At the Zoo, Part Two!

I said I'd come back and do part 2 of the pictures from the zoo visit, and here I am doing just that.  Shocking, isn't it?!

We'll start with the otters, who are great fun to watch as they swim and dive and play around their enclosure.  They're actually one of my favourite animals.

They have a large pool to play in with a kind of 'island' in the middle of it that has a little fountain.

On to one of the slowest animals at the zoo - this tortoise!  The tortoise actually has a wheelchair because it was having mobility issues with its back legs, but the zookeepers report that its mobility is significantly improved, so it doesn't need its wheelchair very much at the moment.

Another quiet, silent type - the caiman.  It's in the same subfamily as the alligator, but it's much smaller. It certainly was enjoying time under a heat lamp on the day of this visit.

The meerkats are absolutely charming little critters.  Their expressions and poses are captivating and they cooperated well with being photographed!

So cute!  I like how they use their tails as a sort of 'kickstand' while they check out their surroundings.

These tiny marmosets were also very charming.  I was interested to note how many colours were present in their fur - at first they seem just grey, but when you look closely, there's a sort of golden brown mixed in with the fur - they must camouflage quite well, exept for those ear tufts.

Look at that cute little sleeping hut!

The local wildlife also enjoy the zoo - I spotted this chipping sparrow on the side of one of the paths.

This lovely swan stayed very still and quiet for its photo shoot.

This cat is a serval, native to sub-Saharan Africa.  A few people have them as pets, which I don't think is a great idea.  They do have really beautiful markings though, and are quite small for a wild cat.  

There is a double set of fencing around its enclosure so I couldn't get pictures without the mesh in the way.  

There's a spot where you can hand-feed alpaca and European fallow deer.  They are quite sweet animals and seem to enjoy the contact with visitors.

The woman who shears my sheep also shears the zoo's alpacas, and I happen to have a couple of their fleeces.  I haven't spun them up yet.  

The deer and alpaca enclosure also was temporarily hosting these two pigeons.  The male, who is chasing the female (typical!) is quite beautifully marked.

This little one is a red fox, but it's a different colour morph compared to the usual red foxes one sees.

These are squirrel monkeys!  They are incredibly cute, and very active.  They were eating almonds and pieces of fruit.  They seemed to get into little squabbles when one would get something that another one wanted.  Just like some people, I suppose! These images are taken through glass, which is why they look a bit cloudy.

Eating an almond.

This is a very sleepy woodland caribou, with a group of mallards in the background.

These lovely rhea were quite beautiful.

They came right over to me for a visit, and I was so enchanted by them that I forgot to take close-up pictures!  

There are peacocks at the zoo, which is a little bit funny because my friend Teresa has a peacock on her farm, and I tend to think of them as farm animals more than zoo animals, but I suppose they are quite rare.

I spotted a little caterpillar on the railing at the peacock enclosure.  Not a zoo feature!

The black bears are absolutely gorgeous animals, and they were enjoying a snack of carrots and apples. Again, I was really glad it was a cooler day, because often the bears are just sleeping in the sun.

Extra crunchy!

Nom nom nom!

And, the last animal on the zoo circuit is the peccary, and they are super cute too!  They live in Central and South America.

Good bye little peccary!  See you next time!

I hope you enjoyed the visit to the Magnetic Hill Zoo in Moncton, even though it was only in pictures.