Ohio VayCay, The Columbus Zoo

Ah, the Columbus Zoo...famous, I believe, for...
uh, for...uh...
...being a really neat zoo.

And it was.  It was really neat.  I took a lot of photos of animals.

And I took photos of these, too.

 Because there were a lot of them, you know, like at most huge zoos...but these were distinct because...
...none of them worked.

So it was awesome that it wasn't very warm out, but still.  Not one.

Maybe 1/3 of the animals were off-exhibit.  No idea where they went.  Just gone, with a sign posted saying they'd be back "in the spring."  Guess we came too early "in the spring."  BUT, there were no crowds to contend with.

I haven't gotten the hang of shooting through fences yet.  There's a better attempt of mine later on...this one just manages to be a little depressing.  Cute little fellow, though, isn't he?

My two favorite things at this zoo...the cats, and the gorillas.

This redhead below is famous for playing tricks on the keepers and really enjoying interacting with the visitors.

He got off his rope swing, sauntered over to me and my camera, and put his hand up on the glass where mine was, as if giving me a very cool high five.  I about flipped out.

And then he just walked away and didn't look back.  Redheads are awesomely cool.

Indoors, they were all about the popcorn.  Especially the baby:

(Please excuse the major bad reflections off the glass...I didn't have time to frame it up better)

This one tried the brown-paper-bag-cape thing for awhile, then used it as a blanket and took a nap.

This animal was Dave's favorite:

I'd never seen one before.

These guys, below, are called Golden Mantled Flying Foxes.  They're about the size of a big drinking glass or a small Mason jar.

Compare that with the Large Flying Fox:

I suspect they changed the common name to "Fox" because pteropus vampyrus was still a little creepy to most of us.  And not really fair, since both of these species eat only fruit and flower nectar.  Aren't they cool??  Plus, they're mammals.  The big ones have a wingspan of over 6 feet.

I love this one:

She is a Pallas's Cat, and her name is Sasha.  In the wild, she lives in cold, rocky terrain and hunts pika (yeah, I know, but they're considered pests in Asia).  She's the same size as a big house cat and really fluffy.

Idn't he cute?  Yeah.  Licking his feet.  That's a wolverine.  They are scary fighters.  There's a reason the XMen character named himself that, and it's not just a sweet love story, either.

The adorable bobcat on the left paced in front of me for several minutes.

I was totally alone standing there, so I felt free to meow at her like I used to with my own pet cats.

(Everyone does that, right?)

As she paced, we talked.  I'd say something, she'd answer.  Back and forth.  When I went to find Dave, she left for the back of the habitat.  When I came back and meowed for her, she came back and paced and we talked some more.  I think we bonded.

I think she'd have eaten my face, if she were free.

A buffalo:

You know, they had me 100% convinced in 3rd grade that these guys were extinct.  Like, woolly mammoth extinct.  So......maybe the unicorns.....?

More water fountains that didn't work:

And then, as a grand finale:

...we got locked in!


Yes, apparently after, like, an hour after the official closing time, they lock the exit.  The workers we passed on the way towards the "Out Door" didn't warn us.  I'm sure there were cameras...I'm sure someone was waiting for us to try scaling that monstrous gate...so they could hit the "Electrify Gate" button.....I bet there was giggling.

Dave was all for camping out, but we both agreed we needed some water after hiking around for five hours.  So we found the employee exit, which was not locked on either side.  Huh.

You know what wild animals do for me?  They make me want a house cat.  For reals.