Tag Archives: wildlife

Warthogs – Not the Flying Version

Leave a Reply

Given that this blog has a lot of aviation content, some people will get excited when they see the word Warthog.  Sorry guys, this is not an A-10 post.  I may have to put one together now though since I want to see some A-10s on here too.  This is a warthog of the animal variety instead.  There were a couple of warthogs we saw at Woodland Park Zoo.  Initially they were rummaging around under cover and not in a good spot for a photo.  However, a little patience paid off and soon they moved out into the open.  Then we got a good look at them and the chance to really see their faces.  They may not be everyone’s favorite but I find them a great looking creature and certainly something you want to treat with some respect!

Hippos are Sociopaths

Leave a Reply

A pair of hippos was hanging out in the water of their enclosure in Woodland Park Zoo.  One was facing away from us and was submerged for most of the time.  The other was facing us and was staring in our direction.  The shot I want of a hippo is the large yawn showing off the scary array of teeth that backs up their reputation as one of the most dangerous animals to man.  This guy wasn’t obliging.  They say that humans have a natural reaction to seeing a yawn from someone of yawning themselves.  The people that don’t do this have a higher probability of being sociopaths.  I thought I would try it with the hippo.  Either it knew I was faking it or hippos are sociopaths.  I wonder which it is.

Bears!!

Leave a Reply

Bears are cool and brown bears are even cooler.  We saw a couple of them at Woodland Park Zoo and, while it was the middle of the day, they were actually pretty active.  It didn’t hurt that some food was coming their way so I guess they were incentivized to be a little busy.  It was a warm and sunny day so the fact they had some water to work with probably suited them quite nicely.  Lots of zoo animals are somehow aware of where they can go to be as difficult to see as possible.  These guys were either unaware or just showoffs.

They wandered around the enclosure quite a bit and provided plenty of opportunities to see them.  Aside from the outdoor area, there was an indoor viewing space that was against the side of their pool.  From within there you could really get a good view of them chomping down on the food that had been thrown their way.  They seemed quite content to enjoy the nosh and pay no attention to the hordes staring at them through the glass.  Being so close to such a large creature was really very impressive.

Otters on Speed

Leave a Reply

Otters are known as being playful.  However, having watched a bunch of them at Woodland Park Zoo, I have to think that they are on some serious drugs.  The speed with which they flew around the enclosure, wrestled with each other, lay in the water getting blasted by the water jets and generally acted like hooligans, you would think this was a vast waste of precious energy for a creature in the wild.  I think they must metabolize something in their food to create something like cocaine or speed.  What other reason could there be?

Are Baby Reindeer Cute?

Leave a Reply

There is a school of thought that baby animals are a lot cuter than the fully-grown versions.  I guess cuteness is in the eye of the beholder so there may be some that find reindeer to be cute.  They are fine as far as I am concerned but probably not the cutest animal there is.  This herd had a number of babies (anyone know the name for a baby reindeer?) and some of them were more adventurous sniffing their way around the enclosure although the mother was never too far away.  They did look pretty sweet as the walked around the place, occasionally looking a little unsteady but generally showing that skill of instantly being mobile that humans clearly lack.

Tigers Being Tigers

Leave a Reply

There are four tigers at Cougar Mountain Zoo.  They are in two pairs and they move them between enclosures to give them some variety in their surroundings.  They were pretty active compared to tigers I have seen in other places.  They spent a lot of time checking out where they were.  Of course, being cats, they also enjoyed lying around for some of the time.  The staff also did a demonstration with them when they showed how they carry out physical examinations for the cats when necessary.

The tigers would come up to the fence and would stand up on their hind legs with their paws up on the fencing.  This allows the staff to CA them out from the safety of being behind the fence.  It is a good opportunity to realize just how big a tiger really is.  Those paws are something and, if you were in there with them, you can see how easily they would dispatch you!

The Alpha Wolf Even Looks Like He’s the Boss

Leave a Reply

The small pack of wolves at Cougar Mountain Zoo were quite something to watch.  They had a variety of territories in their enclosure and they moved between them frequently.  They did patrol the area near the visitors to keep tabs on what was going on.  There was a very distinct hierarchy in the pack.  The alpha male was very obvious.  A number of them seemed to be at a secondary level and one seemed to be the most passive in the group, often staying away from rest.  He didn’t seem to have any problems but did not get in the way of the others.

The alpha was a great looking wolf.  When compared to the others, there was even something about the face that made you know he was in charge.  He had a look that suggested he was constantly assessing things.  It is easy to project human emotions on to animals but something about this guy made you think that he didn’t have time for the fun stuff and he was always on guard.  He looked great.

Cougar Mountain Zoo

Leave a Reply

Cougar Mountain Zoo is a small zoo located on the east side of Lake Washington in an area named, wait for it, Cougar Mountain.  While it is not a big facility, it does have an interesting variety of creatures in nice habitats and we ended up spending a lot more time there than we thought would be the case.  I shall have a variety of creatures to share in some upcoming posts but, given the name of the location and the zoo, it would be churlish to start with any other than the cougars.

They have an enclosure that is one of the first things you come across when you enter.  However, they are not always terribly keen on showing off.  When we first got there, one of them was lying deep within a small cave and didn’t seem interested in coming out.  However, over time they did stretch their legs and come to check things out.  Two things really got their attention.  One was they knew some feeding was coming soon so they were alert for where the food would ultimately be coming from.  The other was some small children that ran around.  The cats were eying the kids intently.  I assume, if the fencing hadn’t been there, some tasty snacks would have been had by these guys.

Big cats do looks very cool I think.  When they are taking it easy, they still look like they are in control and when they get active, you do feel that they could take care of anything that comes their way.  The cougar has an intense looking face too.  More to come from this place in some upcoming posts.

Goslings En Masse

Leave a Reply

Spring is the season for new life.  The geese had obviously been taking the task to heart because, as we walked around Bloedel Reserve, there was a large gathering of goslings.  It appeared to be that several families were mingling together.  I guess strength comes in numbers.  The adults were all grazing around the periphery of the group while the multitude of goslings were munching away in the middle.

When we were in Seattle a week later, we came across more goslings.  A smaller group this time but the same thing with the adults keeping an eye on them.  A couple were getting a bit more adventurous and heading off on their own but they were soon brought back into line.  I wonder how many predators geese have.  I guess hawks will be happy to take them out but the numbers might explain why there are so many geese wherever you go these days.