The Pocatello Zoo is now officially home to two new turkey vultures that will be spending their days in a brand new exhibit thanks to a grant from the Ifft Foundation.
Both Horus and Beaky Buzzard have come a long way on their journey to Pocatello. Horus comes from the Medina Raptor Center in Ohio; meanwhile Beaky made the trek from the AWARE Wildlife Center in Georgia.
“Both of these birds were found with broken wings and as a result of those injuries are unable to fly at a level that they would have a successful life in the wild,” said Pocatello Zoo Superintendent Peter Pruett.
For Horus that’s left him with a new calling in life, as an education bird.
“Part of our operations at the zoo is public outreach,” Pruett said. “You’ll soon be seeing Horus around the community helping to let people know what an amazing species this is and the role they play in the ecology of East Idaho.”
Horus and Beaky will make their home in a new exhibit funded by a $7,500 grant from the Ifft Foundation. The exhibit seeks to replicate the conditions that someone might find these creatures in the wild.
“We have clump grass and sagebrush growing inside and we’ve even included an old split rail fence in the exhibit,” Pruett explains. “It looks extremely close to how you might find one of these animals perched if you were driving a backcountry road. We’re thankful for the Ifft Foundation’s generous support of our efforts at the Pocatello Zoo.”
The grant is also helping to fund upgrades for the zoo’s porcupine, skunk, and lynx exhibits.
Visitors can see Horus and Beaky in person from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. until September 7 and during the weekends from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. until the zoo closes for the season October 31.