Wild For Life

By The Toronto ZooScience Natural Sciences Nature

Wild For Life episodes

February 09, 2022 WFL 85: Considerations when designing habitats at The Toronto Zoo
Have you ever wondered how each habitat at the Zoo is designed and what type of considerations are taken into account when a new habitat is designed? Brent Huffman, Lead Keeper of Mammals at The Toronto Zoo, returns to the podcast to talk about one of his favourite things are the Zoo: habitat design. Brent tells about all of the different considerations that need to be addressed when designing a new habitat or altering existing ones. Habitats need to provide accessibility to keepers, the veterinarian staff, the garden staff, and more. It also needs to provide a number of different viewing areas that will be optimal for visitors to see the animals. Of course, the most important consideration is that of the animals and their welfare. Brent provides us with different thinking around habitats at The Toronto Zoo.
40 min
January 26, 2022 WFL 84: Celebrating Charles, the Silverback Gorilla's 50th Birthday
Heidi Manicki joins me on this episode to help celebrate Charles, the iconic Silverback Gorilla, who turned 50 this year. We discuss how Charles has matured over his years at the Toronto Zoo including his number one fear! We also discuss how important Charles is as an iconic connection for visitors to learn about how we can better protect critically endangered Western Lowland gorillas in the wild.

Keep listening for a surprise announcement to help protect gorillas!
51 min
January 12, 2022 WFL 83: How the Toronto Zoo uses their manure to produce electricity in partnership with Zooshare
I am excited to tell you that Kyla Graham, Manager of Conservation and Environment at the Zoo, joins me on the podcast to discuss the planning and implementation of the Zoo's new BioGas program that it runs in partnership with ZooShare. Kyla described how the partnership with ZooShare was initiated to help the Zoo to find a process that will not only dispose of the 3,000 metric tons worth of manure per year but do it in a way that contributes to renewable energy. Here are links to ZooShare and an article that provides a summary of the project: 1) ZooShare website: https://zooshare.ca/ 2) Summary article of BioGas: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-zoo-manure-into-electricity-1.6277735?fbclid=IwAR078VDoK_mB3LxrSgLKHSKLaZCevbysU7FwicP0nMZ6h3AO-a0U_LnaxSc
32 min
December 22, 2021 WFL 82: Learn about the Amur tiger breeding program and the new tiger cub at the Toronto Zoo
Nigel Parr, Zookeeper, stops by the podcast to tell us about the breeding program that brought us Mila, the Amur tiger cub, to the Toronto Zoo. We go in-depth on the breeding process and Mila's parents; how the Zookeepers help monitor the health of the cubs; and, how the cub is cared for by Mila's mom Mazyria and the Zoo staff. Help protect Amur Tigers: https://www.sumatranrangerproject.com
51 min
December 08, 2021 WFL 81: New Wild Encounters at the Toronto Zoo
You can count on the Wild Encounters program at the Toronto Zoo to add more benefits to your visit to the Zoo to get a behind-the-scenes tour of some of your favourite animals such as the polar bears and giraffes. There are now new encounters including goats, reptiles, and the hidden zoo (a look behind the zoo into some of the research). Hollie Ross, the behavioural husbandry supervisor, is my guest on the podcast today to discuss the new encounters and how they can add even more to your Toronto Zoo experience.
36 min
November 25, 2021 WFL 80: Coorporative Breeding Programs at the Toronto Zoo
Brent Huffman, lead curator of mammals, at the Toronto Zoo joins me on this episode to discuss the importance of coorporative breeding programs at the Zoo. Brent defines the term "Cooporative Breeding" and tells us about various examples of breeding programs at the Zoo as well as some of the other zoos with which the Toronto Zoo works to ensure the proper breeding of a species in question. Brent also discusses the purposes of the Species Survival Plans (SSP) and how they function at the Toronto Zoo.
36 min
November 10, 2021 WFL 79: Transferring Theo The Rhino from the Toronto Zoo
How to you transport a juvenile rhinoceros from Toronto to Vancouver during a pandemic? Vicki Hardstaff, the Toronto Zoo's Animal Logistics Coordinator, joins me in today's episode to discuss the planning and execution of transferring Theo the rhinoceros to the Greater Vancouver Zoo. We discuss the number of Zoo staff that accompanied Theo; his surroundings during the transfer; and, how long the distance actually is between Toronto and Vancouver!
30 min
October 27, 2021 WFL 78: Native Bat Conservation at the Toronto Zoo
Toby Thorne, Native Bat Coordinator, and Melissa Mayhew, Senior Environmental Scientist at the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) join me on the podcast to discuss why native bat conservation is so important to the Canadian environment and how the partnership between the Zoo and the NWMO is working to help protect bats and their habitat.
53 min
October 06, 2021 WFL 77: Increasing the breeding success of the Oregon Spotted Frog
The Oregon Spotted Frog is listed as an Endangered Species under the Canadian Species At Risk Act; therefore, the breeding success and reintroduction of offspring to the natural habitat is of utmost importance. It's not surprising that the Toronto Zoo is partnering with Laurentian University to help research how to increase the success rate for the Oregon Spotted Frog breeding program at the Toronto Zoo.

Briar Hunter is a Master's student at Laurentian University who is involved in the research of the breeding program and joins me on today's episode to discuss her research purpose, collaborators out west, and what she hopes to accomplish after her research. Briar's supervisors for her Master's thesis are Dr. David Lesbarreres (Laurentian University) and Dr. Gabriela Mastromonaco (Toronto Zoo).
38 min
September 22, 2021 WFL 76: Animal Welfare Science at the Toronto Zoo
I am joined by Maria Franke, Manager of Welfare Science at the Toronto Zoo, on today's episode to discuss how the Zoo monitors and studies animal welfare for its species. Animal welfare is always the number one priority. It uses a holistic approach that includes monitoring the physical, mental, and emotional status of the animals with a focus on quantitative data. Maria discusses how animal welfare at the Zoo is a collaborative effort and how the new Outdoor Orangutan Habitat will help to monitor the species' welfare and allow comparisons of welfare between indoor and outdoor habitats.
25 min

About Wild For Life

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Wild For Life is the Toronto Zoo podcast that brings you behind the scenes and unveils the "hidden zoo." Each episode brings you information on the critical conservation work that protects endangered…