Especially when the water houses animals. The spectacled caiman pool at the Barcelona Zoo has been a wishing fountain for as long as I can remember! Should these dumbasses be caught, I'd have them go down there and fish 'em out!
Things people do that irritate you when you go to the zoo?
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I he
I hear people calling flamingos pelicans over in BCN all the time...
When I was at Bristol Zoo, some people called the Eastern Quolls skunks,meerkat and deer!
Water Dragon
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I have known someone who thought a Komodo Dragon was a newt!
FunkyGibbon
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It's frustrating sure, but I don't like your response here. That parent has taken the trouble to bring their child to the Zoo for a fun educational day out. They are then making even more effort to educate their child to the best of their ability. By humiliating the parent you are ruining what is probably a special day for both of them and potentially discouraging future zoo visits. I think you're confusing 'enhancing their prestige' with 'wanting their child to see them as a source of wisdom', which we would probably agree is a lot more reasonable. I'm sure all of us were taught many misconceptions about animals by our parents (and books). The important thing is that the idea of loving and respecting nature is in there somewhere. An inquisitive child will sort out the rest for themselves if they want to.
You can save your interventions for parents feeding animals. There you will have my full support!
This (!!!) is a major if not the sole reason anti-zoo groups are succesfull!
Water Dragon
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I heard that the alligator in Chester Zoo had to be euthenised after swallowing a coin
I have heard people said that meerkat is a giant rat.Seriously?There is a sign nearby!Just look at it!
zoogiraffe
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I very much doubt a coin would cause that, however over £100 would be a very different matter!I heard that the alligator in Chester Zoo had to be euthenised after swallowing a coin
overread
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The problem with coins is that wishing pools are popular features at many sites in tourist destinations. So people are conditioned to how to treat them. It thus only takes one single coin in a pool for the next person to think its a good idea - and the next and the next.....
The only way to beat it is to remove coins as soon as they appear; or at least at teh end of each day to try and break the cycle. I'd think a zoo has an advantage here as they are less likely to have regular daily or even weekly visitors in the same way other sites might; and of those regulars most would be receptive to instructions not to throw coins in.
I would think removal and a sign if its really bad should stop most.
The real problem are when you get a culture of it going on and everyone keeps doing it- - local supermarket to me lost its battle and converted 2 bays to trolly storage because people kept dumping them there (even though the main store is only a stones throw away). Of course then your'e dealing with regulars who are going to repeat this offence very regularly.
The only way to beat it is to remove coins as soon as they appear; or at least at teh end of each day to try and break the cycle. I'd think a zoo has an advantage here as they are less likely to have regular daily or even weekly visitors in the same way other sites might; and of those regulars most would be receptive to instructions not to throw coins in.
I would think removal and a sign if its really bad should stop most.
The real problem are when you get a culture of it going on and everyone keeps doing it- - local supermarket to me lost its battle and converted 2 bays to trolly storage because people kept dumping them there (even though the main store is only a stones throw away). Of course then your'e dealing with regulars who are going to repeat this offence very regularly.
Perhaps it was an especially large coin, like Mr Krab's first dime in Spongebob Squarepants.
d1am0ndback
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I hate people who use flash, or even more commonly and annoyingly the flashlight on their phone, in nocturnal areas of zoos, which have large signs saying not to do so, I might add. I suppose some of the animals have gotten used to it, such as when a guy shined the flashlight of his phone on an aye aye at the Omaha zoo and it just stared him down, but most can't take the sudden flashes and freak out, such as when another guy at the Omaha zoo managed to make every species on exhibit ahead of me hide with his stupid phone flashlight to amuse his kids.
This also applies to a general ignorance of signs, which spans outside of zoos. Even in a park near me, where there is a sign saying not to feed the waterfowl, stating why, AND that it's against the law, local residents and visitors have made it a hobby to feed the waterfowl bread, which has had noticeable affects to the local coot population such as severe overcrowding.
This also applies to a general ignorance of signs, which spans outside of zoos. Even in a park near me, where there is a sign saying not to feed the waterfowl, stating why, AND that it's against the law, local residents and visitors have made it a hobby to feed the waterfowl bread, which has had noticeable affects to the local coot population such as severe overcrowding.
Tapirs are anteaters and/or bears. That one is more annoying than anything.
What really gets on my nerves is large school groups (15-20 kids) that go into our chicken yard and they just chase the birds even when I make it clear to them that they need to be respectful. We allow guests to feed the chickens for a price but people can come in and pet them for free. I feel the chaperones take advantage of this so that our staff can be the babysitters for 10 mins. I can't tell you how many times I've been close to throwing kids out because they don't listen to instructions. I'll tell one kid to not chase the chickens but you can pet them nicely, turn around and I have another kid with a chicken being held in the air. It's extremely frustrating because we need these chickens to like people.
What really gets on my nerves is large school groups (15-20 kids) that go into our chicken yard and they just chase the birds even when I make it clear to them that they need to be respectful. We allow guests to feed the chickens for a price but people can come in and pet them for free. I feel the chaperones take advantage of this so that our staff can be the babysitters for 10 mins. I can't tell you how many times I've been close to throwing kids out because they don't listen to instructions. I'll tell one kid to not chase the chickens but you can pet them nicely, turn around and I have another kid with a chicken being held in the air. It's extremely frustrating because we need these chickens to like people.
It's horrible! Animals die because of people's useless ignorance!I heard that the alligator in Chester Zoo had to be euthenised after swallowing a coin
I heard people in a zoo explaining: "the smaller the enclosure, the better as it means the animals pace less" 
A classic at Chester today, I was walking over the Bats Bridge from cheetahs towards the capuchins. A man was looking down into the former Philippine spotted deer paddock and said very loudly 'Is that a monkey?' It was actually a three-quarters grown anoa calf, moved from Islands 
I couldn't help grinning as I walked past him. A few steps further on, a voice behind me said 'I'm so glad he was wrong.' It was one of the zoo's security staff, carrying a radio and wearing a high-vis jacket. We agreed that he would suddenly have become very busy if it had been a monkey
I couldn't help grinning as I walked past him. A few steps further on, a voice behind me said 'I'm so glad he was wrong.' It was one of the zoo's security staff, carrying a radio and wearing a high-vis jacket. We agreed that he would suddenly have become very busy if it had been a monkey
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