Tuesday, June 23, 2020

CoViD-19 Spiking in County and State | San Diego Zoo Announces Amur Leopard Cubs | Mandatory Face Covering Policy (Again)

Amur Cubs born April 26, 2020. Photo taken 6.21.2020

Today we had to do some shopping and restock our shelves. We were going to Big Lots in La Mesa, so we stopped by Extraordinary Banana Pudding. I don't remember all the prices but their 8oz packages are $8 and we opted for banana, cheesecake, and chocolate. This is a black owned business and they have $2 off during "happy hour" from 4-6pm. We made it to Big Lots and it seems like maybe the supply chain is faltering because a lot of shelves were empty, but they had a ton of toilet paper and sell a box of 50 masks for $20 (same as Costco) if you're looking for the disposable kind. We also hit Grocery Outlet in Allied Gardens and left with a very full cart of all of our favorites. I spent the night listening to today's press conferences and the news is pretty grim but the county is pretty adamant that they won't be closing anything that has already reopened. And commenters continue to be fucking imbeciles. So yeah, super fun Monday. We'll most likely be locking down this week. News, articles, and a Zoo press release are after the jump. 


  • California Governor Newsom Media Briefing:
    • Hospital & ICU capacity has gone up but so have hospitalizations and ICU use. 
    • Cases are rising fast in California, specifically 11 counties including Riverside, San Bernardino, Stanislaus, Imperial Valley and more
    • Testing is at an all time high and so are positive cases (92k/day)
    • Testing positivity was steady for weeks but is now going up 
    • Wear a face covering and physically distance. Stop being an asshole. 
    • Stay home if you can
    • State can still toggle back when necessary, but will do so on a county basis if necessary 
    • All stats are in the aggregate but we don't live in the aggregate
    • Is the state normalizing illness and death for the sake of economy? At a certain point, the inability to work, the inability to get healthcare, the inability to provide for a family is also dangerous for health, so we have to weigh those factors. 
    • People should report businesses not following the guidelines for their industries.
    • Industry guidelines are being updated to include mask mandate.
  • COVID-19:
    • WHO reports largest single-day increase in new coronavirus cases - USA Today (6.22.2020)
      On Sunday, the World Health Organization reported 183,000 new coronavirus cases in 24 hours worldwide—the largest single-day increase thus far. The tally was led by Brazil and the US, with North and South America accounting for more than two-thirds of the 4,743 deaths that day.
    • Young people in the US South and West are increasingly getting coronavirus - CNN (6.22.2020)
      A spike in young people testing positive for coronavirus has experts worried—not necessarily because of the impacts on young people, but because of what's to come. "They get infected first, then they come home, and then they infect the older people. The older people get the complications, and then they go to the hospitals," says Dr. Anthony Fauci. "The death rate always lags several weeks behind the infection rate."
  • County of San Diego Media Briefing
    • COVID-19 Outbreaks, Cases Increase; 14-day Rolling Percentage Remains Low
    • 3 New Community Outbreaks, bringing total to 10 in the past 7 days (3 will drop off on Tuesday if no new outbreaks are reported)
    • Second day of more than 300 new cases (7% positive. Average was 3%)
    • County will not move forward, even if new state guidances are released
    • 3 new outbreaks: all in business settings - construction, retail manufacturing, retail. All but 2 were fewer than 10 cases per outbreak. 
    • Still to open but paused: events with large gatherings 
    • Tuesday County Board of Supervisors Meeting at 9am
  • From Councilmember Chris Ward's email:
    • As of Friday, June 19th, the following have reopened:
      • East and West Mission Bay Parks open to all park and water uses
      • All Mission Bay Park parking lots open at full capacity
      • Fiesta Island open to pedestrians, dogs and cyclists only
      • All piers and boardwalks open
      • Balboa Park’s central mesa open
      • All Balboa Park parking lots open at full capacity
    • Enforcement will remain as directed by the County Health Order:
      • All persons on the beach shall practice physical distancing other than members of the same household.
      • The public shall not congregate or participate in active sport activities on beaches.
      • Private gatherings of those not in your household, including house and backyard parties, are prohibited.
      • Bring a mask with you when going out in public, and wear it when within 6 feet of a person not from your household.
    • Masks or Face Coverings are mandatory statewide:
      • Inside of, or in line to enter, any indoor public space
      • Getting services at a doctor’s office, hospital, pharmacy, dental office, veterinary clinic or blood bank
      • Waiting for or riding on public transportation or while in a taxi, private car service, or ride-sharing vehicle
      • Interacting with any member of the public and walking through hallways, stairways or parking facilities
  • I went to the Zoo for Father's Day and got to see the pair of Amur Leopard cubs. Today, I got a press release announcing their arrival. Not to be crass, but back in January we were at the Zoo with Darren's nephew and I was filming the leopards because they were especially 'talkative' and then the male proceeded to mount the female and so I think I may have on video, the very day these cubs were conceived (they have a 91-95 gestation period). Anyway, here's the whole press release:

    Pair of Endangered Amur Leopard Cubs Born at the San Diego Zoo
    Fewer than 100 Are Believed to Still Survive in Their Historic Range
              Guests at the reopened San Diego Zoo are getting a first look at two endangered Amur leopard cubs, born April 26, 2020, as they explore their outdoor habitat with mom, Satka. The cubs’ birth is particularly significant for their species, as fewer than 100 Amur leopards are believed to exist in their historic range in Russia and China.
                After their birth, the cubs spent most of their time in an indoor habitat with Satka. They started to emerge from their den at 20 days old, and had their first visit to the outdoor habitat 10 days later. They are now venturing out to explore with their mother daily.
                Satka can be seen monitoring the habitat, demonstrating her natural instincts to watch out for any potential threats to her cubs. The cubs are already showing natural behaviors of stalking and climbing. Wildlife care specialists observed one of the cubs climbing about four feet up a tree, before Satka brought the cub back to the ground.
               “The cubs are climbing up on the rocks, they are getting into the trees, sometimes listening to mom and sometimes not,” said Kelly Murphy, senior wildlife care specialist, San Diego Zoo. “Their personalities are still developing, and I’m looking forward to see what they become.”
                The cubs, who do not have names yet, will get their first hands-on veterinary exam this week, which will also reveal the sex of each cub. This is Satka’s second set of cubs, and they are being raised in the leopard habitat in Africa Rocks. Although Amur leopards are not a leopard species found in Africa, Satka and male Amur leopard Oskar were moved to this habitat to provide them with a space of their own for breeding.
                Amur leopards are the rarest of the big cat species on the planet. This species was once found in northeastern China, Russia and the Korean peninsula, but those populations have been decimated, due to loss of habitat and poaching for their thick, spotted coats. It is estimated there may be as few as 85 currently living in their historic range in the Primorye region of the Russian Far East.
                San Diego Zoo Global and other zoological organizations around the world have joined together in efforts to conserve this species. More than 94 institutions, caring for over 220 leopards, take part in the Global Species Management Program (GSMP)—an international conservation effort in which scientists work to increase regional animal populations.
              Bringing species back from the brink of extinction is the goal of San Diego Zoo Global. As a leader in conservation, the work of San Diego Zoo Global includes on-site wildlife conservation efforts (representing both plants and animals) at the San Diego Zoo, San Diego Zoo Safari Park, and San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research, as well as international field programs on six continents. The work of these entities is made accessible to over 1 billion people annually, reaching 150 countries via social media, our websites and the San Diego Zoo Kids network, in children’s hospitals in 12 countries. The work of San Diego Zoo Global is made possible with support from our incredible donors committed to saving species from the brink of extinction.
 

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