SECRETARY'S REPORT 121 



PROBLEMS 



One of the most challenging of Zoo problems is caring for new 

 animals or those that have not generally thrived in captivity under 

 methods used before. This is particularly difficult with penguins. 

 They are kept in a glass- fronted refrigerated room 22 by 13 feet under 

 conditions suitable for these birds from the far south. Several dif- 

 ferent kinds have been kept successfully and even emperor penguins 

 have been kept as long as six years. However, they are especially 

 susceptible to aspergillosis, a fungus growth that develops in the 

 respiratory tract and even progi'esses into other portions of the body. 

 Prior to the receipt of the king and emperor penguins, the cage they 

 were to occupy was given a thorough cleaning, and after their arrival 

 improvements were made to better their environment. For the most 

 part, these consisted of lowering the temperature, reducing the hu- 

 midity, and providing more perfect filtering of the incoming air. In 

 spite of all efforts, however, only one emperor penguin was living on 

 June 30. The king penguins, which were received shortly before the 

 arrival of the emperor and occupy the same cage, are still thriving. 



Since the problem is of far more than academic interest, it might 

 be well to point out that the Aspergillus spores are known to exist in 

 soil and are probably of very wide distribution. Under some condi- 

 tions chickens, turkeys, and ducks are subject to aspergillosis to such 

 an extent that raising them is a difficult problem, and diseases some- 

 what similar occasionally occur in humans. Therefore, what is 

 learned in efforts to control aspergillosis in penguins may be of use in 

 solving the problem of control of the disease in domestic fowls and 

 human beings. 



The flat-tailed otters {Pteronura hrasiliense) are so rare in cap- 

 tivity that every possible effort was made to insure their survival. 

 Since they are animals of the warm waters of the Amazon, a special 

 installation to fill their tank with water at an accurately controlled 

 temperature of 80° was provided, as were facilities for them to dry 

 themselves quickly when coming out of the water so that they would 

 not become chilled. They are making splendid growth and because 

 of their great activity are first-class entertainers of the public. 



MAINTENANCE AND IMPROVEMENTS 



The routine work of maintenance and construction, which is car- 

 ried on practically every day of the year, consists of such varied tasks 

 as the removal of stoppages from drains and sewers, repairs of faucets, 

 doors, cages, water lines, steam lines, boilers, refrigeration exjuipment, 

 buildings, roads, and walks, and innumerable miscellaneous jobs nec- 

 essary to keep the National Zoological Park in a safe and presentable 

 condition. The need for the exercise of great care in working around 



