Latest news with #MinnesotaZoo
CBS News
5 hours ago
- Business
- CBS News
New first-of-its-kind garden at Minnesota Zoo aims to help pollinators thrive
Minnesota is home to thousands of pollinators, but they face challenges like habitat loss, pesticides, and climate change. Now, a new first-of-its-kind pollinator garden aims to help pollinators thrive. Outside the Hanifl Nature Center at the Minnesota Zoo, there's an array of plants with a purpose. "A bumblebee really, really likes that liatris, but the monarch is probably going to go after that black-eyed Susan," Bachman's CEO Susie Bachman West said. Bachman West and the Bachman's team have partnered with the zoo to bring awareness to the important role of the state's native pollinators. Last week, they opened the Buzz & Bloom Garden, just in time for the start of National Pollinator Awareness Month. "This was a perfect way for us to bring our conservation team together with our horticulture team and Bachman's to really bring an experience that is going to have a lasting impact to our guests," said Jamie Flaws, executive director of the Minnesota Zoo Foundation. Bachman West said it will be a four-year partnership. "We'll keep adding on to it, so as people come and visit, they'll learn more about pollinators, what they can do, and how the garden evolves," said Bachman West. Among the lessons to be learned is that bees aren't the only pollinators. "It goes way beyond just the bumblebees. It's the butterflies and the moths and really animals that will go in between plant material as well," said Bachman West. And some of their populations are declining. "We actually have some here on site at the zoo, the rusty patch bumblebee among them," said Flaws. Along with the experience at the zoo, Bachman's is offering the Buzz & Bloom Collection, available for purchase at all Bachman's retail stores. It includes many of the same native plants in the garden at the zoo that will thrive in Minnesota yards. Gardeners can also start from scratch, as the business is giving away 20,000 native seed packets at its stores and the zoo as part of its 140th birthday bash. "We love to be able to give back to the community. They have given us so much," said Bachman West. The mission remains at the forefront to increase the number of Minnesota's native plants and bring back the buzzing bees, fluttering butterflies, and bumbling beetles. "Our pollinators are in danger, and it takes just small steps to make the difference in their lives and ultimately ours," said Flaws. This Saturday, Bachman's is hosting its 140th celebration at all locations. The Minnesota Zoo will be at the main store on Lyndale with zoo educators and hands-on activities.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Sweet potato-loving Western tufted deer joins Minnesota Zoo
A Western tufted deer known as Sir Douglas will be among the inhabitants of the Minnesota Zoo's new Red Panda Forest, which opens this summer. According to the zoo, Sir Douglas is currently settling in behind the scenes after his move from the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo in Ohio. "He's made it clear his favorite food is as sweet as he is: sweet potato," the zoo shared. Douglas is known to express his curiosity with a "click" sound, but Western tufted deer can also bark, whistle and whine, according to the zoo. Soon, he'll be joined by a female deer. A young Sir Douglas. Photo courtesy of Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. Douglas is still growing and his adult tusks will be about one-inch long, according to the Zoo. Here's a new glamour shot of Douglas taken on Monday, which the Minnesota Zoo provided to Bring Me The News. Sir Douglas on May 5, 2025. Photo courtesy of Minnesota Zoo. Red Panda Forest Western tufted deer, which are primarily found in China's forested mountainsides, are one of three species that'll reside in the zoo's Red Panda Forest - a new, wooded outdoor habitat on the Northern Trail. "In the shadow of the eastern Himalayas, these three animals depend on the unique mix of bamboo forests, mountainsides, wetlands, and river valleys," the zoo's website reads. Sir Douglas and his female companion will be joined in the habitat by red pandas and one of the world's rarest crane species, red-crowned cranes. Two red-crowned cranes, a bonded pair of young sisters, have arrived at the Minnesota Zoo from the Smithsonian's National Zoo in Washington D.C. Native to eastern Russia, China, Mongolia and Japan, the distinctive cranes are endangered due to the wetland habitat loss caused by development.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Western lowland gorilla ‘Nyati' dies at St. Paul's Como Zoo
A western lowland gorilla 'Nyati' born at Como Zoo in October 2017 has died, according to zoo officials. Nyati was euthanized on Tuesday following what zoo officials say was 'a significant decline in her quality of life due to long-term neurological complications.' The gorilla's medical issues started in 2020 with a diagnosis of Baylisascaris procyonis — a parasitic infection likely contracted at a young age. It was successfully treated but the parasite caused permanent brain lesions leading to gradual degeneration that affected her coordination, mobility, and motor skills. For the last five years, veterinary and animal care staff at the zoo provided the gorilla with support such as medications, physical therapy, environmental modifications, and consultations with specialists. 'Nyati was deeply loved, not just by her care team, but by everyone who came to know her,' said Wes Sims, director of Animal Care and Health at Como Zoo, in a statement. 'Her life was shaped by medical challenges, but also by resilience, thoughtful care, and compassion. The decision to let her go was extremely difficult, but it was the most humane option for her.' Nyati was a member of Como Zoo's family troop of western lowland gorillas. She was the daughter of Schroeder and Alice, and lived alongside her parents and fellow troop members. Western lowland gorillas originate in central and western Africa and are critically endangered. In the wild, they face threats such as habitat loss, poaching, and disease outbreaks. Como Park Zoo visitors witness birth of baby sloth Cloud Cult, the Cactus Blossoms and Nur-D to headline the Minnesota Zoo's Wild Nights Vulnerable animals find new homes after Roseville aquarium closure Name a Bug fundraiser turns political — and profitable — for the Minnesota Zoo
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Afton Alps is closing up for the season
The ski season at Afton Alps is coming to a close. The Hastings resort announced on Tuesday that it'll wrap things up on March 23, a sure sign that spring is finally around the corner. The ski area will be open daily through March 16. At that point, it'll take a break from March 17–21. Afton Alps will reopen for a final weekend on March 22 and 23, when it'll close up for the 2024-25 season. That final day will include the resort's Spring Fling party. That'll include the Slush Cup Super G Race, a pond skip competition (with participants getting free tickets to the Minnesota Zoo), fireside s'mores, a DJ, and an outdoor bar where skiers can enjoy the warming weather. Day passes for Afton Alps and its new tubing attraction are currently as low as $47 per day for adults and $24 per day for kids.
The Independent
14-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
For Valentine's Day, you can name a cockroach, rat or feral cat after your ex
Forget chocolates and roses, this Valentine's Day some are seeking catharsis – by naming cockroaches, rats, and even feral cats after their exes. Animal shelters and zoos worldwide are capitalising on the sentiment with fundraising campaigns offering darkly humorous revenge. From naming a hissing cockroach after a former flame before it becomes another animal's dinner, to christening a soon-to-be-neutered feral cat, the options are as varied as the reasons for heartbreak. The Minnesota Zoo's 'name a bug' campaign, targeting both friends and foes, has attracted international attention – but for Teri Scott of Poulsbo, Washington, the idea of naming a notoriously resilient cockroach after her ex-husband felt a little too close to home. 'I couldn't bring myself to name a bug that's so hard to get rid of after my former husband,' she explained, fearing it might be a bad omen. Instead, Ms Scott found the perfect outlet for her post-breakup feelings through the 'Love Hurts' fundraiser at the Bird Treatment and Learning Center in Anchorage, Alaska. For a US$100 (£80) donation, she named a frozen rat after her ex, which will now be served to one of the centre's resident raptors. Ms Scott said she considered the donation a gift to herself on her first anniversary as a single woman. 'You never enter a relationship thinking it's going to end, but when it does it's just hurtful,' she said. 'I just thought, I need to do something a little bit special for myself.' She laughed out loud when she saw the "Love Hurts" posting. 'It just seemed like a beautiful way to give back,' she said. 'We do this in good fun,' said Laura Atwood, the centre's executive director. The money raised helps the facility pay salaries and care for birds – the nonprofit rehabilitated 580 of them in 2024. Just over $18,000 had been raised by the time the campaign closed Wednesday. So many rats – more than 130 – were purchased for the campaign, the centre ran out of supplies until another batch of frozen rodents arrived. ' People are sometimes hurt by a relationship, and this just gives them a little cathartic way to maybe work something out,' Ms Atwood said, adding that they don't publicise last names. The videos of raptors like Ghost, a snowy owl that swallows the rat whole, or a peregrine falcon named Breland, which keeps one talon on the rodent and pecks away at it until it's gone, will be emailed to donors. There's also a cheaper option: People can pay $10 to name a mealworm after their ex before it's fed to a crow or a magpie, and a video will be posted on social media. The Memphis Zoo in Tennessee gives you two options — one for your lover and the other for a nemesis, each for $10, in its ' Dating or Dumping' campaign. If you're happily coupled, you can get a digital card and a family-friendly video of a red panda eating a grape to share. But for those harbouring a grudge, along with your card, you'll get a video of an elephant pooping signed with the words 'Scent with Love.' After Valentine's Day, the zoo will post a recap video showing the names of people memorialised in a video and will list the names that popped up the most for both daters and those earning a stinky shout-out. 'This is the most incredible thing,' said Caleigh Johnson, who is campaigning for her ex-boyfriend to be at the top of the smelly list by encouraging her friends to give to the fundraiser. 'I'm hoping that a few people will come through.' Johnson doesn't talk to her ex anymore; instead, the video will be a treat for her friends to laugh at as they celebrate 'Galentine's Day'.
