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     Laurey Peat
     Laurey Peat + Assoc.
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SPRING SCHEDULE AT THE CALDWELL ZOO FEATURES DIVERSE OPPORTUNITIES FOR VISITORS TO WATCH, INTERACT AND LEARN ABOUT DIFFERENT ANIMALS
Otter Presentation, Native Raptor Free-Flight Show, Alligator and Giraffe Feedings, and Meet-the-Keeper Activities Begin April 17th

TYLER, TX - The Caldwell Zoo is launching new activities beginning Saturday, April 17, 2004, designed to help visitors learn more about anmals and exhibits at the zoo. The schedule of events, which continues throughout the summer, features an otter presentation, a native raptor free-flight show, alligator and giraffe feedings on the weekends, and various informal meet-the-keeper interactions during the week.

“We're excited about sharing these new activities with our spring and summer visitors,” said Caldwell Zoo Executive Director Hayes Caldwell. “The program has been designed to provide diverse opportunities for visitors of all ages to learn about different animals by watching and interacting.”

For visitors who haven't been to the zoo since last spring and summer, the activities will also showcase the Caldwell Zoo's $6.5 million construction project completed in the fall that includes an exciting new entryway with new exhibits for Lemurs, Squirrel Monkeys, Tamarins, Flamingos, and Spoonbills, along with a new Children's Zoo animal contact area, gift shop, visitor services building and other visitor amenities.

Beginning April 17 at 11:00 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, visitors can experience being a zookeeper by helping feed the Caldwell Zoo's five giraffes. The four females and single male have a particular taste for sweet gum leaves, which keepers cut from trees on the zoo property for the feedings.

On Saturdays and Sundays at 1:30, the Caldwell Zoo's otters are the main event. The otters are beloved long-time residents familiar to regular visitors. The new presentation covers information about native habitat and behavior and features feedings with live fish to showcase the otter's adept abilities to swim and retrieve.

The native raptor free-flight show, Saturdays and Sundays at 2:30, will feature birds of prey including a Red Tail Hawk, a Harris' Hawk, an American Kestrel, a Black Vulture and a Barn Owl. The free-flight forum allows the visitor to see natural behaviors such as how the birds search and attack their prey.

Visitors can watch zookeepers feed the alligators their favorite meal of chicken and fish on Saturdays at 3 p.m. During cooler weather, the alligators have a modest appetite, so the turtles that share the habitat will often steal the attention. But as the weather warms, the alligators become more aggressive and take center stage.

During the week, the zoo will offer a variety of informal meet-the-keeper interactions where visitors can learn about a certain animal or exhibit and then have the opportunity to ask the keeper questions.

Over the last 50 years, the Caldwell Zoo has delighted millions of visitors. The zoo began as the backyard menagerie of legendary Tyler oilman D.K. Caldwell. Today, true to Caldwell's vision and under the caring guidance of his nephew, Executive Director Hayes Caldwell, the Caldwell Zoo has become one of the finest small zoos in the country with 2,000 animals representing 250 different species. A regional destination, the zoo attracts over 600,000 visitors each year and has been recognized as one of the top zoos in the South.

The Caldwell Zoo is open daily from 9:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. from April 1 st through September 30 th and from 9:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. from October 1st through March 31st. The zoo is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day.