 2020

COMMUNITY

After the fires The balm this country needed after the summer bushfires came in the tidal wave of support for Australia’s precious wildlife. Now, the work to regenerate and rebuild continues.

H WORDS Steve

Colquhoun

ILLUSTRATION Phil

Constantinesco

eartbreaking images of native animals in distress dominated our television screens last summer as catastrophic bushfires engulfed the east coast of Australia.

As saturation coverage of the devastation featured on news bulletins around the globe, offers of assistance began to pour in. That meant veterinarian teams, keepers, managers and scientists from frontline organisations such as Zoos Victoria could call upon every available resource to protect imperilled wildlife, including critically endangered species whose habitats were directly in the paths of fires. Zoos Victoria staff

were heartened as donations arrived from all over the world.

“Initially, we didn’t put a call out for support,” recalls Jodie Odgers, Philanthropy Grants Manager at Zoos Victoria. “In January, we established the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund, and people saw that as an opportunity to give and make a difference.”

In the local community, children sold cookies in the streets and adults held fundraising dinner parties; around the world, zoos mobilised with offers of assistance; and corporate organisations both here and abroad gave generous financial assistance. A Thai pop singer who grew up in Australia, Palitchoke Ayanaputra, even lobbied his fan base to raise funds, which were sent to several Australian

Right The community response to the bushfires was truly heart-warming, including large gifts, raffles, trivia nights and bake stalls.

BUSHFIRE EMERGENCY WILDLIFE FUND DONATIONS

(at 30 June, 2020)

New Supporters $4,009,194.50

International zoos $1,192,816.50

Current Supporters $1,079,958

ZVMAG 20

Victorian State Government $732,094

Corporate Supporters $693,966

BUSHFIRE APPEAL

TOTAL Australian Government $500,000 of a $1 million commitment

Members $233,244

Trusts and Foundations $440,000 21

$8,881,273 (as at 30 June 2020) SPRING/SUMMER 2020

COMMUNITY

FACT FILE

TOTAL NUMBER OF DONORS:

34,847 Top 15 countries (by number of donors): Australia

14,564

US

9,141

Not specified

6,027

UK

825

Canada

722

Czech Republic

549

Germany

406

NZ

203

Poland

156

Thailand

138

Italy

124

France

123

Netherlands

116

Hong Kong

113

Singapore

110

organisations involved in bushfire relief, including Zoos Victoria.

“You’d get to work and open up your emails and there would be an email from someone at a zoo on the other side of the world saying, ‘Hi, just letting you know that we are raising money for you’. That sort of thing. People just took action and then let us know,” Jodie says.

Why were people motivated to give so generously? “I think it was because the wildlife didn’t have a voice and we were seeing them in an incredibly vulnerable position,” says Jodie. “Some of the images that people saw of wildlife in really heartbreaking situations, you couldn’t watch it and not be moved.”

Yet for every badly burnt koala, terrified kangaroo and injured possum seen in news broadcasts, millions of other native animals and birds were also impacted. Sadly, it’s estimated up to three billion creatures may have perished as their habitats burned during what has been dubbed Australia’s ‘Black Summer’.

In the thick of it was a team of specialists from Zoos Victoria whose ongoing work supporting endangered species made them the logical choice to save critical populations of colonies such as the Brush-tailed Rockwallaby and the Eastern Bristlebird. The work was difficult and expensive — in some cases, involving the temporary relocation of entire populations.

“The main thing is to say a huge thank you to everyone who supported us,” says Dr Marissa Parrott, a reproductive biologist for Zoos Victoria who helped lead an emergency evacuation of critically endangered Brushtailed Rock-wallabies from the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve.

“Caring for wildlife after fires isn’t a sprint.

ZVMAG 22

Caring for wildlife after fires isn’t a sprint. It really is a marathon.

DR MARISSA PARROT / REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGIST

It really is a marathon,” says Marissa. “These are species and areas that have been very badly affected by fires and will need help for a long time.”

Planning is already underway for a future in which more fires of greater intensity are a statistical certainty. “This fire has taught us that we need to have everything prepared and ready in the future, in terms of housing, feeding, transport, all those different avenues,” Marissa says.

“The fire fund has particularly helped us to be ready to not only respond to the fire that has just occurred but to ensure that we have everything in place and we’re as prepared as possible, so that we’re ready to help again when we’re needed.”

All donations big and small

Among the thousands of donations received

by Zoos Victoria during the bushfire crisis, several notable efforts stand out for Jodie Odgers.

Zoos around the world tend to wrap their arms around each other in times of crisis, and Prague Zoo in the Czech Republic and Cincinnati Zoo in the United States were among those to step up. “The response we received from our zoo family, from all over the world, was incredible,” Jodie says.

BUSHFIRE APPEAL

Prague Zoo — which houses a permanent exhibit of Australian native fauna including kangaroos, wallaroos, Emus, cassowaries, cockatoos and Tasmanian Devils — not only rallied local support to make a sizeable donation to Zoos Victoria, but also pledged continuing support for two critically endangered species.

“They had an amazing response from the people of the Czech Republic. In addition to their initial gift, they have agreed to continue their support,” Jodie says. For the next two years, Prague Zoo will support Zoos Victoria’s work to protect populations of the Southern Corroboree Frog and the Brush-tailed Rock‑wallaby.

In the United States, Cincinnati Zoo’s most famous resident lent her star power to Zoos Victoria’s cause. A local artist created a sketch of Fiona, their much-loved hippopotamus, being hugged by a koala and a kangaroo, which the Cincinnati Zoo screen-printed onto

Above Cincinnati Zoo sold screen-printed T-shirts to raise money.

23

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

COMMUNITY

a T-shirt. Proceeds of more than $300,000 (AUD) from sales of the wildly popular T-shirts were donated directly to Zoos Victoria.

Australians, too, were quick to put their hands into their pockets to contribute more than 14,000 separate donations. These ranged from large gifts such as $50,000 from the Bowness Family Foundation — which has previously donated $1 million to Zoos Victoria’s Endowment Fund — to the proceeds of raffles, trivia nights and community bake stalls.

In Lara, Zoos Victoria member Ashlee Cauberg and her children Scarlett and Jaxon, along with 20 of their friends, raised more than $1,500 by selling cakes and doughnuts outside their local supermarket.

“It was an emotional rollercoaster at the time but going to work every day and seeing and hearing about what people were doing to support our efforts was so inspiring,” says Jodie. “We had businesses that were giving us $2 from every cup of coffee they sold, or people were having picnics in the park and doing fundraisers that way. We had people who were auctioning items off. The breadth of it was something we’ve never seen before.

“I think one of my favourites, though, was two little boys called Harrison and Xavier.

They wanted to do something special to help the injured koalas. With the help of their mum the boys set up a stall out the front of their local coffee shop to sell Anzac biscuits. The boys sold over 200 biscuits in 45 minutes.

One woman who walked past and saw what they were doing gave them a couple of hundred dollars to support their effort. And you just think ‘that’s amazing’.

Corporate caring

The devastation wrought on animals and their habitats tugged at heartstrings, but also opened purse strings across corporate

Freddo has been very proud to support his frog friends STEPHANIE PALAYAN / SENIOR BRAND MANAGER, MONDELĒZ

Australia. Donations to Zoos Victoria’s Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund has raised close to $9 million; this included almost $700,000 from 78 Australian companies.

The largest single corporate donation came from snack-food maker Mondelēz International, which pledged $252,000.

Zoos Victoria General Manager of Philanthropy, Angie Retallack, says such generosity made a huge difference as zoo staff worked to rehabilitate affected animals and habitats.

“The support from Mondelēz has had a positive impact on our ability to provide urgent care to injured wildlife – and as we move into the recovery phase,” Angie says.

It’s not the first time Mondelēz has opened its cheque book in support of Zoos Victoria.

The latest donation adds to a $460,000 pledge over three years to support breeding, research and conservation projects for a number of endangered frog species until 2023. One of Mondelēz’s most famous brands is Cadbury, the maker of wildlifeinspired chocolate treats including Freddo Frog, Caramello Koala and Furry Friends.

“Freddo has been very proud to support his frog friends,” says Stephanie Palayan, Senior Brand Manager, Mondelēz Australia.

“We’re very proud of the long-term commitment we have made to the zoo, so when the bushfires happened, we felt compelled to make an extra contribution.”

ZVMAG 24

THANKS FOR YOUR GENEROSITY The massive effort to recover from the bushfire emergency is ongoing.

Donate to Zoos Victoria’s Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund at zoo.org.au/fire-fund

WANT MORE? Moving forward after the bushfires Watch it here

BUSHFIRE APPEAL

Out of harm’s way THE EASTERN

BRISTLEBIRD

Few locations in Australia would be more remote or inaccessible than Cape Howe, the home of a small colony of the endangered Eastern Bristlebird. That proved no impediment to a fierce fire that tore through southern NSW, wiping out about half of the bristlebird population that straddles the border. Such remoteness was also an imposing barrier to a hastily organised team of ornithologists sent to evacuate an ‘insurance population’ of the birds. With fire threatening to swamp the remainder of the habitat, flying into the site on an Australian Defence Force Chinook helicopter was the only option for rescuers, says Zoos Victoria’s Senior Threatened Species Biologist Dr Kat Selwood. “We knew we couldn’t save all of them, and we were really worried about losing the entire population,” Dr Selwood says. Lightweight nets were used to capture 15 of the birds. They were transferred onto a waiting boat to sail to Mallacoota, where they were loaded onto a plane and flown to Melbourne. Arriving at Melbourne Zoo, they took up temporary residence in specially prepared aviaries.

THE BRUSH-TAILED

ROCK-WALLABY

Fire fronts were directly threatening a population of Victoria’s most critically endangered mammal, the Brush-tailed Rock-wallaby, in the Snowy River National Park, and another colony north of the border at Tidbinbilla near Canberra. An evacuation plan was devised for the Snowy River colony but not enacted, as fire skirted the rocky gorges that comprise their habitat. The situation at Tidbinbilla was more dire. Zoos Victoria had been working closely with Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve to support a breeding program and the establishment of a fenced 125-hectare, predator-free habitat for the wallabies. On 2 February, the call was made to evacuate them. The population was rounded up and four important breeding males were sent by road to a pre-prepared enclosure at Healesville Sanctuary. Two wallabies with pre-existing health issues went to Sydney’s Taronga Zoo, while the remaining population of 17 was airlifted via Avalon Airport to Mt Rothwell: a fenced free-range habitat near Little River, on Melbourne’s western outskirts.

“It was a huge effort to bring the wallabies in,” says Dr Marissa Parrot, of the hastily convened taskforce.

WANT MORE? See the Eastern Bristlebird evacuation Watch it here

We knew we couldn’t save all of them, and we were really worried about losing the entire population.

DR KAT SELWOOD / SENIOR THREATENED SPECIES BIOLOGIST

25

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

COMMUNITY

FINDING HOPE IN HEARTBREAK WORDS Gus

T

Goswell, Senior Reporter Melbourne Zoo

rapped by fire at Mallacoota, huddled with family, eyes stung by smoke, mouth choked with ash, clothes marked by falling embers, my world became very small. The few metres around us, our two-year-old daughter, a pitch-black and then blood-red sky above us. Working on staying calm while trying to prepare for what must be a moment of pure terror.

But somehow, for us at least, that moment never arrived. Some extraordinary skill and bravery from firefighters, and a small wind change, was enough to save us. As the threat passed, my world slowly expanded again, and as it did my understanding of the terrible impact of this fire grew. The houses destroyed, the swathes of bush savaged, the millions of animals killed. By the time I was on a navy ship inching back to Melbourne alongside a blackened, smouldering coastline, I was all too aware of how lucky we had been, and how desperately unfortunate it was for East Gippsland’s wonderful wildlife.

In the weeks that followed, I poured my emotions into my work. I may not have been a vet or vet nurse treating koalas at an emergency triage centre, but I had a role to play. As part of the Zoos Victoria Digital Newsroom it was my role to advocate for

ZVMAG

wildlife lost in the fires and to empower the media to raise awareness of how these fires had devastated animal as well as human populations.

To be able to work for wildlife after what I had experienced was cathartic in some ways, painful in others, but always intensely meaningful. There seemed to be no end to the thirst for information about the animals we were caring for. And then to see the heartwarming, humbling volume of donations to the Zoos Victoria Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund.To know that with such a community of animal lovers standing with us there was so much we could do for wildlife.

Just recently, six months on from the fires, my family and I returned to Mallacoota for a week’s holiday back in our special place. I had been hoping to see signs of recovery, to hear the birdsong, find hope for the future, and in some places, we did find that same beautiful Mallacoota we have known and loved for years.

But in other places it was unrecognisable.

There are many difficult years ahead before wildlife is once again able to thrive in these special places. At Zoos Victoria we remain focused on a future rich in wildlife. To every Zoos Victoria member, donor and supporter who has stood with us this year, please know that you have made a difference.

26

Above Gus Goswell captured images after the devastation caused by the bushfires in Mallacoota.

PARTNERS ANNUAL PARTNERS Dental Health Services Victoria IXOM Mondelez PETstock RACV Schweppes Southern World Streets IN-KIND PARTNERS Active Air Baby Jogger Gribbles Veterinary Pathology Jetpets Mattioli Melbourne Veterinary Specialist Centre Pisces Enterprises Troy Laboratories YMCA

PHILANTHROPIC SUPPORTERS Zoos Victoria acknowledges the generosity of those who give to support our conservation initiatives.

VISIONARY BHP Foundation Bowness Family Foundation Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden Crown Resorts Foundation Limited Prof Ian Gust AO and Dr Di Gust The Kinghorn Foundation Packer Family Foundation LEADER Denver Zoo Donors The Dyson Bequest Fondation du Zoo de Granby Mondelez Pty Ltd Prague Zoo #PropertyUnites bushfire fundraiser World Wide Fund for Nature - Australia INFLUENCER Hon Andrej Babiš John Cochrane CSL Limited Kansas City Zoo San Antonio Zoo Nick Sims on behalf of Goldman Sachs Gives Wroclaw Zoo HERO Assiniboine Park Conservancy Inc The Association of Zoo Veterinary Technicians (AZVT) Meg Bentley Anthony Bignell & Robin Bignell Cheyenne Mountain Zoo

Columbus Zoo and Aquarium Fenton&Fenton Fracture KEEN Europe Outdoor Naomi Milgrom Foundation In honour of Helen Anderson Miller Baillieu Myer AC and Sarah Myer Orangetheory Fitness Melbourne Rosamond Gifford Zoo AAZK Chapter Sunraysia Foundation Hon Jason Wood MP Zoo New England CHAMPION Arizona Center for Nature Conservation / Phoenix Zoo Marie Bacon The Bartolo Family Beach Energy Bohemians Praha 1905 The Calvert-Jones Foundation City of Kingston Mark and Carol Collins Digital Extremes Ltd Dots by Donna The Dyson Family Edward Eisele Charitable Fund, held at Arizona Community Foundation The Fox Family Marc and Karyn Fookes Fundacja Arena The Garry White Foundation Geeks Who Drink Goldwind Australia Alexander Gosling AM and Wirat Sukprem Fenwick Software In Memory of Serena Finlayson Good Goods Pty Ltd (t/a Who Gives a Crap) Grand Circle Foundation Harlen Hair Melbourne IDP Education Ltd Insitu Group JB Hi-Fi Limited Allan Jones JMS Foundation Jost and Dorothee Kaiser Kridgett Kreations Lambys Tavern The Lin Huddleston Charitable Foundation The Lottery Office Tim Lucas and Carla Hackett Helen Myall and Alastair Firkin Amy Myers MD Nashville Zoo Natural Encounters Conservation Fund New Vision Clinics Oregon Zoo

Julie Packard Palitchoke and Nuches Rota Mota Seneca Park Zoo Society Sri Durga Arts/Cultural & Educational Centre In memory of Tom and Ann Smyth Shirley Sullivan Joyce Swan Target Australia Pty Ltd and Cube Networks TF Global Markets (Aust) Ltd. Undercurrent Vet Partners Australia Zoo Miami

FIGHTER AAZK Chapter at Lion Country Safari April Albrecht Roger Altman Arcadia Group Pty Ltd Arteq Productions Annie and Andrew Bell M.Begg Jay Bethell and Peter Smart BeWooden Company s.r.o.

Eric & Juliet Bird Blank Park Zoo B M Investments Pty Ltd Bodriggy Brewing Company Maxine Bowness Brevard Zoo Brockhampton / New Strategies LLC Karen Caldwell The Cattermole Family Lisa Cochrane and Scott Hipkins Columbus Zoo and Aquarium Anita Conrad Coote Family Lawyers Convergint Technologies Australia Covestro Pty Ltd Creo Consultants Pty Ltd Debbie Dadon AM Raymond Dando Denver Zoological Foundation Dinosaur Polo Club Dudley Zoo and Castle Simon and Christina Edelstein Experience Oz Andrew Fairbairn Fleet Plant Hire Pty Ltd Fresno Chaffee Zoo Wildlife Conservation Fund Clients of Gallery Funaki Andy McGillivray and Judy McGillivray In memory of Phyll Goddard Assiniboine Park Conservancy Inc The Goodman Family Foundation Grey St. Primary School Traralgon Grade 4

Lesley Griffin Gaye and Roy Hamilton Penny and Milton Harris Heritage Finance In Memory of Serena Finlayson Holiday Vacations Houston Zoo Suzanne Kirkham Andreas Knaack Judith Landsberg and David Cash Caroline Liow Little Hop The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens Louisville Zoo Helen MacDougall in honour of John Seebeck Jamie Mi’s Family Maryland Zoo in Baltimore Phil McKern, Bendigo The McPhee Charitable Trust Microchips Australia Moody Gardens Mornington Church of Christ Opportunity Shop Denver Zoo Donors Northcote Rotary Club Outdoor Travel Adventures - San Diego Palm Beach Conservation Society Palm Beach Zoo Prague Zoo Peerless Jal Janice Pleydell Probe Group Vivienne Porter Readings Redbubble Rhode Island Zoological Society Riverbanks Zoo & Garden, Columbia, SC Margaret S. Ross AM Rotary Club of Hondo Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Institute Elizabeth Sarrailhe Sonia and Wayne Kent Foundation Sunda Swarovski Optik KG Shaun Tan and Corinne and Jon Beinart of Beinart Gallery Taylor Cullity Lethlean Gregory Taylor TSA Group Kate and Blaise Vinot Olive Wakefield Helen Williams Zoo Atlanta Zoos Victoria also acknowledges the generosity of those who give anonymously to support our conservation initiatives.

Zoos Victoria acknowledges the ongoing annual funding of the Victorian State Government.

To view the full Honour list, please visit zoo.org.au/donate/our-supporters

ZV is published for Zoos Victoria by Hardie Grant Media HARDIE GRANT MEDIA: MANAGING DIRECTOR Nick Hardie-Grant ACCOUNT DIRECTOR Scott Elmslie ACCOUNT MANAGER Hannah Louey EDITOR Georgia Lejeune DESIGN Dallas Budde, Natalie Lachina PRINTER: Immij ZOOS VICTORIA: Angie Retallack, Heather Kiley, Olivia Shiels.

Zoos Victoria PO Box 74, Parkville Vic 3052 P 03 9340 2780 / F 03 9285 9390 E contact@zoo.org.au W zoo.org.au

Connect with us: Join the conversation on our social media channels. @ZoosVictoria on Twitter and Instagram.

27

Cover: Captive breeding for positive change: Helmeted Honeyeaters.

(Illustration Phil Constantinesco/ The Illustration Room)

Printed on 100% recycled paper with vegetable-based inks. Zoos Victoria is a carbon neutral organisation.

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

zoo.org.au/donate