Meet the Piggies: Truffle

Name: Truffle
Age: 9 months old
Weight: 953 grams/ 2lbs, 1.6 oz
Description: tricolored English Crested with patches of golden agouti, brown, and white. Also has a white ring that goes only halfway around her middle
Favorite foods: grass, wheatgrass, blueberries, radicchio, frisee, cilantro, baby lettuce salad mix
Favorite activities: eating grass outdoors, running sideways at sharp angles, galloping around in random directions, chasing and annoying Peaches, sleeping in corners on soft surfaces

Learning how to use office supplies

Story: Truffle came along with her sister Belka to live with the slaves in September 2010. The slaves immediately liked her multicolored crest and the white ribbon that went halfway around her middle. Since she was already cocoa and caramel colored, they thought it looked like she was being decorated, much like a chocolate truffle. Truffle was at first very nervous and shy, but after getting used to the slaves she became a more sociable piggy (not that whee can blame her, those slaves can be rather odd at times). During out of cage time, she enjoys galloping about the floor, but unlike her sister Belka, she likes to run at random angles in random directions (she won't tell us why, but whee speculate she might be trying to compute complex mathematical food equations in her head).

Lounging amidst the folds of fleece

Meet the Piggies: Belka

Name: Belka (dubbed Nutmeg, then Kiwi, then finally named Belka (белка) which is Russian for "squirrel")
Age: 9 months old
Weight: 1000 grams/ 2lbs, 3.3 oz
Description: golden agouti with two brown patches and a brown tummy

Favorite foods: grass, wheatgrass, pellets, cucumber, dandelion greens, oranges, corn husks
Favorite activities: devouring grass in the great outdoors, doing laps, scampering behind the blinds, hurtling through tunnels, jumping onto higher surfaces, climbing, standing on her hind legs, being active, being mischievous and trying to get into out-of-bounds places, popcorning  

"But I wasn't ready yet!"

"What a piggy's gotta do to get some toys around here..."

Story: Along with Truffle, Belka came to live with the slaves in September 2010. They decided to name her Belka because her agouti coat, lighter colored tummy, ability to stand on her hind legs, and natural affinity for jumping and climbing were characteristics that strongly reminded them of a squirrel. Out of all of us, whee have to agree that she is the most athletic. Even though we all do a bit of jogging during out of cage time, her penchant for running laps makes her faster than the rest of us. The rest of us always snicker when we see Poof scurrying along trying to catch up to Belka - that is, until she comes barreling around a corner or tunnel and crashes straight into us. It doesn't hurt, but still... a pig has to set boundaries, you know. Belka greatly enjoys engaging in non-slave-approved clandestine operations, such as exploring the forbidden area behind the couch and trying her best to dislodge the blinds.

Comfortable in the cuddle cup

Meet the Piggies: Morry

Name: Morry (Derived from S'more, because of his long brown and white fur)
Age: He won't tell us!
Weight: 2lbs, 11-14 oz.
Description: brown and white longhaired Peruvian

Favorite foods: grass, wheatgrass, carrot, carrot tops, pellets, herb salad mix, frisee, corn silks, parsley, celery leaves, oranges, fresh hay
Favorite activities: grazing on grass outside, sleeping with his face in the food bowl, rumblestrutting, following Coppy around, playing with the slaves , bouncing all over the cage

Getting in some post dinner exercise exploring

Morry with his lion mane haircut

Story: Morry came to live with the slaves in June 2006. He has the important distinction of being their first, and so far only boar. They just had to take him home with them after, upon seeing them for the first time, he happily bounced up to them and started sniffing at them inquisitively. He was the first of us to learn that our slaves can be trained; he would wheek loudly and insistently at dinnertime until he was given a bit of his favorite food. Whee have to say, he is the friendliest and most sociable out of all of us as he is always trying to make friends with other piggies or talking to the slaves. Although other pigs didn't necessarily take to him at first, he eventually made good friends with them - like Coppy, whom he became best friends with. They were always sleeping together on opposite sides of the cage divider, stealing each others food, or exploring together. Because his hair grew pretty quickly, he got to spend a lot of time getting styled with our slave.. whee are rather jealous, none of the rest of us have long fur!

Meet the Piggies: Sharky

Name: Sharky (Her original name was Charcoal.. again we have no idea where the crazy slaves get these ideas from)
Age: Declined to answer
Weight: whee think from 2lbs, 10-14 oz.
Description: solid black Standard Self

Favorite foods: grass, wheatgrass, corn husk/green leaves, green beans, spinach, fennel, carrot tops, frisee, radicchio, red lettuce
Favorite activities: mowing the grass, eating all the surrounding food, climbing upwards, snoozing in patches of sunlight, napping on Cinnamon's rear, being spoiled

Curious Piggy

Sitting next to a mini watermelon

Story: Sharky came to the slaves in April 2005 along with her cagemate Coppy for the purpose of becoming Cinnamon's friend. They took to each other very quickly and from then on, wherever Cinnamon went, Sharky was never far behind. One of her favorite things to do was cuddle up to Cinnamon, lean against her side, and sleep. She was always a very relaxed and trusting girl, from the start she was always willing to be hugged and cuddled. Our slaves used to say that she looks like a chubby little black bear, which whee thought was silly as we piggies are far cuter than any prickly hulking bear. Sharky loved her wooden hiding house where she could monitor the slaves without being seen - since she was all black, she could blend into the shadows without being seen. She and her close friend Coppy did quite enjoy terrorizing Morry when he was young, although they all became good friends as they grew older.

Meet the Piggies: Coppy

Hello all, for our Meet the Piggies profiles, our first feature shall be our beloved boss and editor-in-chief, *drumroll please* Coppy!
- CaliCavies

Editor-in-chief Coppy

Name: Coppy (somehow the crazy slaves got this nickname from her original name, Coffee)
Age: turned 6 a month ago in February
Weight: ranges from 2lbs, 9-13 oz.
Description: tricolored Abyssinian with patches of white, brown, and golden agouti fur

Favorite foods: grass, clovers, dried corn husks/green leaves, corn silks, green beans, broccoli leaves, baby dill, watermelon, grapes, corn, carrot tops. Also beet leaves and alfalfa hay, but our slaves don't give us these very frequently at all 
Favorite activities: munching on grass outdoors, snoozing in cuddle cups, using other piggies as pillows, lazing in fresh hay under her favorite red castle, being hugged and spoiled by our slaves

Coppy in her 6th birthday present - a new cuddle cup!

Story: Coppy first came to the slaves back in April 2005 after the first of their two piggies went to the Rainbow Bridge. As a youngster, she was an alert, energetic little ball of popcorning Abyssinian fluff. Since then, she has grown into an assertive but affectionate piggy - which is why she is our boss! Occasionally she can be quite the demanding little tyrant, but our slaves say that's just because she has such a big personality. Coppy's best friend is a piggy named Morry (whom we shall meet later), they spend hours munching, talking, and napping together. Sharky (another one of our Collective) is also a close friend, as they were cagemates together when they first came to live with our slaves. Out of all the piggies in our Collective, whee agree that Coppy is the bravest and smartest - she is constantly finding new and unique ways to outsmart our slaves.

Spring Raking Clean-Up At The Park

The annual spring event we've all been waiting for: Spring Raking Clean-Up At The Park!

Bring your own rake and garden gloves. Lunch will be provided for all the volunteers. If you just can't wait to greet our animal friends, join us April 16-17, 2011.

Sponsored by our Friends of the Zoo and UW-Stevens Point Natural Resource Students.

Questions? Email nature@wildwoodwildlifepark.com or Phone: 715-356-5588

Wasp

True Wild Life | Wasp | The wasp is medium sized flying insect that is found all around the world. The wasp is known for its black and yellow markings which means that some wasp and bee species are commonly confused. The wasp is found in all the countries in the world, on every continent with the exception of the polar regions. There are around 75,000 recognized species of wasp worldwide that grow to around 2/3 inch long.

The wasp is most commonly known for its poisonous sting, that if a human is stung can often swell into a painful lump that takes a few days to soothe. Some people are allergic to wasp stings meaning the wasp sting can be fatal. Not all wasps can sting though but those that can often die once they have used their sting has it is joined onto their rear end of often becomes dislodged. When a wasp dies it releases a smell (called a pheromone) which warns the other wasps of danger and that it needs help.

Like many other insect species, the wasp is social insect and many wasps, as many as 10,000, inhabit just one nest. The queen wasp is the only breeding female and she builds the nest from a papery substance that is made up of chewed wood and plants. Typically, the wasp only lives for 12 - 22 days. Wasps are omnivorous animals and therefore eat a mixture of plants and other animals. As with bees, the wasp prefers the sweeter plants and primarily eats nectar, fruits and honey. Wasps also eat insects and even large caterpillars.

Despite their bright colours to deter predators, wasps are eaten by a number of different animals around the world including birds, amphibians, reptiles and various species of mammal. The queen wasp lays her eggs inside the nest which hatch in a number of days. When the wasp larvae hatch they are cared for by the other wasps in the nest and begin to hunt for food to bring back to the nest. Wasps are known to travel nearly half a kilometre away from the nest in search of food.

Warthog

True Wild Life | Warthog | The warthog is a large species of pig that is found in the desert and shrub-lands of Africa. There are considered to be two species of warthog which are the common warthog and the desert warthog. The common warthog tends to be found in the more northern regions of Africa and the desert warthog is found in the south of Africa, and is sometimes also referred to as the Cape warthog. The warthog is named after the two sets of tusks that are found on the face of the warthog. Warthogs use their tusks both for fighting off unwanted predators and other competing male warthogs, and the warthogs also use these tusks for digging in the dirt for grubs and insects.

Warthogs have a diet that consists mainly of grass, fruit, berries, roots and insects but warthogs are also known to occasionally eat small mammals, birds and reptiles. The diet of the warthog however, depends on the season and what is growing and therefore available for the warthog to eat. The warthog is a fantastic digger thanks to the strong tusks on the jaws of the warthog but the warthog also uses its head and feet to help the warthog dig into the ground either to search for grubs or so that the warthog can build a burrow. Despite the fact that the warthog is a very capable digger, warthogs seem to prefer to occupy abandoned burrows built by other animals, rather than build their own.

Warthogs live together with other warthogs in small family groups that are known as sounders. These warthog groups generally have a few female warthog members and their young, and will have one male warthog member who is responsible for protecting the sounder and mating with the female warthogs. Warthogs tend to be found in areas where there is a good supply of water, so that the warthogs are not only able to drink but also enjoy to wallow in the cool, muddy water. Warthogs also prefer to inhabit grassy and open plains but have been found living close to the border of the Sahara Desert.

The warthog has many predators in the African wild including lions, cheetahs and crocodiles but the human is one of the main predators of the warthog as they have hunted warthogs not just for their meat, but also for the ivory that is found in the tusks of the warthog. The warthog has very poor eye sight although warthogs have a good sense of smell which allows the warthog to hunt for food and to detect any nearing predators. Warthogs are also good at running and jumping and are well known for running with their tails pointing towards the sky.

Walrus

True Wild Life | Walrus | The walrus is a large marine mammal that has flippers to help it swim. The walrus is found in the colder waters of the Northern Hemisphere, but the walrus is much more adapted specifically to the conditions of the Arctic Circle. There are three species of walrus. The Atlantic walrus, the Pacific walrus and the Laptev walrus found in the Laptev Sea. The walrus is most closely related to the seal and although the walrus and the seal are obviously similar, the walrus has some distinctive features such as the large tusks on the face of the walrus.

The walrus hunts fish and small mammals in the Arctic Circle. For a few hundred years, the walrus has been hunted by the Arctic people for meat, oil and the skin of the walrus but walrus hunting has led to the extinction of the walrus on many small islands within the Arctic circle. Today, only the Native Americans are allowed to hunt the walrus as it can often be one of the only sources of food for hundreds of miles. The walrus is a particularly sociable marine mammal and can often be seen in large groups. Walrus' can be heard grunting and making loud bellowing noises at each other but they become particularly aggressive during the mating season. The male walrus displays the most aggressive behaviour as the males have to fight to gain the respect of a female walrus.

Walrus' have long white tusks which they use for helping them to survive in the tough conditions of the Arctic circle. Both the male walrus and the female walrus have long tusks which can reach nearly a metre in length. Walrus' use their tusks for a number of reasons including breaking holes in the ice, hauling their large bodies out of the water and onto the ice, and defend themselves. The walrus also has a thick layer of fat under their skin, known as blubber, which keeps the walrus warm in the sub-zero temperatures and walrus' also have long, sensitive whiskers which they use as detective devices to find their favourite meal of shellfish on the dark ocean floor. The male walrus (bull) is often nearly double the size of the female walrus (cow). Walrus' can be found in groups of up to 2,000 walrus individuals which generally consists of the alpha male and his group of females and their young. The alpha male walrus will defend his walrus clan from other large male walrus' that are trying to infiltrate the group and steal the attention of his female followers.

Walrus' are thought to mate about once a year during the colder winter months. After a gestation period of just over a year, the female walrus gives birth to her fully developed walrus calf. The walrus calf stays with it's mother until it is at least 2 years old. This prolonged nursing period means that the walrus calf can develop it's warm and insulating layer of blubber which is vital to the survival of the walrus in the freezing conditions which the walrus inhabits. The walrus has a carnivorous diet which mainly consists of shellfish and echinoderms such as starfish and sea urchins. Occasionally the walrus will hunt fish, seals and young whales. The walrus uses it's enormous tusks to hold larger prey down so that the walrus can then eat it.

Wallaby

True Wild Life | Wallaby | The wallaby is a small to medium sized marsupial found on the Australian continent and its surrounding islands. Today there are a number of wild wallaby populations inhabiting other areas around the world where the wallaby has been introduced by humans. The wallaby is most closely related to Australia's largest marsupial, the kangaroo. The wallaby is generally smaller than a kangaroo although some wallaby individuals have been known to reach 6ft tall.

There are roughly 30 different species of wallaby found in a variety of habitats throughout the Australian continent. The habitats of wallaby are so diverse that wallaby species are often named after their habitat. This includes the rock wallaby, the brush wallaby and the shrub wallaby. Other wallaby species such as the hare wallaby, are named after their size and appearance.

The wallaby has strong and powerful back legs which the wallaby hops on in order to move about. The forearms of the wallaby are much smaller as they are mainly used for feeding and occasionally to help with balance. The tail of the wallaby is often as long as the wallaby's body and plays a critical role as a balance aid and is often used in self-defence.animal that forages on the ground for seeds and fallen fruits. Grasses make up the bulk of the wallaby's diet along with leaves from low trees and shrubs and berries. The wallaby is a very sociable animal and can often be seen foraging for food with other wallaby individuals.

Due to its relatively large size, the wallaby has few natural predators within its environment. Canines such as dingos and foxes are the main predators of the wallaby along with large reptiles such as crocodiles and snakes. The wallaby is able to defend itself against predators by hitting them with its long, powerful tail. The wallaby is a marsupial meaning that the female wallaby has a pouch on her tummy in which to raise her young. The female wallaby gives birth to a single baby wallaby (occasionally twins), known as a joey, after a gestation period of only a month. The joey then crawls up into its mother's pouch, where it is cared for and nurtured until it is fully developed.

Vulture

True Wild Life | Vulture | The vulture is a large, carnivorous bird that is most well known for its scavenging nature. The vulture is one of the few types of bird that is found distributed so widely around the world, as vultures are found on every continent excluding the Antarctic and Australia and the islands that surround it. Different species of vultures of firstly classified into two groups, the old world vultures and the new world vultures. There are thought to be nearly 30 different species of vulture that are found worldwide.

The old world vultures are found in Asia, Europe and Africa with these species of vulture thought to be most closely related to eagles and hawks. The old world vulture is not thought to be closely related to the new world vulture and the old world vulture uses its spectacular sight alone in order to find food. The new world vultures are found in the Americas and although there are definitive similarities between the old world vulture and the new world vulture, they are believed to be connected through evolutionary status rather than DNA. The new world vultures tend to be slightly smaller than the old world vultures and use both sight and their excellent sense of smell in order to find their food.

All species of vulture are similar in the sense that they scavenge for their food whenever possible rather than killing it themselves. Vultures feed on the remains of dead animals and are never too fussy about what is left. Vultures are known to strip meat, skin and even feathers, leaving only the skeleton of the animal remaining. Although vultures are generally fairly solitary animals, groups of vultures are often seen circling prey from the sky above. This movement of the vultures is called a kettle and a group of vultures together is sometimes known as a venue.

Vultures have keen eyesight. It is believed they are able to spot a three-foot carcass from four miles away on the open plains. In some species, when an individual sees a carcass it begins to circle above it. This draws the attention of other vultures that then join in. The feces of the turkey vulture contains strong acids that kill many of the bacteria commonly associated with bird feces. Because of their diet, these birds are able to kill harmful bacteria and viruses with their stomach acids, and halt the potential spread of disease from rotting carcasses.

Vampire Bat

True Wild Life | Vampire Bat | The vampire bat is a small species of bat, native to the tropics of Central and South America. There are three recognised sub-species of vampire bat, all of which are in a genus of their own despite their obvious similarities. The common vampire bat, the hairy-legged vampire bat and the white-winged vampire bat are all closely related and share the same unique feeding habits, as they are the only known mammals that feed entirely on blood. Over time, vampire bats have perfectly adapted to the consumption of their only food source, with a leaf-like heat sensor on the end of their nose which detects where the warm blood is flowing closest to the skin.

The vampire bat is quite a small animal, with it's body rarely growing larger than the size of a human thumb. It's wings are long, finger-like bones that are covered in a thin layer of skin, with a thumb claw that pokes out of the front and is used for grip when clambering about on their host. Vampire bats have dark brown to grey furry bodies with a lighter underside, and strong limbs which enable them to crawl about on the ground with ease. As with other bats, vampire bats use echolocation in order to determine their surroundings. When flying, they produce high-pitched sounds that bounce of the objects in the area, and it is this bounced-back sound that allows the bat to figure out where things are around them (it is so high-pitched that it cannot be heard by people).

Vampire bats use echolocation, sound and smell in order to find their prey, which can be up to 10,000 times the size of this tiny predator, and it is because of this that vampire bats have evolved to taking some precautions when feeding. Firstly, the never land on their prey but inside land on the ground close by and crawl up to it, where they are able to detect veins close to the skin's surface with precision, thanks to their heat-sensing nose. Using it's set of sharp front teeth, the vampire bat then bites it's host, immediately jumping back in case the animal wakes up. Contrary to popular belief, vampire bats do not suck the blood of their victims, but inside lap it up using their grooved tongue as it flows out of the wound. Chemicals in the vampire bat's saliva both stop the blood from clotting and numb the area of skin around the bite to prevent the host from feeling anything.

Despite being a unique and versatile predator itself, the vampire bat is still prey to other animals, that can hunt the bat in the air when it comes out to hunt at night. Large, sharp-eyed birds of prey such as hawks and eagles are the most common predators of the vampire bat, along with snakes that hunt the bats in their dark caverns while they are sleeping during the day. Humans though are one of their biggest threats, mainly farmers that are known to poison the bats that commonly feed on their livestock. These poisons (known as vampiricides) are specially designed to spread throughout the whole colony through social grooming, killing hundreds of individuals at a time.

Vampire bats feed exclusively on the blood of warm-blooded animals, drinking up to a teaspoon (25ml) of blood per 30 minute feed. Once having feasted on their host however, the bats are then so bloated that they can barely fly with their weight almost having doubled. It is said that in just one year, an average sized vampire bat colony can drink the blood of 25 cows, but their metabolism is so fast that they must feed every two days to ensure their survival (blood is very nutritious containing high amounts of water). The nearly 20 teeth in the bat's mouth are mostly redundant due to their liquid diet, apart from the set of razor-sharp incisors at the front used for biting flesh.

All three subspecies of vampire bat have been listed as being of Least Concern of becoming extinct in the wild in the immediate future, due to the fact that they are widespread and feed on a variety of warm-blooded animals. Deforestation of their natural habitats along with persistent human efforts to eradicate who colonies at a time however, have led to population declines in certain areas. Scientists have also discovered though that the anti-coagulant found in the bat's saliva, proves to more effective at preventing blood clotting than any medicine, meaning that this could have significant positive implications for patients with strokes or heart attacks.

Turkey

True Wild Life | Turkey | The turkey is a large bird that is closely related to other game birds such as pheasants, chickens and quails. The turkey has become famous across the western world as being a special meal on large family occasions including Christmas and Thanksgiving. Despite their large size, turkeys are surprisingly adept fliers and can be seen flying beneath the forest canopy looking for somewhere to perch. Although turkeys do nest in the trees, they are most commonly found in open forests, woodlands and grasslands.

There are two different species of turkey which are the wild turkey and the ocellated turkey. The wild turkey is found naturally in the open forests of North America and is the heaviest of all of the game bird species. The ocellated turkey is found in south-east Mexico and although the same size as the wild turkey, the ocellated turkey is roughly half the weight of the wild turkey. The wild turkey is a large, round looking bird that has long, thin legs with three toes on each foot to help with balance and for scratching around in the dirt. The male wild turkey has a red, featherless head and throat which has small growths on it known as caruncles.

The ocellated turkey is a more elegant looking bird and, although closely related to the wild turkey, the ocellated turkey is very similar in appearance to a female peacock. The ocellated turkey has a narrow body and long legs, and the males have featherless necks and heads which can be red or blue in colour and are often more subtle than the those of the male wild turkeys. The turkey is an omnivorous animal meaning that it eats both plants and plant matter, and other animals. The turkey primarily eats nuts, seeds, fruits, berries and insects which is often finds whilst scratching around on the forest floor. The turkey also eats small reptiles, amphibians and even rodents should it get the chance.

Despite its large size, both species of turkey have a number of predators within their natural environment. Foxes, snakes, raccoons, wildcats and humans are the most common predators of the turkey. During the mating season, male turkeys make gobbling noises in order to try and attract a female turkey to mate with. The female turkey finds somewhere safe to make her nest and lays between 6 and 12 eggs which hatch after an incubation period of about a month. Today, the turkey is one of the most popular meats to eat on festive occasions and is farmed in large numbers across the western world. It is thought that over 250 million turkeys are farmed in the United States every year!