But the torrential rains and flooding had prevented that. The weatherman said they had not seen this kind of flooding since Hurricane Wilma.
The zoo was closed for about a week before they could reopen it for business and since I woke up too late that day to make the one hour drive into Miami Beach for pickleball, we decided to make this our "zoo day". Unfortunately there were several school groups that were quite noisy and you can see what this guy thought of them by his appropriate hand gesture.
It really is laid out quite nicely and after a while we wished we had rented one of the safari surrey bicycles to get around on. But the walking was good for us and there were lots of benches and shade.
I won't bore you with all the photos of zoo animals seen that day, but I have to share my favorite one...of the African Wild Ass. Left Brain wondered why I kept moving him to one side as I looked for just the right angle...but now he'll understand.
The African painted dog was very beautiful. They hunt in packs of up to 60 and I don't think I'd want to see them out in the wild.
I can never resist the big cats...or little ones for that matter. This pair of lions reminded me of an old married couple with the wife yammering on and the old guy looking totally bored. Not that it's like that in our house...no sir.
I forget what these guys were, but they were so sweet, and with the prettiest feet I've ever seen.
As the day wore on I was beginning to envy the gorilla laying in the shade...it was looking like a good idea to me.
These are the Galapagos tortoises.
As we were exiting we spotted this big cat sleeping in what was appropriately called the Tiger Temple. He has the nicest digs in the zoo.
Sometimes visiting zoos bother me, but the open concept and large spaces provided here were very nice. The animals all appeared to be very healthy and well cared for. The best part of the zoo (to me) is the preservation of animals that are rare and in danger of extinction.
Long Live the Queen of the Zoo
I have very mixed feelings about zoos, too. People, as a whole, tend to ruin things for themselves,each other, and nature in general.
ReplyDeleteI like being around animals, and do like going to zoos to see and learn. I like the Milwaukee Zoo. And I liked San Diego, too. I got to see the baby Pandas in 2008. I would have loved to hold one.
I will not comment on LB being a wild a**, except to say, "Lucky You!" *wink*
At the rate man is devastating everything, the zoo's will be the only place we can see our exotic wildlife. Love the first pic ... have felt that way often myself, so it is good to know I am not alone in my feelings. I know you could have taken the shadows off of LB's pic ... would love to have seen his expression, Ha! It had to be good ... or at least maybe a picture of his expression when you showed him the finished product :) We have three big zoos near us and all of them are transitioning into the more natural settings, but the Chicago zoo's are limited space wise so it is not easy to do. It is a sad reality. We keep our rehab raptors in captivity to give them a chance at life, but I often wonder if that is fair and who is benefiting. They would all love to be free and maybe death in the wild is accepted and only man tries to interfere in the process. I don't have answers, but sure do think about it. Wonderful post Queen of Yammering wives (I speak of the lions because it is not like that in your house, right?)
ReplyDeleteAndrea @ From The Sol
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ReplyDeleteSounds like you'll be in another zoo later this week. Can't wait to see those pics. Tee hee.
ReplyDeleteI love your photos from the zoo. If you get a chance, you might want to spend a day at Disney's Wild Kingdom park. If you do, take the Safari ride. It's a truck ride through the open spaces where the wild life are. I guarantee you'll love it. Mary Ann, Gene and I spend a day in this park a few years ago, and we had an awesome time! You have a super day, hugs, Edna B.
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