Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
I like animals, I like nature, I like talking about
the earth and all sorts of good things. And that's
why I have one of my good friends of the
City of Omaha here, Jc Colson, who happens to be
the communications manager for the Henry door Leave Zoo and Aquarium. Jac,
how are you doing today?
Speaker 2 (00:15):
I'm good. I'm so glad to be here with you
on this Earth Day.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
So the zoo just like the best time of the
year to be at the zoo, isn't it. It's like
the sun is out a little longer. Hours probably are
getting a little bit lengthier for people to come and
see the animals. All the animals are like, oh yeah,
this is more my jam with the temperature rising. Is
there a better time to be at Zoosan right now?
Speaker 2 (00:40):
There really isn't. The weather is beautiful, the grounds are beautiful,
all of the flowers are starting to bloom. It is
really the perfect time to visit the.
Speaker 1 (00:52):
Zoo, all right. And last time we talked, it was
like Valentine's Day and we were really pushing for people
to go and vote for all of the different categories
that Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium were up for, including
Best do Best Zoo Exhibit, which was the Desert Dome, right,
best Membership?
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Right?
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Is there one more?
Speaker 2 (01:12):
There's one Safari Park for our Liigi Simmons Wildlife Safari Park.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
There you go. And we just happened to win all those,
didn't we?
Speaker 2 (01:19):
When we just happened to win all of them, it
was such a wonderful, wonderful day of celebration. We swept
all four categories. This is our third year in a
row sweeping all the categories. We were nominated in our
second win for Desert Dome and our first win and
first nomination for Best Zoo Membership.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
Now, for you know us, we want people to vote.
And whenever you empower people to vote, I think that
means even more, right, Like it's people wanting to support
what you guys are doing more so than just you
know kind of these judges. These are trury judges that
are like, well, actually this is the best zoo because
(02:04):
of this, this, this and this. What does that mean
to have the people say stuff like that? Right, It's
just like, hey, I want to go out of my
way to vote for this zoo because they are the best.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Yeah, It's it's so important to us to be positive
members of our community, and for our community to feel
like they're involved in everything we do, including winning Best Zoo.
And we absolutely won because of our community who really
showed up for us and voted for us, and really
(02:33):
they are who made it possible for us to be
number one for the third year in a row. It's
so awesome.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
Yeah. So that includes every zoo in America, and there
are a lot of good ones. I mean, I've been
to a lot of zoos. It's kind of your job, too, right,
Like you kind of have to know what everybody else
is doing around here from that angle, right, And you're
in Omaha, you work at andriydor Lei'zoo in a Qui,
So you certainly feel like that's the best. But what
(03:03):
do you gather from seeing other zoos and what makes
this place specifically so special compared to some of the
other great zoos around America.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Yeah, like you mentioned, there are amazing zoos all across
the United States and we're all part of, as we've
discussed many times before, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums,
and we're so glad to be a part of such
a wonderful group of really important institutions. And like I
alluded to earlier, what makes us great is our community.
(03:32):
I mean, Omaha and surrounding communities really love our zoo,
and we really love our community. And I think that
that is what we have to offer and what we're
so very proud of is being part of such a
wonderful community like Omaha.
Speaker 1 (03:49):
Jac Colson with the Henry Dorley Zoom Aquarium joining us.
All right, so let's get to the nitty gritty here.
Now we can celebrate all the victories and all that stuff,
but the people are like, yeah, now I need to
get to the zoo. Who's like, what's the exhibit? You
find yourself just like, okay, I'm just gonna kind of
wander buy this one every single day this time of
the year. If I worked at the zoo, this would
(04:10):
be my problem. I would just be like, oh, you know,
I think today I'm just going to go stand by
the Rai tank for a little bit, you know, just
like watch the rays, maybe buy a little food for them.
I don't know if i'd ever get any work done.
What about you? Who are some of your favorites right
now at the zoo?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
I think during the spring, anytime that I can be
outside is so amazing, and we have so many outdoor
habitats to choose from. So we have our ownc line shores,
we have our Asian Highlands, our scott African grasslands featuring
African animals across twenty eight acres. I mean, it's really
unlimited fun. I know you're asking me to pick one,
(04:45):
but I just can't. They're all so amazing.
Speaker 1 (04:48):
It's kind of like making somebody pick their favorite child
or something, right, It's it's like, it's such an unfair
question to ask somebody. I find the elephants interesting. You
have the moms, you have old babies and their babies
for a while, so you're kind of seeing them all
grow together, which is an incredible experience. And now they're
all big enough now to where they seem to have
most of their motor skills and they know how to
(05:09):
walk around and everything. And I kind of overhear people
when they're watching them, just like man, they're always just
kind of in the same area together and not like
all spread out. It's all this land that they have,
But that's really what it's like in the wild, right.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Yeah, So a really wonderful thing about our African elephant
herd is we've really been able to replicate the type
of experience that these animals would have in their natural environment.
So elephants are a matriarchy, meaning that the females of
the herd raise the babies in a multi generational herd,
(05:45):
and that's really what we've been able to replicate here
at our zoo as well. So yeah, exactly like you said,
they really stick together, spend time together, and that is
exactly how they would live their lives in their natural
environment as well.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
You don't have just like the independent one that's just
like I don't want to hang out with the group today,
I'm going to wander all the way over here. You
just don't really see that, which is really fascinating because
so many of the animals that you have do like
their solitary kind of like they're by themselves. They might
be able to coexist with another separate animal, but they're
really themselves, and you guys have you know when you're
(06:21):
designing some of these right, Like you know, the giraffes
also like to hang out with each other, but they're
in with like three other different animals and they get
along really well with those animals. And then you look
at some of the animals that are kind of by themselves.
There's one of them, and if there was a second
one of them, there'd be maybe some territorial issues going on.
(06:41):
How do you guys find ways to know and when
you look at your habitats, you know, make sure that
every animal has its own personal preference of what would
make it as functional or as happy as it could
possibly be based on what it's instinct would naturally be.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Yeah, I mean, I think a lot of it is
looking at, like I mentioned earlier, natural history, So how
would that animal live its life in its natural environment
and how can we replicate that within human care? And
then also, like I mentioned earlier, we're a part of
the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, so we have access
to leading experts and robust resources and kind of everything
(07:22):
that we need to make really strong, educated decisions that
are going to optimize the well being of the animals
in our care. So it's having access to really smart
people within EASYA and then also having really smart people
within our zoo who, like I said, are always going
to make the best decisions to optimize the well being
(07:43):
of the animals in our care.
Speaker 1 (07:44):
Jac Colson with us here. Okay, so as we wind
down this interview, and again I should just quiz you
on every single animal that you have and just be like,
I'm okay, so I go through phases really into the
beaver right now, and I know you guys just have
an awesome spot where people can actually see beavers in
their lodge and also just kind of swimming around. Uh,
take take me through and tell people where they can
(08:05):
find the beavers in the beaver family there, because it's
such a cool and unique feature that you guys have
underneath the Desert Dom.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
Yeah, so, like you just said, it's underneath the Desert
Dome in our Mahony Kingdoms of the Night. They're within
the swamp portion, which is actually the largest indoor swamp
in the world, which is kind of a fascinating little
stat But yeah, you can find the beavers in our
Mahony Kingdoms of the Night, and and uh that's of
(08:33):
course within our desert Dome, which just one number one
to exhibit the count.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
Does the Kingdom of the Knight underneath it with that
count as best exhibit or is it just the dome
with the desert.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
That is such a great question. I actually you caught me.
I don't know. I think that they're a little bit
separate in that they have really different offerings there, really
different experiences, So I would say they're separate, but they
are so closely linked of course, one being upstairs and
one being down that it's great to have both of
(09:06):
those really unique experiences at the same time.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
Desert beavers and that, yeah, desert Cayman, like I haven't
seen it Cayman in the desert before anyway. And then
the last one, prehensile tailed porcupine, which I see. I
think it's down there too. They're always like up in
the tree. They're one of like five porcupines that you
guys have. Porcupines like I want to see. I talked
(09:32):
about it on the air. I want to see wild ones.
People are like, we've got to go up to the
north and the Nybra River and all that stuff. I'm
making a personal plea that we have the ability to
like have a porcupine day at the zoo. Can you
make that happen for me?
Speaker 2 (09:47):
That's a great request. I don't know if I can
make it happen for you, but it's a wonderful request.
I will say, it's so great to talk about all
of the unique experiences that we have at the Zoo
because there are so many, almost like you can't have
the same experience twice. And really, when you think about
the benefits of being part of the number one zoo
(10:08):
membership in the nation, it's getting to have those experiences
that are so different every time because you never know
what you're going to see and what you're going to
experience when you come.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
To the zoo.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
So we really pride ourselves on offering just unlimitated adventures
for our members. And so it is such a wonderful
time to become a member because it's getting warm out,
it's getting nice. So for our listeners out there that
are thinking about a zoo membership, just head to omahazoo
dot com slash become Dash a Dash member, or just
(10:40):
omahazoo dot com and find the membership tap.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
Yeah, and it's right at the top it says become
a member there. And then you have a calendar here.
Just before I let you go, you have a couple
of things Party for the Planet, which is April twenty sixth,
and then kids Night out Sinco do Rhino that is hilarious.
The Saturday, the Forst Saturday of May. What can people
expect for those events?
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Yeah, so Party for the Planet We're so excited about it.
It's this Saturday, and it's actually led by our Zoo
Academy students. So we have a high school program within
the Zoo that we welcome over one hundred kids to
be a part of this program and have authentic stem
based experiences and learn a little bit more about how
they can be a part of careers in environmental studies
(11:25):
or wildlife or whatever that is. And they are hosting
our Party for the Planet event this Saturday. So cool,
so cool, and so we're going to have lots of
special activities to celebrate Earth Day.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
That is so cool. And then the Kids Night Out
is that something that for the kiddos, they just get
a chance to have a fun night at the zoo.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
Yep. So for those parents that are looking to have
a date night or go get some groceries or just
enjoy some peace and quiet, you can drop your kiddos
off with our educators at the zoo and they can
learn a little bit about animals and conservation while you
get to go have have just a kid free evening
and we'll take care of them.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
For you have some mars, have some margaritas. He wants
to celebrate sink at the Mayo on a Monday. Come on,
that's such a cool idea and you can find all
that stuff on Omaha zoo dot com. Jccolson, you're awesome,
Thanks so much for coming in. Thanks for having me
number one zoo. Come on now, we are so spoiled
here in Omaha, and get out there to Henry Dourley
Zoo and Aquarium. What a great time to be at
(12:25):
the zoo.
I like animals, I like nature, I like talking about
the earth and all sorts of good things. And that's
why I have one of my good friends of the
City of Omaha here, Jc Colson, who happens to be
the communications manager for the Henry door Leave Zoo and Aquarium. Jac,
how are you doing today?
Speaker 2 (00:15):
I'm good. I'm so glad to be here with you
on this Earth Day.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
So the zoo just like the best time of the
year to be at the zoo, isn't it. It's like
the sun is out a little longer. Hours probably are
getting a little bit lengthier for people to come and
see the animals. All the animals are like, oh yeah,
this is more my jam with the temperature rising. Is
there a better time to be at Zoosan right now?
Speaker 2 (00:40):
There really isn't. The weather is beautiful, the grounds are beautiful,
all of the flowers are starting to bloom. It is
really the perfect time to visit the.
Speaker 1 (00:52):
Zoo, all right. And last time we talked, it was
like Valentine's Day and we were really pushing for people
to go and vote for all of the different categories
that Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium were up for, including
Best do Best Zoo Exhibit, which was the Desert Dome, right,
best Membership?
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Right?
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Is there one more?
Speaker 2 (01:12):
There's one Safari Park for our Liigi Simmons Wildlife Safari Park.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
There you go. And we just happened to win all those,
didn't we?
Speaker 2 (01:19):
When we just happened to win all of them, it
was such a wonderful, wonderful day of celebration. We swept
all four categories. This is our third year in a
row sweeping all the categories. We were nominated in our
second win for Desert Dome and our first win and
first nomination for Best Zoo Membership.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
Now, for you know us, we want people to vote.
And whenever you empower people to vote, I think that
means even more, right, Like it's people wanting to support
what you guys are doing more so than just you
know kind of these judges. These are trury judges that
are like, well, actually this is the best zoo because
(02:04):
of this, this, this and this. What does that mean
to have the people say stuff like that? Right, It's
just like, hey, I want to go out of my
way to vote for this zoo because they are the best.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Yeah, It's it's so important to us to be positive
members of our community, and for our community to feel
like they're involved in everything we do, including winning Best Zoo.
And we absolutely won because of our community who really
showed up for us and voted for us, and really
(02:33):
they are who made it possible for us to be
number one for the third year in a row. It's
so awesome.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
Yeah. So that includes every zoo in America, and there
are a lot of good ones. I mean, I've been
to a lot of zoos. It's kind of your job, too, right,
Like you kind of have to know what everybody else
is doing around here from that angle, right, And you're
in Omaha, you work at andriydor Lei'zoo in a Qui,
So you certainly feel like that's the best. But what
(03:03):
do you gather from seeing other zoos and what makes
this place specifically so special compared to some of the
other great zoos around America.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
Yeah, like you mentioned, there are amazing zoos all across
the United States and we're all part of, as we've
discussed many times before, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums,
and we're so glad to be a part of such
a wonderful group of really important institutions. And like I
alluded to earlier, what makes us great is our community.
(03:32):
I mean, Omaha and surrounding communities really love our zoo,
and we really love our community. And I think that
that is what we have to offer and what we're
so very proud of is being part of such a
wonderful community like Omaha.
Speaker 1 (03:49):
Jac Colson with the Henry Dorley Zoom Aquarium joining us.
All right, so let's get to the nitty gritty here.
Now we can celebrate all the victories and all that stuff,
but the people are like, yeah, now I need to
get to the zoo. Who's like, what's the exhibit? You
find yourself just like, okay, I'm just gonna kind of
wander buy this one every single day this time of
the year. If I worked at the zoo, this would
(04:10):
be my problem. I would just be like, oh, you know,
I think today I'm just going to go stand by
the Rai tank for a little bit, you know, just
like watch the rays, maybe buy a little food for them.
I don't know if i'd ever get any work done.
What about you? Who are some of your favorites right
now at the zoo?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
I think during the spring, anytime that I can be
outside is so amazing, and we have so many outdoor
habitats to choose from. So we have our ownc line shores,
we have our Asian Highlands, our scott African grasslands featuring
African animals across twenty eight acres. I mean, it's really
unlimited fun. I know you're asking me to pick one,
(04:45):
but I just can't. They're all so amazing.
Speaker 1 (04:48):
It's kind of like making somebody pick their favorite child
or something, right, It's it's like, it's such an unfair
question to ask somebody. I find the elephants interesting. You
have the moms, you have old babies and their babies
for a while, so you're kind of seeing them all
grow together, which is an incredible experience. And now they're
all big enough now to where they seem to have
most of their motor skills and they know how to
(05:09):
walk around and everything. And I kind of overhear people
when they're watching them, just like man, they're always just
kind of in the same area together and not like
all spread out. It's all this land that they have,
But that's really what it's like in the wild, right.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Yeah, So a really wonderful thing about our African elephant
herd is we've really been able to replicate the type
of experience that these animals would have in their natural environment.
So elephants are a matriarchy, meaning that the females of
the herd raise the babies in a multi generational herd,
(05:45):
and that's really what we've been able to replicate here
at our zoo as well. So yeah, exactly like you said,
they really stick together, spend time together, and that is
exactly how they would live their lives in their natural
environment as well.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
You don't have just like the independent one that's just
like I don't want to hang out with the group today,
I'm going to wander all the way over here. You
just don't really see that, which is really fascinating because
so many of the animals that you have do like
their solitary kind of like they're by themselves. They might
be able to coexist with another separate animal, but they're
really themselves, and you guys have you know when you're
(06:21):
designing some of these right, Like you know, the giraffes
also like to hang out with each other, but they're
in with like three other different animals and they get
along really well with those animals. And then you look
at some of the animals that are kind of by themselves.
There's one of them, and if there was a second
one of them, there'd be maybe some territorial issues going on.
(06:41):
How do you guys find ways to know and when
you look at your habitats, you know, make sure that
every animal has its own personal preference of what would
make it as functional or as happy as it could
possibly be based on what it's instinct would naturally be.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Yeah, I mean, I think a lot of it is
looking at, like I mentioned earlier, natural history, So how
would that animal live its life in its natural environment
and how can we replicate that within human care? And
then also, like I mentioned earlier, we're a part of
the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, so we have access
to leading experts and robust resources and kind of everything
(07:22):
that we need to make really strong, educated decisions that
are going to optimize the well being of the animals
in our care. So it's having access to really smart
people within EASYA and then also having really smart people
within our zoo who, like I said, are always going
to make the best decisions to optimize the well being
(07:43):
of the animals in our care.
Speaker 1 (07:44):
Jac Colson with us here. Okay, so as we wind
down this interview, and again I should just quiz you
on every single animal that you have and just be like,
I'm okay, so I go through phases really into the
beaver right now, and I know you guys just have
an awesome spot where people can actually see beavers in
their lodge and also just kind of swimming around. Uh,
take take me through and tell people where they can
(08:05):
find the beavers in the beaver family there, because it's
such a cool and unique feature that you guys have
underneath the Desert Dom.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
Yeah, so, like you just said, it's underneath the Desert
Dome in our Mahony Kingdoms of the Night. They're within
the swamp portion, which is actually the largest indoor swamp
in the world, which is kind of a fascinating little
stat But yeah, you can find the beavers in our
Mahony Kingdoms of the Night, and and uh that's of
(08:33):
course within our desert Dome, which just one number one
to exhibit the count.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
Does the Kingdom of the Knight underneath it with that
count as best exhibit or is it just the dome
with the desert.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
That is such a great question. I actually you caught me.
I don't know. I think that they're a little bit
separate in that they have really different offerings there, really
different experiences, So I would say they're separate, but they
are so closely linked of course, one being upstairs and
one being down that it's great to have both of
(09:06):
those really unique experiences at the same time.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
Desert beavers and that, yeah, desert Cayman, like I haven't
seen it Cayman in the desert before anyway. And then
the last one, prehensile tailed porcupine, which I see. I
think it's down there too. They're always like up in
the tree. They're one of like five porcupines that you
guys have. Porcupines like I want to see. I talked
(09:32):
about it on the air. I want to see wild ones.
People are like, we've got to go up to the
north and the Nybra River and all that stuff. I'm
making a personal plea that we have the ability to
like have a porcupine day at the zoo. Can you
make that happen for me?
Speaker 2 (09:47):
That's a great request. I don't know if I can
make it happen for you, but it's a wonderful request.
I will say, it's so great to talk about all
of the unique experiences that we have at the Zoo
because there are so many, almost like you can't have
the same experience twice. And really, when you think about
the benefits of being part of the number one zoo
(10:08):
membership in the nation, it's getting to have those experiences
that are so different every time because you never know
what you're going to see and what you're going to
experience when you come.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
To the zoo.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
So we really pride ourselves on offering just unlimitated adventures
for our members. And so it is such a wonderful
time to become a member because it's getting warm out,
it's getting nice. So for our listeners out there that
are thinking about a zoo membership, just head to omahazoo
dot com slash become Dash a Dash member, or just
(10:40):
omahazoo dot com and find the membership tap.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
Yeah, and it's right at the top it says become
a member there. And then you have a calendar here.
Just before I let you go, you have a couple
of things Party for the Planet, which is April twenty sixth,
and then kids Night out Sinco do Rhino that is hilarious.
The Saturday, the Forst Saturday of May. What can people
expect for those events?
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Yeah, so Party for the Planet We're so excited about it.
It's this Saturday, and it's actually led by our Zoo
Academy students. So we have a high school program within
the Zoo that we welcome over one hundred kids to
be a part of this program and have authentic stem
based experiences and learn a little bit more about how
they can be a part of careers in environmental studies
(11:25):
or wildlife or whatever that is. And they are hosting
our Party for the Planet event this Saturday. So cool,
so cool, and so we're going to have lots of
special activities to celebrate Earth Day.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
That is so cool. And then the Kids Night Out
is that something that for the kiddos, they just get
a chance to have a fun night at the zoo.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
Yep. So for those parents that are looking to have
a date night or go get some groceries or just
enjoy some peace and quiet, you can drop your kiddos
off with our educators at the zoo and they can
learn a little bit about animals and conservation while you
get to go have have just a kid free evening
and we'll take care of them.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
For you have some mars, have some margaritas. He wants
to celebrate sink at the Mayo on a Monday. Come on,
that's such a cool idea and you can find all
that stuff on Omaha zoo dot com. Jccolson, you're awesome,
Thanks so much for coming in. Thanks for having me
number one zoo. Come on now, we are so spoiled
here in Omaha, and get out there to Henry Dourley
Zoo and Aquarium. What a great time to be at
(12:25):
the zoo.
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