As I mentioned in yesterday's blog, I spent Friday afternoon at the Denver Zoo, taking photographs of animal willing to pose for me. I always seem to have good luck with the monkeys, who are very intelligent and seem to have such thoughtful expressions whenever I take their photographs. These creatures, so similar to humans, seem to understand that they are incarcerated, and don't know why, such as the mandrill seen in the photograph on the left. This mandrill is in one compound by itself, and three others are in the compound right next door. Is this because this mandrill does not play well with others?
The biggest of the mandrills was kind enough to pose for me in the photograph on the right. This particular animal was very elusive for many years, but since being moved to a new compound seems much more willing to interact with zoo visitors. Granted, he does not look happy, but as I mentioned before, he is intelligent and knows he is facing a life prison sentence, and so what is there to be happy about? Should these creatures be kept in zoos, to preserve the species and allow people to see them who would not be able to otherwise, or should they be left in the wild and allowed to go extinct? Better minds than mine need to answer that question.
The monkey in the photograph on the left should be the happiest monkey at the Denver Zoo (although he or she doesn't look it). It is able to go from island to island in it's water surrounded compound, using ropes to go from place to place and generally putting on a show for zoo visitors. Friday afternoon was a pretty warm day here in Denver - it reached 60 degrees and the sun was out all day, and so this particular monkey was pretty comfortable. However, I have been at the zoo when it was pretty damn cold out, and have seen this same monkey huddling with it's arms folded, sitting next to the door to the inside compound, waiting to be let inside. A cold snap is coming, so enjoy the warmth while you can, happy monkey.
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