Sea Lions and Bears

Last day of Zoo photos! This bear was too precious as he was eating his breakfast & sticking his head into the bucket. I think it was empty by the time I arrived, but that didn't stop him from checking it about 10 times.

I'm not sure how he got center-stage, but his friend was huddled down in the back of the enclosure enjoying his breakfast too.

There is a very substantial moat and some railing & wire separating these bears from the public. Don't do this though!

Although this guy had the sweetest face, he had some killer claws!

On my way out, I caught the sea lions at the very end of their public performance. Who doesn't love a sweet face like this?

It was neat to watch the two "honk" at each other.

The one and only trick that I caught them do before the show was over! :(


Last few things- I captured some short video of these guys eating breakfast. They were SO LOUD! I could hear them yelling/hooting/hollering for about 30 minutes before they were released. It's fascinating to watch another animal have such human-like motions.

I honestly have no idea what type of primates these guys were, but I was shocked at how much longer their arms were in proportion to their body. It was hard to photograph them because of the wire cage, but I think you can see his crazy long arms in this video.


GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: I'm done blogging about my animal adventures at the Zoo, but I might come back with some more fun stuff when we visit Animal Kingdom this morning at Disney.

Chimps

This chimp was probably my favorite animal of my whole morning. I had to hang out and wait a while for her to make an appearance, but it was totally worth it.

The zookeeper was putting out her breakfast, so we knew she'd be on the scene soon. All of her food was initially set on this black blanket, but the first thing she did was grab it and toss all of her food on the ground.

She'd eat a bite of food & then go for a quick loop around her playground. Swinging from the ropes and playing with her blankie.

Among the greenery she was getting for breakfast, she also received some orange Popsicles. It was adorable to watch her eat, even with no hands!
Then off to play again....


Back for another bite...
I'm really fascinated by the primates and how similar, yet different, they are from us with their fingers and facial expressions.

She was all over her "fortress" and set her food in a specific place, but always took her blanket with her to go play.

This totally makes me want to read more about Jane Goodall.

This was her adopted mother, who raised her. She was sitting over in a corner of the enclosure enjoying her own breakfast.

She was even being a bit silly with her sunflower-orange breakfast popsicle.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Off to Disney this morning!

Lions

One of the star attractions at the Houston Zoo is the lions, especially the male lion Jonathon.

I was obviously there too early, but the sign said that he likes to roar a lot and is very entertaining for the crowds.

While I was watching, the female lion was much more active. She was walking around & checking things out. She must have just finished breakfast and was licking her chops.

I thought it was cute that they both settled down for a nap where they could see each other.


I was also fascinated by the details of these guys. The glass was nice & clear, and allowed me some great close up shots. I love all the different types of fur he had in his manly mane.

Plus, their paws were ENORMOUS! I wouldn't want to be on the wrong end of those paws (& claws!) of he were angry.
Her paws looked so soft & sweet as she slept.
Then it was time for a little roll-and-stretch.....


Then she gave me the evil eye! I must have been disrupting her yoga moves.
When I trotted back by a few minutes later, she had moved over to a nice rock in the sun.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Yet another 4 day work-week, gotta love it!

A Tiger & a Jaguar

One of the problems of being at the zoo & trying to take some nice photos of the animals are the protective barriers between you and some very wild animals. In the jaguar exhibit, there was some very old, foggy, and reflective glass (or plastic?) between us.


The poor jaguar had been in a fight with another jaguar and lost one of her (his?) paws. It was so pitiful limping around it's cage, but the signs still warned that it could jump many feet if it wanted to.
The tiger on the other hand, was sitting like a king in the castle. Nice sunny day, probably just had breakfast, time for a little swim later, soft green grass.

The tiger just sat there, nearly motionless, sticking his tongue out and occasionally turning his head. I'm guessing that maybe he's not a morning person.

He was absolutely gorgeous though. I thought I'd remembered more tigers in the past, but this one in particular was just fascinating to stare at in all his majestic stripes.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: I'm working on a Miami trip to see my best friend for Easter!

Baby Elephant

My next stop at the zoo was at the elephant enclosure. This was a bit more difficult by all the cabling and barriers that are put up between visitors and these giants. I had to wait for them to come out & their first stop was to have their mouth checked out by the zoo keeper.
Then it was on to breakfast! The zoo keepers had laid lots of fresh veggies & hay out for them to munch on.



It was pretty cool watching them use their trunks to grab things & then stick it in their mouth.

I don't think I ever knew that elephants had freckles.

I also loved using my zoom lens to capture all their hair- on their head, in their ears, their whiskers and more.

The baby was very cute- I think he was born last year.


He was happily eating his breakfast as he went from pile to pile around the enclosure.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Off to see Rascal Flatts at the rodeo tonight.

Long Neck Giraffes

One of my first stops last weekend at the Zoo was the giraffe "enclosure." Now, I'm really torn about zoos in general, but I've come to accept that they are a necessary evil in our society. They are great for learning and teaching children (and adults from the city) to appreciate all these magnificent animals, but I feel guilty about confining many animals to small areas who normally roam hundreds of miles.
There are quite a few giraffes at the Houston Zoo & they are very captivating. Something to neat about their unusual bodies, the intricate patterns they sport, their curious nubs that are akin to horns and their funny hair-style on their manes.

I caught one guy peeking over the fence into the landscaping attempting to get some extra breakfast.


Who knew their tongues were black?
I even liked the fact that this guys had some extra layers on him & had a few fat rolls!

How can you say no to a face like this?

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: We'll see how these jumbo photos go over. You might not be able to see their full width if you are viewing from my blog home page, but if you are reading them on a feed reader, they should be noticeably bigger. I'll see how it turns out and make adjustments accordingly.

Gorgeous Trees

Last weekend, I visited the Houston Zoo. I can't remember the last time I had been, but they were hosting a special early-bird open house for photography nuts.

I took lots of photos of animals and enjoyed a few hours in the peaceful downtown oasis before all the screaming kids showed up. My favorite part of the zoo is these gorgeous trees. I assume they are some type of oak.

They are just so tall and majestic. I can't imagine how old they must be and how many hurricanes they must have survived.

Some of them have limbs that just stretch out for nearly 20' (by my best guess ;)!

In my imagination, when I think about my dream home, it is surrounded by gorgeous trees like this- with history and personality.

Looking at this photo, it almost seems like it should be a portrait instead of a landscape. Although those look like tree trunks, they are all branches from the main trunk.

They have a beautiful reflection pool in the entrance, of course surrounded by trees. I've seen some gorgeous weddings and galas held around the pond.

I think every kid should be surrounded by trees growing up, and be able to enjoy all the adventures the imagination has to offer climbing through the branches.

It will be Zoo week this week on the blog & I'm going to try out some of the larger photos sizes.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Zoe is still having lots of skin problems, so we're off to see a holistic vet tomorrow. Hopefully we'll get some better advice.