The Minnesota Zoo is pleased to offer the Our World Speaker Series for 2013. This free series introduces you to experts in local and global wildlife conservation and environmental issues. Registration will open one month prior to each event. Space is limited so pre-registration is required.
Minnesota Forests at the Crossroads: Spruce, Maple, or Savanna?
Speaker: Dr. Lee E. Frelich
Date: Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Time: 6:30–8:30 p.m.
Minnesota’s iconic northern conifer forests are on a trajectory of rapid change. Dr. Lee Frelich, Director of the Center for Forest Ecology at the University of Minnesota, will explore future scenarios where conifer forests may switch to maple forests or savanna. We will learn how a warmer climate changes the forest via droughts, storms and fires, and examine the surprising synergy among climate change, European earthworm invasion and deer populations that accelerate change.
The Plight and Promise of Parrots
Speakers: Joanna Eckles and Dave Cruz
Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Time: 7:00–9:00 p.m.
Registration will open one month prior to each event.
Parrots are among the most familiar, loved, intelligent and flamboyant of all birds. Parrots are also among the most endangered. Joanna Eckles from World Parrot Trust will highlight these amazing birds and the work they do to stop the wild bird trade and save species like the blue-throated macaw. Minnesota Zoo staff member Dave Cruz will share his personal conservation experiences to protect the world’s rarest wild parrot. Join us and learn about a fascinating case study in parrot conservation and a project being supported by the Minnesota Zoo.
The Ecological Future of North American Bison
Speaker: Dr. Kyran Kunkel
Date: Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Time: 6:30–8:30 p.m.
Registration will open one month prior to each event.
More than 20 million bison once roamed the Great Plains and beyond, but now they occupy less than one percent of their historical range, and no truly free-ranging herds exist. Urgent measures are needed to conserve and to restore the ecological role of bison. Economic trends in the Great Plains combined with new conservation initiatives have created the potential for
significant progress in their restoration. Dr. Kyran Kunkel, the Director of Conservation Science Collaborative at the University of Montana, will share the innovative work required to restore large herds of wild bison.
Hand Raising Sea Otters—It Takes a Village
Speaker: Melanie Oerter
Date: Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Time: 6:30–8:30 p.m.
Registration will open one month prior to each event.
View and discuss the documentary “Otter 501,” a remarkable true event that chronicles the story of an orphaned sea otter pup who was washed ashore when she was less than a week old. This otter became part of a groundbreaking surrogate program where she was introduced to an adoptive sea otter mother who reared her for months so she could develop the necessary skills to survive in the wild. Minnesota Zoo’s Marine Mammal Zoologist Melanie Oerter will share her experiences of hand raising sea otter pups, what goes into the 24-hour care required, why it takes a village to raise even one sea otter pup.
If you have registered and need to change or cancel your registration or if you have any questions, please feel free to email us at educate@mnzoo.org.
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