Hippos!

Be warned - this one is long.


Husband and I went to the zoo today. The gibbons were very active. We saw one leap onto a passing turtle and knock it off into the moat (the gibbons and lemurs live on islands surrounded by a moat filled with fish and turtles). They were super fun. I wish I could hang around all day, bein' able to swing whenever I wanted - ah, what a life. Somehow we missed the chimpanzees. I wonder if the exhibit was closed. Hmmm.

But the highlight for me today was the hippos. They were up and moving around - in the water, out of the water, around the water - it was cool. I remember being a kid and going to the zoo in Landlocked State. When I was little, that zoo had a hippo, polar bears, seals, and a sea lion. Those are all gone now. I'm not sure why, but my guess is that the exhibits were too small and too expensive. The Landlocked State Zoo has some wonderful exhibits (gorillas, black bears, chimps...) and successful breeding programs (red pandas...). They're going full force with the natural-habitat-exhibit-re-vamping. They were making a giant new elephant home last time we were there. But the hippo exhibit has remained empty since the last hippo left that zoo, which is probably why I was so excited to see the hippos today. Visiting my childhood zoo, I am always reminded of the lack of hippos and it makes me sad. Logically, it's great that the hippos don't have to live in a little concrete pond in a zoo, but I connect that empty exhibit to loss - That was where the hippo used to be...

Paradise Zoo (that would be the one I went to today - don't know why I'm giving it a false name as it's super easy to guess the real one) is in the process of natural-habitat-exhibit-re-vamping. Like everything here in Paradise City, it looks like it's from the early '80s, which is probably why it reminds me so much of my childhood zoo. They're a little behind on the natural-habitat-exhibit-re-vamping, so it looks like I will get to see this zoo transform while I live here.

I visit the zoo in every city I go to, and it's a complex experience for me. I hate seeing animals caged (and yes, I know that visitor happiness is probably the main reason for natural-habitat-exhibit-re-vamping), and it's sad knowing that their territories are fractions of what they would be in the wild, and that the social structures of group animals are hampered by the small numbers of animals on exhibit. But I love seeing the diversity of life and being so close to it - looking in to a gorilla's eyes (over the shoulder, so as not to alarm of course) is a humbling experience, being close enough to touch the orangutan whose staring right at you, feeding a giraffe (not something you can do at many zoos, and neither of the two I'm talking about here - but I've done it and have a picture to prove it), walking down a seemingly endless corridor of birds with three new species in every cage - it's just amazing how varied life is. We're all made of the same particles and parts, just configured differently.

And zoos are so important in conserving species and keeping breeding populations varied, and educating people as to why it's important to not let these animals die out and what we can do to prevent it (because most of the dying out has a human hand in it). But it doesn't change the fact that zoos objectify individual lives and, no matter how hard they try, can't exactly replicate life in the wild. But with all the issues out there, is the wild the better place to be? Like I said, visiting the zoo is a complex experience for me. I have cried at the zoo on more than one occasion (I have also cried over there not being peanut butter, but that's different).

One last note before I move on (apparently not posting anything of substance for a while means that I'll ramble on and on) - The other thing I like about zoos (or would that be don't like) is the people watching. If you ever want to see disrespectful people, go to a zoo. It's bad enough when a child or adult(!) raps on a window and yells an animal to "do something" (I have reprimanded strange kids before), but it's worse to see family members treat each other with the same disrespect. Even if one thinks that animals are toys, one should recognize that one's child is a creature with feelings. Giving a three-year-old a giant (and I mean larger-than-my-fist giant) red shave ice (think snow cone), then berating that child for spilling some and calling that child names is unacceptable behavior. Then, when that child proudly shows that he has not spilled any more (a feat I was incapable of), calling him more names because he spoke is horrible. Going to the zoo reminds me of why I hate people. And even though many people, most people I imagine, visit the zoo and observe in awe, learn something and maybe make a connection, there will always be some who see animals as toys - dance monkey, dance - and I don't know how to change that.