One last walk around the zoo

On March 8, 2025April 10, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn zoo animals3 Comments

I made one last trip to Zoo Tampa right before Christmas. My “pay for a day and get the rest of the year free” would run out at the end of the year. I was there early and happened to catch the manatee hospital checking on some patients. They rescue and rehabilitate wild manatees here. Most of the manatees that come in are from boat strikes, cold stress or red tide symptoms. They have 3 pools where the floor raises up so they can treat the manatees without having to take them out of the pools. They were checking on 3 that had just come into the manatee hospital here. One was getting medicine through a tube. It’s really cool to watch but sad that they are here. Several years ago when my sister was visiting we were able to see a manatee release that the zoo did at the Manatee Viewing Center that you can read about here.

Above is a short video of a manatee eating lettuce in the bigger pool that you can look over. It was funny to watch him stuffing the lettuce into his mouth with his flippers.

The baboons are always funny to watch, especially when they flash their heart shaped bottoms.

The siamang were being quiet this morning. They usually are hooting and swinging in the morning.

One of the younger orangutans coming to the front for everyone to “awe” and “ooh” over.

I think that lapwings are one of my favorite birds here with that yellow face and bright pink legs. He was in the aviary that you can walk through and was not shy at all.

Both eagles here have injuries that were sustained in the wild. This one is missing a wing.

I was lucky enough again to see the Florida panther walk over me in the glass walkway. Look at those big paws.

I noticed he was licking his lips and realized he might be thinking I was lunch.

It was a beautiful morning and I was traveling light with only phone.

A Christmas walk at the zoo

On December 21, 2024January 21, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn zoo animals1 Comment

I have a “pay for a day and come back all year” pass at Zoo Tampa that expires by Christmas. I hadn’t gone all summer since it was so hot but since it has been a fairly cold winter here and I wanted to get a long walk in I made a visit recently. It was fun to walk around and see the Christmas decorations. The weather made it feel a little more like Christmas since it was chilly and not 85 degrees like past holidays. I was traveling light with just my phone.

One of the many fun Christmas trees.

It’s not as much fun seeing flamingos at the zoo when you’ve seen them in the wild.

Above are some of the birds in the large aviary. Most were fluffed up and staying in the sun since it was under 50 degrees.

There were a lot of manatees in the hospital. Here at the zoo they rescue, rehabilitate and release them back out in the wild. The girl in the front was trying to get the two in the front pod to drink some medicine. Behind her was a manatee that was being fed through a tube. He must have still been really sick. Between the hurricanes, red tide and a colder fall than usual, these guys have been really busy.

A manatee comes up for air (on the right) in the big pool. There were two others with him (on the left bottom) and they were all waiting to be fed.

They have recently tripled the size of the Florida panther exhibit and this was the first time I have seen him up on the glass panel that you can walk under. It was weird seeing him up over my head.

Getting a sip.

The colobus monkeys were staying out of the wind and in the sun.

The siamangs are a favorite. When it’s cool outside they swing from the ropes and holler so loud you can hear it across the zoo. I was about to leave and heard them and ran over with everyone else there to see them swing. Above is a quick video that is loud.

I got a good hour walk in and am hoping to get one more walk in here before the end of the year.

Seeing Florida animals up close and a hippo too.

On March 2, 2020March 3, 2020 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

Birds you can see up-close at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park include a pair of whooping cranes that are both missing wings. They winter in Florida and were injured at some point and brought here to live. I overheard someone say “They cut off one wing so these birds can’s fly away.” and that is not true. Most of these animals are here due to man made injuries (hit by a car, a parent was hit by a car and now they are orphans, fishing lines, some were shot with a bb gun or arrow). I follow several wildlife rescue groups on facebook and it’s horrifying the things that happens to these animals.

Big animals that live at the park. On a recent episode of “Secrets of the Zoo:Tampa”, a baby bear was brought in to the zoo to be checked out when his mom died getting hit by a car. The zoo was able to secure a home for the cub here.