Term
| The Zoological Support Area is a "working area" of the park. Name at least 3 departments you would find working in this are. |
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Definition
The departments that work in the Zoological Support Area are:
Water Quality
Education
Aquarium
Animal Care |
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Term
| Because this is a working area, what are the guidelines for guests and campers to be aware of before entering the area? |
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Definition
The guidelines for guests and campers are:
No open food or drink in the area.
Please stay behind the yellow lines at any animal area unless otherwise allowed by aquariums or animal care.
Please stay with your group and your guide at all times. |
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Term
| Explain the steps taken to transport a killer whale from one park to another? |
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Definition
Steps to transport an animal from one park to another:
1. Removal from water. a. water is lower, animal is placed in custom designed nylon stretcher. b. Crane lifts stretcher from pool. 2. Preparation. a.rubbed with lanolin based oil to keep skin moist. b. lowered into water tight transport unit w/ ~48" filtered water. 3. Time Frame a. At night after park closes for cooler temps and less traffic. b. Takes about 10 hours. 4. Mode of transportation. a. due to the size of the animals large planes such as 747's, DC 10's, DC 8's, or C 130's are used. 5. Arrival at Destination Once they have arrived they are lowered into new pool. |
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Term
| What are reasons for Seaworld to transport an animal? |
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Definition
| Seaworld transports animals for training and breeding to promote genetic diversity. |
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Term
| Who travels with the animals? |
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Definition
| Throughout the trip, animal care specialists and a veterinarian watch and care for the animals. Trainers travel with trained animals. |
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Term
| Why are animals in holding pools in zoological support? |
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Definition
Animals can be in Zoological Support holding pools for:
Acclimation and quarantine for new arrivals to the park.
Holding areas for off-exhibit teaching/learning.
Breeding and birthing.
Research areas.
Medical treatment areas. |
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Term
| SeaWorld practices preventative medicine. What does this mean? |
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Definition
| SeaWorld practices preventative medicine by conducting routine physical exams hoping to prevent serious illness. |
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Term
| How much food do we feed our animals each day? |
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Definition
| We feed our animals about 3,300 lbs of food daily. |
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Term
| Why is the food fresh frozen? |
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Definition
| We use fresh frozen food to ensure any possible parasites are killed and to allow us to store the food for up to 1 year. |
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Term
| What type of food is fed out every day? |
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Definition
| We feed out Herring, Mackerel, Squid, Smelt, Clams, Shrimp. and White Bait. |
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Term
| What does a "Closed Water System" mean? |
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Definition
| A closed water system is where water is continuously recycled through a series of physical and biological filters. |
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Term
| How many gallons of salt water does SeaWorld maintain? |
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Definition
| SWSA maintains 13 million gallons of saltwater for our animal pools. |
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Term
| Where does the water we use at SWSA come from? |
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Definition
| The water at SWSA came from the Edwards Aquifer and is now continuously recycled. |
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Term
| Describe the tour talking points for the Microbiology Lab. |
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Definition
| In the Microbiology Lab, we can test for organisms that may be in the water or infecting one of our animals. EX. we can ask a dolphin to exhale and hold a petri dish above its blowhole to see if there is an infection in their lungs. |
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Term
| Describe the tour talking points for the Water Quality Lab. |
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Definition
Our water quality lab helps maintain water quality in our animal habitats by testing for:
Temperature
Chlorine levels
Turbidity (water clarity)
Salinity
pH
bacteria
ammonia, nitrate and nitrites (aquariums) |
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Term
| Describe the tour talking points for the Hematology Lab. |
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Definition
| Our hematology lab runs cultures, urine and fecal tests as needed. Blood samples are taken during routine physical exams and when an animal appears ill. We can analyze blood samples for Complete Blood Counts and white blood cell differentials. Elevated white blood cell counts can indicate an infection. |
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Term
| Describe the tour talking points for the Surgery Room. |
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Definition
| Our surgery room is located at the rear of the lab. Surgical and Anesthesia equipment is similar to equipment used in human hospitals but is modified to cope with the unique way marine mammals breathe. The side of the room has a large exterior door so we can easily move large animals in and out. |
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