SIFAKA BLOG

Our work is never done

2010-11-23T14:19:00.000-08:00

There are a lot of ups and downs in helping animals survive. Here is a very good example. Recently we released 4 long-time captive female cheetahs into our very large game camp here in Africa. The camp is a safe place where these females can learn to hunt. If they are successful, they can be returned to the wild. To return a captive cheetah to the wild—long thought impossible—is a MAJOR accomplishment!

We had no time to celebrate the release of our 4 female cheetahs. That same day we received 4 very young orphaned cubs that were scared, filthy and underweight.

Our Cheetah Conservation Fund staff went to work. The second photo here shows how the cubs are now healthy-looking.

But the fencing in the background of the photo is a sad reminder that because the cubs were orphaned so young, they may never be able to be released back into the wild.

Working to save cheetahs from extinction is often a two-steps-forward, one-step-back process. But we remain determined to continue our march until there is a large healthy cheetah population living in the wild.

New Cheetah Cub

2010-10-06T09:15:00.000-07:00

The Cheetah Conservation Fund recently got in another orphaned cheetah cub. The Namibian Government got a hold of the cub and called us to come and help. When the little girl arrived at CCF she was in excellent health, although she was very scared. She has an angry little face, and she paces across her yard most of the day. We think she is about four months old, which means that it is unlikely that she will ever be able to return to the wild. Her name is Tiny Rohini Talalla, and she is quickly capturing our hearts!

Cheetah cubs spend nearly 22 months with their mothers before they are able to hunt and survive on their own. This makes it very difficult for a young orphaned cheetah to ever be able to fully survive outside of captivity. We must be in contact with these young orphans in order for them to survive, which means they become somewhat used to humans. Even if we could teach the orphans how to hunt, they would not know that they should be scared of humans. So, if we were to release these animals, they would likely come too close to humans and cause conflict.

For now, we are trying our best to make sure that Tiny Rohini Talalla has a very nice life. Her cage actually sits right in front of my desk, so I get to watch her all day long as I do my work! Also, when she grows up, she may even get to live with little Polly. We’re hoping that they would be very good friends for each other, but we’ll see how it goes!

Camera Trap

2010-08-25T08:45:00.001-07:00

The Cheetah Conservation Fund uses something called a camera trap to get information about wild cheetah populations and also our black rhinos. The best part of a camera trap is that you can collect a lot of information without disturbing the animals at all.
Basically, a camera trap consists of two camera stations that are set up along a path or by a known cheetah play-tree. You usually choose a path that you know an animal might walk along, and a play-tree is a tree that cheetahs will use to mark their territory and advertise for a mate. In many ways, play-trees are the center of the cheetah’s social world.
Anyways, we set up what looks like a camera on a pole on both sides of the play-tree or both sides of a path. Then, when a cheetah or rhino walks past the cameras, a motion sensor makes the cameras take a picture. Because you have two cameras, you get a picture of each side of the animal. For an animal like a cheetah, this allows you to find spot patterns that help identify one cheetah from another. Camera traps allow you to identify individual animals, know how many animals live in a certain area, monitor their movements, and even to know when during the day the animals are active. They’re great!

Karate Party!

2010-07-07T09:10:00.001-07:00

Hai ya!! and hello to all you karate kids out there, SifakaWorld is throwing another party this Friday!

WHERE?
Log into JUNGLE GYM because the party is only there this Friday. Head on over to Asia to join in on the festivities. Don't forget to Talk to the Red Panda to get your Karate Outfit!

WHEN?
The party is Friday, July 9th, at 5pm SIFAKA time (Sifaka clock is in the tree tops) and goes until 6pm SIFAKA time.

Playing in a tree

2010-07-04T10:00:00.001-07:00

When I went out to see Quasar, Phoenix, and Soraya the other day, Quasar and Soraya were up in a tree! Cheetahs use trees, often referred to as “play-trees” in order to mark their territories and look for mates. Although Quasar and Soraya weren’t really marking their territory or advertising for a mate, they sure were having fun!

2010-07-01T09:10:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, SifakaWorld is throwing another party this Thursday! Since it's been so hot lately we thought it would be fun to throw a "cool" party!

WHERE?
Log into JUNGLE GYM because the party is only there this Thursday. Head on over to the North Pole to join in on the festivities.

WHEN?
The party is Thursday, July 1st, at 10am SIFAKA time (Sifaka clock is in the tree tops) and goes until 11am SIFAKA time. There will be a best dressed fashion Show hosted by JohnnyFox, so wear your favorite SifakaWorld clothing items! Winners will receive Sifaka Cash.

Time To Chill!

2010-06-21T14:22:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone, SifakaWorld is throwing another party this Thursday! Since it's been so hot lately we thought it would be fun to throw a "cool" party!

WHERE?
Log into JUNGLE GYM because the party is only there this Thursday. Head on over to the North Pole to join in on the festivities.

WHEN?
The party is Thursday, June 24th, at 10am SIFAKA time (Sifaka clock is in the tree tops) and goes until 11am SIFAKA time. There will be a best dressed fashion Show hosted by JohnnyFox, so wear your favorite SifakaWorld clothing items! Winners will receive Sifaka Cash.

Marking Scat

2010-06-18T15:37:00.001-07:00

When we have to pick-up cheetah scat, or poop, to collect information about our cheetahs, we often need to know which scat came from which cheetah. But how can you tell? One method that we use is to use “markers” on the different cheetahs. A marker is simply some type of thing that you put into an individual cheetah’s food, and each cheetah gets a different marker. Then, on the next day, you will find that marker in the scat and you will know which cheetah’s scat you are collecting. Some of the markers we use include raw kidney beans, rice, peas, and corn. The important thing to remember is just that you have to keep track of the different markers you are feeding to each cheetah. Otherwise, it won’t work!

Scat Collecting

2010-06-11T10:38:00.001-07:00

The Cheetah Conservation Fund collects information about cheetahs in many ways. Did you know that one of the best ways to collect information about a cheetah is by collecting its poop?! Cheetah poop, called “scat,” can be used to discover information about individual cheetahs, cheetah populations, what cheetahs eat, cheetah hormone and stress levels, and much more. Every day at the Cheetah Conservation Fund, we have our staff go for a walk to the places where we know that wild cheetahs come at night. Any scat that is found is collected. Some of the scat goes to the genetics laboratory, and some of it goes to our clinic. All of the information we collect from the scat helps us to know more about cheetahs. The more that we know, the better CCF can do to help conserve these amazing cats!

What am I?

2010-06-04T09:43:00.000-07:00

Are you ready to earn some more Sifaka Cash?

That's right, it's time for another SifakaWorld Challenge! Below are five pictures of animals found throughout the world. All you need to do is identify all 5 animals and you can win Sifaka Cash to buy all sorts of fun things in SifakaWorld.

To win, send the names of all five animals to win@sifakaproductions.com. Please don't try to post answers to the comments section here, because they won't get published. The first 10 people to send in the correct answers will win 1500 in Sifaka Cash.

Good luck, and have FUN!!!

Sundowner

2010-05-26T13:09:00.000-07:00

The Namibian sunsets are the most amazing sunsets I have ever seen in my life. One of my favorite things to do is to go for a game drive on the CCF to see some of the amazing animals that live right around us. The best part of going for a game drive around sunset is that you get to see amazing wildlife while color bursts from the sunset sky. One of my favorite things to see is a big kudu bull. Kudu bulls are big male kudus with two long spiraled horns. If you’re lucky, you can see quite a few kudu on CCF’s reserve along with lots of other wildlife. There’s just so much to see!

One night, the whole CCF staff went out for a game drive and to watch the sunset. We usually call these “sundowner drives.” While we were out there, a few of my friends needed to make phone calls. In order to make the calls, they had to stand on top of our bus! I thought it looked really silly, but also very beautiful with the sunset in the background, so I took a quick picture so that I could remember the moment!!

Puddle Jumping Party!

2010-05-14T13:00:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, SifakaWorld is throwing another party this Sunday!

WHERE?
Log into JUNGLE GYM because the party is only there this Sunday. Head on over to the Rain Forest in South America to join in on the festivities.

WHEN?
The party is Sunday, May 16th, at 1pm SIFAKA time (Sifaka clock is in the tree tops) and goes until 2pm SIFAKA time. There will be a best dressed fashion Show hosted by JohnnyFox, so wear your favorite SifakaWorld clothing items! Winners will receive Sifaka Cash.

Hope to see you there, and don't forget your Umbrella :)

SifakaWorld Chef!

2010-05-13T18:26:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, we have a brand new scavenger hunt going on in SifakaWorld. Find all the hidden Chef Hats and earn a cool prize!

Beach Party On Sunday

2010-05-07T11:11:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, SifakaWorld is throwing a Beach Party and everyone is invited!

WHERE?
Log into JUNGLE GYM because the party is only there this Sunday. Head on down to Batty's Beach to join in on the festivities. If you're not sure how to get there, just take the elevator from the Sifaka Island tree tops down to the forest floor, and follow the signs to the beach.

WHEN?
The party is Sunday, May 9th, at 4pm SIFAKA time (Sifaka clock is in the tree tops) and goes until 6pm SIFAKA time. There will be a best dressed fashion Show hosted by JohnnyFox, so wear your favorite SifakaWorld clothing items! Winners will receive Sifaka Cash.

Hope to see you there, and don't forget your sunblock :)

Happy Hyenas

2010-04-16T19:03:00.000-07:00

During the second day of our Etosha National Park visit, I told my friends that I really wanted to see a hyena. I had never seen one before, and I think they are a very beautiful and very misunderstood African predator. The chances that we would see a hyena were very small, especially because hyenas are nocturnal, meaning they are awake at night and sleep during the day. But when we drove up to a waterhole that morning, there were two spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) enjoying the cool morning air! One of the hyenas was even taking a bath in the waterhole!

One of the hyenas walked off into the bush, but the other hyena seemed to be having a very nice time in the water. We were able to watch the hyena for a pretty long while before it got up out of the water and went to join its friend.

Hyenas may have a bad reputation, but they play a very important role in the African savannah ecosystem. Hyenas are known to both hunt and scavenge for their food. To be a scavenger means that they will eat something that has already died. It may sound rather gross to you and me, but it is a good way for hyenas to get a meal and help clean up the savannah. In this way, hyenas are kind of like garbage disposals!

What am I?

2010-04-09T13:03:00.000-07:00

Lion King

2010-04-05T18:53:00.000-07:00

We recently took a fun trip as part of one of CCF’s international training courses. We put on these training courses in order to teach people from around the world how to help conserve the cheetah and its ecosystem. There is much to learn during these courses (they’re a lot like going to school for an entire month!), and so we take some time off to let our course participants view wildlife in Etosha National Park.

While we were driving around the park, we found male lions being very lazy near a waterhole. In fact, these lions were being so lazy that zebra and springbok were still coming to drink at the waterhole – even though there were lions there!

We also had a very good laugh when we took a closer look at one of the male lions. He has a scar on his eye just like “Scar” from Disney’s Lion King!

Egg Hunt

2010-03-31T13:18:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! It's time for another scavenger hunt! Be on the look out for Easter Eggs, find them all and earn a fun prize.

Come Sail Away

2010-03-28T19:08:00.000-07:00

One of the best things about Namibia is how many different kinds of animals you can find here. Cheri and I recently decided that we wanted to go and find some of the animals that live in the ocean on the coast of Namibia. So one day, we went out on a big sailboat to see what we could find. The sailboat captain took us to see the seal colony that is on the coast of Namibia, and we watched the seals as they played in the ocean surf. They are so playful! We saw Cape Fur Seals (Arctocephalus pusillus), which is a very common type of seal in Southern Africa.

Next we saw both Bottlenosed Dolphins (Tursiops truncates), and Heaviside’s Dolphin (Cephalorhynchus heavisidii). They would swim up to and around our boat as we sailed out to sea. It was especially fun to see the dolphins jumping out of the water.

We even saw a Sun Fish (Mola mola), which is a very strange looking fish that comes up to the surface of the ocean. By bobbing on the surface, the Sun Fish uses the sun to burn away some of the parasites that like to live on its skin. It also allows seabird to come and eat these parasites. One thing is for certain, and that is that Sun Fish are a very weird type of fish!

Once we got back on dry land, it was time to say goodbye to the ocean and its amazing creatures. With so much to see, we will hopefully be able to go back sometime soon!

Cheetah Facts Giveaway!

2010-03-22T10:34:00.000-07:00

Are you ready to win some more Sifaka Cash?!

We had so much fun with the Arctic Internet Scavenger Hunt we've decided to do another Internet Scavenger Hunt, this time it's about cheetahs and you only have to find the answers to FIVE questions.

The rules are the same as last time--send your answers to EVERY question in one email to win@sifakaproductions.com. Please don't try to post answers to the comments section here, because they won't get published. The first 10 people to send me the correct answers will win 1500 in Sifaka Cash.

Most of all, HAVE FUN!!

Are you ready? Here are the questions (remember, send answers to win@sifakaproductions.com):

What is the average lifespan of a cheetah?
How fast can a cheetah run?
When cheetahs have cubs, how many do they usually have at one time (in one litter)?
About how many million years ago did cheetahs evolve?
What do cheetahs eat?

That's it! This contest ends when I have 10 emails from all of you with all the correct answers (please only one entry per email address) or by March 29, 2010.

Cheetah Release

2010-03-20T23:22:00.000-07:00

I would like to thank all Sifaka members for helping us with another huge success!
Recently, CCF picked up three cheetahs that were causing problems on a livestock farm nearby. It turned out to be an older female with two cubs that were each about one year old and nearly full-grown. The cubs were in very good health, but their mother had a broken toe and a broken canine tooth. This would have made it very difficult for her to hunt wildlife on her own out in the wild. Visiting veterinarian, Dr. Minty Soni, was assisted by a team of CCF staff to operate on her broken toe. They then took her to the dentist to fix her broken tooth. Can you imagine a cheetah going to the dentist?!

Once she was in very good health again, CCF took the mother cheetah and her cubs to some open land to be released. Once we opened the box they were in, all three ran out of the box and off into the tall grass. It was a very amazing experience to help these three cheetahs have a second chance. We couldn’t have done it without the great support of Sifaka Members like you!

The winners.....!

2010-03-16T17:48:00.001-07:00

The winners of our first Internet Scavenger Hunt are:

***VanillaOreo***

***Lennardtail***

***Kushy10***

***Hotaru***

***JRKing***

***KingJunior***

We had a lot of entries, but only six got all the answers right! Great Internet sleuthing, guys!

To all of you who entered but didn't win, don't worry, there will be more chances coming soon!

CONGRATULATIONS to our WINNERS!!!! Your accounts will automatically be credited with Sifaka Cash!

Sifaka Cash Giveway Continues!

2010-03-15T08:12:00.000-07:00

Hi again!

Keep those answers rolling in--we've almost got all 10 winners! If you've already entered please check your email because you may have a message waiting from us :)

If you haven't entered yet, please see the post below for giveway rules and guidelines.

Just make sure you answer ALL 10 questions!!

We have FIVE confirmed winners so far, but many of you are VERY close to having all the winning answers, so we're going to give you until tomorrow (Tuesday, March 16th) to get the remaining answers correct. If you haven't yet entered now's your chance to get the entry in!

Good luck!

Win Sifaka Cash!

2010-03-07T16:31:00.000-08:00

**NOTE: Please read the instructions CAREFULLY. Do not post your response to the comments section here. Send it to win@sifakaproductions.com and make sure to answer ALL of the questions in ONE email to win. If you have sent a comment here it has been deleted. Please resend your answers to the email address above. THANKS! ****

Hello Sifaka World friends! As promised, we’re going to continue doing giveaways, and this one is super fun! Below you’ll find a list of 10 questions about the Arctic. It's an Internet scavenger hunt! The answers are somewhere out there on the Internet, so you’ll have to use your best researching skills to find them.

The Rules:

Put ALL the answers in an email to win@sifakaproductions.com and send them in.

****You have to answer every question correctly to win. ****

The first 10 people who send correct answers will win 2000 in Sifaka Cash!

You are only allowed to submit one set of answers. It doesn’t matter how many Sifaka World accounts you have. If you submit more than one the first one will be the only one accepted.

Also make sure to tell us your Sifaka World username so we can announce your username here on the blog and credit your account with all that Sifaka Cash!

Are you ready?

Here are the questions:

1. Name 5 animals, besides polar bears, that live in the Arctic.

2. Polar bears look white, but their fur and skin are really what colors?

3. Which animal swims so well underwater that people used to think it was a
cross between a bird and a fish?

4. What are “growlers?”

5. About how many people live in the Arctic?

6. What is the Aurora Borealis?

7. What is the majority of the Arctic land called?

8. Which Arctic ocean animal has a tusk, looks like it’s smiling, and has only a bumpy ridge where similar animals might have a dorsal fin?

9. Which animal is related to the weasel?

10. Alaskan natives call this animal an Oomingmack. What does oomingmack mean and what’s another name for this animal?

GOOD LUCK!!!

Winners will be announced on March 15th, 2010.

Little Bat

2010-03-04T18:20:00.000-08:00

When Cheri and I got home the other day, there was a small bat sitting in our room. It seemed to be rather exhausted, as if it had used all of his energy trying to find a way to get outside. In fact, when we went to pick the little bat up, it didn’t even try to fly away. We put the little bat in a dark box for a few minutes to hopefully help it calm down, and then we took it outside and let it go. We’re not sure what kind of bat it was, but it was a very beautiful little animal!

Birds All Around!

2010-03-02T18:07:00.000-08:00

Recently, Cheri and I have started going out to look for and watch some of the amazing birds that can be found in Namibia. On our last adventure, we saw a bird that we had never seen before, and managed to take a picture. When we got home we took out our bird book and looked it up. It turns out that we saw a rather rare type of hornbill, the Damara Hornbill (Tockus damarensis). There is another kind of bird that has just come back to the area along with the heavy rains, which is called the Lilac Breasted Roller (Coracias caudata). The coloring is just so beautiful! They have purple chests and the brightest of blue wings. When they fly you see a bright flash of the most brilliant light blue color.

It’s amazing to see how much nature is around you when you start paying attention to all of the different species of birds you can find!

Polly and Tony (Squared!)

2010-02-24T18:04:00.000-08:00

Polly, Tony, Mischief, and Phil the cheetahs recently received a visit from the real Polly and Tony (the people!). It was quite fun to watch Tony cheetah playing with Tony human, and to teach the real Polly and Tony how to tell all four of the cubs apart. When you know the cats, it is very easy to tell them apart, but when you are just meeting them, it can be very difficult to know who is who!

This morning all four cubs were chasing round and round their dirt mound, and then they all climbed on top and sat for some time looking out across the distance. They were looking very cute!

Sifaka World Cooks!

2010-02-22T07:00:00.000-08:00

Hi there!

In Sifaka World your avatars get to eat some really great foods, so we thought it would be fun for us to start giving you recipes for some of them here so you can make them at home (with an adult of course!).

At the North Pole my character, Chef Holmes, is handing out some yummy treats, including Hot Chocolate, so this week I got together with some of my real world friends and we made a video for you about how to make hot chocolate. This recipe has a twist to it--we've added cinnamon and a little chili powder to give it a Southwestern flair, but if you're not feeling adventurous you can just leave those things out and you'll still have a really great cup of homemade hot chocolate ready to go in just a few minutes!

Here's the video!

Here's the recipe:

Southwestern Hot Chocolate

4 cups milk (make it skim if you're using whipped cream as a topping)
2 Tablespoons agave syrup
4 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon chili powder

Garnish
1/2 cup whipped cream
grated milk chocolate

1. Combine milk and agave syrup in a saucepan and heat on the stove (get an adult to help you!)until hot, but not boiling. Remove from heat.

2. Add chopped chocolate and allow it to sit for a minute before stirring.

3. Add cinnamon and chili powder and whisk until the mixture is bubbly.

4. Ladle hot chocolate into mugs and top with a small amount of whipped cream and grated milk chocolate OR marshmallows.

Enjoy!!

Note: If you're not a fan of chili powder just leave it out of the recipe.

And the Winners Are...

2010-02-17T12:47:00.000-08:00

Hello everybody! We have chosen the winners for the 6-month membership giveaway! Before I tell you who they are I want to say how amazed and impressed we all were with the number and quality of the entries. Great job, everyone!

It was hard to choose just five out of the entries we received, but we worked together and narrowed it down to the following users whose accounts will be automatically upgraded to full 6 Month Memberships:

Aredrem
Botswana
OrangePoncho
Reenie
Karizai

Congratulations!!!

When the five winners log in tomorrow they will see that they have full memberships and will begin receiving Sifaka Cash daily as part of their memberships.

Speaking of Sifaka Cash, as I said, we had so many great entries that it was hard to choose only five. Because of that we have also chosen two runners up who will receive 1,500 in Sifaka Cash in their regular accounts. Those two users are:

Typhor
Lemurgink

I wonder what they'll buy with all that Sifaka Cash?!

Thanks for all your hard work, and if you didn’t win this time, don’t despair, we’re going to be offering more giveways in the near future. Hint: If you’re allowed to use Facebook or your parents use Facebook, be sure to become a fan of Sifaka World!!

Win a Membership!

2010-01-29T06:01:00.000-08:00

*****Ending Soon! GET YOUR ENTRY IN NOW! The last day to submit your paragraph about your favorite Sifaka World Character is Monday by midnight Pacific Standard Time*****

Hi everyone!

I’m so excited! Starting today we’re going to be giving away some fabulous Sifaka World prizes!

For this one all you have to do is write a paragraph (or more!) about your favorite Sifaka World animal. We’ll pick our five (5) favorite entries and will be awarding the winners each a free 6-month Animal Lover Membership to Sifaka World! If you've been using a free membership and really want access to everything cool in Sifaka World, now's your chance!!

Here’s what you need to do to win:

1) Write a paragraph about your favorite Sifaka World Character (any animal is fine--think about all the characters around Sifaka World, like Kintana, Tuffy, Fast Eddie, Professor Fizzlesicks, and some of our new characters in the Arctic too! Include the reasons you like that character so much. Is it the way he or she looks? Is it the animal’s personality? Be creative!

2) We’re looking for well-written entries by kids. It’s okay to have a parent type the entry, but it’s YOUR words that we want, not theirs.

3) Submit your entry to the comments section of this blog with your Sifaka World USERNAME. That’s very important because without your username we won’t know who to award the prize to! DO NOT USE YOUR REAL NAME. If you use any personal information to submit your entry it will be disqualified.

4) Tell us how old you are.

5) Submit your entry by February 15th, 2010.

That’s it! That’s all you have to do to win free access to all of Sifaka World’s exciting features for six months.

Prizes will be announced and awarded by February 19th, 2010.

GOOD LUCK!!

Cheetahs and...Rhinos?!

2010-01-27T18:19:00.000-08:00

Did you know that we have black rhinos here at the Cheetah Conservation Fund? The black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), also called “hook-lipped” rhinoceros, is an extremely endangered animal. To help the government of Namibia with the conservation of the black rhinoceros, CCF has set up a reserve for a few of these animals.

Although our reserve is home to six black rhinos, there is a young female that keeps escaping! A little while ago, the Namibian government sent their best veterinarians here to catch our escaped rhino. They found her, caught her, and then they returned her to the reserve. She didn’t stay there very long though, because only a few days later she had escaped again!

We think that this young female has set up what is called a “home range” just outside of our reserve. A home range is where an animal spends its time, or the area that an individual animal chooses to live. You can understand home ranges by thinking about the places you often go. Your home range would not include the place that you once visited for holiday, but the common places that you visit like your home, your school, maybe the store, or even your best-friend’s house. For now we are just tracking the young female rhinoceros to make sure that she is staying in the same area. Maybe she just thought that the grass was greener on the other side – the other side of our reserve’s fence that is!

What's New in Sifaka World

2010-01-24T21:43:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!

There’s a lot going on behind the scenes here in Sifaka World! I bet you can’t wait to see what’s coming. I know I’m really excited about all of it!

GAMES/ADVENTURES

I’m especially excited about a new adventure that will be released in February, so keep your eyes peeled for that one. It’s going to be a little different from adventures we’ve had in the past. You’ll have to take extra good care of your avatar to make it through this one! Are you wondering what it’s about? GOOD! Keep wondering! If you feel like it, post your thoughts about what it *might* be or what you’re hoping Sifaka World will be adding—even if you’re not right about this one your ideas might find their way into our games at a later date....

SIFAKA PRIZES!!

We're also going to be offering some amazing 6-month gift membership prizes. If you've been wanting a full membership so you can enjoy everything Sifaka World has to offer now's your chance! Sifaka Prizes may be featured here on the blog or on Twitter and Facebook, so if you’re on Twitter and Facebook, be sure to follow us (@sifakachef and @sifakaworld ) Be the first to know when you'll have the chance to win a Sifaka Prize.

See you in the Treetops!

Pesky Baboons!

2010-01-17T21:45:00.001-08:00

There has been a baboon troop in the area lately, and they’re being a bit pesky. We had to put special chemicals in our drinking water not long ago because baboons had pulled off the top of one of our water tanks. This has made our drinking water taste kind of like pool water because it has chlorine in it!

Just yesterday, there was a large baboon playing with our volleyball net. I even had to chase a baboon out of Matti’s garden because it was eating all of his new plants!

Also, a few weeks ago, there was a great deal of commotion coming from outside. I ran out to find a large male baboon inside of Quasar, Phonix, and Soraya’s enclosure! I started yelling and running around trying to grab the three young cheetahs so that they wouldn’t go near the baboon and get hurt, but luckily my yelling scared the baboon and he climbed over the fence and out of the yard. All of the cheetahs were just fine, but baboons can certainly hurt a cheetah if they got into a fight. During the whole episode, I have to admit that my heart was beating super fast!

Make Time for Breakfast!

2010-01-13T17:08:00.000-08:00

Getting ready in the morning is hard some days, isn’t it? It seems like we’re all rushing around trying to make it to the bus and school on time and boy does it get hectic! I bet some of you hastily grab something not so healthy on the way out the door and a few of you probably even head out with empty bellies because you run out of time. Or maybe you’re just not a morning person and don’t feel like eating much before you head off to school.

Breakfast is so important! You should never skip breakfast. Your body has been without nutrition all night and you need to eat to give your body (and brain!) the fuel it needs to get going and do some effective learning while you’re in class before lunch. Lots of really good studies have been done and they all say that kids who eat breakfast do better in school. Wouldn’t you love to do better just by eating a good meal in the morning? It’s so easy to do and doesn’t require any extra studying!

When things get crazy around here and I don’t have time to cook for my kids, we like to make some tasty, filling smoothies in the morning. They’re quick, easy, and you can even drink one on the go if you have to.

Here are two of our favorites (look for another one in Sifaka World soon!). Give them a try, but experiment with your own combinations and amounts too. Make them your own and be sure to get an adult to help you with the blender.

For both of these recipes all you have to do is put all the ingredients in the blender and process until smooth.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
(Serves 4)
If you like chocolate and peanut butter you’ll love this one!

2 cups chocolate soy milk (or fat free milk)
2 bananas
1 cup ice
2 Tablespoons peanut butter
1 squeeze of honey
Dash of cinnamon

Acai Bluraspberry Smoothie

(Serves 4)

Okay, you’re right! There’s no such thing as a Bluraspberry it's just a silly way of combining blueberries and raspberries. Although I do think a bluraspberry would be a very cool-looking fruit! There are such things as Acai berries, though. They are the fruit of the Acai Palm tree, which grows in Central and South America.

Acai is thought to help with digestion, heart trouble, and cholesterol levels. It is high in antioxidants, which are believed to prevent and fight cancer. In the past couple of years Acai has become popular and these days we can find its juice in the supermarket. Best of all, it’s super tasty!

2 /3 cup frozen blueberries
¼ cup frozen raspberries
1 cup acai berry juice
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
1 teaspoon lemon zest
ENJOY!

The Chase

2010-01-10T10:49:00.000-08:00

There is a large slender mongoose (Galerella sanguinea) that lives somewhere near my office.

Just the other day, it ran right inside! Immediately the dogs were chasing after it and it was trying to hide behind bookshelves and filing cabinets. My roommate, Cheri, and I started chasing after the mongoose, and we were luckily able to get it to run outside. The only problem was that the dogs chased after it outside and into the yard. I was able to grab one dog, named Finn, and Cheri ran after the other dog, named Isha. In fact, Cheri chased Isha all the way into a big cactus plant! The mongoose was able to get away from the dogs safely, but poor Cheri was covered in prickly little cactus hairs for the whole day!

Backyard Eats

2010-01-06T21:28:00.000-08:00

When I was a little girl I used to sit on the back stoop with my great-grandmother and shuck corn or shell peas in the summer. They were usually gifts from neighbors’ gardens—a bounty too large for them to consume on their own, so they shared. And what they shared tasted so much better than anything we could get in the grocery store. I think that’s probably truer today than it was back then.

Big farms tend to grow fruits and vegetables that travel well because they have to be trucked across the country, or even from one country to another, and they’re often picked before they get ripe so they won’t go bad before they get to us. Fruits and vegetables ripened by the sun taste better than ones that aren’t—just try some and you’ll see!

Right now there’s snow on the ground, so growing something green and tasty in the back yard is a little trickier than it is in the spring and summer, but our chickens, which we got at the end of the summer last year, are flourishing and are laying eggs at an awe-inspiring rate in spite of the low temperatures and lack of daylight.

And I have to tell you, those eggs taste better than any eggs we’ve ever had before! They’re smaller than what we’re used to getting in the grocery store, but wow are they full of flavor! Just look at this picture and you’ll see the difference. The egg from our backyard chicken is the one with the dark orange yolk.

Our chickens (we have four—Wiggles, Chickadee, Peeps-a-Lot, and Gladys) have a two-story coop, with their nesting boxes upstairs, and we let them roam during the day, which gives them the opportunity to vary their diets the natural way. They love to eat bugs! Their shells are thicker than the eggs we get in the grocery store, and they’re as fresh as can be. The eggs they lay are better for us and our chickens lead a much better life than chickens raised for laying supermarket eggs.

They’re pretty entertaining too. One of our chickens likes the buttons on my jacket and pecks away at them while I rummage around for eggs or fill their feeding troughs. They also talk to us a lot, clucking loudly when they want us to visit with them or give them some food.

Have you ever grown food in your back yard? If so, how did it taste?

What's New in Sifaka World

2010-01-03T10:42:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone!

Kintana here! Just stopping by to let you know that our holiday gift hunt was so popular that we've decided to leave it up for a little while longer. If you haven't yet completed it, head on up to the treetops and get started. Hint: Head to the North Pole to see some new friends and to find out more about the holiday gift hunt.

Speaking of holiday gifts, Sifaka World is offering 6-month gift memberships at 50% off that you can buy for yourself or even a friend or relative. Follow this link to find out more!

See you soon!

Mighty Mouse

2009-12-29T20:19:00.001-08:00

Hey Sifaka World! I want to share a funny story about a very friendly mouse that we named Jeremiah. I think he wanted to say hello to you and thank you for caring about animals.

Here is how we met Jeremiah.

One night, a mouse climbed the curtain in my bedroom. When he reached the top of the curtain he popped his little head up and gave a very loud squeak. He seemed startled to see humans, and we were very surprised that he was just sitting and staring at us! I tried to go to sleep, but Jeremiah was very busy and loud. He kept climbing the curtains and squeaking. When I was almost asleep, I felt something climb on top of me. I shook around to scare the mouse away and I fell asleep.

Later I woke up and felt the mouse cuddled against my leg, but I was too sleepy to do anything about it.
In the morning I got up and started to make my bed. As I folded my blanket, Jeremiah jumped out of the blanket and onto the floor. When I finished making my bed, he hopped back onto my bed and sat right next to me!

When I got back to my room the next night, Jeremiah was still there! It is not good to have a mouse live in your room, so I caught him so that we could release him outside. I took the little mouse to Dennis who knows a lot about small animals. Dennis showed me how to tell how old a mouse is and whether a mouse is a boy or girl. I found out that Jeremiah was a young male tree mouse (Thallomys paedulcus). Dennis and I took him out into the tall grass, wished him the best of luck, and let him go. Hopefully, he is doing well out there. I'm glad we got to meet Jeremiah so that we could learn more about the small mammals that live here at the Cheetah Conservation Fund.

Visions of Sugarplums

2009-12-27T13:54:00.001-08:00

Thanks to the Nutcracker, you've probably all had visions of sugarplums dancing in your heads, but I'd be willing to guess you're not even really sure what a sugar plum is. Is it a plum? Some kind of candied fruit? I'm pretty sure that as a child, I assumed that sugar plums were a kind of candy because I couldn't imagine why anyone would have visions of fruits dancing in their heads—it had to be candy! In fact, I wasn't far off. Popular during the 17^th to 19^th centuries, sugar plums were a type of candy made from sugar-coated nuts or seeds that were roughly the size of plums. They had wire stems for hanging, and often had caraway at the center because caraway was thought to have breath-freshening properties. Other spices, like anise, were also popular. Traditional sugar plums had a hardened candy shell.

I've developed a Sugar Plum recipe that is more like a no-bake cookie, but is filled with healthy dried fruits and nuts and it has received rave reviews from family and friends. I think this one makes a great year round snack for kids and adults. These Sugar Plums are decidedly not candy, but they sure disappeared like candy!

Feel free to vary the recipe with different types of dried fruits and nuts.

Sugar Plums

Makes about 2 dozen
1 cup finely chopped walnuts

1/3 cup finely chopped almonds

1 cup finely chopped dates

1/3 cup finely chopped dried apricots

1/3 cup finely chopped figs

½ teaspoon cinnamon

Pinch of cloves

1 teaspoon orange zest

3 Tablespoons honey

Powdered sugar, as needed

Kids should be sure to have a grown up present when making this recipe.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Spread walnuts out on a sheet pan and bake, turning, frequently, until lightly toasted—be careful not to burn these. If they burn they'll be bitter. Remove the walnuts from the oven and allow them to cool before finely chopping them. You can use a food processor, but be careful not to go too far or you'll make nut butter! Place chopped walnuts in a mixing bowl.

Finely chop the almonds and add to the bowl with the walnuts.

Finely chop the dates, apricots, and figs and mix them in with the nuts, making sure the nuts and dried fruit are evenly distributed.

Add the cinnamon, cloves, and orange zest and mix well to combine.

Add the honey and mix well again.

Roll the mixture into 1-inch balls and set them, in a single layer, on a plate. After you have finished rolling all the sugarplums dust them lightly with powdered sugar and transfer to a pretty plate or serving platter.

Cheetah Cubs Update

2009-12-24T09:00:00.000-08:00

Hello Sifaka World,

As many of you may know, CCF has had the recent addition of four orphaned cheetahs: Polly, Tony, Mischief, and Phil. Thanks to Sifaka Members just like you, these cubs were able to be rescued and are growing up to be some very amazing cheetahs!

Right now, these four youngsters are getting very big, and are keeping us very busy! To keep up with how large they’re growing, we have just made their yard a lot bigger. It has been very interesting to spy on these cubs as they explore all the new parts of their world. We recently put a big dead tree in their yard, and they enjoy climbing all over it. Trees like this one are very important to cheetahs. In the wild, cheetahs would use this kind of tree to “talk” to other cheetahs by leaving behind their individual scents and smells. The four cubs are particularly fond of a big mound in the center of their new yard, as it allows them to watch things going on all around them. They also like a shady patch of grass in one corner, and they often sleep the heat of the day away by all pilling on top of each other in one big pile.

It is always funny to watch these four cubs, as they all have such different personalities.

Tony

Tony has always been a very big and bold boy. He is extremely outgoing and curious, and so he is very happy when he gets to explore his new yard. When we bring people in to see the cubs, Tony is always the first cub to come say hello. He has a very broad forehead and large eyes that make him look very friendly. He also has very good posture, which makes him look as if he were royalty when he sits on the hill and looks all around. When we play with Tony, he often likes to brush up against the person who is playing with him. He might even like getting stroked more than he likes chasing his toy!

Mischief

Mischief is nothing but trouble! He is definitely living up to his name, and you can tell just by looking at his facial expressions that he is up to no good. We are always trying to outsmart Mischief, because he is constantly being naughty. He might be the smallest of the three brothers, but Mischief is determined to prove just how strong and mighty he is to his brothers.

Polly

Polly is a beautiful little girl (on the right) who is still very nervous about people. It seems like she is always wondering who you are and what you want, no matter how many times you feed her or try to play with her. Polly is happy to watch her brothers play with their toys, but will usually stick to herself and lie in the shade of a nice acacia tree.

Phil
Phil (on the left) is a tall, dark, and handsome cheetah. He looks most similar to his sister, but has a very distinctive black speckle in his right eye. Phil is also Polly’s favorite brother, and the two often cuddle together while they sleep away the hot afternoon. Phil is rather cautious around strangers, but is also very curious. He will come and say hello to you, but only if his other brothers are with him. When it comes to playing with the toy, Phil is an absolute star! It is amazing to watch Phil sprint around the yard after his toy – zigging this way and zagging that way in the most graceful way. One thing is for sure, and that is that Phil is a true sprinter!

Christmas Snort

2009-12-22T16:42:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I’ve been working on my grocery list for the big holiday meal (in our house it’s Christmas, but we have friends who celebrate all different ways) and it’s got me wondering what kinds of things are part of your traditional holiday menus. Every family has something they look forward to having every year—something they wouldn’t throw together for any old meal.

Some of my family’s traditional holiday foods are really healthy, like our Cranberry Relish (recipe below), and others are…well…not quite so healthy, like our annual Christmas Snort.

That’s a strange name for a holiday dish, isn’t it? Well it got that name in a funny sort of way, in part because although it is delicious, it’s not particularly healthy. It all happened because in an email to someone, I wrote the name of the dish and a quick description and then “*snort*” next to it so the person I was writing to would know that I knew how unhealthy it was. Instead, she thought the name of our annual Christmas Sausage Bread was Snort! My kids and I thought that was so funny we decided to officially change the name to Snort, and every time someone says “Christmas Snort” it makes us all laugh. The sausage bread isn’t so healthy, but laughing sure is!

Here’s something quick, easy, and super healthy for your holiday table, and it is MUCH better than the jellied cranberry sauce we’re all used to having from the can.

Crazy Cranberry Relish

The flavors in this dish are bright, clean, and extremely fresh. Kids tend to like this relish over a chutney, for example, because there are no added spices and it’s not cooked—all the wonderful flavors of each fruit remain intact. It’s also quite colorful, which is appealing on a plate full of otherwise brownish foods.

1 granny smith apple, cored

½ a fresh pineapple (or 1 can of pineapple)

1 navel orange, peeled

1 bag of fresh cranberries, washed and picked over

1.Get a grown up to help you with this recipe.

2. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade, combine the apple (leaving the skin on is fine), pineapple, and orange. Process until it looks like apple sauce. Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl and set aside.

3. Pour all of the cranberries into the food processor and pulse until the cranberries are finely chopped, but aren’t mushy.

4. Combine the cranberries with the apple/pineapple/orange mixture and mix with a wooden spoon until well combined. Refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Serve cold.

*Note: If the relish is too tart you can add some pineapple or orange juice or a small amount of sugar, but I prefer it without added sugar.

So what are some of your family's favorite holiday foods? Go ahead and leave a comment below and if you want to send me a recipe I might even publish it here!

New Cheetah Cubs

2009-12-17T19:02:00.000-08:00

Hey Sifaka World, I want to share this amazing story with you about how your Sifaka World memberships saved real animals. Here is what happened.

A farmer called us. He said a female cheetah got caught in his farm fence. The farmer tried to save her but sadly, she died. One of the farmer's assistants saw cheetah cubs run away into the tall grass, and so we knew that there were orphaned cheetah cubs. The good news is that we went to the farm and saved all four of the cubs! Three of the cubs are boys and one is a girl. We named them Mischief, Tony, Phil, and Polly.

The cubs were scared because they had never been around people, and so they hissed and spit and snarled at us. Their fur was covered with little spiky thistles, called burrs. Poor little things! One of the cubs needed stitches, but other than that they were in good health.

The cubs were about three months old. They were a little bigger than a house cat. They each weighed about 11 pounds. We gave each cub what is called a transponder microchip so that we can tell them apart.

We have a great team of people here in Africa who know how to rescue cheetahs and make sure they stay healthy. Don't forget that if you have a Sifaka World membership you are helping to save REAL cheetahs!

Scones to Sugarplums!

2009-12-12T19:43:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, and welcome to the Sifaka World Blog!

I'm your culinary host and over the next couple of weeks I'm going to be posting a series of recipes that will bring some serious holiday yum to your tables. Each recipe is kid-friendly and will be completely from scratch. I know what you're thinking! "Wha? Kid-friendly? From scratch?! But, but..this crazy rabbit chef can't be serious!"Oh, I'm serious alright. Cooking is easy, really. Anyone can do it. Craig Claiborne, one of America's greatest chefs, said, "Cooking is at once child's play and adult joy. And cooking done with care is an act of love." I've always loved that quote. Mostly because it's entirely true.

Before we start, you should know that all of my recipes have been tested and approved by kids. Even the ones you might think are weird. Some recipes are guaranteed crowd pleasers. Others are what I like to call challenge foods, but all of them have been given the seal of approval by a large group of kids.

To make mixing and handling easier for small hands, I've scaled the recipes to one or two servings.

For kids, as with all my recipes, the first ingredient is a grown up to help with anything hot, sharp, or just plain too difficult. So make sure you have an adult with you before you start cooking.

Cranberry Orange Walnut Scones

Today's recipe is a favorite of all the kids who have taken my real world classes over the past couple of years. My little friend Sarah makes them at home with her mom all the time! Maybe, if we're lucky, she'll pop in here and leave a comment--perhaps a cooking tip or an idea for a recipe variation?

Ingredients

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

3 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon orange zest

1 /4 cup nonfat buttermilk

2 Tablespoons chopped, dried cranberries

2 Tablespoons chopped walnuts

How It's Made
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. In a medium-sized bowl combine the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Use a whisk to lightly blend.

3. Add the butter and orange zest, and using your fingertips only*, blend the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse corn meal.

4. Add the buttermilk and mix using a fork until the dough forms a shaggy mass.

5. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface. Add the cranberries and walnuts and gently knead the dough until the berries and walnuts are incorporated (the less time you spend doing this the better because the more you handle dough the tougher it gets).

6. Flatten dough with your hands until it is about 3/4-inch thick and cut into desired shapes. (I like triangles or squares because there's no re-kneading involved, which results in a more tender dough than circles or other shapes that leave lots of scraps.)

7. Place scones on an ungreased baking sheet and bake until the tops are golden brown.

*The reason for using only your fingertips while cutting the butter into the dry ingredients is that we want to keep the butter from melting and your fingertips are the coldest parts of your hand. If you use the palms of your hands you're likely to end up with a dough ball when what you really want (before adding the liquid ingredients) is a bowl full of crumbly crumbs.

Welcome!

2009-12-09T15:46:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone and welcome to the Sifaka World blog! I'm Kintana, Sifaka World's lemur host and I'm so excited about the new blog because now I'll be able to pop in and give you regular updates about what's happening in Sifaka World.

Some of you may have visited the Sifaka World Blog before and learned about the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) through posts by Leigh Whelpton who works at the CCF and has been keeping us all updated about the baby cheetahs and some of the other wildlife around her in Africa. If you haven't had the chance to read her posts don't worry! I'll be re-posting them and Leigh will continue to add regular updates.

I'm also happy to tell you that we're welcoming a new friend to the blog.

Chef Lisa Holmes, is both a real person and a Sifaka World character. In the real world, she is a professional chef who has been teaching children and families about cooking for several years now. Chef Holmes is also a writer who co-authored an award-winning book (Lunch Lessons, Harper Collins, 2005) about how we can get better lunches in public schools. It was her work on Lunch Lessons that led her to open The Children’s Culinary Academy in Falmouth, Massachusetts, where she created fun, unique, and exciting cooking classes for children of all ages. Click here to view her old blog and see her mini chefs at work. Chef Holmes will be posting recipes, cooking tips, and lots of fun cooking facts and information on a weekly basis. Feel free to leave questions for her in the comments section. She may even have a question or two for you in the near future. Look for some special holiday recipes in the next couple of weeks.

Chef Holmes’ Sifaka World character is a warm, fun-loving, Arctic Hare who is full of energy and has two children of her own. She and her long-eared sidekicks will be handing out holiday goodies somewhere in Sifaka World (up to you to find her!) near the end of December. After December she will be hosting cooking games and activities in her home in North America.

So that's it for now! Be sure to add us to your RSS feeds so you can stay in the loop. You can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Look at the bottom of the sidebar on the right for those links.

As the blog grows we’ll be adding more bloggers so stay tuned!