Romancing The Celluloid Nature: A Review of American Zoo Exhibits, Part I

Zoos have gone through metamorphosis in recent decades, largely in response to the changing tide of the society. The central theme for the modern zoo is Conservation. Zoo exhibitry has been evolving accordingly toward a more “naturalistic” trend, symbolized by the landscape immersion method. This approach, however, has a built-in dilemma since nature cannot be duplicated in captivity. Animals are often concealed from the visiting public, generating complaints. At its core, currently common exhibit schemes are anthropomorphic as well as anthropocentric. Animals’ sensory faculties are ignored during the design process. In terms of taxonomy, distributions of the species in zoo collections are biased toward large mammals, and as resources are allocated toward species with public appeal, often left behind are smaller species of mammals and birds and lower vertebrates. There exists a need to turn a critical eye on today's zoo exhibits from all aspects.     

Rambling Thoughts on Zoo Animal Collection and Conservation: A Historical Perspective

Zoo animal collections have gone through a variety of changes in recent decades. While an increasing number of species may be establishing self-sustainable populations, early specimens of some animal groups were captured and transported in wasteful and unacceptable methods, a part of history that should not be forgotten. Selection of species has shifted from individual to group decision-making processes, reflecting a different type of personnel now in charge. The fact remains, however, that zoos continue to present a popularity-driven, skewed representation of the animal kingdom to the public. Wildlife conservation has been one of the main purposes for zoos as well as zoo associations, both in Europe and America. In actuality, the concept of conservation is subject to individual interpretation and this is where a clear definition of the zoos’ role could become rather vague. An important and worthwhile task for zoos is conservation education. To counteract deep-rooted anthropomorphism in the public's mind is not easy, yet it is a necessary step to raise citizens’ environmental awareness. The ultimate results of conservation education include changing daily habits, as well as participation in grass-roots conservation movements, by citizens.     

Exorcising of a Cage: A Review of American Zoo Exhibits,Part III

Enlargement of captive space has become a trend in zoos, frequently designed with geographic and mixed species themes. Geographic exhibits, however, often mislead the public; in mixed species exhibits, welfare of individual animals and their breeding potentials in some species are ignored. Another popular “natural” open and outdoor exhibit system commonly runs contrary to nature and the requirements of the inhabitants. In all this, the quality of space is forgotten. Zoos need to reevaluate the advantages of cages as well as animal housing in buildings, to ensure management of diverse species in a larger number of taxonomic groups. As zoos reach a crossroad in history, renewed significance of wildlife conservation must be realized in exhibit design consideration. The importance of cohesive and proper exhibit design processes cannot be over-emphasized.     

Experience in the Ivermectin Treatment of Internal Parasites in Zoo and Captive Wild Animals: A Review

The selection and the use of antiparasitic remedies in the animals in zoological gardens and those bred in captivity present one of the challenges to the wildlife veterinarians. The latter have to be flexible enough in the choice of medicines and schemes of treatment of the animals they take care of. The present study is aimed at adding more information in that respect. A number of cases of ivermectin treating of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish bred in captivity are presented in it. The tolerance to the drug in the different animals, species of the parasites influenced by it, dosages, schemes of applying and some other peculiarities in the system animals – diseases – anthelmintic treatments are discussed.     

A new institution devoted to insect science: The Florida Museum of Natural History,McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity

Abstract The Florida Museum of Natural History's McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, on the University of Florida campus in Gainesville, Florida, has become one of the world's largest institutions for research on butterflies and moths, and an important research facility for insect science. The facility was constructed by combining the staff and merging the Lepidoptera holdings from the Allyn Museum of Entomology, the Florida State Collection of Arthropods and other University of Florida collections, and now includes over ten million specimens from all over the world, rivaling some of the largest Lepidoptera research collections globally. The facility includes a team of domestic and international researchers studying many areas of lepidopterology, including behavior, biodiversity, biogeography, ecology, genomics, physiology, systematics and taxonomy. In this paper, we introduce the McGuire Center, its staff, and the many research activities for researchers across entomological disciplines.     

Ancient North American Art Surfaces in the Art World: A Review of Hero, Hawk, and Open Hand

Hero, Hawk, and Open Hand rated as a must-see for anyone with an interest in art of the ancient Americas or ancient art in general—an exhibition whose breadth and depth in terms of visual material would be difficult, if not impossible, to replicate. This review takes a look beyond the immediate frame of the exhibition at some additional context related to the appreciation of these objects as ancient art, including some reflection on the original objectives of the exhibition and what appeared, at least to this anthropologist, as palpably missing or unspoken.     

Design,synthesis and pharmacological evaluation of novel polycyclic heteroarene ethers as PDE10A inhibitors: Part II

We report the design and synthesis of novel pyrrolo[3,2-b]quinoline containing heteroarene ethers as PDE10A inhibitors with good to excellent potency, selectivity and metabolic stability. Further optimization of this primary series resulted in the identification of 1-methyl-3-(4-{[3-(pyridine-4-yl)pyrazin-2-yl]oxy}phenyl)-1H-pyrrolo[3,2-b]pyridine 13a with good hPDE10A potency (IC₅₀: 6.3 nM), excellent selectivity over other related PDEs and desirable physicochemical properties. The compound exhibited high peripheral and adequate brain levels upon oral dosing in rodents. The compound also showed excellent efficacy in multiple preclinical animal models related to psychiatric disorders, particularly schizophrenia.