Toronto Zoo welcomes three bison calves using 'innovative' reproductive method
The Toronto Zoo has welcomed three wood bison calves, two females and one male, to their menagerie this summer.
The zoo said the three calves were born in late June using “innovative reproductive techniques” that allowed them to “deliberately” choose to breed females – a technique applied in an effort to keep wood bison populations stable and healthy.
“Although wood bison have been down-listed from "endangered" to "threatened" since 1988, on-going diseases, such as tuberculosis and brucellosis, in wild wood bison populations continue to threaten this species,” the zoo said in a release issued Wednesday.
“Reproductive technologies, such as artificial insemination and in vitro fertilization, are important tools for improving the genetic management and connectivity of small populations.”
They say, ultimately, they hope the technique help restore “genetically diverse, disease-free herds” into the wild.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
The zoo is currently home to a herd of five male and 18 female wood bison.
The facility said they move the bison through a handling system from mid-September to December to undergo artificial inseminations or embryo transfers – both of which the zoo calls “extremely intricate processes.” It says the timing of each procedure is dependent on the animal’s ovulation cycle, which is synchronized using hormone injections.
“Every step in the process could have a large impact on pregnancy success, so each task is done with the utmost care for both the research and the wellbeing of our bison – from freezing and thawing the sperm and embryos, to transferring them to the females, to training and caring for the herd,” the zoo said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
Residents of northern Alberta First Nation told to shelter in place
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.