Well apparently I did not see the black scoter, or if I did it was a different speck than the one I thought. Attached is as tight a crop as I can make from my not-very-telephoto picture of the one that I thought the birdwatcher with the binoculars was pointing out to me. But I did a quick Google Images search (since a duck is a duck to me) and black scoters are actually black whereas this unknown duck has a lot of white.
Sorry it's been a few days since the last update. Work has been ever so much fun. We met up with AD and our mystery guest (who shall remain nameless, for evermore... wait... I'm not teaching Poe this week) around 10ish, and we headed into the zoo. Reid Park Zoo is small, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is a classic zoo with most of your basic species. Honestly, I can find nothing much wrong with this lovely zoo at all. The highlight of the zoo is the new elephant expansion. A lot has been said about it on here, so I will just give my few comments. After having been around Dallas' new exhibit, I can help but thinking... meh. It's a large expanse, which is great for the animals to roam about, but isn't much that I find "awe-inspiring." Sight lines are mostly through cable fences. The nicest looking exhibit (of the two visible yards) was far from the one visitor viewing area. Overall, a solid exhibit, but could have a lot more going for it. My favorite exhibit, hands down was the exhibit for Rhino and Speke's Gazelle. This exhibit, just by the combination of the two species was exciting and dynamic. Add into that the multiple viewing points and the excellent design, it is hands down the single best exhibit in the zoo (in my humble opinion). The recent expansion of the former Polar Bear exhibit (now for 2 Grizzly Bears) comes across much better in person than it does in pictures. It was far bigger than I expected. Not the biggest I've seen, but by no means the smallest. I got to see two new mammal species at RPZ; the Visayan Warty Pig and the Spotted-Necked Otter, but a delight to see. The otter was on her fist day on exhibit, and was highly active and entertaining. Overall, Reid Park is a well-balance and lovely zoo. I'd recommend it, and I look forward to the plans it has in its future.
For those who are interested, inspired by geomorph's San Diego thread, I decided to do an exhibit by exhibit breakdown of some of the zoo's I've been to lately. Here is Reid Park Zoo: REID PARK ZOO ASIA 1. White-handed Gibbon 2. Malayan Tiger 3. Malayan Sun Bear 4. Visayan Warty Pig 5. Sarus Crane AFRICA 6. Grevy’s Zebra, Ostrich, East African Crowned Crane 7. Leopard Tortoise 8. Radiated Tortoise 9. Southern White Rhinoceros, Speke’s Gazelle 10. Giraffe 11. South African Bush Elephant 12. Spotted-necked Otter 13. African Lion 14. Black-and-white Ruffed Lemur ADAPTATIONS 15. Grizzly Bear 16. Aldabra Tortoise 17. Lion-tailed Macaque 18. Chilean Flamingo 19. Flight Connection Aviary a. Mountain Bamboo Partridge, Moluccan Friarbird b. Sulfur-crested Cockatoo c. Trumpeter Hornbill d. Great Hornbill e. Hottentot Teal, Marbled Teal, Great Argus Pheasant, Blue-bellied Roller, Bearded Barbet Spotted Dikkop, Violaceous Turaco, Eclectus Parrot, Luzon Bleeding-heart Dove, Bruce’s Green Pigeon, Blue Crowned Pigeon, Nicobar Pigeon, Wattled Starling, Emerald Starling, Grosbeak Starling, White-rumped Shama, Taveta Golden Weaver 20. Education Center a. Green Tree Python b. Inland Bearded Dragon c. Marsh Turtle, Western Painted Turtle, Common Musk Turtle, Mosquitofish SOUTH AMERICA 21. Dwarf Caiman, Amazon Yellow-spotted River Turtle, Black Pacu, Suckermouth Catfish 22. Empty 23. Military Macaw, Blue-and-yellow Macaw 24. King Vulture, Red-footed Tortoise 25. Elegant-crested Tinamou, Yellow-knobbed Curassow, White-faced Whistling-duck, Wood Duck, Rosybill Pochard, Boat-billed Heron, Scarlet Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill, Red-capped Cardinal, Blue-and-yellow Tanager 26. Andean Bear 27. Giant Anteater 28. Guanaco, Black-necked Swan 29. Llama, Greater Rhea, Galapagos Tortoise 30. Yellow-footed Tortoise 31. Capybara, Rosybill Pochard, Speckled Teal 32. Baird’s Tapir 33. Jaguar
Very impressive! (Of course our small zoo is a bit easier than San Diego). Still that is an amazingly complete list, with only a couple tortoises missing. In African, there is a yard next to leopard tortoise with radiated tortoise. In South America, there is a yard in front of capybara with yellow footed and red footed tortoise.
Ituri, thank you for the list of Reid Park Zoo animals. Despite our laments that collections are increasingly becoming identical from zoo to zoo, it is interesting to note that about 35 of the species at Reid Park Zoo are not on exhibit at San Diego Zoo!
The museum that's a zoo From Reid Park, we headed across town to a very different kind of zoo (well, after lunch at a nearby Jack in the Box). Over the years, I've heard many things about the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum. Aside from its pretentious title, everything I had read and heard told me it is one of the zoological highlights in the world. I still didn't know what to fully expect. ASDM is the most limited zoological collection in existence. It only focuses on flora and fauna (and geology, and history, and culture) of the Sonoran Desert. I wish there were more places like the ASDM. The narrow focus really is superb. To give a run-down and full review is probably beyond my scope. I would suggest reading snowleopard's review. Or maybe I'll make ituri write the review for this section. What I will comment on is the overall vibe of the place. First off, I think every zoo should have the pin-point detail that ASDM has. The museum element is perfect. I've thought this for years - you cannot exhibit animals in isolation. Let me say that again - you cannot exhibit animals in isolation. Without the element of environment, we cannot appreciate the animal. Without the element of time, we cannot appreciate the animal. Without the element of culture, we cannot appreciate the animal. ASDM makes every effort to put every animal in the context of time, environment, culture, geology, etc unlike any place I've ever seen. I WANT MORE! I have only a few complaints of the place. The cat canyon is woefully outdated compared to the rest of the facility (plus, it needs more cat species). There are a few major species missing, that I feel could really add to the overall "punch" of the facility. Missing were Mule Deer, Pronghorn, and Jaguar. The lack of these charismatic megafauna is sorely missed. The focus on the small animals is highly commended, but that needs to be balanced with keystone species. A jaguar exhibit located in a new "sky island" exhibit would be a near-perfect climax to the near-perfect zoo. The setting of the ASDM inside (or just on the edge) of the Saguaro National Forest is magical. I cannot imagine a more perfect setting for this place. Oh yea, I birded there too. I got 5 new species there. I guess I should tell the story of one of the birds. As we were leaving in the parking lot, ituri looked at me and said: "You know, there's one bird I wished we would have gotten here. A phainopepla." Me: "Maybe we can get it back in Phoenix." Ituri: "Nope, they aren't that far north." Me: "What's that bird up ahead in the tree?" Ituri: "Could it be?" Me: "There's your Phainopepla!" And there it was, posing for us in all it's glory. The bird gods smiled on us that one time.
Continuing what I did for Reid Park, here is my attempt at Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. This was a much larger challenge. Two of the areas are only approximations based on faulty memory, as I was unable to record the species there. Life on the Rocks, which has horrible signage and is very confusing about what animals you could even expect to find there, and the Warden Aquarium, which in true aquarium fashion has those rotating electronic signs that take 15 minutes to cycle through every fish in the tank (my attention span wouldn't allow me to record those). So I took the species list from their website and added a couple I noticed that weren't on it. ARIZONA-SONORA DESERT MUSEUM REPTILES, AMPHIIBIAN & INVERTEBRATE HALL 1. Spiny-tailed Iguana, San Esteban Island Chuckwalla 2. Western Diamondback Rattlesnake 3. Arizona Black Rattlesnake 4. Mojave Rattlesnake 5. Sidewinder 6. Desert Rosy Boa 7. Western Hognose Snake 8. California Kingsnake (amelanistic) 9. Glossy Snake 10. Baja Rat Snake 11. Taylor’s Cantil 12. Arizona Mountain Kingsnake 13. Red Coachwhip 14. Tiger Rattlesnake 15. Green Rat Snake 16. Speckled Rattlesnake 17. Eastern Collared Lizard 18. Brown Vine Snake 19. Black-tailed Rattlesnake 20. Sonoran Desert Toad, Great Plains Toad 21. Green Toad, Red-spotted Toad 22. Woodhouse’s Toad 23. Sonoran Green Toad 24. Tiger Salamander 25. Empty 26. Marine Toad 27. Fishing Spider 28. Arizona Blond Tarantula 29. Black Widow Spider 30. Net-web Spider 31. Vinegaroon 32. Giant Hairy Scorpion 33. Funnel-web Spider 34. Arizona Bark Scorpion 35. Sonoran Giant Centipede 36. Short Horn Walking Stick 37. Large Milkweed Bug 38. Bird Grasshopper 39. Velvet Ant 40. Blue Death Feigning Beetle 41. Isopod 42. Desert Millipede 43. Mexican Fireleg Tarantula EARTH SCIENCE CENTER 44. Crayfish MOUNTAIN WOODLAND 45. Thick-billed Parrot 46. Mountain Lion 47. American Black Bear 48. Coue’s White-tailed Deer, Merriam’s Wild Turkey 49. American Kestrel 50. Mexican Gray Wolf 51. Western Scrub-jay DESERT GRASSLANDS 52. Desert Box Turtle 53. Prairie Rattlesnake, Mojave Rattlesnake 54. Western Hognose Snake 55. Desert Massasauga 56. Burrowing Owl 57. Stripe-tailed Scorpion 58. Arizona Blond Tarantula 59. Long-nosed Snake 60. Great Blue Heron 61. Black-tailed Prairie Dog LIFE on the ROCKS (approximation) 62. Elf Owl 63. White-winged Dove, Band-tailed Pigeon, Lowland Leopard Frog, Canyon Treefrog, Red-spotted Toad, Longfin Dace, Speckled Dace, Sonoran Sucker, Loach Minnow 64. Harris’s Antelope Squirrel 65. Northern Hognose Skunk 66. Sonoran Desert Toad 67. Rosy Boa 68. Glossy Snake 69. Greater Roadrunner 70. Desert Night Lizard 71. Giant Crab Spider 72. Arizona Blond Tarantula 73. Speckled Rattlesnake, Tiger Rattlesnake 74. Black-tailed Rattlesnake 75. Desert Millipede 76. Leaf-cutter Ants 77. Tailless Whipscorpion 78. Western Diamondback Rattlesnake 79. Black Widow Spider 80. Arizona Bark Scorpion ARIZONA UPLAND 81. Coyote 82. Collared Peccary 83. Common Chuckwalla, Eastern Collared Lizard CAT CANYON 84. North American Porcupine 85. Ocelot 86. Bobcat 87. Gray Fox RIPARIAN CORRIDOR 88. White-nosed Coati 89. American Beaver, Colorado Pikeminnow 90. Northern River Otter 91. Speckled Dace 92. Bonytail Chub 93. Desert Pupfish 94. Gila Topminnow 95. Sinaloan Cichlid 96. Desert Bighorn Sheep AVIARY AREA 97. Desert Tortoise 98. Black-bellied Whistling-duck, Mallard, Gambel’s Quail, Masked Bobwhite, Costa’s Hummingbird, Lilac-crowned Parrot, White-winged Dove, Inca Dove, Mourning Dove, Steller’s Jay, Verdin, Hermit Thrush, Rufous-backed Robin, Curve-billed Thrasher, Black-headed Grosbeak, Northern Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Western Tanager, Great-tailed Grackle 99. Costa’s Hummingbird, Anna’s Hummingbird, Broad-billed Hummingbird, Broad-tailed Hummingbird LIFE UNDERGROUND 100. Kit Fox 101. Arizona Blond Tarantula 102. Merriam’s Kangaroo-rat 103. Sonoran Lyre Snake 104. Western Spotted Skunk 105. Western Banded Gecko 106. Ringtail Cacomistle 107. Night Snake 108. Glossy Snake 109. Desert Millipede WARDEN AQUARIUM (approximation) • Colorado Pikeminnow • Razorback Sucker • Apache Trout • Bonytail Chub • Flannelmouth Sucker • Roundtail Chub • Beautiful Shiner • Yaqui Chub • Yaqui Catfish • Mexican Stoneroller • Yaqui Topminnow • Sonoyta Pupfish • Rio Sonoyta Longfin Dace • Pacific Seahorse • Horn Shark • California Sea Hare • Pacific Boxfish • Longnose Butterflyfish • Guineafowl Puffer • Spotted Sharpnose Puffer • Spotted Garden Eel • Longnose Hawkfish • King Angelfish • Scrawled Filefish • Black Triggerfish • Rockmover Wrasse • Blue-spotted Jawfish • Popeye Catalufa • Tailspot Cardinalfish • Bigscale Soldierfish • Frogfish • Scorpionfish • Balloonfish • Starry Moray • Jewel Moray • Zebra Moray • Mexican Lookdown • Cortez Angelfish • Pacific Creole • Coral Hawkfish • Sunset Wrasse • Cortez Rainbow Wrasse • Achilles Tang • Barberfish • Convict Surgeonfish • Yellowtail Surgeonfish • Whitecheek Surgeonfish • Threebanded Butterflyfish • Moorish Idol Perhaps Arizona Docent can help me sort out Life on the Rocks a little better!
Your attention span was far higher than mine was. I got extremely claustrophobic in most (all?) of the halls and had to leave pretty quickly. Because of this, I probably missed a few species. I never realized how badly claustrophobic I was until ASDM on a busy day.
Very nice list for ASDM. Only thing I noticed is Life On The Rocks, number 69 Roadrunner should also have gila monster. (Unless it is no longer there, but every time I have gone since the exhibit opened there has always been one). Here is a photo of it in the large exhibit which elicited several replies: http://www.zoochat.com/541/worlds-best-gila-monster-exhibit-147114/
Thanks, I wasn't sure if the roadrunner shared the space with Gila Monsters or not (given their penchant for eating reptiles, but I suppose Gilas are big and tough enough to fend for themselves).
(...........sound of crickets chirping..............) The thread has fallen asleep and we never got to hear about their final day. After the two Tucson zoos on Tuesday, I think they went to the Phoenix Zoo on Wednesday? Can we get a report? (While we are waiting, here are a pair of shots from the Reid Park visit to tide us over....)
