Thank you to Asplundh Tree Experts, along with the support of American Electric Power and Indiana Michigan Power, for the beautiful browse! The word ‘browse’ refers to tree branches with foliage on them, which are multi-purpose here are the Fort Wayne Zoo. Every other week, the Fort Wayne Zoo receives tons of different browse from Asplundh, ranging from mulberry to grapevine to willow. While we also source browse from our own grounds, having extra allows for the Zoo to do much more for the animals in our care.
Diet
The most common use for the browse is animal diet! Lots of the browse are saved for the animals in our care who love a fresh, green snack, like the giraffe. Not only are they used during the Zoo season, but Keepers will pack and freeze browse for the off-season when fresh foliage is not readily available here in Indiana.
A few of the primates in our care, such as the gibbons and orangutans, also benefit from the browse we receive. In their native habitat, these two apes experience seasons where fresh fruit is not available to them. During these seasons, gibbons and orangutans are known to strip tree bark from branches as a crunchy snack. Here at the Zoo, these two primate species are given smaller sections of branches, sources from the browse drops, to encourage this bark-stripping dietary behavior.
Perches
Perching is a very important piece of an animal’s habitat as it can draw out many natural behaviors. From resting to climbing to swinging, having perches placed throughout an animal’s space allows them ample opportunity for physical exercise and mental stimulation. Some of the perches in animal spaces come from these browse drops! Occasionally the Zoo receives larger pieces of wood that can be cut into various forms for perching opportunities.
Shade and Shelter
Here at the Zoo, our Zoo Keepers use browse to add natural shade coverage to the American alligator habitat space. Shade and shelter are two crucial elements when providing excellent animal care. Helping to maintain a comfortable body temperature, it is important for animals to have proper shading in their habitat spaces.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
