National Zoo Successfully Grows Two Species of Anemones Using Coral Techniques Learned in the Field

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo has become the first in the zoo and aquarium community to use coral larvae settling techniques to successfully grow two species of anemones—an accomplishment that will provide the Zoo a unique opportunity to learn how anemones grow.

“We have many questions about how to care for these animals as they grow from larvae to adults,” said Mike Henley, an animal keeper at the Zoo’s Invertebrate Exhibit who applied the technique to the anemones after they had spawned. “The oceans are not an infinite resource and so anything that we can learn about the captive management of coral and anemones will go far in our ability to conserve them.”

The anemones—both of which are commonly called Tealia red anemones under the species of Urticina—spawned in late April and early May, just days apart. Hours after they spawned, Henley collected the eggs and sperm from the more than 2,000-gallon tank and put them together in smaller tanks to increase the chances of fertilization. After fertilization, the larvae settled and metamorphosed into a polyp. Henley put some of the developing larvae in a circular tank—called a kreisel—that automatically stirs the water to prevent the larvae from binding to one another, which would kill the animals. The kreisel is the same tank Henley and others use in the field in Puerto Rico to hold coral larvae. Other free-swimming larvae went into a regular tank with aeration and rocks to settle on. Now the Zoo has hundreds of thriving anemones behind the scenes, all smaller than the tip of a pencil.

“Sometimes we take the lessons we learn with animals in captivity and apply that to conserving them in the wild,” said Alan Peters, curator of the Zoo’s Invertebrate Exhibit. “But here we were able to apply what we’ve learned both in the field and from ex situ work and it is yielding some exciting results.”

While anemones and coral are both in the Anthozoa class of animals, they differ in a few notable ways. Anemones metamorphose into a single polyp, while coral will divide into a second polyp and a third and so on, to form a colony. In addition, anemones have a muscular foot they use to attach to rock, while stony corals make their own calcium carbonate rock that they live on. But both can sting and are carnivorous, feeding on crabs, shrimp, fish and zooplankton. More than 1,000 sea anemone species inhabit the world’s oceans at various depths, from the sandy seashore up to the surface. Visitors to the Zoo can see six different species of anemones, including cold and warm water anemones. Although anemones are not endangered, ocean habitats around the world are in decline as the result of pollution, runoff and sedimentation, climate change, acidification and poor fishing practices.

Henley will continue to observe the anemones to learn about their growth rate and the conditions that are necessary to rear these species in captivity, including the food, light and water temperature they require.

“In the past if the anemones spawned in the tank, it’d be a big headache,” said Henley. “You’d have to do frequent water changes because when the gametes—or reproductive cells—get too concentrated and deteriorate, it causes the water quality to crash. That’s the common experience among many of our zoo and aquarium colleagues. But this was different—so far it’s amounted to young anemones that we will continue to learn from for months, even years, to come.”



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2009 Giant Panda Mating Season Begins Early at National Zoo

The 2009 giant panda mating season began Thursday, Jan. 15 at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo. Female Mei Xiang (may-SHONG) and male Tian Tian (tee-YEN tee-YEN) attempted to mate throughout the day Thursday. For the past six years, Mei Xiang has typically ovulated in March or April.

Zoo staff carefully observed the pandas’ activities and, because competent mating did not occur, Zoo scientists and veterinarians performed a nonsurgical artificial inseminations Jan. 17. Both pandas were anesthetized, allowing Zoo scientists to collect semen from Tian Tian and insert it directly into Mei Xiang’s uterus.

Giant pandas have one very brief breeding season per year, with only a day or two of actual mating. This year’s early start is unusual, but the National Zoo staff’s expertise enabled them to identify signs of this early reproductive activity and mobilize for a possible artificial insemination.

On Jan. 9, the Zoo’s animal care team noticed increased interaction between Tian Tian and Mei Xiang, including distinctive vocalizations that are associated with mating season. Staff immediately began monitoring Mei Xiang’s hormone levels in her urine, which allowed them to predict the exact moment she had ovulated. Timing is crucial—female giant pandas only have about one day a year in which conception can occur.

There is no conclusive study that indicates what causes panda ovulation. Although scientists know that giant pandas mostly breed in late winter to early spring, it is not known if the onset of reproductive activity is triggered by increasing day length, temperature or some other environmental factor. This year’s unusually early onset of reproductive activity should allow Zoo scientists to shed new light on what triggers reproduction in this endangered species.

Zoo staff separated Mei Xiang and Tian Tian before performing the artificial insemination. They will remain separated for the next few months, until Mei Xiang either delivers a cub or Zoo scientists determine that she is not pregnant. Keeping the pandas separated will reduce the risk of increased stress-hormone levels in Mei Xiang, which could jeopardize a developing embryo. Panda gestation typically lasts from 90 to 185 days. Veterinarians and scientists will monitor Mei Xiang’s hormone levels and perform ultrasounds to determine if she is pregnant.

Last year, scientists artificially inseminated Mei Xiang but she did not give birth. Mei Xiang and Tian Tian have produced one cub, Tai Shan (tie-SHON), who was born July 9, 2005, as a result of artificial insemination.

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National Zoo Has a New Baby Gorilla

A baby western lowland gorilla was born January 11 at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo. Staff estimate the baby was born at approximately 1:45 p.m. to 26-year-old female Mandara and 16-year-old Baraka. The newborn represents the seventh successful gorilla birth for the Zoo since 1991. This is the sixth offspring for Mandara. The newborn joins siblings Kigali, Kwame and Kojo, as well as group member Haloko at the Great Ape House. All of the Zoo’s gorillas will remain on exhibit.

Both mother and baby appear to be doing well. The baby’s sex has not yet been determined.

“We began monitoring the baby as soon as it was discovered and will continue to do so for the next couple of weeks,” said Don Moore, associate director for animal care. “This is a very critical time for the survival of the infant, and all precautions must be taken to ensure that Mandara and her baby are in an environment that is comfortable, safe and controlled. Mandara is a very experienced and competent mother, and we’re confident that she will properly care for and bond with her baby.”

The gorilla birth is significant for the National Zoo. Western lowland gorillas, which are native to tropical forests of West and Central Africa, are listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources Red List of Threatened Species, primarily due to habitat loss and fragmentation and poaching. They are also a focus of the Zoo’s participation in Species Survival Plan, in which North American zoos collaborate to encourage the development of a self-sustaining zoo gorilla population, helping to ensure the survival of this endangered species. Each SSP manages the breeding of a species in order to maintain a healthy and self-sustaining population that is both genetically diverse and demographically stable.

Mandara, born at the Lincoln Park Zoo in April 1982, is owned by the Milwaukee Zoo. She came to the National Zoo in October 1985. Baraka was born at the Zoo in 1992 to Haloko and Gus. He went to the Henry Doorly Zoo in March 2004 and returned to the Zoo in late 2006.

For more information about the Zoo’s gorillas and its conservation efforts, visit www.nationalzoo.si.edu.

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