Tuesday, December 30, 2025

The zoo critters

After my August visit to Melbourne Zoo in August with family, as a senior, I was offered a very good deal to take up an annual membership, and so I did. I've made two subsequent visits, thinking I will see one or two animals and then leave. That is kind of what I did, but still walked far more than I really needed too. 


These are from my most recent visit.  The lion was being uncooperative, as were most animals. 


I think this is a Taiwanese python. 


This style looks familiar.


Sure enough, it is by the wonderful Gillie et Marc.


The great apes were good to see and I listened to commentary by a zoo keeper for a while.


From my previous visit, another sleepy animal, a tiger.


And a rather amusing orangutan. Unfortunately she did not play to the camera. She arrived with a bedsheet draped over her body. You can see it on her arm.


Eating fruit from a bucket. They have to find a bucket with some fruit inside.


My next visit will be more planned to see animals when they are out to be fed and a zookeeper talk. 

32 comments:

  1. I have often found that zoo animals sleep through my visits.
    One of the places on my bucket list is the orangutan sanctuary in Borneo. Not sure that will happen though.

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    1. JayCee, you may find this interesting. I certainly did from a regular YouTuber I watch
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1MyVN0K2i0

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    2. Thanks Andrew. I shall watch that with interest.

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  2. Zoos are cruel and should not exist , no animal should be held against its will in a foreign land.
    When. I was very young I remember the elephant rides we had at Taronga Zoo and now of course they are banned. The innocence of childhood disappeared when I realised I had contributed to the cruelty .

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    1. Zoos Victoria have four zoos. One is a rehab zoo and for animals that can't go back to the wild. One is new and I don't know about it. The third is an open plain zoo where you see the animals from a bus and visit the elephants that have great space and facilities, but yes, the old Melbourne Zoo is an anachronism. The animal spaces have greatly increased with much better conditions. This zoo gives a lot of funding to the aforesaid zoos. People want to see animals, and always will. Australian zoos are quite good, and no one could question the care for the animals, and the efforts made to give them a good life.

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  3. The great ape may not be the most handsome creature in the zoo, but it certainly is clever.

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    1. Hels, they are incredibly smart. They have to problem solve to find food.

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  4. There's nothing wrong with walking further than you need to. I haven't been to a zoo in years.

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    1. River, walking exhausts me and at times my arthritic pain is bad. I can only do so much.

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    2. Check if your zoo hires out wheelchairs and have the boys push you around.

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    3. Oh yes River. I have been thinking about that, but I expect the next step will be a walking stick. How embarrassing.

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  5. Animals at the zoo always seem less interested in us than we are in them.

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    1. Very much so Kirk. The old zoo days of a screened or between bars interaction have passed.

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  6. I love zoos, even knowing that the animals would probably prefer to be wild. On the upside, zoos have improved tremendously over the past 50 years.

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    1. Pixie, yes, zoos in the western world are good now. We had a bear pit here when I was young. Maybe you did too.

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  7. There is always something very fascinating about a zoo. Quite sometime since I have been to the one in Bengaluru.

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    1. Predeep, maybe you are too busy being retired, but you should make an effort to see the zoo.

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  8. Interesting to see these animals, if it were not for zoos many of us would never have or never see live animals.

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    1. Margaret, quite so. If they have space, a natural environment and good care, that is fine with me.

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  9. This is a good journey. I don't visit anymore because of traffic and entrance cost lol

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    1. I only use the train or tram to visit the zoo, Roentare. Yes, it is expensive, but if you might visit twice in one year, an annual membership with unlimited visits might work.

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  10. The best-run zoos are important for conservation and restocking.

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    1. JB, Zoos Victoria does a first class job in conservation, animal rehabilitation, helping threatened species and has had a long running campaign against the use of palm oil, to preserve native tropical forests.

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  11. Looks like a great place to go, once a month, once a week?

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    1. TP, dependant on my mood and the weather.

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    2. My third visit to Melbourne Zoo and one to Werribee Open Plains Zoo last April.

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  12. No zoos here in my province but there are animal sanctuaries in a protected wilderness with helpers. Injured animals. I would visit the Toronto Zoo when I lived there and itis one of a kind with the viewers in cages, basically, and the animals wandering around. I was always upset for the circus animals in my youth. And the dog racing.
    XO
    WWW

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    1. WWW, I suppose the extreme cold makes it so much more challenging to have zoos. Sadly dog racing still happens here, but it will disappear soon, I think.

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  13. I haven't been to a zoo in years. I always enjoyed going to them, Andrew.

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    1. Pat, I suppose your still operates and has raised its standard as have others around the world.

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  14. Wonderful photos. Andrew. Happy New Year to you ❤️ ☺️

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