A Special Trip to the Zoo--Part 2

The O-line lets the orangutans travel from one house to the other.

Last week, I told you about a special trip we had to the National Zoo. During this trip, we got a behind the scenes tour of the great ape house (orangutans and gorillas). Here a few more details of that tour.


The tour took place in the back of the exhibit. We were seeing the same things that we had seen as regular visitors to the zoo--just from a different perspective. We were seeing the back instead of the front. Speaking of the front of the exhibit, there are several layers of glass there that make things virtually sound proof for the animals. So the bad jokes and gorilla sounds the public are making aren't actually heard by the gorillas and orangutans.  The back of the exhibit is covered by a strong mesh.

We learned during our tour that first and foremost is the safety and well being of the animals. Thus there was a line that we could not cross that kept us an arm's length away from the apes. Also, we had to wear masks so that we could not pass on any colds or other illness we might have. The keepers also have to wear these when they are sick.

Lucy, 41, the oldest orangutan there.

The animals were very happy to see Eddie and us, and as described in the last post, some of them started to show off. Also, they started to push pieces of bamboo out of their enclosures. Eddie said they were tidying up for him. He said that one of the enrichment activities they do is to have them clean up their houses. This included getting rid of clutter. They love to do it because there's usually a tasty treat waiting for them at the end. I wish my kids, or me, for that matter, could be motivated so easily to clean up.

And speaking of tasty treats, they do get some (usually fruit), but their diet is very carefully controlled. Gorillas are herbivores and get a variety of vegetables and fruits every day. They had already been fed that morning and the only thing left was kale. They're just like us. They go for the "good" stuff first and leave the "good-for-you" stuff for last. Also, the day before, Eddie had cooked them some beans with stronger spices in them. The animals also enjoy some spicy food occasionally.  In addition, the keepers use spices sometimes as enrichment for the animals. For example, they may spread some cinnamon around the exhibit just because the apes enjoy the smell.

We also saw how they were training one of the gorillas to be a mother. They wanted to breed her, but wanted to make sure that she was up to the task because she hadn't been raised by her mother. She was improving because she no longer ripped the head off of the doll they were using. However, she still had a ways to go. :)

As you can tell by the way I'm going on and on, I was very excited by this trip. Actually, I could continue to go on and on but I think that's enough for now. Let's just end it with, life is good for both these apes and for me because I got a chance to meet them.

Pictures courtesy of the National Zoo.

A Special Trip to the Zoo

We like to go to the zoo. We like watching the animals. We like the plants. And Ward likes the gift shops. We like to visit them wherever we're traveling as we did in Philadelphia last month. Recently we went to another zoo--the National Zoo in Washington, DC. We had been there before but not for many years. The last time we went was when Wally and Theo ran from exhibit to exhibit and climbed all of the animal statues.

 

Mischievous Lucy

This time, Ward and I went with a grownup Theo, and besides enjoying the various large and small animals, we got a behind the scenes tour of the large ape house (orangutans and gorillas), courtesy of Eddie, my nephew who is a keeper there. He took us for a private tour at the back of the exhibits where he told us about the general traits of the apes, and we got to individually meet each of them.

Baraka, the very laid-back silverback

And what a group they were. There was the very laid back silverback gorilla who only got excited when he thought he might be able to steal a piece of fruit from one of the females. (By the way, silverback means no more than the gorilla has reached full maturity. Before that, their back is black.) There was the orangutan, Lucy, who filled her mouth with water when our back was turned and was ready to spray it on us just for fun and a bit of showing off. Fortunately, we moved on before she got a chance. There was a very cute orangutan that pulled a sheet around herself and was playing hide and seek with us. (The orangutans make a nest in hay at night and then they like to pull a sheet or blanket over themselves while they sleep.)
 
Then there was the very mischievous teenage male gorilla who waited until our backs were turned and made a very loud sound hitting a metal door. It had the exact effect he was looking for because we all jumped. Then once he had our attention, he ran large barrels into the sides of the enclosure making very loud sounds. Eddie told us that he was showing off for our benefit. Some how that just seemed right for a teenage boy.

I could go on and on because this was one of the most interesting things I have done for a long while. But I'll save some of it for Part 2. Stay tuned.

Kwame. He and his brother Kojo were the male, showoff teens.

Pictures courtesy of the National Zoo website. None of my pictures turned out very well because of the lighting.