Wildlife Center non-releasable education ambassadors live on camera in August

The Wildlife Center of Virginia will host three on-camera events with their non-releasable education animals at the center on Wednesdays in August.

The three events will focus on enrichment which the center defines as stimulus provided to an animal that encourages it to perform the natural behaviors its species would display in the wild.

This can be as simple as hiding an animal’s food so it has to forage, or as complex as changing an animal’s habitat throughout each season.

There are many forms of enrichment, but the overall goal is the same: to help keep animals active and healthy, both physically and mentally.

Three enrichment sessions are planned in August:  

• Wednesday, Aug. 10 at 10 a.m.: Sheldon and Wilson (two Woodland box turtles) will take a trip to their outdoor turtle garden, where the center have their favorite snacks and new plants scattered around the yard. This will encourage both turtles to be active and forage for their food just as they would in the wild.
• Wednesday, Aug. 17 at 10 a.m.: Violet (a Virginia opossum) will have to use her keen sense of smell to find hidden treats in an outdoor enclosure, just as an opossum would search for food in the wild.
• Wednesday, Aug. 24 at 10 a.m.: Buddy (a bald eagle) will need to use his strong beak and sharp talons while searching for some of his favorite foods inside paper-mâché items designed to look like animals that bald eagles might scavenge in the wild.

Each of these virtual programs will be streamed live on the Wildlife Center’s Facebook page.