Zoo # 3 Too Cute….
OK–I’ve spent the last 2 mornings camped outside tiger hill at the DC zoo watching the cutest little balls of fur run, jump, growl, hiss and generally have a wonderful time. Guntur, Maharani & Melati are the 3 new tiger cubs at the zoo. They are just over 3 months old–and clearly spell trouble with a capital T. It was amazing to just watch how much more they were able to do today than yesterday. Yesterday jumping from level to level in the habitat was out of the question. Today 2 of the 3 cubs managed to do it at least once (it was more of a ‘controlled fall” than a jump) and two of the successfully scrambled up a level using the rocks rather than the ladders at the sides. Their intelligence was plain to see. What made it even more interesting was the chance to talk with multiple photographers, folks who have been shooting at the zoo for years, who patiently stood beside me, answered my questions and told me the history of the tigers. These are folks who identify both the animals and the keepers by first name and understand the nature of the animals and look to capture their magnificence. The respect they hold for the animals and the work of the zoo was clear in everything they said. Several of them are part of the FONZ Photo club,which meets on the first Tuesday of the month at the zoo–and I will be joining them this month. My tigers pix are posted here; but they aren’t all up yet—I’ve told myself that I have some office work to finish before I spend 1 more minute playing with photos–so what am I doing instead? Writing here….