We should have a prize though. It'd be nice if the winner got a little trophy or something. Or maybe just a jpeg for a trophy, ala the Lucky Bastard award?
We should have a prize though. It'd be nice if the winner got a little trophy or something. Or maybe just a jpeg for a trophy, ala the Lucky Bastard award?
Visited Brights Zoo yesterday. Two strange absences were their caracals (perhaps just not on exhibit, but their signage was also absent and I'm not sure if this place changes signage often enough to account for this) and spectacled owls (I don't even know where in the zoo these might be but their generally well-updated website as well as every USDA report suggests they have them) but anyway:
Brights Zoo, 6/23/24
53. Black-backed jackal (Lupulella mesomelas)
54. Fennec fox (Vulpes zerda)
55. Serval (Leptailurus serval)
56. Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx)
57. Cape vulture (Gyps coprotheres)
58. Cuvier's dwarf caiman (Paleosuchus palpebrosus)
This is my final entry before my expansive Texas road trip next week, which by my count could add as many as 43 species to this list.
Buffalo Zoo 6/21 and 6/22
Work was gracious enough to give me a few days off to go to Buffalo for a college reunion. I had a couple of admittedly rushed visits to the Buffalo Zoo, and here are the results:
Lion (Panthera leo) El Paso Zoo 2/21
Malayan tiger (Panthera tigris jacksoni) - El Paso Zoo 2/21
Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) - El Paso Zoo 2/21
African hunting dog (Lycaon pictus) - El Paso Zoo 2/21
American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) - El Paso Zoo 2/21
Burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia) - El Paso Zoo
Jaguar (Panthera onca) - El Paso Zoo 2/21
Puma (Puma concolor) - El Paso Zoo 2/21
Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis) - El Paso Zoo 2/21
Western screech owl (Megascops kennicottii) - El Paso Zoo 2/21
Sand cat (Felis margarita) - Buffalo Zoo 6/21
Arctic fox (Alopex lagopus) - Buffalo Zoo 6/21
Spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) - 6/21
Ocelot (leopardus pardalis) - Buffalo Zoo 6/21
Bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) - Buffalo Zoo 6/21
Hey @Coelacanth18, I discovered two ID errors that slipped into my updates.
What I had labeled as a "Whitetip Reef Shark" at the National Aquarium should actually be a Blacknose Shark. @Ebirah766 helped correct my ID. This species was initially ID'd as a whitetip by an aquarium keeper.
The "Gray Fox" I had labeled from Lehigh Valley Zoo should actually be a Red Fox. Their fox is explicitly labeled as a Gray Fox at the zoo and on their map, but I have been told it's actually a silvery/cross color morph of a Red Fox. Looking further into it, the animal does resemble a Red Fox more closely. Apparently, I am not the first person to upload media of this animal with the mistaken identity.
The corrections are in bold below. My total should be the same has I have not observed either of the mistaken species this year. This also means the Red Fox I saw at Staten Island Zoo did not increase my total.
North Carolina Zoo (02/23/2024)
North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences (03/09/2024)
Greensboro Science Center (03/29/2024)
Adventure Aquarium (04/13/2024)
American Museum of Natural History (04/20/2024)
Philadelphia Zoo (04/28/2024)
Smithsonian National Zoo (05/07/2024)
Maryland Zoo (05/08/2024)
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (05/09/2024)
National Aquarium in Baltimore (05/10/2024)
Lehigh Valley Zoo (05/19/2024)
Elmwood Park Zoo (05/25/2024)
Turtle Back Zoo (05/26/2024)
Bergan County Zoo (06/09/2024)
SeaLife New Jersey (06/09/2024
Central Park Zoo (06/10/2024)
New York Aquarium (06/11/2024
Prospect Park Zoo (06/12/2024)
Queens Zoo (06/13/2024)
Bronx Zoo (06/14/2024-06/16/2024)
Total - 84
Felids (Felidae) - 16
Black-footed Cat (Felis nigripes) - Greensboro Science Center
Bobcat (Lynx rufus) - North Carolina Zoo
Canada Lynx (Lynx canadensis) - Lehigh Valley Zoo
Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)
Southern and Eastern African Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) - Philadelphia Zoo
Cougar (Puma concolor) - North Carolina Zoo
Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) - Greensboro Science Center
Jaguar (Panthera onca) - Elmwood Park Zoo
Leopard (Panthera pardus)
Amur Leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) - Philadelphia Zoo
Lion (Panthera leo) - North Carolina Zoo
Mainland Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) - Smithsonian National Zoo
Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) - North Carolina Zoo
Pallas' Cat (Otocolobus manul) - Smithsonian National Zoo
Sand Cat (Felis margarita) - North Carolina Zoo
Serval (Leptailurus serval) - Greensboro Science Center
Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) - Philadelphia Zoo
Tiger (Panthera tigris)
Amur Tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) - Philadelphia Zoo
It's Texas time! …well, sort of. I ended up starting this week’s zoo trip just next door, but tomorrow begins daily Texas zoo visits. I apologize in advance, but I think doing daily update posts is the only way I’m going to be able to keep things straight.
Oklahoma City Zoo, 6/29/24
59. Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)
60. Raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides)
61. Swift fox (Vulpes velox)
62. Spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta)
63. Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis)
Small update here. Visited Staten Island Zoo and the Jenkinson's Aquarium since my last real update. While Staten Island did not yield anything new (since I discovered I already have the Red Fox credit from Lehigh Valley), but Jenkinson's surprisingly gave me Leopard Sharks, which I haven't before seen in person period.
North Carolina Zoo (02/23/2024)
North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences (03/09/2024)
Greensboro Science Center (03/29/2024)
Adventure Aquarium (04/13/2024)
American Museum of Natural History (04/20/2024)
Philadelphia Zoo (04/28/2024)
Smithsonian National Zoo (05/07/2024)
Maryland Zoo (05/08/2024)
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (05/09/2024)
National Aquarium in Baltimore (05/10/2024)
Lehigh Valley Zoo (05/19/2024)
Elmwood Park Zoo (05/25/2024)
Turtle Back Zoo (05/26/2024)
Bergan County Zoo (06/09/2024)
SeaLife New Jersey (06/09/2024)
Central Park Zoo (06/10/2024)
New York Aquarium (06/11/2024
Prospect Park Zoo (06/12/2024)
Queens Zoo (06/13/2024)
Bronx Zoo (06/14/2024-06/16/2024)
Staten Island Zoo (06/22/2024)
Jenkinson's Aquarium (06/29/2024)
Total - 85
Felids (Felidae) - 16
Black-footed Cat (Felis nigripes) - Greensboro Science Center
Bobcat (Lynx rufus) - North Carolina Zoo
Canada Lynx (Lynx canadensis) - Lehigh Valley Zoo
Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)
Southern and Eastern African Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) - Philadelphia Zoo
Cougar (Puma concolor) - North Carolina Zoo
Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) - Greensboro Science Center
Jaguar (Panthera onca) - Elmwood Park Zoo
Leopard (Panthera pardus)
Amur Leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) - Philadelphia Zoo
Lion (Panthera leo) - North Carolina Zoo
Mainland Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) - Smithsonian National Zoo
Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) - North Carolina Zoo
Pallas' Cat (Otocolobus manul) - Smithsonian National Zoo
Sand Cat (Felis margarita) - North Carolina Zoo
Serval (Leptailurus serval) - Greensboro Science Center
Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) - Philadelphia Zoo
Tiger (Panthera tigris)
Amur Tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) - Philadelphia Zoo
Only known miss at either facility, at least considering the part of DZ I visited, was maned wolf. Of course, there's no telling what else DWA had crammed in there, sitting behind a vending machine that you can only see from halfway up a staircase or something. Anyway, San Antonio Zoo tomorrow!
Today was San Antonio Zoo, and upon realizing how quickly I wrapped up there, also Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch! Unfortunately but unsurprisingly, the latter offered no new hits (although they did have cheetahs, had I missed them at OKC the other day)
San Antonio Zoo, 7/1/24
73. Jaguar (Panthera onca)
74. African wild dog (Lycaon pictus)
75. Bush dog (Speothos venaticus)
76. Spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus)
77. Nile crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus)
78. Dwarf crocodile (Osteolaemus tetraspis)
79. Gharial (Gavialis gangeticus)
80. Tomistoma (Tomistoma schlegelii)
81. Epaulette shark (Hemiscyllium ocellatum)
82. Coral catshark (Atelomycterus marmoratus)
I thought my well was perhaps on the verge of running dry, but there we go with 10 in one day! Glad I finally got that elusive jaguar on the board, but it does make me a bit disappointed that I’m unlikely to see all of Panthera this year. Tomorrow will most likely lead me to Gladys Porter Zoo.
Apologies with the lack of updates, I unfortunately have found myself with little time for ZooChat the past couple weeks. Not a large updates as I’ve only 1 species