As the days get shorter and nights get cooler, the zoo’s staff is busy preparing for the inevitable change of seasons ahead. For some of the animals it is a welcomed change as they prefer the cooler months, while the more sensitive animals will be relying on staff to ensure they are well cared for and protected from the dropping temperatures. Besides the animal care that changes during this transition, staff must also deal with preparing for the physical changes to the campus during this time. The zoo hours may be getting shorter, but the workload is just as great as the zoo transitions into fall.

As the temperatures drop, several species will spend less time on exhibit as determined by their individual species protocols that will dictate what temperatures are acceptable along with the other weather conditions that affect what that temperature feels like. The okapi, Akili, for example, can have access to his habitat if the temperature feels like it is above 40 degrees. However, a cloudy day, rain, or just wind can drive that feels like temperature down, so in essence, the zookeepers must also learn to be pseudo-meteorologists to ensure the safety and welfare of the animals they are caring for. Each species has its cutoff temperatures when they can’t be outside on exhibit, but fortunately for Akili, indoor viewing is provided for those days. During a cold snap some of the animals may not be out on exhibit and out of the public’s view only to get back outside once things warm up again. For other animals in the zoo, once the staff pulls the trigger on fall’s transition, they have to move to off-exhibit holding areas where they can be maintained safely.

The primates especially are a pet peeve of mine because once we move them into winter holding there is not an opportunity to get them back out until overnight temperatures consistently reach designated temperatures, which may take into May or June depending on the year. While we are currently addressing a similar issue with the giraffes during the winter with the construction of the African Plains Building, the zoo is developing plans that would eliminate the need to physically move them twice a year by providing holding spaces that are directly tied to their enclosures allowing for them to be shifted inside as the temperatures drop but given access to the habitats on those nicer days. If all goes well, there will also be the opportunity to provide indoor viewing on those days that they can’t be outside.

Currently the staff is well set going into the fall transition as heaters have been checked, repairs made where needed, and new furniture added to those spaces where they will ride out the North Dakota winter. Across the zoo campus, maintenance will begin blowing out irrigation lines and as the temperatures continue to drop start winterizing the exterior restrooms and concession stand. Staff, with an army of volunteers, will continue through the fall raking leaves and keeping walkways cleared to stay ahead of the first snows. This annual transition is just another day in the life at the zoo, but for the zoo and its animals it sets us up for a brighter spring.