New animals at the Great Bend Brit Spagh Zoo include two degus and a male companion for Rerun, the lar gibbon, named Manny.

Zoo Curator Ashley Burdick and Keeper Becca Curtiss traveled to Monroe, Louisiana, this week to pick up Manny. He and Rerun are a non-breeding pair and both have neurological deficiencies, Burdick said.

“Rerun suffered a stroke before we got her and Manny had an infection that affected his brain,” she said. “Both gibbons do not move like normal gibbons, so they make a good match.”

The zoo staff will work on introducing the gibbons to each other before Rerun shares the exhibit area with Manny. “When he’ll be in the exhibit will be contingent on how they get along.”

The degus are South American rodents, similar to chinchillas and guinea pigs, Burdick said. Degus are commonly found in the foothills and lower slopes of the Andes Mountains in Chile. The two at the zoo are named Kiwi and Clementine.

Degus live in groups and have 15 different vocalizations, Burdick said. The zoo’s degus will be on exhibit in the Raptor Center and will be used in education programs once they settle in.

March was a busy month at the zoo. With some warm days earlier in the month, the grizzly bears came outdoors on a snow day and the zoo posted of video on its Facebook page, showing them playing in the snow. Last Saturday, March 26, the bears were outside as the zoo celebrated World Bear Day with a Keeper Chat outside of their exhibit. “We had a good turnout,” Burdick said.

Also in March, the bird areas were closed as a precaution against avian influenza. A positive case of HPAI – Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza – was detected in Kansas and the close proximity of the disease prompted the zoo to take action.

“Most of the birds are inside indefinitely, and we are not selling fish/duck food,” Burdick said. “We don’t know when that will change.”

Earth Day is coming

The zoo is preparing to host the Great Bend Earth Day Celebration that runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 23. Rosewood ECycle and Great Bend Dairy Queen are co-sponsors of this event at the zoo.

Smoky Hills PBS staff will bring their Family Fun Day event to the celebration, said Amanda Smith, marketing director at the TV station. Curious George, star of the children’s TV series by the same name, will also be there.

The Family Fun Day event gives kids a chance to meet Curious George in person and take pictures with him, Smith said. The first 500 kids that come to meet Curious George will receive a free bag of gifts from Smoky Hills PBS.

“Curious George is so excited to come celebrate Earth Day with the kids,” said Haley Gagnon, event coordinator for Smoky Hills PBS. “We are thrilled to be a part of this great event and look forward to being in Great Bend for the come-and-go celebration, which occurs a day after the official 52nd anniversary of Earth Day."

Also participating in the Earth Day event are the Kansas Wetlands Education Center, Heartland Farms, Women for Kansas, and the Rosewood Aktion Club.