In September 2018 my employer brought all of its employees into town for a weekend get-together. They rented out a space at the Indianapolis Zoo and gave us all tickets to wander around and look at the animals before and after lunch. It had been a while since I had visited the place and naturally took lots of photos. Here are the ones that I selected to post on Flickr.
The Indianapolis lions are a little more animated by Disney's, but not much. Here's one of the ladies doing a sphinx imitation. Queen of the Jungle
I've heard that the collective noun for a flock of flamingos is a flamboyance. I hereby declare that a flock of sleeping flamingos is a flamboyanzzzzzz. Nap Time
The Indianapolis Zoo has decent collection of birds, many of which are also in the Animal Kingdom aviaries. One species that DAK does not have is budgerigars, known around here as parakeets. I'll be posting several photos of them in the future, but I thought I'd start with this workaholic. I watched it for several minutes as it picked up rocks one at a time and put them in the pan. I have no idea why it was doing it; maybe it had a contract to supply a full pan of rocks. Taking Care of Business
The Indianapolis Zoo recently created the Simon Skjodt International Orangutan Center which provides housing, research facilities and a stimulating habitat for a group of orangutans. Since the apes are forest dwellers, the habitat contains several towers linked with cables, much like the ape habitat near Kali River Rapids. This orangutan is sitting on top of the habitat building, looking over all the strange hairless apes on te ground. High As A Kite
This elephant tried everything it could think of to try to reach that tree on the other side of the fence. Sadly, it failed. Click the photo to read the details. It's Always Greener
Statues of three penguins and a ball. What's the point? For most of you, these won't mean anything. For me, they bring back fond memories of childhood visits to the Glendale Shopping Center on the northeast side of Indianapolis. In the center of the mall, there were two things that I always had to see: A water fountain with all kinds of things spinning, filling and dumping and generally moving around, and these statues. The shopping center eventually fell on hard times and was remodeled. Now all that remains are a few stores, a Target and a movie theater. But when I visited the Indianapolis Zoo in 2018 and saw the statues in the building that also houses real penguins, I almost cried with joy when I saw that they had been preserved. Click the photo for information on the sculptor, the names of the penguins and other items of historical interest. Memory Lane
Remember when they sold parakeets in dime stores? Now they're exotic birds on exhibit in a zoo. This Is Not Woolworth's
One of the projects of the Indianapolis Zoo is increasing the population of African elephants using artificial insemination. This is Ivory, who has produced three calves as part of the program. Snack Time
A green and yellow budgie gets a touch-up from the white-coated attendants. This walk-through aviary had a huge number of these little buggers. Just a Light Trim, Please
There are several of these Amur tigers from eastern Russia at the Indianapolis Zoo. Like most cats, they remain motionless for much of the day. Unlike most cats, they are excellent swimmers, so there is a nice pool on the other side of their pen. Russian Cat
"Stay out of my pond, you filthy duck!" Seriously, this flamingo chased the duck away from the pond. Not In My Pond
"The Grant's zebra stepped up to the food trough for a quick snack, but the trough was empty. The Marabou stork turned away quickly, wiping its beak." That's not one of my best stories. Perhaps I should add "It was a dark and stormy night." Looking for Lunch
Like the plains of KIlimanjaro Safaris, there are a variety of animals sharing the Plains of the Indianapolis Zoo. These eastern white-bearded wildebeest live alongside the zebra, giraffes, bongos and other animals. Home on the Range