Trunkline Magazine (Louisville Zoo) December 2018 | Page 16

Pinnipeds Aplenty!
By Heather Dishon,
Communications
Coordinator
Sparkling pools of water, icy
glaciers in the background, and the
sounds of seals and sea lions bark-
ing as they zoom and explore…
Glacier Run is a beloved desti-
nation for many Zoo guests. You
can visit Qannik the polar bear,
grizzly bears Inga, Otis and Rita,
and even “ooh” and “ahh” over
the sleek pinnipeds as they zoom
past the large underwater view-
ing window of our 110,000-gal-
lon salt water pool. Glacier Run is
certainly bustling these days — but
did you know it’s currently home to
11 pinnipeds?
Yes, 11 — that includes 7 seals
and 4 sea lions. That may seem
like a lot, but our state-of-the-art
seal and sea lion habitat can easily
handle a total of 14 pinnipeds!
A common question from Zoo
guests is, “How can you tell the
difference between the seals and
sea lions?” Sea lions, seals, and
walruses are all part of a group of
animals called pinnipeds, which
means "wing foot" or "fin-footed."
You could probably point out a wal-
rus if you saw one, but if you want
to tell seals and sea lions apart, you
need to look at their ears! If you see
a small ear flap on each side of their
head, you are looking at a sea lion.
Seals only have tiny openings for
Above: New harbor seals
Oskar and Kash from Miller
Park Zoo explore Glacier Run.
Right: Riva "the rocket"
their ears. Sea lions are also able
to turn their hind flippers forward
to help them move across beaches
and rocky shorelines. Seals cannot
do this and must wiggle, roll and
slide to get out of the water. You’ve
likely seen them doing this as they
move in and out of the pools and
across the decks in Glacier Run.
So, who’s in Glacier Run now?
Meet the seals and sea lions that
call Glacier Run home!
California Sea Lions
Triton — male, age 28
Triton was relocated from the Bir-
mingham Zoo in Alabama in 2010.
He is very easy-going and likes to
participate in training activities with
his keepers.
Bart — male, age 25
Bart was born at the Louisville Zoo
in 1993. He has a big personality, is
impressive in stature, can be a little
pushy and a bit of a mischievous!
Gremlin — female, age 14
Gremlin came to the Louisville Zoo in
2013 from the Miller Park Zoo in Il-
linois. She’s friendly with sea lion Riva.
16 • Louisville Zoo Trunkline • Winter 2018
Riva — female, age 4
Riva was born in 2014 and relocat-
ed to the Louisville Zoo from the
California Wildlife Center in 2015.
She’s very energetic and is referred
to by staff as “Riva the rocket”. Riva
is an important animal ambassador
for sea lions. She was stranded as
a young sea lion during an Un-
usual Mortality Event (UME) off the
coast of California. UME means
“a stranding that is unexpected
and involves a significant die-off of
any marine mammal population,
demanding immediate response.”
Riva was found both malnourished
and dehydrated. She was just one
of many pinnipeds rescued that
year. Riva’s story helps people to
understand the challenges marine
mammals face daily like habitat de-
struction, pollution and overfishing.