Late Winter At The Zoo

It was sunny and 65 degrees yesterday afternoon, and so I decided to head to the Denver Zoo to take a few photographs. The four bachelor lions were in the small compound at the back of Predator Ridge, where I took the photo on the left. That lion was looking me straight in the eye, but seemed to be licking its lips, which was a bit disconcerting. I hope they are still feeding these creatures. I know it costs a lot, but when the lions start drooling over zoo visitors, one has to wonder. After all, they have signs up all over the zoo stating that it takes 34 million dollars a year, or some such figure, to feed these animals. Which, lets face it, is a lot.

The tiger in the photograph on the right was pacing back and forth in its compound when I first arrived, but after coming back from checking out the other tiger next door, it was up on the catwalk surveying the zoo grounds, as seen in the photo on the right. The zoo recently welcomed Viktor, a 12-year-old Amur tiger from a zoo in North Dakota, after his incessant whining about the cold up there, and zoo officials hope it will mate with Nikita, a 13-year old female Amur tiger, producing cubs to help the species survive, and also bring crowds, and big bucks, to the zoo, hopefully earning enough to feed that damn lion and keep it from dreaming of having zoo visitors for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And no, I do not know if the lion in the photograph is Viktor or Nikita. Back when I was growing up in the South Side Brainerd of Chicago, we seldom saw tigers running around, and if we did, checking to see if it was male or female was often a very dangerous thing to do.

The monkey in the photograph on the left did not seem too dangerous, but did not look too friendly, either. Many of these creatures, serving life sentences without having committed a crime, seem to blame zoo visitors for their incarceration. I myself would be more than happy to see all these animals roam the length and breath of the zoo grounds at will. It could be one giant petting zoo. Of course, species that would tend to eat one other would have to be released on alternate days. And, of course, everyone would have to sign a waiver to not hold the zoo responsible if they themselves happened to be eaten. But that would be a small price to pay for a once in a lifetime experience. More cautious visitors could be driven around in golf carts, but then, of course, they would not experience the true wildlife experience. Face it - I really should be in charge of the Denver Zoo, right? I will send my resume to them today.