FRESNO, Calif. – A few dozen Texans displaced by Hurricane Ike have found new homes in Fresno Chaffee Zoo in California.

About three dozen amphibians – mostly frogs and toads – and three exotic pigeons are in quarantine in the zoo’s veterinary clinic awaiting placement next month in the zoo.

They arrived a little over a week ago.

Among the new zoo residents are three Nicobar pigeons, species of dart-poison frogs and toad species.

The zoo will receive 15 amphibian species, including 10 amphibian species the zoo does not now keep.

Hurricane Ike flooded the Moody Gardens Zoo in Galveston. Most of the serious damage was done in the zoo’s Rainforest Pyramid.

The storm was a Category 2, which brings winds of 96 to 110 mph. But the storm surge was similar to that from a Category 4 storm – between 13 and 18 feet – and brought far more flooding than expected, said Jerri Hamachek, marketing and public relations coordinator for Moody Gardens.

Along with the flooding came saltwater from the Gulf of Mexico mixed with water tainted with oil and fuel from a nearby airport.

The toxic, liquid soup poisoned the freshwater fish pool in the rainforest, killing about 4,150 fish, she said.

Hamachek said the zoo transported about 870 animals around Texas and Louisiana, and as far away as the Cincinnati area and Fresno. The rainforest exhibit could be closed for between three and nine months.

“We are saddened by the loss of our animals in the rainforest,” she said. “We are just really appreciative of the folks at other facilities who have helped us out.”

The three Nicobar pigeons will most likely remain in Fresno permanently, said Andy Snider, director of animal care and conservation and Fresno Chaffee Zoo.

“I offered our services if they needed a place to house some animals that I knew they were going to need to place,” Snider said. “We have the space, time and expertise.”

He said the zoo was already in the process of acquiring Nicobar pigeons from the Galveston zoo when he received the request for help.

Snider said the colorful pigeons would have come to the Fresno zoo within the next couple of months.

Fresno Chaffee Zoo has two Nicobar pigeons now.

The stay for the frogs and toads may be more than temporary, too, Snider said.

“A lot of the frogs will end up staying here permanently,” he said. “But if they needed anything back, we could return what they need.”