Sharkarosa will be featured on the season premiere of Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe on Tuesday October 19th at 8pm cst. Check out the Dirty Jobs website for clips of the upcoming show!
Happy Birthday, Pooka! Today is Pooka’s 1st birthday!
He is one of our African Crested Porcupines. The crested porcupine is a species of rodent from various parts of Africa. They are terrestrial; they very seldom climb trees, but can swim. They are nocturnal and monogamous. When bottle-raised they can be very sweet and follow you like a puppy, or very demanding, or both :) These guys are the largest and heaviest rodent in Africa.
Pooka’s favorite food is carrots!
Here are some interesting things to know about the African Crested Porcupine
Anatomy
These porqs can get up to 60 pounds and can live 15 years. They are recognizable by the long, thin quills that run along the head, nape, and back that can be raised into a crest. There are also sturdier quills which run along the sides and back half of the body. These sturdier quills are used for defense and are usually marked with light and dark bands which alternate. These are not firmly attached.
This porcupine has a short tail which has rattle quills at the end. The rattle quills are hollow. When these quills are vibrated they produce a hiss-lik rattle. If continually bothered, the crested porcupine will stamp its feet, whirr the quills, and charge the disturber back end firt trying to stab the enemy with the thicker, shorter quills.
Their teeth grow constantly. To keep them from growing out of control they eat non-stop. As a rodent, they are able to chew through almost anything!
Reproduction
Most of what is known about reproduction in the crested porcupine comes from individuals in captivity. In the wild, females usually have one litter every year. One or two very well developed young are born in a chamber within the burrow that is usually lined with grass, but only after a 66 day gestation period, on average. The babies leave the den after one week. At this time the spines begin to harden. Crested porcupines are sexually mature between 1-2 years of age. Burrows are often extensive and used for many years. In captivity, breeding occurs year round and babies must be pulled immediately to avoid being eaten by the parents. No on really knows why they eat their young.
Diet
The crested porcupine is for the most part herbivorous, eating roots, bulbs, crops. But occasionally they do consume insects, small vertebrates and carrion
Fun Facts
- African crested porcupine attacks are known to have killed lions, leopards, hyenas, and even humans!
- Porcupine quills are often used as ornaments and talismans.
- The meat of these animals is considered a delicacy, and thus they are illegally hunted.
- The word porcupine means “quill pig” in Latin; however, they are not related to pigs at all.
Summer Camp 2010
June 7th-11th 8:30am-1pm (Ages 8-13)
Summer Camp 2010 is for kids who love to be outdoors, who love to get dirty and who can’t wait to learn more about Earth’s amazing creatures!
These camps are uniquely formatted to give animal lovers ages 8-13 the opportunity to explore the world of animals in a hands-on, interactive setting overseen by Sharkarosa keepers and educators. Not only will your child learn about animal behavior and management in the wild & in captivity, they’ll experience what it’s actually like to care for these amazing creatures!
PARENT FRIDAY TOUR:
On Friday of each camp week, we will have a “Parent Tour” in which parents/siblings are invited to join us at 12:30 for a “camper-led” tour of the front portion of the ranch. The campers will present their animal handling skills and facts to their audience, much like our educators do during event presentations.
COST:
$225 per camper/$50 discount for families sending 2 or more campers.
10% Late fee added for registrations not received by May 31st.
Includes: Official Summer Camp 2010 T-Shirt & a daily light snack
**We will NOT have an overnight campout this year.
Michelle, our White-Faced Capuchin Monkey finally has the man of her dreams. Please welcome Miguel to the Sharkarosa family!
He arrived late last week. When we first put them together everyone watched in anticipation to see how well they would take to each other. We are delighted to announce that all has gone extremely well and the two are very happy with each other’s company.
Here’s a little video clip of Michelle grooming Miguel. Grooming doesn’t mean that one or the other has bugs or anything dirty on them. Grooming is a major social activity in primates. They do it as a means of reinforcing social structure, family links and building relationships and trust. Of course, it also maintains good hygiene and health. All in all, grooming is a wonderful thing!
In larger groups of primates, social grooming plays an important role in establishing and maintaining alliances and dominance hierarchies, for building coalitions, for reconciliation after conflicts, and is a resource that is exchanged for other resources, like food and sex. The act has been shown to reduce tension and stress, sort of like how a good massage affects humans. It is often associated with observed periods of relaxed behavior, and primates have been known to fall asleep while receiving grooming.
So on that note, please enjoy!
We’ve had lots of snow here at the Sharkarosa the past 2 days. In preparation for the snow, ranch staff was kept busy adding hay/straw, tarps and additional housing to outside habitats. Delicate animals and youngsters were kept indoors on the coldest days. As the snow begins to melt, everyone seems to have made it through the snow just fine. We will be uploading pics of our snow days at the ranch to our Facebook Fan page soon, so be sure to check them out!
Sharkarosa will reopen to the public Saturdays begining March 20th! We are opening a little later than usual this year due to an exciting opportunity to do some filming here at the ranch. As you know, Texas weather is very unpredictable, so should we have heavy rains that force us to close for the day, it will be posted on the website by 8am. Also, please remember we are an outdoor facility, so be sure to dress appropriately for the weather! This year our ticket prices have changed to the following:
Adults (13yrs +) $10
Children(3-12yrs) $8
Seniors (65yrs+) $8
Children 2 & under Free
As we move into spring, there will be lots of new babies to see here at the ranch. We hope you get the chance to visit us in 2010!
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| Spring Break
Sharkarosa will be open to the public 3 days for spring break this year. Wednesday 3/19-Friday 3/21 we will be open 10am-4pm. Gates open at 10am. LAST SAFARI TRAM LEAVES @ 3:00PM! This means that all interaction with education animals and self-guided sections of the tour will close at 3:30. If you’re coming at the end of the day, we suggest arriving by 2:30 to ensure you get everything in before the last tram leaves @ 3:00. No one will be admitted to the ranch after 3:00pm.
Ticket prices:
$10 Adults (13 yrs+) $8 Children (3-12yrs) $8 Seniors (65 yrs+) Children 2 & under are Free |
Wild Home School Day
Mr. Zoo
Snake Farm
Denton County Animal Control Officers
Officer McGruff
911 Wildlife
We are in the process of restructuring our summer camp program for this year. Details will be posted on our website as soon as dates are set and more information is available!
Brutus~ baby Binurong AKA Bearcat
Baby 2toed Sloth born 1/13/09~ should be on display in April 2010
Lolli~Albino Eastern Grey Kangaroo (Mom-Addie)
Noni~Albino Eastern Grey Kangaroo (Mom-Roo)
End of the 2009 Season
Thank you for your support during the 2009 season!
Voting ends 11/30/09
Sharkarosa has been nominated for Best of the Metroplex in 3 categories: Best Party Place, Best Animal Encounter & Best Nature Center. Please vote for us in these 3 categories & pass this link on to all your family & friends! Voting ends November 30, 2009!
Sharkarosa’s Facebook Fanpage is up and doing great at well over 1,200 fans! It’s a great place to post photos from your last ranch visit, or find out what’s new! After you join the fan page, check us out under Causes! This section of Facebook lets fans stay up to date on what habitat/enclosure we’re currently building, how much funding has been raised and how much is still needed.~Building & fence materials for new exhibits
~Aluminum truck boxes for animal housing
~Lectro Kennel heat mats
~Little Tykes play houses(in good condition)
~Running utility vehicles(gators, RTVs, mules, etc).
Sharkarosa is proud to announce the addition of two new species of lemurs. You can now see six different species of lemurs on display here at the ranch. Joining the species we currently have on display: Ringtails, Black & White Ruffed, Red Ruffed and Red Fronted Lemurs, are a Black Lemur and a Brown Lemur. We are very excited about the new additions! Be sure to check out their pictures in the photo gallery.