Rossifari Podcast - Zoos, Aquariums, and Animal Conservation

Today, the Safari heads back to the North Carolina Zoo to look at yet another facet of the incredible work being done there...behind-the-scenes conservation work! In particular, this episode dives into the conservation work being done to help save salamanders, talking to Dustin Smith and Shaina Lambert all about the incredible jobs they are doing to help save salamander species, including by assis...

Dateline: May 17, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!  We start with our births for the week, which include exciting additions at Point Defiance Zoo, Trentham Monkey Forest, the Wild Cat Conservation Centre, the Oregon Zoo, SeaLife Weymouth, and Cape May County Zoo. We say goodbye to some beloved a...

Today, the Safari sits down with Dr. Jb Minter of the North Carolina Zoo! We talk about his incredible veterinary career, the transparency he provides on his Instagram and on Secrets of the Zoo, and the amazing in situ veterinary conservation work he does with elephants! There are some seriously crazy stories in this one, y'all!  EPISODE LINKS:  www.nczoo.org  @nczoo on socials  @dr.jbminterd...

Dateline: May 10, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!  Our Headline Story of the Week involves a new hire at the Columbus Zoo and the ridiculous backlash it received on social media. The zoo, as always, did an amazing job handling it. We then get to our births for the week, which include exciting a...

Today, the Safari heads back to my favorite place (the San Diego Zoo) to sit down with one of my favorite people (Nicki Boyd) to talk about my favorite animal (red pandas)! We talk about the pandas that call the zoo home, the changes that have taken place at the zoo since her last appearance, and the incredible work being done by Red Panda Network to save the species in the wild!  EPISODE LINKS: ...

Dateline: May 3, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!  Our Headline Story of the Week involves another viral video, but one that didn't create as much of a stink as some of the other ones we've talked about lately! Woodland Park Zoo handled the whole thing beautifully, which I love to see....

Today, the Safari sits down with Sean McNicholas, the CEO of the SSA Group, a company that is impacting zoos and aquariums all around the country and beyond. The SSA Group works to improve the guest experience at these facilities by focusing on gift shops, dining, ticketing, and more! Binturong Conservation Fundraiser Links: @ABConservation on Instagram https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=6155...

Today the Safari heads to Scotland to talk all things binturong with Kirsty MacDonald! Kirsty is a zookeeper who is currently hosting an incredible fundraiser for ABConservation, the binturong conservation organization! We talk all about Kirsty's job as a zookeeper, the two binturongs who inspired her to start this fundraiser, what makes bints so unique, and so much more! Follow the links bel...

Dateline: April 26, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!   Our Headline Story of the Week is a follow up about the San Francisco Bonus Episode last week, including a discussion of some follow ups and a big announcement from the zoo about panda bears.   We then get to our births for the week, which i...

Today, the Safari heads back to Southwick's Zoo in Mendon, MA, to bring back our most featured guest, and the occasional co-host of the podcast, Dani Poirier Larson! We spent the day together before the interview, and we talk all about the training I was able to be part of with the birds at Southwick's Zoo! We also start off the interview with a lot of quite goofy friendship stuff. This...

Today, Rossifari Zoo News is doing a special deep dive looking at the problems facing the San Francisco Zoo over the last few years, where a battle between the keeper staff and upper management seems to be coming to a head. Also, I'm getting a new puppy!  ROSSIFARI LINKS:  www.rossifari.com  patreon.com/rossifari  @rossifari on socials  @rossifaripod on TikTok

Today, the Safari sits down with Anne and Heather of Roger Williams Park Zoo to talk about the new red panda habitat at the zoo, the new red pandas that call the zoo home, a little bit about red wolves, and so much more! You'll get to hear about what went into designing the exhibit so it is the best for the pandas, guests, and keepers, the personality traits of the two pandas that call the zo...

Dateline: April 12, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!  Our Headline Story of the Week is actually a personal story about Logan, a dog I briefly fostered. Bring tissues. We start with our births for the week, which include exciting additions at The London Zoo, Hamerton Zoo Park, The Metro Richmond...

Today, the Safari heads to Asheville, NC, for our first visit to the WNC Nature Center! This is a special facility that I've been excited to visit for a LONG time, and I'm so grateful to finally have gotten there. Today, I bring you my interview with Tori Duval, who has an incredible story about creating a program at the zoo and helping to grow it into an incredibly successful...and uniq...

Dateline: April 5, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!   Our Headline Story of the Week is a deep dive into AI art, animals, and the temptation of zoos and other conservation organizations to start using this art...and what I think about that. We say goodbye to some beloved animals headlined by Lun...

Today, the Safari heads to the El Paso Zoo to talk to Beck Bradly about two incredible Asian elephants that called the zoo home for many years. The stories shared about Savannah and Juno will absolutely captivate you and make tug your heartstrings and fill you with joy and pain all at once! Beck is an incredible storyteller, and I loved having them on the podcast!  EPISODE LINKS:  elpasozoo.org  @...

Dateline: March 29, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!   Our Headline Story of the Week is a deep look at the necropsy of Flaco the owl.  We then move on to our births for the week, which include a cotton top tamarin at Altina Wildlife Park, a sloth at Brevard Zoo, a Eurasian Eagle Owl at the Nati...

Today, the Safari heads to Montana (by way of Zoom) to sit down with Executive Director of ZooMontana Jeff Ewelt. Jeff has managed to turn ZooMontana into a premier AZA-accredited facility despite taking over when the zoo not only lost accreditation, but was on the verge of closing down. This is a story of how an incredible team can come together to change a facility in a short amount of time...bu...

Dateline: March 22, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!   Our Headline Story of the Week is the release of the USA Today Top 10 lists for Best Zoo, Best Zoo Exhibit, and Best Safari Park! We then get back on track with our births and deaths. We have a whole bunch to cover, including a new okapi at...

Today, the Safari connects with two other podcasters filling different zoological niches with their podcasts: Chris Jenkins, the co-host of NEI's Tec Talk Podcast, which focuses on behavior and training, and Elizabeth Johnson, the host of Mothering Wildlife, which focuses on being a zoo mom or mother in other wildlife jobs! We talk all about our process, what inspired us to start the podcast,...

Dateline: March 15, 2024.  Today, Rossifari Zoo News is taking a look at three stories about times when something went wrong at a zoo. This isn't a discussion of what went wrong, but instead a look at what transparency should, and shouldn't, look like. I delve into social media, press releases, and more. For this episode, we look at the recent viral video of the silverback at the Fort Wo...

Today, the Safari stays in Greensboro for an episode with lead keeper Laura Folla, who is here to talk all about the new fossa at the zoo, the incredible Javan gibbons there, and why you shouldn't sleep on the flamingos! You'll also get a real look into some interesting team dynamics and even learn what the name of my phone is!  EPISODE LINKS:  @greensborosciencecenter  greensboroscience...

Dateline: March 8, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!   We yet again open with a big headline, this time diving into the announcement that Miami Seaquarium is being evicted. We then get back on track with our births and deaths. Births include emperor tamarin babies at the Dallas Zoo, fat tailed du...

Today, the Safari heads back to the Greensboro Science Center, but it's only a detour as we are hopping a plane with Kelly Rauch and Jen Danford to learn all about their experience doing a Red Panda Network Eco Trip to Nepal! What was the travel like? What was the food like? Most importantly, did they see any wild red pandas? Tune in to find out, plus you'll get an update on our favorite...

Dateline: March 1, 2024. Rossifari Zoo News is back with a round up of the latest news in the world of zoos, aquariums, conservation, and animal weirdness!   We yet again open with a big headline, this time my thoughts about Flaco the owl.  We then get back on track with our births and deaths. We say hello to colobus monkeys at the Los Angeles Zoo and Fort Worth Zoo, three new penguins at Adventur...