Some of the birds were not on their best behaviour. One falcon went on a flyabout, almost disappearing from view, and it took ages for them to get her back to try and catch the lure - food on a string that they spin around to get her to show how she catches prey.
Sometimes birds take off and disappear for days (one huge condor went missing in a rapeseed field, and after 36 hours they had to call out a helicopter to help them find him). Sometimes the birds do what nature intended and swoop on any suicidal pigeon who happens to pass nearby.
This is one of the Harris Hawks, standing on a picnic table in the main show area.
The Tawny Eagle was out with a variety of very large storks and other scavengers.
The Barn Owl is like a silent little ghost.
The Tawny Eagle was out with a variety of very large storks and other scavengers.
The Barn Owl is like a silent little ghost.
This is one of the many condors we saw today. I lost track of all their names.
The Golden Eagle was out all through lunchtime, flying free, and eventually landed on the roof near us.
The coatimundi is regarded as a pest in South America and people kill them for raiding dustbins.
The latest addition is a two-year-old cheetah, who is being trained to show hunting behaviour. She was born with deformed back legs - apparently because there is a shortage of cheetah DNA varieties in the world, caused by the last ice age. She was operated on and now appears normal, but she has been spayed so that she cannot breed, for fear she may pass her deformity on.
I have only ever seen cheetahs on TV before. I knew they were smaller than tigers, leopards and lions, so I expected her to be quite small. She is MUCH larger that I thought she would be, and she is magnificent. Soon they are going to be offering "Keeper For A Day" sessions, and I think I absolutely MUST do it, 'cos you get to go in with her.
17 comments:
Great pix Val. I remember being somewhere in the States (or it could have been Vancouver!) and we thought this Bald Eagle was statue, until it suddenly turned around and looked at us. It was the biggest damn bird I've ever seen in my life!!! Imagine the crap that thing could leave on your washing ;0)
And it wasn't even the biggest bird they had there!
Thanks for posting all these wonderful pics. I'm a BIG animal lover (and not exclusively the VDO species . . . heh-heh). The cheetah is adorable. Is someone actually petting her in that last pic?
You HAVE to do "keeper for a day" if you can! ARen't the birds of prey just gorgeous? Hawks and Peregrine Falcons sit on top of the tall street lamps along the freeways and roads, and living here I've finally seen wild bald eagles.
Oops, I accidentally posted my comment twice!
julie.
BIRDS ROCK!!! BIRDS ROCK!!!
awesome raptor pix, Val. What a treat. Thank you so much. In my next life, I will be reincarnated as a bird of prey. I am serious!!!
That first BOP looks like he is saying "You wanna piece of me?Huh?Do ya?"And to that I would say....no sir I do not.They are AWESOME!
Sorry that was me. I agree with Jojo, you must be keeper for a day! The cheeta is so beautiful.
The birds are magnificent...I love the barn owl.
Awesome pics! My daughter and I did Mother's Day at the zoo (our tiny rescue zoo). It was so fun for us. We did a lot of work too! Lots of food prep and shit scooping. It was worth it to see bears, cougars, etc up close and personal. I especially liked hiding treats for the bears to find.
Yes, Snarkangel, there were two keepers in with the cheetah. She was wary and snarly at first, then they did the training with bits of meat on the end of a long stick, and she became more amenable, so they could then scratch her head and ears.
Oh Val, The pictures of the cheetah are beautiful! They take my breath away. I had an opportunity to feed a baby tiger with a bottle about 3 weeks ago as part of a fair in a city about 6-7 minutes from ny house. I never get local papers so didn't know until the day after! I hope you get an opportunity to be a keeper. I would love to do that! Keep us informed if you do. Bobby's Girl here.
I will, BG. The scheme isn't up and running yet, but as soon as it is, I'll look into it. Who knows how much it will cost...
Yeah it could be costly, but Val, it'd be worth it to say that you did it!
wow! those pictures are so beautiful! that barn owl is gorgeous. and that cheetah!
i just found out our local zoo is very close to closing b/c of finances. it's one of the oldest in the area and is named after the local indian tribe. very sad, my friends daughter took it upon herself to start collecting pop cans and make flyers and such. she's 10 so i thought that was very big of her(!)
What a great place to visit, love the pics.
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