Source: Zoo and Aquarium Visitor News
Vancouver, Canada - Vancouver Aquarium’s Graham Amazon Gallery introduced vibrant additions to its exhibit today—Cosmo the Blue Fronted Amazon parrot and hundreds of beautiful, fluttery Costa Rican butterflies. The Aquarium also unveiled an enhanced “Creepers & Climbers” exhibit featuring slithering snakes and slimy amphibians.Blue Fronted Amazon parrots are among the chattiest birds in the animal kingdom. Considered wonderful singers, Blue Fronted Amazon parrots are also great at learning words and phrases.
“Cosmo is a fun and interactive parrot who loves to whistle to Disney tunes, howl like a wolf and bark like a dog,” says Aquarium biologist, and Cosmo’s primary caretaker, Grant Tkachuk. “During her first month at the Aquarium, we kept her entertained with Disney movies as part of her stimulation exercises. Cosmo loved to whistle along to the tune from her favourite movie The AristoCats.”
Hundreds of Costa Rican butterflies can be seen in free flight throughout the Amazon Gallery. In the adult stage, a butterfly lives only three to four weeks; hence, visitors have a short period of time to take in the beauty of some of the world’s most wondrous creatures.
“Vancouver Aquarium’s Amazon Gallery is really heating up this summer with the addition of hundreds of Costa Rican butterflies in rich hues of blues and greens,” says Aquarium biologist, Kristen Brown. “Kids especially enjoy the colourful display of these graceful creatures as they flutter from leaf to leaf in our Amazon rainforest.”
Butterflies found in the Amazon Gallery arrived to Vancouver Aquarium from sustainable butterfly farms in Costa Rica where the butterfly farming industry has thrived for over 25 years. As part of the exhibit, visitors will learn about the lifecycle of a butterfly as it transitions from egg to caterpillar and chrysalis to adult.
The Amazon Gallery also re-opened its “Creepers & Climbers” exhibit where multi-species of snakes and amphibians now co-exist. Visitors can witness a Tiger Rat snake paired with an Ornate Horn frog and an Emerald Tree boa interacting with a Dyeing Poison frog.