New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
The Buttonwood Park Zoo is proud to announce the arrival of one and a half year old female Canada lynx, Sylvie, and ten month old orphaned coyote pup, Cody.
Female Canada lynx, Sylvie, came to the Buttonwood Park Zoo from the Montreal Biodome per a breeding recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Canada Lynx Species Survival Plan (SSP). The goal of the SSP is to cooperatively manage lynx populations within AZA accredited zoos to ensure the sustainability of a healthy and genetically diverse population. Sylvie will join our male Canada lynx, Calgary, in the adjacent lynx exhibit. Calgary, 14 years old, was born at the Philadelphia Zoo and has been at the Buttonwood Park Zoo for five years. Through carefully monitored introductions, these two Canada lynx will hopefully share the two exhibits and become a successful breeding pair in the future. Director of the Zoo, Keith Lovett, stated that “Buttonwood Park Zoo is one of the few AZA accredited institutions that is home to Canada lynx and we are dedicated to conserving this important North American species.”
Canada lynx inhabit boreal forests in North America from the Arctic tree line, south through much of Alaska and Canada, into northern parts of the United States. Lynx are most likely to persist in areas that receive large and consistent amounts of snow and have high-density populations of snowshoe hares, their principal prey. The lynx’s gradual disappearance throughout the United States has been a result of habitat destruction and fragmentation, effects of climate change, competition from other predators for prey, and historically being overhunted and trapped. Due to these factors, the Canada lynx is listed as Threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
An orphaned coyote pup, now named Cody, came to the Buttonwood Park Zoo in July of 2014 from Minnesota. Cody was found at 4 weeks old and was bottle fed by a wildlife rehabilitator in order to survive. Since Cody was imprinted to humans, he could no longer be released into the wild and was welcomed to the Buttonwood Park Zoo. Zoo staff spent several months acclimating Cody to his new surroundings with the goal of him being an animal ambassador for his species. Since coyotes are shy and skittish by nature, it took considerable time and effort to get Cody to become comfortable with all the sights and sounds of the zoo. Visitors may now regularly see zoo staff and Cody out on walks exploring the zoo, educating visitors about coyotes, and allowing an up close look at one of the zoo’s newest members.
In discussing the new coyote, Lovett said that “Many of the animals residing at the zoo, like Cody, are orphaned or injured wildlife that can no longer be returned to the wild. Our Animal Ambassador Program allows imprinted wildlife to become an instrumental component of our wildlife education programs and provides a home to many native animals that would have otherwise been euthanized.” When Cody is not walking around the zoo, he can be seen in the coyote exhibit with Edison. Edison, 14 years old, was also orphaned as a pup in Massachusetts.
Coyotes are often featured in fables and children’s stories as clever and smart. They have proven to be just that by being extremely adaptable. Once found in the prairies and deserts of the United States, they are now found throughout North America and into Central America. Finding their way into mountains, forests, and even cities, they have become an important part of these ecosystems. Their range has expanded in large part due to the removal of wolves from most of its range. Coyotes breed more quickly than wolves and have a more varied diet, allowing them to thrive. Because coyotes will eat whatever is available to them, it is recommended that people do not feed stray animals in their yards, do not leave food scraps out, and secure trash.
