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ne of the most important bird rookeries in the Midwest “We’re thrilled to be able to collaborate and work on such
is located at Baker’s Lake Nature Preserve in Northwestern an intimate level with the folks at the zoo,” said Anchor. “They
O Cook County. Each spring, hundreds of large wading have a magnificent team of veterinary professionals who assist us.”
birds—great egrets, great blue herons, and double-crested The collaboration also benefits Brookfield Zoo. “Since small
cormorants—arrive here to breed and raise their young on mammals and birds can move across the landscape, even in the
an island in the lake. zoo, it is important to know what is present in the surrounding
Last July, Dr. Tom Meehan, vice president of Veterinary habitat,” said Meehan. The Forest Preserves has been valuable as
Services at Brookfield Zoo, climbed into a boat with Chris a natural laboratory for scientists—including CZS scientists—and
Anchor, a wildlife biologist with the Forest Preserves of Cook as a training ground for zoo professionals. Working in the field
County (FPCC) and his staff. Accompanied by clinical veterinari- with Anchor gives students and veterinarians-in-training opportu-
an Dr. Katie Delk, veterinary resident Dr. Michael McEntire, nities for hands-on experience in capturing and handling animals
and two veterinary students, they motored out to the island. and performing field research.
While the parents hovered nearby, each fledgling was carefully
lifted from its nest and banded so it can later be identified by Animals as Sentinels
researchers. The veterinarians performed a quick health
assessment of the bird, including a blood draw, before putting “The adaptation of wildlife to live in closer proximity to humans
it back into its nest. make them critically important sentinels for disease agents moving
Baker’s Lake is just one of many places in Cook County across our shared landscape,” said Meehan. “They rarely pose
where CZS veterinarians have assisted Anchor and his a direct threat, but they help us understand diseases we may get
team. Anchor works for the FPCC from ticks, like Lyme disease; from
Resource Management Department. mosquitoes, like West Nile virus; or
He and his team monitor and from viruses that might develop the
collect data on wildlife populations ability to spread from human to
on Forest Preserves land. human, like SARS or COVID.”
“We actively collaborate in The animals are also sentinels for
their monitoring of deer, coyote, the health and condition of the envi-
otter, turtle, fish, and bird popula- ronment. Anchor has found heavy
tions,” said Meehan. “This includes metals in blood taken from birds at
drawing blood and other samples Baker’s Lake, for example. The birds
from animals being studied and are apex-level predators that eat fish
assisting with the placement of radio and fish can accumulate toxins or
transmitters so that individuals heavy metals from their environment,
and populations can be tracked he said. “We’re using the animals
by wildlife biologists.” as biomarkers.”
The samples taken from animals are delivered to labs Devices that transmit data, such as radio transmitters, are basic
and analyzed for infectious diseases and environmental tools of wildlife biology that enable scientists to collect information
toxins, including pesticides and heavy metals. The scientists on the behavior and survival strategies of free-ranging animals.
in these labs include some of the zoo world’s top disease Information can include where animals spend their time, how they
detectives. They work with the University of Illinois Zoological use their habitat, where and how far they travel, and where they
Pathology Program, which Meehan helped to establish, and might congregate with other animals.
with the Wildlife Epidemiology Lab, a research, training, For decades, Anchor has been working with The Ohio State
and education lab within the University of Illinois’ College University, Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation, and the Cook
of Veterinary Medicine. County Department of Animal and Rabies Control in researching
coyotes that live in the Forest Preserves and urban areas of

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