Things people do that irritate you when you go to the zoo? #2
- Thread starter birdsandbats
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Most of the annoyances in this thread were caused by inadvertent thoughtlessness or stupidity. That doesn't stop them being irritating, but they are understandable and, in most cases, forgivable.
I regret that I am reporting an example which was entirely deliberate and which I find very hard to forgive. It happened at Colchester on Saturday 21st April, 25 minutes before the zoo closed. It was a beautiful day and the zoo had been very busy. A lot of visitors were taking photos and I saw several people with much fancier camera gear than mine. As I explained shortly afterwards, I was particularly interested in the red-backed sakis, which had been fairly subdued earlier in the day, they became much more active as the zoo became quieter with a lot of jumping, playfighting and several matings. People who know Colchester will remember that their enclosure is viewed through windows on both sides, from the path separating the sakis from the squirrel monkeys, where I was standing, and the wider path past the sea lion pool.
As I was trying to photograph a particularly vigorous playfight I became aware of someone waving from the opposite window.
I saw that it was a man, holding a small child and waving vigorously. He had a big grin on his face, as did his female partner. It wasn't a single wave and a smile, it was a prolonged and deliberate attempt to appear in my photos.
I still don't understand why he was so pleased with himself and so intent on attracting my attention. I am glad that I did not react to that provocation, but I internally christened him Mr Richard Head, and then abbreviated that name 
I was tempted to show one of pictures showing his face and expression: but I realised that this would be unwise and after consulting Sim, I have chosen these two images because most of their features are obscured and I have also concealed what remained visible to avoid controversy. Fortunately such crass behaviour is very rare. We have to remember that most zoo visitors are decent, sensible people - just like we are.
I regret that I am reporting an example which was entirely deliberate and which I find very hard to forgive. It happened at Colchester on Saturday 21st April, 25 minutes before the zoo closed. It was a beautiful day and the zoo had been very busy. A lot of visitors were taking photos and I saw several people with much fancier camera gear than mine. As I explained shortly afterwards, I was particularly interested in the red-backed sakis, which had been fairly subdued earlier in the day, they became much more active as the zoo became quieter with a lot of jumping, playfighting and several matings. People who know Colchester will remember that their enclosure is viewed through windows on both sides, from the path separating the sakis from the squirrel monkeys, where I was standing, and the wider path past the sea lion pool.
As I was trying to photograph a particularly vigorous playfight I became aware of someone waving from the opposite window.
I was tempted to show one of pictures showing his face and expression: but I realised that this would be unwise and after consulting Sim, I have chosen these two images because most of their features are obscured and I have also concealed what remained visible to avoid controversy. Fortunately such crass behaviour is very rare. We have to remember that most zoo visitors are decent, sensible people - just like we are.
I don't like it when zoo staff misinform visitors. Mygalomorph spiders are not tarantulas and buffalos are not bison.
Indeed not; you can't wash your hands in a buffalo.
Welsh Zootographer
Well-Known Member
Gigit
Well-Known Member
As I was trying to photograph a particularly vigorous playfight I became aware of someone waving from the opposite window.
I saw that it was a man, holding a small child and waving vigorously. He had a big grin on his face, as did his female partner. It wasn't a single wave and a smile, it was a prolonged and deliberate attempt to appear in my photos.
I still don't understand why he was so pleased with himself and so intent on attracting my attention. I am glad that I did not react to that provocation, but I internally christened him Mr Richard Head, and then abbreviated that name
That reminds me of a non-zoo incident on Dartmoor a couple of years ago. I wonder if Mr Head has ever been there. My friend was setting up his tripod and camera to take some photos of a waterfall when an idiot and his delightful children walked out on stepping stones and just stood looking at the camera. We had the last laugh though as the camera was focused on the waterfall well below his pea-brained antics. But you do have to wonder - why??
These examples honestly bother me even more than misbehaving guests because they actually should know better, haha. Although my example is honestly kind of anal-retentive on my part - at a recent visit to Atlanta a keeper in front of the gorillas was talking about the four different species of gorilla. All things considered it's such a minor mistake (just replace the word species) but... it was mildly frustrating in the moment. Species/subspecies flubs are kind of a pet peeve with me in general though. (On the plus side, another keeper giving a talk in the indoor viewing area was very firm in letting children know not to bang on the glass!)
On the other hand though, smart alecks can also be a little irritating. In front of the giant pandas I remarked aloud to another in my party how amazingly strong their jaws must be to grind through that bamboo. A man in his 30s - just another visitor, not staff - then promptly approached us to inform me all about the intricacies of a panda's jaw muscles. It was fascinating information but it was a little uncomfortable, partly given he was at least 10 years older than me and a complete stranger.
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Have you ever tried to explain the biology of a zoo animal to a crowd of people who can't tell a rhino from an anteater? Many of the concepts Zoochatters regard as common knowledge are completey unknown to most zoo visitors, including subspecies.
It does not make the gorilla example right, but it is understandable that guides or keepers giving talks try to avoid using certain words that people may not understand. If you guide people around the zoo for 2 hours you have time to explain such things, but not in a 10 minute keeper talk. However, I agree that (s)he should have used another word instead of "species."
Yeah, once Disney or another animated company makes an animated film about animals, it leads to some more or less cringey behaviour. I have a few more examples I've heard over the years:
- Singing "I like to move it, move it" when faced with lemurs
- Singing "We are Friends" when seeing vultures.
- Singing "Oobie doo, I wanna be like you" upon visiting the orangutans.
- Singing "Hakuna Matata" whilst observing warthogs or meerkats.
- Saying hyenas are bad animals based on their depiction in "The Lion King"
- Making clock noises when they see any type of crocodilian.
- Calling any light-bodied horned artiodactyl (deer, antelope, etc.) "Bambi" (this is the worst one...)
Similar to pronunciations but not quite, on one zoo website, I saw "macaw" spelled as "McAw".
TheEthiopianWolf03
Well-Known Member
Funny thing about the last one. I went to San Francisco zoo and I got a nice shot of the greater kudu when a family came and was trying to attract the attention of the animal. They kept calling “Bambi, Bambi, come here!” They also made ticking sounds like those when someone is trying to get a dog’s attention. Needless to say, the kudu didn’t really dig it and walked off.
The other day, I saw someone with a dog in Milwaukee Zoo's reptile house. Not sure how or why the person got the dog in, but it didn't look like a service dog to me.
When I was at the Cincinnati Zoo, I attracted some White-Handed Gibbons by using their call, and this guy who was watching me, later on, in one of the nocturnal houses, he tried making the sound to an Aye-Aye. I was like-"boi, they don't make those sounds". Does an Aye-Aye even resemble a gibbon?
Maybe he though that sound attracted all animals.
I'm not sure if zoo rules are different, but where I currently work we legally have to let anyone with a dog in as long as they claim it's a service dog. They don't even need to have papers, literally just say the dog helps with anxiety or something and we legally have to let them in.
~Thylo
Wow. I didn't realize that. That is... interesting.