Late April At The Zoo

I went to the Denver Zoo this past Friday afternoon to take a few photographs. It was a typical spring day here in Denver, and all of the animals were out and about. The baby mandrill, seen in the photograph on the left, was full of energy, as usual, jumping up on the fence, then leaping onto a tree, and then back on the ground again, running up to the display window and visiting with two little girls. It put it's hand on the glass, as did the little girls, too, bonding with what it evidently recognized as fellow children. One of the little girls turned and told me I should know that the baby mandrill was her best friend in the world.

The clouded leopard was out and about, too, starring intently at the door of its cage, no doubt waiting for the time it would be let inside for dinner. It did turn toward me for a couple of seconds, which is when I took the photograph on the right. This is a very shy creature, which usually hides in the back of it's compound, and so I was happy to see it finally out in the open for a change.

Friday was also evidently "flamingo's day out" at the zoo, and can be seen in the photograph on the left mingling with zoo visitors. One of the zoo employees was giving a talk about these creatures, although I was not really listening. I was just wondering once again why the zoo doesn't have a lion's day out at the zoo, too. I am happy to report that the lion pride that includes Tobias, his offspring Tatu and twins Oskar and Araali, and various female lions, were all outside Friday in one of the compounds. At first I didn't recognize either Tatu or the twins. They are no longer cuddly little creatures, but almost fully grown. All seem very mellow, however, and so I am sure it would be perfectly safe for zoo visitors to mix with them, too, just like with the flamingos.