Britni LeRoux Denver Zoo
(This interview was conducted via email.)
If you have penguins, what are they fed?
In the wild: Fish including sardines, pilchards, anchovies, herring, anchovy and squid. 42% of their diet is composed of fish.
At the zoo: Fish.
What kind of environment do the penguins live in?
Penguin habitat is located at warm latitudes in rocky, sandy, coastal areas.
If you have elephants, how much food are they fed each day?
An elephant can eat up to 300 pounds of food and drink 25-50 gallons of water a day.
How much space are the elephants given to roam around?
Toyota Elephant Passage is the crown jewel of Denver Zoo. It features two miles of interconnected trails on 10 acres of varied terrain and is one of the largest and most-complex elephant habitats in North America. Asian elephants, greater one-horned rhinos and Malayan tapirs can rotate among five unique, abundant habitats with a sixth yard exclusively for the tapirs. Mud wallows, scratching trees, shade structures and more than one million gallons of water for swimming and bathing have been developed to ensure active and healthy animals.
If you have polar bears, what kind of environment do they live in inside the zoo?
Our polar bears live in a temp controlled exhibit. They have water is accessible to them whenever they want.
(LeRoux, Britni)
Lise Harwell Safari Instructor, Denver Zoo
(This interview was done over the phone. The answers below are summaries of the responses given in the interview.)
What was your job in the Denver Zoo?
How would you say the animals were treated overall?
How many people were on staff in the zoo?
How qualified do you have to be to work in the zoo?
What is your opinion on animals in captivity?
How, in your opinion, can animals be taken better care of in zoos?
(This interview was conducted via email.)
If you have penguins, what are they fed?
In the wild: Fish including sardines, pilchards, anchovies, herring, anchovy and squid. 42% of their diet is composed of fish.
At the zoo: Fish.
What kind of environment do the penguins live in?
Penguin habitat is located at warm latitudes in rocky, sandy, coastal areas.
If you have elephants, how much food are they fed each day?
An elephant can eat up to 300 pounds of food and drink 25-50 gallons of water a day.
How much space are the elephants given to roam around?
Toyota Elephant Passage is the crown jewel of Denver Zoo. It features two miles of interconnected trails on 10 acres of varied terrain and is one of the largest and most-complex elephant habitats in North America. Asian elephants, greater one-horned rhinos and Malayan tapirs can rotate among five unique, abundant habitats with a sixth yard exclusively for the tapirs. Mud wallows, scratching trees, shade structures and more than one million gallons of water for swimming and bathing have been developed to ensure active and healthy animals.
If you have polar bears, what kind of environment do they live in inside the zoo?
Our polar bears live in a temp controlled exhibit. They have water is accessible to them whenever they want.
(LeRoux, Britni)
Lise Harwell Safari Instructor, Denver Zoo
(This interview was done over the phone. The answers below are summaries of the responses given in the interview.)
What was your job in the Denver Zoo?
- Safari instructor (summer camp for kids at the zoo)
How would you say the animals were treated overall?
- Fairly well
- They're more protected in zoos than in the wild
- Zookeepers provide means to stimulate the animals natural instincts
- Vets are on staff
How many people were on staff in the zoo?
- Total is probably over 100 people
- There is a lot of administration
How qualified do you have to be to work in the zoo?
- As a safari instructor you need to have one year of college
- Usually they want a science or zoology major
What is your opinion on animals in captivity?
- There's a lot of value to it because we can learn about the animals
- It spreads awareness for endangered species and the environmental choices of people
- It helps educate people who visit zoos
- Zoos take in pets that were kept illegally, these pets can't be returned to their natural homes
- Animals are usually bred in zoos and aren't always taken from the wild
- Zoos aren't the perfect habitat, for example, elephants need acres and acres to live in which isn't commonly given to them in zoos
- Animals with genetic mutations or who don't fit in physically with their environment are better protected in zoos
How, in your opinion, can animals be taken better care of in zoos?
- They can give more space to most or all of the animals
- Perhaps they could rotate the animals through different enclosures to give them a variety of homes within the zoo