A Whale is Born

One of our most famous babies is Baby Shamu. Our first successful killer whale calf was born over 15 years ago. Prior to the arrival of our first several calves, no one knew much about pregnancy, gestation, birth and growth in killer whales. Even things as seemingly simple as the age of maturation, (six to eight years for females) or length of gestation (17 months) were just best estimates until then. Watching the little tail flukes emerging, disappearing, then being pushed out even further as mom swam around the pool at Shamu Stadium has been a highlight of my career. We all cheered when the 300 pound baby finally emerged into the world and swam to the surface for her first breath. Since then we have had the joy to witness many, many more.

Baby Baboon Bounces Back

Pre-natal care is as important for the animals in our care as it is to most human families. Regular exams, including sonograms are a part of our regular maternal care program for many species. Sometimes this alerts us of a problem early enough to rectify or prepare for. At times, the mothers are not able to care for their own offspring and our specialized nursery and veterinary staff steps in to help. This was the case with one of our baboons at Busch Gardens in Tampa. One of our pregnant females was struggling with the birth of her baby and needed to have a cesarean. She was also not producing enough milk for the baby, named Nyani, to get enough to eat. The staff stepped in and raised her in the nursery for the first few months. She grew quickly and was healthy and strong. The plan was to try to reintroduce her to the troop, where two other babies had been born as well and lived with their mothers. Nyani was moved to an enclosure right next to the indoor baboon housing and taken care of by keepers there where she had a chance to socialize with the entire troop through a divider. After several more months of brief introductions, tentative interactions and growing familiarity, Nyani was ready to join the group full time. Three older females took on the role of protecting, teaching and comforting the new member of the group, while the other youngsters became immediate friends. Nyani still seeks out and enjoys the attention of her keepers as well, but has become a fully integrated member of the troop, which enjoys a fantastic habitat at Busch Gardens shared with hippos, a big "river" and hundreds of beautiful fish.

Prepare for Tomorrow

Babies are always adorable, but the curatorial staff plans animal births much the same way you would plan your own family. First, would it be a wise decision to have a baby right now? Do we have room and funds to take excellent care of it? Is everyone and everything prepared? We also work closely with the Species Survival Plan administered by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association to help maintain the genetic viability of endangered species into the future. The plight of many animal species is not improving in the wild, so parks like SeaWorld and Busch Gardens help through education, conservation and propagation. Everyone can do their part by acting responsibly - reduce, reuse and recycle, educate yourself about products you purchase and how they effect animals and the environment and take an interest in local environmental issues. Humans share the earth with all other species - lets leave room and resources for their babies to grow as well as ours.