Zoo Logic Dr. Grey Stafford

Dennis Christen, Senior Director, Animal Wellbeing & Behavior for the Georgia Aquarium was one of the architects that helped move two beluga whales from the NEMO Dolphinarium in Putin-ravaged Ukraine to the safety of Europe's largest aquarium, Oceanographic, in Valencia, Spain. This story made international headlines recently and involved a host of zoological facilities and other agencies to rescue these animals from worsening conditions such as power interruptions, food and other supply chain issues, and the inherent danger posed to NEMO staff caring for these and other animals over the past several years of Russian aggression. It is another amazing example of conservation and compassion by zoological professionals and institutions concerned for the welfare of animals regardless of cost or risk. It is a tale that honors the bravery, national pride, and dedication of the people of Ukraine as they strive to maintain some degree of normal life even as they fight for survival against a powerful aggressor.
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Growing up on the beautiful Italian island of Ischia 19 miles off the coast of Naples, Dr. Valerio Mazzella of the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn Napoli grew to love the ecosystem's unique features and species.  As a natural source of thermal and pH gradients due to the region's secondary volcanism, which gives rise to carbon dioxide vents, Ischia and the surrounding ocean waters have long been a natural laboratory for scientists to study the global effects of rising atmospheric carbon and the resulting ocean acidification. Dr. Mazzella's research fascination first with sea grasses and the countless species that depend upon them, and later with sea sponges and their microbiomes has implications for preserving the island's fragile balance in the face of mounting pressures from increasing tourism and boat traffic, overfishing, and pollution.
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Best selling author, Emmy winning actor, and fierce animal advocate, Carolyn Hennesy returns to discuss her recent comments at the annual meeting of the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums (AMMPA) about how zoos and aquariums can begin to build better relationships with entertainers and influencers. In many instances, entertainers and those who work behind the camera inside the film and television industry have to be concerned about what supporting modern zoos and aquariums may do to their careers and future employment prospects. Carolyn encourages us to be persistent, inviting, and accommodating to those we wish to recruit into helping educate the world, including our detractors, about the important work of conservation we do.
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Long time zoological statistician and animal manager, Kevin Willis, returns to discuss dolphin demographics and other mathematical insights into current species populations in human care. The overall population of dolphins in facilities looks promising, but Kevin warns this view is not reality since the animals are not actually maintained as one but several small islands of sub-populations that are not at all sustainable as currently managed. He also argues that zoos and aquariums are in the midst of change from the Noah's Ark conservation model of the 1980s and its SSP's (Species Survival Plans) designed to one day re-populate wild habitats, once humans get their act together, to something as yet still evolving. In fact, the number of managed species has been greatly reduced and the word conservation no longer appears in the description of SSP's on the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) website. When asked what the math tells him about the future of species and genetic diversity of both plants and animals in zoos and aquariums and the wild, he shares that we as a community have some tough choices ahead about what species can and should be prioritized for preservation.
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The team from GRAZE (Growing Resiliency for Aquarium and Zoo Employees) Erin McNally and Hannah Fullmer return to discuss a widespread problem in most fields, including the zoological profession. While not unique to animal facilities, bullying takes a tremendous toll on an already beleaguered workforce. If social media content is to be believed, younger professionals seem increasingly disillusioned while senior staff are leaving the field from burnout. Erin and Hannah describe ways to think about and address bullying, as well as, urge individuals to develop coping strategies to improve workplace culture and not to run from the issues. It's a difficult but necessary conversation for individuals and organizations to have in order to build trust and retain experienced staff within an organization.
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Long time animal trainer and consultant, Jade Fountain from Animal Behavior Matters returns to discuss her latest work in East Africa with a global organization called APOPO (Anti-Persoonsmijnen Ontmijnende Product Ontwikkeling”, or in English, Anti-Personnel Landmines Detection Product Development. For the past 25 years, APOPO has been utilizing African Pouched Rats trained for scent detection to locate landmines in war torn countries such as Cambodia.  As a result of their work and the astonishing olfactory abilities of these rats, hundreds of thousands of square meters of land have been rendered safe for people to return to farm and to build new lives. More than 160,000 landmines have been detected and destroyed. Remarkably, no rat has ever perished from mine detection work. Jade describes the training of these special animals and their unique characteristics that make them ideal for use in mine detection, but also wildlife trafficking and identifying positive tuberculosis samples. She also shares some of her doctoral work and how she hopes to validate anecdotal evidence that scent work in dogs has physiological and behavioral benefits.
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