News
Subscribe to SCBI News, a quarterly e-newsletter on the Zoo's significant science, research, and conservation programs.
September 2011
Bright Future Insight for Elephant Cognition Research
Kandula the elephant is the center of attention, flaunting not only his brawn but his brains. This young elephant showed incredible insight and problem solving abilities that elephants had not been previously known to have.
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Ace in the Hole Needed for Dholes
Despite their adorable dog-like appearance, very little is actually known about the secretive and elusive dholes. Researchers have been studying this endangered species, trying to learn as much as they can about them, and hopefully before it’s too late.
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How is it possible that Central American turtles today have the combined genetic heritage of turtles from geographically isolated areas? The Ancient Mayans and other indigenous people from that region may have unknowingly played a part in creating hybrids.
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High Temperatures? Prepare for Hefty Bill
A study by SCBI scientists shows that a bird’s bill is even more useful than previously thought. Apparently how large or small it is significantly influences a bird’s ability to regulate its own internal body temperature.
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How Can We Help Sensitive Salamanders?
Salamander populations are rapidly declining, and those living in the Appalachian Region are some of the most diverse. Here, researchers are hoping to learn more about these slippery yet sensitive creatures so that they can be protected for the future.
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Whooping Crane Back at the National Zoo
After an 88-year-long hiatus North America’s tallest bird, the statuesque whooping crane, is once again on exhibit at the National Zoo's Bird House. An 11-year-old male whooping crane named Rocky left Homosassa Springs State Park in Florida and is now on exhibit in the nation’s capital. Only eight other zoos in the U.S. exhibit these birds.
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January 2011
SCBI Front Royal welcomed its first two cheetah births! These cheetah cubs are the first ever to be born at Front Royal. Their birth is a product of many years of research and collaboration. |
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The rusty blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) was once a common species in North America. But over the past 40 years, its population level has dropped by 90 percent. Scientists, conservationists and citizen scientists work together to find out why. |
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To study populations of Asiatic black bears in China, SCBI researchers collect fecal samples and monitor stress hormones. To find those fecal samples, they have harnessed the power of a dog's nose. |
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Researchers at Smithsonian’s National Zoo were the first to identify and are the world leaders in research on the elephant herpesvirus, which threatens elephant populations worldwide. Elephants in captivity and in the wild are affected by this condition, which has been responsible for about half of the deaths of young elephants in zoos. Scientists are working hard to understand elephant herpesvirus, learn more about how it is passed among elephants, develop and improve treatments, and find a vaccine. |
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SCBI scientists don't just study animals; they study the planet. Enormous continent- and planet-wide initiatives are taking place in Front Royal that will monitor the health of the planet by studying large-scale climate shifts, the same way SCBI veterinarians monitor the health of animals by checking their temperatures. |
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| As the fate of tigers hangs in the balance, conservationists from the SCBI and partner organizations in the Global Tiger Initiative have launched a month-long course in Thailand aimed at teaching wildlife officers, field managers, and researchers from tiger-range countries best practices to bolster the animals’ numbers. The course in Thailand brings together participants from 12 countries. Learn more. |
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| This spring, two of these vulnerable cranes hatched at Front Royal, thanks to hard-working scientists and artificial insemination. Follow his adventures. |
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| Kim Terrell, a Ph. D candidate at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, was awarded the prestigious David H. Smith Conservation Research Fellowship by the Society for Conservation Biology. This program seeks to develop future world leaders and entrepreneurs who are successful at linking conservation science and application. Learn more. |
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Study: Tiger Numbers Could Triple if Large-Scale Landscapes are Protected |
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| Protecting core breeding sites, developing forest corridors, and providing benefits to local communities can ensure tiger population growth. Learn more. |
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September 2010
| SCBI population biologists use state-of-the-art techniques to monitor the progress and genetics of golden lion tamarins reintroduced into the Atlantic coastal forest of Brazil. Learn more. |
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| The birth of four cubs to African lion Shera on August 31 was a triumph for the Zoo. Scientists and keepers worked together to build the Zoo's three lions into a pride, to supervise social interactions and breeding, and to test for and track Shera's pregnancy. Learn more. |
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| The National Zoo grows all its own hay on the 3,200-acre Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal. In order to increase native biodiversity, SCBI scientists are switching some fields from cold-season grasses to more native warm-season grasses. Learn more. |
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| As part of SCBI’s mission to educate and train the next generation of conservationists around the globe, two of the National Zoo’s science centers have teamed up on a multi-year program to build capacity for conservation in southern Africa. In August, SCBI scientists hosted a workshop with Cheetah Conservation Botswana to assess conservation needs in the region and identify next steps. Learn more. |
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| The Smithsonian-Mason Semester for Conservation Studies is part of a unique partnership between George Mason University and the Smithsonian Institution. Students are immersed in an active research community where they live among, learn from, and work side-by-side with Smithsonian and Mason scientists and scholars.Learn more. |
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New Quantitative Ecologist Justin Calabrese: Bridging Great Divides |
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| SCBI's new quantitative ecologist Justin Calabrese connects ecological data to theoretical models, yielding new insights into how natural systems work. Learn more. |
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| This spring, two of these vulnerable cranes hatched at Front Royal, thanks to hard-working scientists and artificial insemination. Learn about the chicks and watch them as they grow. |
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June 2010
SCBI Facilitates Global Network Aimed at Saving Tigers From Extinction |
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| SCBI scientists are working with leaders and conservation managers from 13 countries where tigers still roam to help save this magnificent creature from extinction, and ensure a future world populated with tigers. Learn more. |
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Scientists Look to Genetics to Help Elephants Ward off Disease |
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SCBI researchers worked with the Zoo's Asian elephants—Shanthi, Ambika, and Kandula—to learn more about the elephant immune system. Their research is helping them begin to think of new ways to protect elephants' health—both in zoos and in the wild from diseases that are devastating the world's elephant population. |
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| Scientists at SCBI have developed certification criteria for Bird Friendly Coffee - coffee that's both shade-grown and certified organic. Eight countries cultivate more than 17,000 acres of this coffee, and it's now being served in all Zoo stores and restaurants and at five Smithsonian museums on the Mall. Learn more. |
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| Reptile Discovery Center keeper Matt Evans took a trip to Panama to help establish "lifeboat colonies" of local amphibians before they're driven extinct by a devastating fungus. See photos of his trip and learn more |
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| After more than 30 years of studying clouded leopards, Zoo scientists have solved many puzzles about this perplexing species, starting with the biggest: figuring out just what a clouded leopard wants out of its habitat, and they're applying that knowledge at the Zoo's Front Royal facility. Learn more. |
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New Forest Ecologist Justin Thompson: The Scientist in the Woods |
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| SCBI's new forest ecologist Jonathan Thompson sees both the forest and the trees: he studies how forest ecosystems function, and how those functions change in a human-dominated ever-changing landscape. Learn more. |
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| The Center for Conservation and Evolutionary Genetics has moved into a newly renovated laboratory. The new facility will enable them to expand and deepen their research pursuits. See the new lab |
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Mary Hagedorn, a fish biologist at SCBI has had an electric fish named in her honor, in recognition of her work in the field of bony, electric fishes. |
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