Some bees have given up their wings for helicopter backpacks.
Tag Archives: Denver Zoo – Denver
Collared Mangabey (Cercocebus torquatus)
That thing you’re looking for? It’s over there, to your left.
Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus)
The ancient Egyptians liked this bird so much, they made graffiti of it on EVERYTHING.
Eyelash Viper (Bothriechis schlegelii)
This snake is only half-ripe. You should wait until the majority of the snake turns an orangish red before picking it.
Monkey
This monkey made the mistake of reading the comments and now has some hard questions to ask about humans.
Grey Crowned Crane (Balearica regulorum)
It’s hard to get a good bird portrait. Ideally, such a shot is against a very smooth background and is composed such that the iris is in crystal-sharp focus and there’s a bit of light on the eye. These “catchlights” look very different on living animals than on stuffed or dead ones and helps to psychologically convince the viewer that the animal is healthy. Birds are particularly difficult because they’re constantly preening their feathers, so are in constant movement. Thus, as they move their head, the background changes, the focus changes and many positions cause the catchlight in the eye to go away. Getting a good shot largely involves a mix of luck and patience. Good lenses help, but really, patience overwhelms every other consideration.
Collared Mangabey (Cercocebus torquatus)
This monkey inventor is exploring the possibly of doubling work production though the controversial application of knee-grease.
Mudskipper
Gee, Brain, what do you want to do tonight?
The same thing we do every night, Pinky, learn to breathe air and try to grow legs so our decedents can try to take over the world.
Nene (Branta sandvicensis)
The nene lives in Hawai’i and is the rarest goose in the world. By 1952, its population was down from 25,000 birds to only 30. This is because their primary food source, camera gear, had been sent to Europe to document the activities of Word War II.
Pygmy Marmoset (Cebuella pygmaea)
Marmosets can be identified by their distinctive call of “ca-caw! ca-caw!”, used to notify their compatriots that their portion of the bank heist has been completed.
Throwback Thursday
This fish might be a goby. It might be something else. It might be defending its burrow, it might be advertising for a mate. If it is advertising for a mate, it might decide to be either male or female, or it might decide to sneak into someone else’s mating session and provide a contribution. Frankly, there is too much uncertainty involving this fish and it should be thrown back. (Though if it’s a frillfin goby, it might jump back, so check for that first.)
Malagasy giant chameleon (Furcifer oustaleti)
The Malagasy giant chameleon is a good start for a beginner lizard climber, but provides a lot of fun for advanced climbers as well. The nose approach is the most common, but some prefer the challenge of the lower lip followed by a rope looped over the eye socket. This is particular challenging during fruit fly season when the eye moves around seemingly at random.
Rainbow Lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus)
It takes rainbow lorikeets many hours to assemble a custom bouquet. But you know what? You’re worth it.
Snake
Notice how one scale overlaps another so when the snake twists, they slide at different rates. This “subduction” is the most common cause of snakequakes.