Meerkat/Aardvark/Giraffe

If you smell something musty as you head into the Dry Thorn Forest, it might be your lucky day: a ripe scent is a good sign that the aardvark is out of its den. A nocturnal animal, the aardvark is given access to the meerkat habitat at night and can occasionally be seen in the enclosure late in the day.

Possessing a strong sense of smell, it sniffs its way around the exhibit, picking up aromas left behind by the meerkats as well as any scents provided for enrichment. On a very lucky day, you may see the aardvark in the sandy exhibit, where the effectiveness of his thick claws is quickly apparent in the deep holes he digs throughout.

Even if visitors have to settle for viewing the aardvark in his den, the room is still an active one. The meerkats, social animals, can often be seen playing in their group and reacting to visitors. The termite mound in the southern enclosure provides a sentry post, which they use to keep watch, while the sand in the northern enclosure gives the meerkats—active diggers themselves—a place to practice one of their favorite activities. The sand provides enrichment as well. According to RAJ Lead Keeper Jill Gossett,“Anything you can bury in here, they’ll dig back up—they love smelly stuff.” She often buries kitchen spices or insects for the mammals to find.

While they may not dig, the giraffes nearby have their own forms of enrichment. Giraffe enrichment focuses on their most manipulative organ: the tongue. Eighteen inches long, prehensile and extremely flexible, giraffes’ tongues are used in the wild to gather acacia leaves while avoiding the tree’s thorns. At the zoo, keepers try to simulate similar behavior.

According to RAJ Keeper Amy Hanna, a common enrichment item is “The Accordion,” which consists of several plastic layers stacked on one another, with fresh leaves placed between them. It’s hung from the ceiling, and the giraffes have to lift the layers with their tongues to gather the leaves.