Tuesday, August 13, 2024. Mainly a nice sunny Summer day yesterday in New York, with temps touching 80 although not lots off humidity, and very comfortable and mainly very quiet in my neighborhood. I think a lot of people are getting the last of the vacationing for the season.
Meanwhile, yesterday, Gigi Benson sent us a message reminding us that it was World Elephant Day. You didn’t know that??
Included with Gigi’s message was an original Harry Benson photograph of a herd of elephants in Kenya. And you thought Harry only had time for movie stars, kings and presidents. Harry took this wonderful photo while being chased by the matriarch with eyes directly on the camera and ears flaring forward!
So what did Harry do after quickly getting this amazing photo? He ran! Like an Olympian, to jump back into the jeep before the elephant could reach him.
This was a happy ending for both human and animal, BUT the reality is we creatures balance on the brink of seeing the last of these magnificent creatures because of poaching, habitat loss, human-elephant conflict and mistreatment in captivity. Those are just some of the threats to both African and Asian elephants.
So yesterday (August 12) numerous elephant conservation organizations around the world were focusing on working towards better protection for the wild elephants.
Be good if we were also more considerate of their captive brethren amusing us humanoids (who are interested). The least we can do is express our concern and support solutions for the better care of captive and wild elephants alike. Or better yet, give a little elephant love here.
So, Happy Elephants Day to all … both elephants and their occasional neighbors (us)!
In keeping with the very important theme of global conservation, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) hosted its annual gala earlier this summer celebrating the Bronx Zoo’s 125th anniversary. The annual event was held at Central Park Zoo.
They welcomed guests from across the world who support WCS’s mission to save wildlife and wild places for their good and for ours. The WCS harnesses the power of its four zoos here in New York: the Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo, and Queens Zoo. Also included in the annual celebration was its New York Aquarium, along with its field programs in more than 50 countries — also to save and protect nature for us people and for the wildlife.
The Bronx Zoo is WCS’s flagship park and home to WCS Global. The evening paid tribute to its director, Jim Breheny who shared the objective:
“All of us here in New York and our colleagues in the field are united in the common goal of having people respect and care for nature; in protecting species and the places where they live. Through our combined work we provide hope and preserve options for ourselves and future generations.”
Mr. Breheny began serving as Director of the Bronx Zoo in 2005; and has served in that position and as Executive Vice President of WCS’s Zoos and Aquarium since 2011.
A native of the Bronx himself, Breheny actually started working at the Bronx Zoo as a summer intern. He soon rose to lead one of the world’s greatest zoos and to become a leader in the global zoological profession; helping transform modern zoos into outstanding conservation organizations that we know today.
Breheny’s leadership of the zoos and aquarium has had an major impact not only on the innovative progress at WCS, but also on zoos and aquariums across the world. His main responsibility is for WCS’s four zoos and aquarium, which collectively house more than 20,000 animals representing more than 1,300 species — the largest coordinated collection of animals in the world.
Also, under his leadership, the Bronx Zoo’s education program reaches a million-plus students, educators, and families with science education programs annually.
In his now 50-plus years at the Bronx Zoo, he’s led the development of reintroduction and head-starting programs for species ranging in size from Kihansi spray toads to American bison, and has overseen the opening of Madagascar! and many other exhibits.
Under his leadership, Ocean Wonders: Sharks! was built and opened as the extensive restoration work at the NY Aquarium which was underway following the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy.
Wait, there more! Breheny has a long record of service to the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA), including serving as Chair of the Board of Directors. He championed the successful effort to increase AZA member financial support to field conservation programs, which currently contributes over $250 million annually to global conservation efforts.
And one of his most significant contributions to the zoo and aquarium community is the docuseries “THE ZOO” which premiered on Animal Planet and has appeared in more than 200 markets around the world.
“THE ZOO,” which was taped over five seasons, gives viewers a behind the scenes look at how zoos and aquariums are run. The show enhanced the public’s view of the Bronx Zoo and also other zoos and aquariums run by the AZA. All this from starting out as a young man from the Bronx as a summer intern.
The event’s co-chairs were: Elizabeth and Lee Ainslie, Wallis Annenberg, Judy and Jamie Dimon, Katie and Peter Dolan, Ingrid and Thomas Edelman, Linda and Paul Gould, Laura and Peter Grauer, Antonia and George Grumbach, Diane and Andreas Halvorsen, Judith Hamilton, John and Jeanet Irwin, Tony and Amie James, Terry and Bob Lindsay, Helen and Gene McGrath, Howdy Phipps, Alejandro and Charlotte Santo Domingo, Kitty and Stephen Sherrill, Loretta and Chris Stadler, Allison and Leonard Stern, Ann and Andrew Tisch, Priscilla and Ward Woods, Akiko Yamazaki and Jerry Yang, Don and Barbara Zucker.
For more on the Wildlife Conservation Society, visit newsroom.wcs.org
And out East, where the habitat is certainly wild, the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center of the Hamptons celebrated their 16th Annual GET WILD! Gala raising funds for their mission to rehabilitate and successfully release animals back into the wild across Eastern Long Island.
Michael Hayes was honored at this year’s Gala, held at the Southampton Arts Center and the event chairs for this year’s benefit were Ingrid Edelman, Jane Gill, Missy Hargraves, Jonathan McCann and Lisa Baron Schenker. The emcee for the event was Award-winning animal advocate Jill Rappaport.
Guests of the evening were treated to live music from special musical guests Taylor Barton and G.E. Smith, cocktails, light fare, and a silent auction.
All guests were welcomed to the cocktail party, which featured appearances by some of the non-releasable hawks and owls that the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center has rehabilitated, and which now reside at the Center. All proceeds benefited the native wildlife treated at their hospital.
The highlight of the evening was board member Jeffrey Colle’s gift to the silent auction of a safari in Africa at Buffalo Kloof in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province, which ended up selling multiple times!! All to the great benefit of the Wildlife Rescue Center.
Notable attendees included: Kathleen Mulcahy, Noelle Dunlop, Missy Hargraves, Jill Rapaport, Beth Stern, Chuck Scarborough, Taylor Barton, G.E. Smith, and Jean Shafiroff.
The more you know: The Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center, Inc., Eastern Long Island’s only wildlife hospital, is a non-profit organization dedicated to the rehabilitation of wild animals impacted by human encroachment on their habitat.
The center operates as a full-service professional wildlife hospital, with licensed rehabilitators, biologists, animal behaviorists, and volunteers on staff. More than 300 people have been trained to help with wildlife rescues.
The Center is located on Munn’s Pond Park through a cooperative licensing agreement with Suffolk County Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation.
The center is located on a greenbelt of public land parcels that stretches from Tiana Bay to Peconic Bay on the eastern end of Long Island, New York. This ecosystem is one-of-a-kind and irreplaceable, with salt and freshwater wetlands, Pine Barrens, deciduous forest, and meadowland.
As a result, it is an ideal location for a wildlife rehabilitation center. The hospital is intended solely for wild animals. There are no ambient noises or smells to stress the wildlife that is recovering within, unlike a veterinary hospital.
Every year, the Wildlife Rescue Center receives over 10,000 calls(!!) for information or assistance regarding wild animal encounters. In addition, the center offers educational programs to local elementary and secondary schools. Local college students participate in cooperative education programs and internships.
The Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center has an annual operating budget of more than $650,000, almost entirely funded by generous donors.
For more information, visit www.wildliferescuecenter.org
Good news for all of us animals and creatures?
