NEVADA
Mammoths and camels and sloths, oh my! In January, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported, afterseven years, three governors, delays courtesy of COVID and supply chain issues, Ice Age Fossils State Park celebrated its grand opening. The new park’s 315 acres, three miles of trails and interactive visitor’s center will introduce visitors to the very different Las Vegas of thousands of years ago, long before 24-hour roulette tables and drive-thru wedding chapels. It was created to protect the 25,000-year-old fossils uncovered during the 1962-’63 “Big Dig” at Tule Springs, on the principle that “What is fossilized in Las Vegas should stay in Las Vegas.”
Park administrators plan to facilitate research opportunities for students at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and host student field trips and guided hikes. Visitors will have a chance to learn about the good ol’ days, when the region was marshland instead of desert, and mammoths, camelops (ancient camels), dire wolves and other amazing extinct species roamed all the future casino sites. No prehistoric Elvis impersonators have been discovered, but one can always hope.
WASHINGTON
Which came first, the rare Chilean flamingo or the egg? This is one timeless, egg-old debate that doesn’t require a decision by the Alabama Supreme Court. Last August, during an Alaska Airlines flight, a resourceful flight attendant rescued six rare Chilean flamingo eggs when the incubator that was keeping them warm unexpectedly stopped working. The eggs were enroute from Zoo Atlanta to their new home in Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo. A flight attendant, who identified herself only as Amber, told MyNorthwest.com: “A passenger rang the call button and asked if I would help keep some eggs warm.” Acting quickly, she filled some rubber gloves with warm water and nestled them in with the eggs to keep them toasty. Other passengers lent their coats and scarves for added insulation. For the remainder of the five-hour flight, Amber and other crew members tended to the VIP passengers, periodically refilling the gloves with warm water. The eggs arrived safely, and a few months later, Amber and her baby granddaughter were invited to the Woodland Park Zoo for a meet-and-greet with the now-hatched chicks. One of the flamingos was named “Sunny,” after Amber’s granddaughter; the rest of the brood are Magdalena, Amaya, Rosales, Bernardo and Gonzo.
OREGON
Speaking of new arrivals, the Oregon Zoo proudly announced the birth of an eastern black rhinoceros last December, Oregonzoo.org reported. Both mama and baby are doing well, and for now, the wee rhino — named Tamu, which means “sweet” in Swahili — spends most of his time eating and sleeping and romping around like a cute little baby rhino. Chad Harmon, who supervises the rhino department, says rhino calves require a lot of feeding, noting they can grow “about five pounds a day.” Adult rhinos like Tamu’s mom, Jozi, tip the scales at 2,400 pounds or more; Tamu, who was a petite 100 pounds at birth, already weighs over 250 pounds. All this is good news for the rare species: According to Kelly Gomez, who oversees the zoo’s Africa area, the eastern black rhinoceros is critically endangered. Its cousin, the western subspecies of black rhino, was declared extinct in 2011, due to poaching and the illegal wildlife trade. “These rhinos represent a species that’s among the most imperiled on the planet,” Gomez said. “Hopefully, their story can help inspire a new chapter in their conservation.”
Meanwhile, for those Oregonians who prefer their wildlife free range and native to North America, salemreporter.com reports that flocks of wild turkeys are roaming Salem. Harry Fuller, natural history author and member of the Salem Audubon Society, keeps tabs on the birds’ whereabouts through the “Salem Turkey Tracker,” a Facebook page that alerts the locals as to where the turkeys are running afowl. Fuller’s column, “Some Fascinating Things About Birds,” is published regularly in the Salem Reporter. According to him, the gobblers are not native to Oregon; like many other Westerners, they originally hail from the East and South Central U.S. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife wanted to establish a thriving population for hunting, so some turkeys were introduced east of the Cascades in 1961, and, when that proved successful, more were released west of the mountains in 1975. But apparently at least some of the turkeys have decided they prefer roosting in town. For one thing, it’s safer: As Fuller put it, it’s “easier to dodge a truck than a shotgun.”
Tiffany Midge is a citizen of the Standing Rock Nation and was raised by wolves in the Pacific Northwest. Her book, Bury My Heart at Chuck E. Cheese’s (Bison Books, 2019), was a Washington State Book Award nominee. She resides in north-central Idaho near the Columbia River Plateau, homeland of the Nimiipuu.
Tips of Western oddities are appreciated and often shared in this column. Write heard@hcn.org, or submit a letter to the editor.
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