September/October 1975

volume 4, number o

contents

3 Zoo Latin

8 ZooNews

10 ZooMap

ll Zoo Art

18 BookNews

19 FONZNews

23 Wildlife Print

Front Cover: Mother duiker and her week-

old son were doing fine when their family

portrait was taken in early November.

Back Cover: A gargoyle-like toad, elabor-

ately wrought in stone on the Reptile House

portal, typifies wild art throughout the Zoo.

Design-Production:

Monica Johansen Morgan

Photograph on front cover by Francie

Schroeder; p. 4 by Ray Faass; p. 18 courtesy

Oxford University Press; pp. 19 & 20 by Steve

Frank; all others by Sabin Robbins. Drawing

on p. 7 by Susan Hughes.

Editor’s Correction:

Photo on p. 9, vol 4no 3 by Ray Faass.

2

Friends

of

the

National

is anon-profit organization of individuals and

families who are interested in supporting Zoo

education, research, and conservation.

FONZ Board of Directors 1975-76

Arthur W. Arundel, President

Montgomery S. Bradley, First Vice President

John S. Brown, Second Vice President

Stephen T. Hosmer, Treasurer

Julie Pineau, Secretary

Lavell Merritt

Robert Nelson

Peter C. Andrews

Theodore Babbitt

Edward Boehm Ruth Nelson

Victor Delano John B. Oliver

Timothy V.A. Dillon Nancy Porter

Ronald Field Whayne Quin

M. Anthony Gould Ted Rivinus

Joan L. Jewett Rebecca Schergens

Donna K. Grosvenor Lee Talbot

Sally Tongren

Gerald Wagner

Nella Manes

Cecil McLelland

Shirley McNair

Sabin Robbins, Executive Director

As a FONZ, you and your family receive

many benefits—publications, discount privileges,

and invitations to specia! programs and activities

—to make your zoogoing more enjoyable and

educational.

THE ZOOGOER is published bi-monthly and

copyrighted © by Friends of the National Zoo,

c/o National Zoological Park, Washington, DC

20009, second class mailing permit approved at

the Washington, DC rate in the United States

$3 a year (of annual dues).

Zoo Staff

Dr. Theodore H. Reed,.Director

Mr. Edward Kohn, Deputy Director

Mr. Warren J. Iliff, Assistant Director

Mr. John Perry, Assistant Director

Office Chiefs

Mr. Jaren Horsley, Animal Management

Dr. Christen Wemmer, Conservation &

Research Center

Dr. Clinton Gray, Senior Veterinarian

Dr. Mitchell Bush, Animal! Health

Dr. Richard Montali, Pathology

Dr. John Eisenberg, Zoological Research

Mr. Emanuel Petrella, Facilities

Management

Mr. Robert Engle, Construction Management

Mr. Joseph Reed, Management Services

Mr. Robert Mulcahy, Graphics & Exhibits

Ms. Judy White, Education & Information

Mr. Joseph McGarry, Protective Services

Cpt. Samuel Middleton, NZP Police

i

CAROLI LINNAI

Narcure Curioforum Diofloridis Secundi

IN QUO

NATURE REGNA TRIA,

SECUN OUM.

CLASSES, OX DOINES, GENEZA, SPECIES,

SXSTEMATICR FPROPONUN TOR,

Editio Secunda, Autor.

STOCKHOLMI4&

Apd GOTTFR.KIESEWETTER,

17490.

=,

What’s in a name? To a zoologist it

can be “a lot.” If the average zoo

visitor even notices the Latin scien-

tific names printed under the

English names on most cage labels,

he usually ignores them. But to a

specialist, the Latin name is the

species’ only real name. A specialist

is not as interested in seeing that a

particular zoo calls it a ‘“masked

palm civet,” as in reading in Latin

that it is Paguma larvata and not

some other species.

With exotic species like Paguma lar-

vata, zoos frequently have to invent

English names on their own. Or

they may have to choose among a

half-dozen or so names proposed

by a half-dozen writers. Such

species may have perfectly good

common names, of course, in the

languages of the people who come

in contact with the animals on a

day-to-day basis. But these people

do not usually speak English.

It is obvious that people speaking

different languages will use dif-

ferent common names, but even

within one language an animal may

have different names in different

areas. The North American ruddy

duck, for instance, is said to have

fifty-nine different common names

in different local dialects. In Britain

Previous page: The title page of the second

edition of Linnaeus’s Systema Naturae pub-

lished in 1740.

The banded palm civet pictured here and

on exhibit in the Small Mammal House is

only one of the seven palm civet species in

existence.

ine same animal we call a “moose”

is an “elk,” while the species we

eal an “elk” is a “red deen’

In addition, many North American

species have been given common

names that in Britain apply to quite

different animals. It was natural

that English-speaking settlers

should give familiar names to un-

familiar species and overlook the

differences. How many American

school children, when reading in

some British poem of “robin red-

breast,” have called to mind the

pleasing picture of our native Tur-

dus migratorius. In fact, the poet

was thinking of a very different

bird, one which resembles our

“robin” only vaguely and is not

related to it. The Old World bird

has much the redder breast.

35,000 Snail Species

The fact that there are different

common names for different

species in each language is, of

course, the most obvious reason for

having Latin scientific names. The

scientific name is meant to be an

international standard name, recog-

nizable to a scientist of any na-

tion. But there are other reasons.

Most important is the fact that the

great majority of animal species

have no common names at all in

any language. About 35,000 species

of snail are known, but everyday

non-scientific English makes no fur-

ther distinction among them. They

are all just “snails.” We have a few

English names for different beetles,

such as “ladybird,” ‘‘firefly,”” “boll

weevil,” and “Japanese beetle.”

But most of the 300,000 species of

beetles remain out of sight and out

of mind to all but the specialist.

However useful a system of scien-

tific names is, there is more to

biological classification than sim-

ply assigning names. It is estimated

that about one million two hundred

thousand living species of animals

have been given scientific names.

This number is so vast that science

would be helpless if some further

order were not imposed. So individual

species of animals are grouped toge-

ther into larger groups. These larger

groups — genus, family, order, class,

and phylum—attempt to indicate

evolutionary relationships among

species. The science that concerns

itself with naming animal and plant

species and further arranging the

species into broader categories is

called taxonomy. The term comes

from the Greek language for “‘ar-

rangement.”

Aristotle might be called the first.

taxonomist. He attempted to sub-

divide the animal kingdom in a

scientific manner more than 2,200

years ago. First, he divided the

animals into two large groups

which he called ‘‘blooded”’ animals

and “‘bloodless’”” animals. He then

divided the “blooded” animals into

five classes: Fishes, Birds, Egg-

laying Quadrupeds, Live-bearing

Quadrupeds, and Whales. The Egg-

laying Quadrupeds correspond to

our amphibians and reptiles. The

Live-bearing Quadrupeds were

mammals. Not having been to

Australia, Aristotle had no way of

knowing about the platypus and the

echidna, which are egg-laying

mammals. It is interesting that

Aristotle knew enough to recognize

that whales are not fish, but he

could not tell that they should be

grouped with the mammals.

Invisible Blood

Aristotle’s ‘“‘bloodless’’ animals in-

cluded insects, crustaceans, mol-

lusks, and other lower animals.

All these animals, in fact, have per-

fectly good blood. Aristotle was

misled by the fact that their blood

is generally but not always without

hemoglobin, the red pigment

responsible for the color of higher

animals’ blood.

Despite its drawbacks, Aristotle’s

classification was unchallenged for

almost twenty centuries. During the

Renaissance, a number of new

systems were proposed. The dis-

covery of new worlds in Africa,

America, and the Orient had

brought to Europe strange new

species undreamed of by Aristotle.

Finally, in the Eighteenth Century,

one man’s system won universal ac-

ceptance. This man was Carlus Lin-

naeus, a professor at the University

of Uppsala in Sweden.

Linnaeus was primarily a botanist,

but he also named thousands of

animal species. One of the reasons

for his success seems to have been

that he named and classified more

species than any of his predeces-

5

sors. More important, however, was

the method of naming he _intro-

duced, which is called the binomial

method. Each Linnaean_ species-

designation consists of two parts —

the name of the genus and the

name of the species. The name of

the species is never used without

the name of the genus. Thus, when-

ever a species is mentioned by

name, it is also immediately identi-

fied as a member of a broader

group, the genus.

For instance, the scientific name for

the domestic dog is Canis familiaris.

Other members of the genus Canis

include the wolf (Canis lupus) and

the coyote (Canis latrans). The

genus-name is always capitalized,

the species name is not.

Family Names

After genus, the next broadest

category is the family. The genus

Canis is one of fourteen genera

(plural of “Genus’’) in the family

Canidae. Man’s genus Homo and

species sapiens are the only living

genus and species in the family

Hominidae. As these examples

show, a family name is always the

name of one genus in the family

(usually the most common) with

the Latin plural ending “-idae.”

The Canidae belong to a broader

order called Carnivora. Other

families in the Carnivora include

the Felidae (cats), Ursidae (bears),

and Ailuropodidae (pandas). The

Hominidae, on the other hand,

6

“name ~ Primates,

belong to an order known as

Primates. Linnaeus himselt gave the

which means

“foremost,” to the order man

belongs to. He also gave us the

Species-name “sapiens,” or “wise.”

In the Eighteenth Century it was

common to view man as the

culminating product of nature.

The Carnivora and Primates, in

turn, are two of the eighteen living

orders comprising the class Mam-

malia — the scientific term for

mammals. The class Mammalia it-

self is one of eleven classes in the

phylum Chordata. Like man, all the

animals in the zoo’s collection are

members of the phylum Chordata.

Most members of this phylum have

backbones. Some other classes in

the Chordata are Pisces (fish), Am-

phibia (amphibians), Reptilia (rep-

tiles), and Aves (birds). The phylum

Chordata, finally, is one of some

twenty-five phyla in the kingdom

Animalia, or animal kingdom.

To Linnaeus, the purpose of

taxonomy was to reveal the Divine

Plan of Creation. To many of his

contemporaries, his activities must

have seemed at best an elaborate

expression of the scholar’s passion

for order. Only after Darwin had

enunciated his theory of evolution

could it be seen that taxonomy had

any real scientific importance.

When Linnaeus placed two animal

species in the same genus he did so

because they resembled one

another. When he placed two

genera in the same order he did so

because they resembled one

another, and so on. After Darwin,

however, categories like genus, or-

der, and family had a new meaning.

Two species in the same genus are

now seen to be not only similar but

hopefully related. This is especially

true for lineages where fossil forms

provide evidence for a common an-

cestor. Each broader category

should indicate a more distant

degree of relatedness. But where no

fossil forms exist this is often an

“act of faith” by the systematist.

Thus, the wolf Canis /upus and the

coyote Canis /atrans are thought to

descend from a common ancestor.

They also share a common an-

cestral lineage with another mem-

ber of the dog family, the red fox

Vulpes fulva. However, the com-

mon ancestor of wolf, coyote, and

red fox lived in the more distant

past than did the animal that was

ancestor to the coyote and the

wolf, but not to the red fox.

Unlike Look-Alikes

Once scientists began to base their

classifications on assumed evolu-

tionary relationships rather than

simple resemblances, there were

surprises in store for the layman.

For instance, it is now known that

the giant panda is more closely

related to the racoon than to the

bear, although it may show greater

superficial resemblance to the

latter. A less publicized case is

still more startling. There is a small

mammal called the hyrax from

Africa and the Near East that looks

at first sight like a short-eared rab-

bit or a stocky prairie dog. In fact,

the hyrax’s closest living, albeit

distant, relative is the elephant!

The fossil record has demonstrated

the lines of descent conclusively.

Not only that, but the only other

living animals closely related to the

hyrax and the elephant are the

manatees and dugongs—legless

aquatic creatures that resemble

overgrown seals.

And so, evolutionary theory

breathes life into what might other-

wise seem a dry and_ pedantic

business. Evolutionary theory

allows man not only to give names

to nature’s incredible diversity, but

to begin to account for it.

Austin Hughes

Although the little African hyrax (top left)

looks like a short-eared rabbit, it is, in fact

the closest living relative of the elephant

and manatee as dramatized in this simplified

chart.

Years Ago

(millions)

one

twelve

twenty-five

forty

fifty

Hyrax -Elephant-Manatee Evolution

Elephant

Manatee

Mastodon

Trilophodon

Dinotherium

Moeritherium

M

Pa Uintatherium

Antelope Gives Birth

A family of yellow-backed duiker—

seldom seen in the African wilds

where they live—is now on view

at the Delicate Hoofstock Building,

just above the Panda House. A 13-

pound calf was born in October.

Unusual in zoos and a species the

National Zoo hopes to breed, these

small and strikingly marked ante-

lope come from the dense forests

of west central Africa. They are

most active at night.

The yellow-backed duiker, Cepha-

lophus silvicultor, is the largest of

the ten species of duiker and

reaches a height of 34 inches and

weight of 135 pounds. Their overall

blackish-brown coat is emblazoned

with a distinctive yellow stripe that

runs from the middle of the back to

near the rump. If alarmed, duiker

will plunge with great speed into

thickets. Duiker means ‘diving

buck” in Dutch.

Named for its bold stripe, the yellow-backed

duiker of west-central Africa is a recent

Zoo arrival. The female of the pair recently

gave birth to a 13-pound male.

Roadrunners Nest

More than any other bird, the road-

runner is emblematic of the Ameri-

can Southwest. Along with the side-

winder, the coyote, and the gila

monster, it is part of an improbable

fauna that has won a prominent

place in the tales of our most

legendary region. Westerners were

spinning yarns about the ‘‘chaparral

cock’ —as they often called the

roadrunner—long before the Road-

runner cartoons.

The roadrunner is a relative of the

cuckoos, but one that has adapted

to a life on the ground in open

country. It has lost most power of

flight. Instead, it can only spread its

wings for a long, coasting leap. The

roadrunner feeds on a rather un-

birdlike diet of small desert animals

—lizards, mice, grasshoppers, and

snakes snapping them up with its

long sturdy bill. It builds its nest a

few feet off the ground in a low

bush.

Now there are a pair of roadrunners

at the National Zoo’s Bird House.

Visitors will, of course, not be able

to see what is most remarkable

about the roadrunner—the sight of

a long-tailed bird bounding across

the desert at 23 miles per hour. But

they can observe interesting and

amusing behavior by a genuine

ornithological curiosity.

The Zoo’s pair lost little time in

making themselves at home. First,

courting began: approaching the

female, his long tail wagging, the

male presents his mate with a mor-

sel of food. As he gives it to her, he

raises his crest; after she takes it, he

bows low. Later, she laid eggs.

Austin Hughes

Work nears completion on the outdoor yards surrounding the Bird House. Waterfowl will have swimming-wading pools and lawns hedged in

flowering shrubs. Meanwhile all species inside have been moved to the Conservation Center in Front Royal so that rennovations can be completed

before Easter.

7.0 @ WING i sai

KEY TO THE MAP

@D Restrooms

@ Restaurant

Oo Soft Drinks

ée Telephone

@) Gift Shop

ak) Safari Train Stop

=) Parking Lot

eS Amphitheater

—) Do Not Enter (Cars)

@ Under Construction

African Animals

¥@ Wallabies & Dik-diks

, Deer & Antelope

Delicate-Hoofed Stock

6) Giant Pandas

Great Flight Cage

Bird House

| Elephant House

RR Cheetahs

wt Sea Lions

* Black Rhinoceros Yard

(ff Small Mammals-Great Ape House

¥ Lesser Pandas

¢ Prairie Dogs

“FR Bears

WB Tortoise & Nene Geese

Mammals

ae Reptile House

) Monkey House

Siamang Gibbon

JS Jaguar

Lion-Tiger Hill

= Waterfowl Ponts

10

Adams Mil

C... n

Some animals at the Zoo never

sleep, never eat, never grow, never

move. A bronze anteater, terra-

cotta bear, mosaic elephant, and

aluminum titanotherium are among

the striking animal sculptures that

embellish the grounds’ and

buildings of the National Zoo.

Although most zoogoers come to

see the live animals, the Zoo’s wild

art collection is well worth a

special look.

The oldest animal statues are also

highest up—perched on the roof

of the newly renovated Monkey

House. On the apex of each bay of

the roof are three bear cubs; two

bobcats sit on the west towers: and

four fox cubs look out from the hip

roof and east towers. Sculpted of

terra-cotta, the animals were

designed in 1905 by Mrs. L.S.

Kemeys, a noted watercolor painter

whose husband was equally famous

as an animal sculptor. Each animal

is two to three feet high and was in-

stalled when the building —now the

oldest in the Zoo—was completed

in 1907. Why bears and bobcats for

a Monkey House? When construc-

ted, the House was designed and

used to exhibit small mammals as

well as monkeys.

Upside-Down Fame

When it was decided to build a Bird

House in the 1920’s, the late Direc-

tor, Dr. William Mann, persuaded

one of his closest friends, English

Previous page: Giant stone turtles support

elaborately carved columns at the arched

entrance to the Reptile House.

12

artist, Stephen Haweis, to design a

decorative main entrance. The ar-

tist, who had been best man in Dr.

Mann’s wedding, declined to ac-

cept any fee with the quip that his

reward would be the fame he would

receive from the design. But when

the Bird House was dedicated in

1928, the artist ruefully commented

that he could not expect much

fame since his name was misspelled

and printed upside down at the bot-

tom of the work! The mosaic door-

way, depicting a variety of exotic

birds and plants framed in colorful

geometric designs, was carefully

preserved and moved inside the

building during renovation in 1964.

It can be seen at the lower north en-

trance to the indoor flight room.

Many of the Zoo’s finest sculptures

were acquired by Director Mann

under the Public Works of Art

Project, which provided jobs for

thousands of unemployed artists

during the Depression years of the

1930’s. The National Zoo was one

of the first federal agencies to ap-

ply for the services of artists em-

ployed by the government. The Zoo

also employed more of these artists

than any other institution in the

Washington area.

The Reptile House, which opened

in 1931, was considered to be the

ultimate in zoo architecture and

won a national award citing it as

the outstanding brick building in

the eastern United States. Ap-

propriately, it was embellished with

remarkable art work. Sculptor

Charles Knight, who was. also

renowned as a wildlife author and

lecturer, created a multi-colored

mosaic of a dinosaur over the main

entrance to the Reptile House. The

sculpted portals of the house were

executed by John Joseph Earley,

also a Federal Works artist.

Snakes Open Door

The 25-foot high arched stone en-

trance features elaborately carved

capitals and columns resting on tur-

tles and surmounted by gargoyle-

like toads. Thirteen small reptile

relief panels and two giant lizards

embellish the upper portion of the

gabled porch. Brightly colored

mosaic arches embellish the en-

trance. The two wooden doors are

ornately carved and decorated with

reptile relief panels. Brass door

handles are formed by entwined

snakes. Above the inner door is a

three-foot marble relief panel of

two frogs in a pond. Set in the floor

at the entrance is a_ circular

medallion of a giant turtle made of

inlaid pieces of green, brown,

white, and black stone. The smaller

door to the right of the main en-

trance features giant lizards facing

one another with tongues touching. —

Charles Knight also designed (with

execution by Erwin Springweiler)

the various art work in the Elephant

House. Above both entrances are

six-feet wide reliefs carved in stone.

The left entrance depicts a woolly

mammoth and tusked mastadons,

prehistoric relatives of the ele-

phants on exhibit inside. The panel

above the right doorway portrays

three other ancient relatives of the

elephant: Uintatherium, Titano-

therium, and Woolly Rhinoceros.

Before the Elephant House opened

in 1937, Knight also decorated the

inside walls above the cages with

twelve aluminum panels of ancient

animals, and created five colorful

mosaic medallions on the floor

depicting some of the exhibit ani-

mals such as the Indian rhinoceros,

hippopotamus, tapir, and both

African and Asian elephants.

The German-born sculptor Erwin

Frederich Springweiler, who col-

laborated with Charles Knight in

the Elephant House, also created a

life-size replica in bronze of a giant

anteater for the front of the Small

Mammal House. The statue won

the Specter Memorial Prize at a

National Academy of Design

Exhibit in New York City before

being installed at the Zoo in 1938.

Also born in Germany and one of

America’s foremost animal sculp-

tors, Heinz Warneke was the

creator of the charming granite

statue, “Tumbling Bears” which is

sited at the upper entrance to the

bear line across from the FONZ

Windowshop. The three-foot high

work, installed in 1935, displays the

artist’s special talent for combining

life-like naturalism with a basically

abstract, geometric form.

Unfortunately, some of the

A multi-colored dinosaur grazes in a prehistoric landscape in the mosaic arch over the Reptile House entrance.

site

Clockwise starting at top left:

ile

Ze.

A giant stone lizard climbs the entrance

of the Reptile House.

Prehistoric relatives of the elephants

dominate the left doorway of the Ele-

phant House.

A terra-cotta bobcat has been on the

Monkey House roof since 1907 when the

Zoo’s oldest building housed small mam-

mals as well as primates.

A life-size giant anteater in bronze won a

prize for the sculptor and stands in front

of the Small Mammal House.

Carved from volcanic rock, this two-

foot high bear cub stands between the

Reptile and Small Mammal House.

“Tumbling Bears” in granite sits amid shrubbery at the upper entrance to the main bear line.

Depression-era zoo art can no

longer be seen. Frequent cleaning

of the cages wore off the painted

backgrounds in the Reptile House.

The cobras were once exhibited

against a Hindu temple backdrop;

the rattlesnakes had an Arizona

desert scene; and the Mangrove

snake had a swamp mural. Nearly

rubbed off are the blue-green

murals on the wall of the hippo

cage in the Elephant House. The

old Lion House, razed to make

room for the Lion-Tiger Hill exhibit,

also featured handsome floor

medallions of a lion’s head and

tiger’s head. Even the cats’ eyes

sparkled thanks to special pieces of

stainless steel cut in triangular

shapes. (The medallions have been

saved for the new Lion-Tiger ex-

hibit to open in the spring of 1976).

Newest Additions

Only four animal sculptures have

been added in the last 25 years.

Guarding the short bear line bet-

ween the Reptile and Small Mam-

mal Houses is a bear cub statue

that was unveiled in 1952. Sculpted

of volcanic rock by Cornelia Van

Auken Chapin of New York, the

two-foot high piece is reminiscent

of the simplicity and uniformity

found in ancient Egyptian statues.

Miss Chapin carved the animal

directly from the stone. lie

ternationally famous, Miss Chapin

created the Byzantine Christ which

stands on the high altar at the

Cathedral of St. John the Divine in

New York City and a giant 1,800

pound granite frog that sits in

Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square.

When New York’s Pennsylvania Station

was razed in 1965 a five-foot tall,

granite eagle, one of 22 which ador-

ned the old railroad station, was

saved and donated to the Smith-

sonian, who in turn placed it on the

lawn in front of the Bird House.

An example of modern sculpture

can be found in another bear cub

statue, temporarily placed in the

tortoise yard while its original site

at the Connecticut Avenue pedes-

trian entrance undergoes’ con-

struction for a new Administration-

Visitor Center. The semi-abstract

carving from Italian porphyry was

executed by New York sculptor-

teacher Jacob Lipkin and donated

in 1969. It is about two feet high

and weighs 600 pounds.

The most recent acquisition to the

Zoo’s sculpture collection is a 200-

pound bronze frog in front of the

Reptile House. Nicknamed ‘The

Happy Frog,” it was designed by

William Mozart McVey of Cleve-

land, Ohio. The modern sculptor is

best known locally for his famous

statue of Winston Churchill which

is in front of the British Embassy.

The child-climbable statue was

donated to the Zoo in October 1975

by the local Twentieth Century

Club as their bicentennial gift to the

city and the nation.

Sabin Robbins

Executive Director, FONZ

Brand new and child-climbable, ‘‘The Happy

Frog” is in front of the Reptile House.

7

BOOK\EV\

Hyaena

Hans Kruuk. Oxford University

Press, New York, 1975. 80 pp; $7.95.

“Ugly ... repulsive .. . cowardly

... horrible,”” say many Zoo

visitors when they see the

hyaenas. But the much-maligned

hyaena is, in fact, one of-nature’s

most remarkable and versatile

creatures. Take time to learn

about the hyaena, and you will

come to admire this fascinating

member of the wild kingdom.

Hans Kruuk, whose 1972 book,

“The Spotted Hyaena, Study of

Predation and Social Behavior,”

established himself as the

foremost hyaena expert, has now

written an informal, abbreviated

version of that definitive case

study. Only one complaint: $7.95

even in these inflationary days is a

high price for an 80-page paper-

back, half of which are

photographs,

Hyaenas maintain a surprisingly

strong and close-knit society

based on clans of 30 to 80 in-

dividuals. Each clan occupies a

large but specific territory which

is regularly ‘patrolled’ by small

groups who routinely scent mark

the boundaries. A clan clash over

a disputed border may involve 70

hyaenas. Females are bigger than

males and usually rule the clans.

Author Kruuk loses no time ex-

Waiting for a meal from mother, these hyaena cubs will spend most of their time near the den.

Y

Later, they will join close-knit clans of 30 to 80 hyaenas.

ploding age-old myths about East

Africa’s spotted hyaena, crocuta

crocuta. Hyaenas kill more than

they scavenge. In fact, the King of

Beasts probably better deserves

the scavenger title. Lions swipe

more food from hyaenas than

vice-versa. Casual observers don’t

realize that hyaenas kill and con-

sume their prey mostly at night.

Lions frequently chase off hyaenas

and eat on the carcass for several

days. Daytime viewers credit the

lion with the kill and accuse the

nearby hyaenas of freeloading.

Expert hunters, hyaenas will adapt

their strategy to the differing

habits of their favorite prey. Single

hyaenas confidently stalk and kill

a small gazelle, but they pack

together to tackle larger game like

zebras or wildebeest.

Other surprising traits: hyaenas

love mud and sometimes wallow

in it up to their necks. Ingenious,

they will store surplus food in

shallow water — deep enough to

conceal but only where there are

no crocodiles.

More than any other animal,

hyaenas have played an important

role in African witchcraft. Some

natives believe witches live off

hyaena milk and ride around at

night on hyaenas instead of

broomsticks. That explains why the

hyaena’s back slopes!

It’s all worth remembering the

next time you see a hyaena.

Sabin Robbins

Executive Director, FONZ

FONZ\EA\S

FONZ Annual Report

There are few who remember a day

17 years ago when we met in the

Cleveland Park Library to talk

about organizing a thing called the

Friends of the National Zoo. We

did not have two nickels to rub be-

tween our fingers. Today, we area

million dollar a year organization

with close to 10,000 members!

A million dollar organization is a

lot of responsibility for a lot of

people. Who ever would have

thought that a bunch of citizens in

a nonprofit organization like this

would ever be running all the food

services at the zoo. Although we

took over food services just last

April, we have already begun to

renovate the old restaurant across

from Lion-Tiger Hill (and which will

be called appropriately the “Mane”

restaurant) and will double the size

of the Panda Garden to serve

knockwurst, sauerkraut, and even

draft beer. Also scheduled to open

next year is an ice cream shop

serving hand-scooped, quality ice

cream; a modern snack kiosk

across from the Small Mammal

House and on Bird House Hill will

sit a continental cafe featuring

omelets, quiche, sangria and con-

tinental pastries. It will be called

the “Perch.”

More important than just serving

quality food at our National

Zoo, the Friends intend to use

imaginative graphics and educa-

tional decor to provide a learning

as well as eating experience. That

has never been tried at any zoo in

the world, and we are determined

to do it. The income will support

educational, conservation and

FONZ President Arthur W. Arundel delivers

the Annual Report on October 9, 1975.

research programs here at the zoo.

It might be considered our bicén-

tennial gift to the National Zoo.

We have burned through about

three computers trying to keep up

with our fast growing membership

— more than double last year’s.

Today, we are the third largest zoo

group in America. We have also of-

fered our membership more films,

lectures, field trips, and zoo classes

than ever before. The ZooGoer is

far more interesting and attractive

than ever. Our Paw Prints news-

letter for junior members is equally

successful.

Our visitor service activities pro-

duce the revenue for our prime

mission— education. This year we

have produced new school tours

and explored bilingual and handi-

capped tours. Our “Zoo” film,

which many enjoyed at last year’s

Annual Meeting, has now won six

major national and international

film awards including three local

Emmy awards. We have launched a

speakers program to serve local

civic groups. We had the largest

number of junior zoo aides this past

summer, and we introduced a

scholarship program to enable less

fortunate citizens, young and old,

to attend our popular zoo classes.

Last and most important of all,

FONZ volunteer guides and

docents contributed a remarkable

nine thousand hours of personal

time during the year to conduct

school group tours, answer ques-

tions from the public, and help zoo

19

scientists in animal behavior

studies. Our guide program is the

backbone of the FONZ educational

effort. They deserve a very special

thanks from all of us as do the fine

volunteers who assist in the shop,

staff the information booth, and

help in many other ways.

This very successful year—and all

years —is really made possible by

the dedicated work of many, many

people —a staff which regularly

worked extra hours, an extraordi-

narily active Board of Directors

who have given much of their time

and, of course, our members whose

continued support enables the

Friends to play an increasingly

effective role.

Arthur W. Arundel

President

Financial Report

It is a pleasure to report to you

tonight that the financial health of

the FONZ is now very good and

that prospects for the future are

increasingly bright. Indeed, during

the 12-month period since our last

annual meeting, the FONZ enjoyed

the best financial year of its history.

This was in large part due to a

significant expansion of FONZ

operations at the Zoo.

First, we constructed a new gift

shop by the Panda House which

increased shop revenues. Second,

early this year we signed a 5-year

contract with the Smithsonian

Institution through which FONZ

assumed responsibility for running

and expanding food services at the

Zoo. These developments have

resulted in a substantial increase

in FONZ net profits which in turn

has permitted us to devote increas-

ing funds to educational and other

service activities at the Zoo. It has

also placed the FONZ in a sound

financial position from which to

undertake the expansion and

improvement of operational facili-

ties planned for the next year.

Let me now briefly highlight the

major improvements in the FONZ

financial picture. For purposes of

this meeting, | will report on the

12-month period ending on August

31 of this year. All comparisons

will be with the previous 12-month

period ending August 31, 1974.

During this last year, the gross

income of the FONZ rose to

Some 400 members join the elephants and giraffes to hear Treasurer Stephen T. Hosmer report on FONZ finances.

$1,363,000 which represented an

80% increase over the previous 12

months. More importantly, the net

profits amounted to over $185,000

which is a 130% increase over the

previous year. This increase in

revenue is attributable to the con-

tinued outstanding performance of

the FONZ window shop operations

where profits rose to $164,000 and

to the fine year enjoyed by our new

food service operations which

showed a net profit of $115,000.

We are very much indebted to Mrs.

Farnsworth and her staff for their

continued excellent work in man-

aging the gift shops and to Mike

Gill and his staff for making our

food service operations so success-

ful in their first year.

The overall improvement in our

financial picture is also reflected in

the 90% increase in FONZ assets

over the period which now total

some $623,000. This record of

accomplishment is a credit to the

fine performances of our executive

director Sabin Robbins, our associ-

ate director, Dennis Baker, and our

dedicated FONZ staff.

This growth in revenue has per-

mitted FONZ to devote increasing

funds to our educational and other

service activities at the Zoo. During

the past 12 months, over $84,000

has been expended for such pro-

grams which amounted to a 60%

increase over the previous year.

Among the activities funded by this

money were our various guided

tour and junior zoo aid programs,

information booth operations,

special events, and the purchase

and distribution of our Zoo film to

schools and libraries. We are also

developing an educational kit to

accompany the film.

Finally, let me say a few words

about our plans for the coming

year. The next 12 months are

scheduled to. see a_ significant

improvement and expansion of

FONZ services at the Zoo. These

will include:

e A redesign of the parking lots

to provide an improved traffic

flow system.

e Physical improvement of the

main gift shop.

e Complete renovations of the

main restaurant and the Panda

Garden.

e The construction of three

new food facilities: an interna-

tional cafe by the bird house,

a kiosk to serve ice cream, and

a snack kiosk by the small

mammal house. The latter is

already under construction

and should be operating in

the near future.

In the course of planning, finan-

cing, and executing this expansion

program, the FONZ has benefited

trom the cooperation and support

of the leadership and staff of the

National Zoo and the Smithsonian

Institution. We are most apprecia-

tive of their help.

Stephen T. Hosmer

Treasurer

FONZ Offers

New Stickers

Five new bumper stickers are now

available free to FONZ members to

spread the word — in color— about

the wildest club in town.

FONZ bumper stickers have be-

come one of the most popular and

21

1S OF THE NATIONAL ZOO

frequently seen around town and

this new series promises to be even

more popular. Each sticker

measures 14” long by 3*%4”’ wide

and is made of the highest quality

vinyl so that they will not fade and

can be easily removed at any time.

Each has a different color, slogan,

and animal to suit every taste.

Members wishing a free bumper

sticker, which cost 25 cents if

bought at the Zoo shops, need only

contact FONZ at 232-7700 indica-

ting their preference.

The new FONZ bumper stickers are avail-

able to members upon request. The colors

from top to bottom are yellow and black,

blue and white, red and white, white and

blue, and blue and yellow.

LDEST CLUB

TOWN

22

Swept into Rock Creek, a safari train along with other FONZ equipment was damaged by

September floods.

Flood Damages Train

Rampaging waters of Rock Creek

demolished a FONZ tool shed and

swept away forty-five feet of track-

less train during the early morning

hours of September 26.

Fortunately all the animals stayed

high and dry, but in a repeat of the

‘72 Hurricane Agnes disaster, rain-

swollen Rock Creek burst its banks

and dumped five feet of water into

the Zoo garage, electrical and

mechanical shops, and boiler plant.

Some FONZ equipment — like two

trackless train coaches and a gal-

vanized tool shed with all its

contents — were swept downstream.

Fragments were found as far away

as the Kennedy Center. Engines of

two trackless trains and two golf

carts held fast but were under

several feet of muddy water and

may have to be scrapped.

Put a Tiger

On Your Wall

Zoo artist, Warren A. Cutler, has

produced a wildlife portrait as

strikingly beautiful as the subject

herself. The original drawing of

Rewati, the white tiger, is the fifth

in a series of six special prints

prepared exclusively for FONZ.

Other subjects in the popular

series: the giant and lesser pandas,

snowy owl, colobus monkey, and

Jaguar.

The limited edition drawings are

available as a complete set of six

for $60 or individually, if available,

at $10 apiece. Each 18” x 24” litho-

graph is printed on the finest avail-

able paper, numbered and signed

personally by the artist.

FONZ members and friends inter-

ested in obtaining these collector-

quality prints should call 232-7700.