Dan Corum:
Dr. Doo could write theses on feces

Paula Bock

Dan Corum - a.k.a. Dr. Doo, Prince of Poo, Master of Microbes, the GM of BM, Worm Whisperer, Duke of Dung, No.1 of No. 2, Pharaoh of Feces, Shaka of Caca, Turd World Leader and Emperor of Excreta - shares fecal facts about Zoo Doo at Woodland Park Zoo, where he’s compost and recycling coordinator:

Amount of raw materials composted annually: About 600 tons (about as heavy as 50 school buses), 20 percent herbivore manure and 80 percent bedding

Zoo Doo contains: The poop of Asian elephants, chickens, Chinese goral, Dexter steers, reticulated giraffes (finger-tip-size poop), pigs, goats (Nigerian dwarf), Grant’s gazelle, hippos, Japanese serow, kea (bird), kookaburra (bird), lowland anoa (mini wild water buffalo), Malayan tapir, mountain goat, miniature donkey, miniature horse, oryx, red-flanked duiker (antelope), zebra, pudu (world’s smallest deer), rabbits, Roosevelt elk, sheep, Sichuan takin, springbok takin, tree kangaroo, tufted deer

Compost-pile critters include: Microbes, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes, arthropods, mites, springtails, spiders, centipedes, millipedes, red worms

Amount saved annually in hauling and disposal fees: $50,000 to $60,000

Revenue generated by sales of Zoo Doo and related products: About $15,000 a year

No. of species of bacteria in a teaspoon of Zoo Doo: 10,000 to 1 million

No. of bacteria in a teaspoon of Zoo Doo: 1 million to 1 billion

No. of Woodland Park visitors: 1 million a year

Average temperature of Zoo Doo during active composting: 150 degrees

Average daily weight of elephant poop: 200 pounds

Average daily weight of human poop: 2.5 pounds

Year the zoo began producing Zoo Doo: 1985

Dr. Doo’s motto: “Made Fresh Daily . . . Remember, it’s not just compost. It’s a movement.”

Dr. Doo’s philosophy: It’s the cycle of life. You put it in the garden and when you enjoy that beautiful tomato at the end of summer you think, wow, I’m connected to the jungle. Those nutrients have passed through an elephant, a zebra, a hippo. It’s a way for us to think about how we’re all so inter-related on this planet. With the kids, I get a chance to teach and make poop jokes. With the adults, it’s really a pop mortality play. Sooner or later, we’re all going to die; our bodies are going to become compost. It keeps me really humble.

Poop hotline: 206-625-7667; www.zoo.org.

Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company