ZooTampa prepares animals for cold snap with heat lamps and warm shelters

TAMPA - Even though animals at ZooTampa are adaptable to nature, zookeepers spent time Thursday afternoon offering them additional warming opportunities, including heat lamps, in preparation for cold temperatures overnight. 

What they're saying:

"Most of the species at the zoo here were selected because they thrive in warm weather temperatures just like all of us who have chosen to live in Florida!" Kelly Trotto, curator of behavioral husbandry at ZooTampa, said. "Even our penguins, most people don't know, are African penguins so they even are not normally found in super chilly temperatures."

Zookeepers placed hay in the aviary to help birds, such as roseate spoonbills, ducks, and silts, bed down or sleep. 

"That's going to be easier for them to retain heat once they roost up at night," Trotto said of the hay. 

Animals will also have access to heated night houses. 

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: What really is Florida cold? We asked people in Tampa

What you can do:

Experts suggest residents cover their tropical plants ahead of the cold temperatures. 

It’s also a good idea to water your plants, making sure to hydrate the soil itself, so your foliage can better handle the cold snap. 

READ: Bradenton medical complex shooting leaves woman dead, another hospitalized: Police

"If the soil is very dry, the roots are just looking for warmth," Julie Lohoefener, owner of Bloom Garden Shop in Tampa, told FOX 13. "They tend to want to go to the top, causing all the foliage to go down. That's how you get sad looking plants."

Wet soil is able to absorb more heat during the day and radiate it during the night, according to the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.