@chesterzoosci
Science and global conservation news from Chester Zoo's Science and Field Programmes departments. Happy to link up with conservationists, vets, keepers, ecologists, academics and animal-lovers. Journo requests to r.waller@chesterzoo.org.
Why do you think Sally Hall, Ecology & Habitats Advisor for Networks for Nature, is cutting bottles in the sun? Make your guesses!
Hint: 🦎
Extra hint: Chester Zoo's Networks for Nature project is building biodiversity in Cheshire.
Just out:
AI automated ID systems are better at identifying foxes 🦊 than they are at spotting hedgehogs 🦔
www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/18...
(A joint study by researchers at Liverpool John Moores University and Chester Zoo)
#Publication alert!
Providing good welfare for great apes in human care is complex, owing to the equally complex needs of individuals & species.
Our scientists co-created and evaluated a holistic method of assessing welfare standards for great apes. Results here:
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
Zoos reach millions of people every year, and have the potential to encourage them to adopt environmentally positive behaviours.
Open access paper: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
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#ScienceAlert!
A new study looks at key zoo websites to investigate how they are engaging with visitors through projects intended to promote behavioural change, and analyses those projects to understand their strategies.
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Calling all teaching staff – and those interested in a career in science teaching or zoo research.
The one-day Science of Saving Species course is open for applications now!
Info here: www.chesterzoo.org/events/zoo-science-cpd-the-science-of-saving-species
#CPD #Zoology #scienceteaching #STEM
Did you know Achoque salamanders have 'superpowers'?
www.facebook.com/reel/9090647...
Laboratorio de Biología Acuática (who we support) have made a beautiful video about these astonishing but Critically Endangered amphibians.
Click to watch! The art starts at 35s in. 🌎🦎
A close up photograph of a tiger near a camera trap lens. The photo mostly shows the tiger's face and eyes. Its orange-white patterns and black stripes are visible.
Now conservationists and Indian journalists are working together to shift how these carnivores are portrayed - from fear to respect.
Read more here: www.darwininitiative.org.uk/news/2026/02/20/shifting-stories-for-tiger-conservation/
Published by the Biodiversity Challenge Funds.
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🐆 This conservation project is led by Chester Zoo, and implemented by the @wti-org-india.bsky.social and the National Trust for Nature Conservation in India and Nepal.
It has many strands - and journalism is a key part of that.
🌏
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Photo shows a tiger close to a trail camera lens. It is a youngish individual with orange-red fur
Responsible wildlife news reporting is vital. It reduces the risk of human-wildlife conflict and helps keep the people who live alongside wildlife safe and well-informed.
🐅 The Living with Large Carnivores project is changing the narrative around leopards, tigers and other predators in India.
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Read all about it! Fresh off the press:
news.liverpool.ac.uk/2026/02/13/n...
Bermuda snail thought to be extinct now thrives after a decade’s effort
Special pods at Chester zoo helped conservationists breed and release more than 100,000 greater Bermuda snails
If you have trypophobia, look away now!
Surinam toads (Pipa parva) have bred at Chester Zoo. 🐸
The little bumps on the female's back are developing tadpoles which will soon break through her skin!
www.chesterzoo.org/news/surinam...
We hope the toads will boost interest in amphibian ecology.
“One study showed that salivary cortisol (stress hormone) levels dropped when people went through a lemur walkthrough. Other studies show that blood pressure can reduce around waterscapes.” - Chester Zoo scientist Bridget Johnson.
Get back to nature! www.chesterzoo.org/explore-ches...
UK hedgehogs are now classified as Vulnerable (IUCN Red List), but there is good news: gardens can provide them with vital habitats! 🦔
Take a sneak peek into the secret life of the urban hedgehog, revealed by a major camera study supported by Chester Zoo:
www.chesterzoo.org/news/garden-...
🧪🌍
Pouch alert!
Goodfellow's tree kangaroo Kitawa's recent pregnancy was facilitated through endocrinological testing in our on-site lab.
Scientists tested hormone levels in her faeces to determine the best time to introduce her to her mate, Kayjo. This is the result!
🧪🌏
Sharing because.
Chester is the world's first Sustainable Palm Oil City. 🌴
Cat Barton, our Policy Lead on Deforestation Free Commodities, chatted to the Palm Pod team about how that happened. Listen in here:
www.buzzsprout.com/2385661/epis...
🌏🌎🌍
Photo shows a still from a BBC breakfast broadcast. Sue Walker, a woman with short blond hair and glasses is sitting on a red couch and talking with journalists
"Zoos understand evolution, and we are constantly evolving and changing what we do."
Did you spot Sue Walker, head of science at Chester Zoo, on BBCBreakfast this morning?
She highlighted what modern zoos do and the power of zoo science as @londonzoo.bsky.social celebrates 200 years.
🦇🧪
That's the problem.
Road signs have only limited effectiveness in reducing human-wildlife collisions on roads in Brazil, a study has found.
Chester Zoo scientists contributed to this study which looked at the BR-262 highway in Mato Grosso do Sul, published recently:
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
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Are you considering undertaking one of our industrial placements? Our virtual webinar about how to apply and what to expect from a one year industry placement with us takes place on January 13. Join here!
www.chesterzoo.org/events/webin...
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As 2025 comes to a close we can start the countdown to 2027 which has been declared Year of the #bats🦇 by @gbatnet.bsky.social. That gives us 12 months to organise and plan how to mark and celebrate the wonder of bats and the important role they play in ecosystems across the world yearofthebats.org
Ate, strode, looked majestic.
Picture shows a Bali Starling, a bird with white feathers and a blue 'mask' around its eyes. It is a sleek bird and is perched on a branch
Have you ever considered how human-generated sound impacts #bird communication?
Songbirds surrounded by anthropogenic noise added more syllables to their song, this study by Chester Zoo scientists found:
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
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Despite their images adorning temples - and the fact indigenous people have protected them for generations - wild Siamese crocodiles are in serious threat of extinction.
We don't want that to happen, so we are supporting a breed-and-release programme:
🌏🐊
A close up shot of a giraffe's face. It looks as though it is about to complain about something
Today's mood: 🫤
(Northern giraffe: not actually being cynical)
The first graduates of the University of Chester conservation course run in collaboration with Chester Zoo have graduated!
www.chester.ac.uk/about/news/a...
Have you ever seen a stranger thing than this?
Don't worry - this isn't something from the Upside Down. This is an aquatic caecilian, a fascinating amphibian that you should only fear if you are an elongate prey species (e.g., a worm or larvae).
Music by Universfield via CC licence. 🐸
"We saw a sculpture- a giant ‘Biodiversity Jenga’, symbolising how the systems that support life on Earth become increasingly unstable as the pieces are removed."
Planning is key to restoring missing pieces and protecting those still intact, says one conservationist:
biaza.org.uk/news/detail/... 🌎
