Animals make 2020 New Year's reZOOlutions

What would you ask Santa for these holidays if you were a moose? Or a bald eagle? Of course we can’t know what our animals are thinking, and we do give them plenty of holiday enrichment treats at Winter Wildland. But we can definitely make some fun guesses based on what they enjoy doing or eating! Here’s a Northwest Trek wish-list for Santa from some of our animals. Let’s hope the guy in the red suit comes through… Moose Dear Santa, The holidays are here, and apparently you give gifts on request. Well, here is my request: Peace and quiet. …

The black bears at Northwest Trek have gone down for their winter naps, also known as torpor. During torpor, a bear’s body temperature, respiratory rate and metabolic rates all decrease to conserve energy. The bears can maintain this low energy sleeping state for days, weeks or even months without having much activity outside of their den, including eating and going to the bathroom. Northwest Trek’s black bears, Benton and Fern, typically go into torpor from November until February or March. “Benton and Fern do have periods of activity during the winter months, where they will eat, go to the bathroom, …

Once upon a time there were two wolf species: red wolves and gray wolves. Neither of them were “big and bad,” but they were often feared by humans. Over time, more and more were hunted. By 1940 gray wolves were decimated in the American wild and by the 1970s, so were red wolves. It was time for the story’s hero to step in. “Humans have a long history of blaming predators for problems, like wolves and grizzly bears,” says Marc Heinzman, zoological curator at Northwest Trek. “But scientific data shows that’s just not true in all cases.” While it’s true …

Fat Bear Week, October 5-October 11, is a celebration of success and survival, where brown bears in the Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska are matched against each other in a “march madness” style online voting competition to see who is crowned the Fat Bear Week Champion of 2022. No, it’s not fat shaming- it’s highlighting the resilience and adaptability of brown bears. Fat Bear Tuesday (Oct. 11) is when the winner is announced. While the grizzly bears at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park aren’t in the competition, we think they’re worth celebrating too. Huckleberry and Hawthorne, both 4 years …

Need to get out in nature? Get up close to animals? And eat great food? We have the answer: a Northwest Trek day trip. Combine a morning or afternoon visit to the wildlife park with a half-day hike, picnic and local dinner outside, and you’ve got the makings of an awesome family day or romantic date. Keep reading to build your perfect itinerary. Step 1: Animals up close You can spend a morning or afternoon at Northwest Trek, getting up-close to grizzlies, bald eagles, cougar and more. There’s plenty of guaranteed parking. Wander the paved paths and learn all about …

Note: The moose calves are living off-exhibit while they adjust to their new home. We expect to move them into our Free-Roaming Area in the fall after they are fully weaned. Northwest Trek Wildlife Park is now home to three Alaskan moose calves after they were orphaned in the wild earlier this summer. Keepers have named the almost 3-month-old calves Atlas, Luna, and Callisto (Cuh-list-o) after the moons of several planets. The two females and one male will soon join Aspen, the wildlife park’s 6-year-old resident female moose, in the 435-acre Free-Roaming Area alongside Roosevelt elk, American bison, caribou, bighorn …

Update, August 18th: Northwest Trek Wildlife Park released 124 endangered Northern leopard frogs earlier this week at the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge in Grant County. Keepers at Northwest Trek raised the frogs for 3 months from eggs through tadpole stage to froglets. This is a multi-agency partnership to help save this species that faces challenges like habitat loss, disease, non-native species, and climate change. By giving the frogs a head start and raising them free of predators, they are given a better chance of survival in the wild with the hope of establishing a new population of northern leopard frogs …

This Zookeeper Week, we shadowed Amanda, a zookeeper at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park. Amanda works with the black bears, grizzly bears, cougar, lynx, bobcats, foxes, and gray wolves.  We asked her about her experiences in zookeeping and what working with animals and wildlife means to her. Q: What is your favorite part of the job? A: I love providing enrichment to the animals and watching them express their natural behaviors. For example: I will put an antler up in a tree in Carly the cougar’s habitat to encourage her  to  climb and explore. Q: What is your favorite animal at …

This Zookeeper Week, we shadowed Jordan, a zookeeper at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park. Jordan works with all the animals in the 435-acre Free-Roaming Area, including nearly 90 bison, mountain goats, elk, swans, caribou, and bighorn sheep and dozens of black-tailed deer.  We asked him about his experiences in zookeeping and what working with animals and wildlife means to him. Q: What is your favorite part of the job? A: I love how different every day can be. If an animal is behaving abnormally or needs a medical procedure, it can change my whole routine. I also enjoy the solitude and …

He enjoys climbing and watching the trees sway in the wind and the birds fly by, making the name ‘Forest’ a perfect fit for Northwest Trek’s newest animal, an American marten. Martens are omnivores, members of the weasel family and live in forests in Washington, Alaska, northern New England, the Great Lakes region, Canada, and the Rocky Mountain and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges. Staff at Northwest Trek are honored to give Forest a home, after he was rescued and survived a challenging past. Visitors will notice that Forest’s tail is missing, as result of an incident before he was rescued. When Forest was first rescued, he …