So, I mean, they might be contradictory orders. So, but George did more follow up and checking up and George showed more interest in what I was, the challenges that I faced in the collection. Whereas K Crowcroft was like, if we bred some species that hadn’t been bred before,… Read More
And I came out and I, they flew, flew me out, flew me out in my circulation. My feet was bad for, ’cause my shoes were too small. And I had two pairs of socks on and I bought my, I had an eight millimeter projector and I brought some… Read More
I had to get the hell out of the university. I was going to get the, you know, I was graduating in June and then I was out. I’d have my diploma go back to California and sit around with your parents or you know, find something else to do. Read More
So it was hard to get those, those jobs. And so John said this job was advertised at the Brookfield Zoo for a curator of small mammals. And John brought it to my attention and he said, look, he says, this is a job I might be able to help… Read More
I didn’t want to get into zoo work. I wanted, I wanted to get academics. You know, I dunno if you want to cover that in the next section or get into it now, but you know, when I, let’s talk about it. When I finished my PhD, I was… Read More
Well, it’s what, it’s kinda like what Steinbeck said about Cir Circus work. You know, it gets into your blood and it, it is transmitted through generations often, you know, the Wallendas have passed on their skills to multiple generations. And I think it’s the same in zoos, zoos, that… Read More
What do you think keeps people in the field despite the challenges?… Read More
George Schaller actually wrote me and wanted a copy of it. Yeah. Not that there were any brilliant insights, it was just something a lot of people know. But I had put it into words Within the profession. And you’ve been in it a while, many years. Many years. Read More
’cause it was trying to be a digit digi digi, a digi degrade carnivore walking on his toes like a dog. But it didn’t quite make it in the, in the hind legs, but it was close. It looked more like a, a German shepherd that has dysplasia. You know… Read More
But it’s not gonna happen probably. And so I was just kind of lamenting that loss and the fact that the, or the zoological parks that had the opportunity to have species like that didn’t have the scientific curiosity to find out more about them just by watching ’em and… Read More
And man, this is, wouldn’t it be wonderful if they found it again?… Read More
Yeah, the Tasmanian wolf. What did you mean?… Read More
Well, you know, we had our photographer, I wanted a picture of the thylacine because they were so neat. I mean this was a marsupial that wanted to be a wolf. That’s what I titled that, that’s the subtitle of that paper. And I just got inspired one night I… Read More
And that animal eventually went, when I finished my PhD, went back to the zoo collection and it was sent out to live, its last days at CRC. And John Watson Jones, who was a keeper out there at the time, was fond of the animal. He knew its story. Read More
And my girls used to play with it at home ’cause I’d have it in the apartment at married students housing at University of Maryland. And so he had a little ceremony there as I recall, just for, or memorialized Ajax when that happened and called me up and as… Read More
And you mentioned the thylacine. Read More
Well, I mean, if an animal is a celebrity, they’re going to be noticed when they die. And the newspapers are gonna find out about it and want to want the story. And the keepers will have things to say. The director or the PR person are gonna have things… Read More
They die. We had a, this was kind of amusing. We had a, a Malagasy Fanaloka, it was called, it was a little viverrid civet from Madagascar that it evolved into a small fox like body form. So it looked like a little fox. And there was only one born… Read More
How did you deal with it?… Read More
So what was your philosophy and how do you think zoo should be reacting to dealing with the deaths of animals, especially sometimes their charismatic animals within the public and their staffs?… Read More