So many zoos, so little time

As regular readers of this blog know, many (if not most) of my "Photos of the Day" come from my regular trips to local zoos, primarily the Bronx and Philadelphia parks. I haven't been back to any of them since I got my new camera, but this summer I've got a few trips planned to replace some of my lost photographs.

i-26c29907b2093254eecde71d182ac601-zeffsnarl.jpg


Zeff the Amur tiger, photographed in February 2007 at the Bronx Zoo.


  • Sometime after June 20th I'll be headed back to the WCS-run Bronx zoo, the park finally opening a new exhibit all about Madagascar. There will be lemurs and cave-dwelling crocs, but the creatures I most want to see are the fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox).

i-25ab0cd78b0e6adfe9a971cb5e807551-amurleopardlongview.jpg


An Amur leopard, photographed in September 2007 at the Philadelphia zoo.


  • In July I'll head back to the Philadelphia zoo. There isn't very much new there (except Gus, a new giraffe who I assume is a replacement for the recently-deceased Puzzles), but I definitely want to replace some of my lost photographs of the Amur leopard there.

i-565841ee18987d9e6b7a6f62753c0bf8-babygiantpanda1.jpeg


Tai Shan the Panda, photographed in April 2007.


  • I had never visited the National zoo in Washington, D.C. until I spend a day there las spring, but I enjoyed it so much that I've been thinking I need to go back for more than a year now. I'll probably head down there sometime in August, and if anyone is interested I wouldn't be adverse to holding a D.C. area meet-up for any readers in the area.

If I had my way I wouldn't have to only see these animals in zoos, but being that I don't have the opportunities or funds to go running around Africa and Asia zoos are the closest that I can get. Someday I hope to travel to Botswana and other places to see the animals in their natural habitat, but unless National Geographic calls me up and wants to send me on my way I won't be leaving North America anytime soon.

Tags

More like this

Female Snow Leopard twins born last year at the Bronx Zoo. When I initially started posting pictures on my blog, I didn't know if anyone would have anything to say about my pictures. I frequent zoos, museums, and aquariums, usually shooting between 200 and 600 shots per trip, the handful of good…
Saturday night, after returning from dinner with friends, I opened the door to my apartment and let my wife in. As I fumbled with the string of icicle lights that run around the room to provide a little illumination, she said "I'll turn on the computer.... the computer isn't here!" Before I could…
Petal, the female African elephant, photographed in September 2007. In September, 2007, my wife and I made one of our semi-annual trips to the Philadelphia Zoo, mostly to see the little Amur tiger cubs. While there I photographed this elephant, Petal, fiddling with a chain in the shade of her…

You need to come to the NC Zoo in Asheville and spend at least one entire day there - it is really cool, but you may not see everything every time as there is enough space for most animals to hide from view. You need to know something about the animal behavior in order to time your visit to the right enclosure at the right time so you can actually see the animals and watch them actually behave. You can also follow the news there on the Director's blog.

If for some reason or another, you actually find yourself flying down to Singapore, I can bring you down to the Singapore Zoo and the Night Safari. =)

Brian,

Have you been able to go back to the Bronx Zoo to see Madagascar! yet? If not, you should definitely make it over there, as the exhibit is very cool.

If you and your readers want a taste of the exhibit before heading over there, the New York Academy of Sciences recently did a Podcast with the director of the program there, Helen Crowley, which is very informative. She talks about the exhibit itself, Madagascar's wildlife, and what the Wildlife Conservation Society are doing globally to help. You can listen to that here.