#Omaha Zoo

[why-animals-do-the-thing]

Tigers' stripes are on their skin, not just their fur - but how often do you get to see it?!

This is the female Amur tiger at Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium (I can't find her name online, somehow). A sign on the exhibit noted she had recently had medical care and part of her belly had been shaved in the process. A beautiful lady, and those stripes on her skin are just stunning.

#amur tiger #tigers #zoo tiger #tiger stripes #henry doorly zoo #omaha zoo

[jeysphoto]

Constant Carrion, Jey Schroeder, 2023

#vulture #turkey vulture #bird #dark nature #dark photography #nebraska photographer #animals #nebraska #bird photography #henry doorly zoo #omaha zoo #photography #photographer

[riot-control]

Cheetah(taken by me) Omaha Zoo, October 2022

#Cheetah #photography #omaha zoo #big cat #wild #feline #photo #my art

[satashiiphotography]

Soaking up the heat, Omaha Zoo, Omaha, Nebraska, USA. August 2022.

Photo credit @satashiiphotography

#iphone photos #henry doorly zoo #omaha zoo #lizards

[deemmzee]

🐆💛

#Omaha World Herald #omaha zoo #cheetah cubs

[danishmuseuminterns]

A Museum with Living Collections: A Trip to Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium

Did you know that a zoo is actually considered a museum? The American Alliance of Museums considers institutions with living or non-living collections that collect, preserve/conserve, and interpret those collections for the public to be museums. Zoos heartily fall into this category. One of the most well known in the United States is Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo.

I recently took a trip to the Henry Doorly, and it was pretty obvious that they take their mission as species conservation specialists very seriously. The exhibits for the various animals all had descriptions of efforts being made by the zoo to increase numbers and to protect natural habitats. Research is done on site to examine animal behaviors and the results will be used in conservation work.

Of course, I didn't go to the zoo just because it was a museum. I went to see the cool animals and to learn about species I had never heard of before, like the Fossa, a carnivore from Madagascar that is related to the mongoose. If you ever have the opportunity to visit Henry Doorly, I would definitely recommend it!

Kelsey Barnett

#omaha zoo #henry doorly zoo #zoo #elephant #penguin #jellyfish #snakes #intern life #internship #museum of danish america #fossa

[duuuudebro]

“and he shall be my squishy!”

#omaha zoo #omaha #nebraska #spring break #2022 #jellyfish #aquarium #finding nemo

[thestorycontinues]

Busy little bats at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska.

#henry doorly zoo #omaha #bats

[vlkphoto]

Red river hogs .. [2 / 2]

Henry Doorly Zoo, Omaha, NE.

#Panasonic #Lumix #TZ-1 #fauna #red river hog #zoo #Henry Doorly Zoo #Omaha #Nebraska #USA

[zanzindorf]

Vacation in Omaha Nebraska - Part 2

#pixel art #photography #retro #zoo #animals #omaha #nebraska #retro art

[delta--v]

Zoo Livin'

#animal photography #animals #zoo #gorilla #zoo photography #henry doorly zoo #canon #photographers on tumblr #photography #photooftheday #photographyeveryday #picoftheday #naturephotography #nature #omaha #picture

[jeysphoto]

Sea lion, Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium, Jey Schroeder, 2022

#sea lion #animals #cute animals #photography #animal photography #photographer #omaha zoo #henry doorly zoo

[satashiiphotography]

Birds of a Feather, Desert Dome, Omaha Zoo, August 2022. 

Photo credit @satashiiphotography

#taking flight #wildlife photography #omaha zoo #birds of a feather

[footloose-travel]

Michigan, Lakes, Books, and Jets

        We’ve been busy traveling around, selling my book “Obscure Felicity”, working on getting the sequel published, skydiving (not me, John), socializing with friends along the way, and seeing the sites. Granted, that is no excuse for not doing a post in a few months so we have some catching up to do.         After visiting with relatives in New Jersey and taking care of a few housekeeping things, we headed to Michigan. Just like we explored Tennessee because we had never really spent much time there other than for work, we wanted to explore Michigan, especially the Upper Peninsula. There were many beautiful weather days and places definitely worth mentioning. Bell Isle is a 982-acre island park in Detroit and was interesting to explore. You could see the city across the water and take a ride around the island where they have a Conservatory, Aquarium, Museum and a Nature Center. The Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn is a must see and we were not disappointed. The museum collection contains a huge amount of historical exhibits making it the largest indoor-outdoor museum complex in the US.         We stayed at a nice campground in Holland, MI known for…you guessed it, their tulips. The campground was memorable for a couple of reasons, the first being that I sold 3 books there. The young woman who checked us in bought one and then came back later with 2 friends who also wanted a signed copy. Later, I was remarking that for once there wasn’t a train nearby since every campground we went to seemed to have a train with a loud whistle, running way too often. Just as I said it, a very loud train whistle went off close by causing us to laugh. I really wasn’t looking to manifest a train with a loud whistle, but just goes to show you. We did get to visit Dutch Island Gardens that had a 250 year old windmill that you could climb up and cultivated grounds you could walk through.         From there we enjoyed Frederick Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids. The gardens were laid out nicely and the sculptures were interesting. The area was quite large and we spent the entire day going through it. Next was Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lake Shore, and that I have to say was impressive. I kind of laughed when I heard the locals talk about going to the beach, only to see it as a small stretch of rocky sand along the lake shore. Growing up an hour from the Atlantic Ocean I knew beaches as ocean beaches, and the lake shores were not as impressive to me. But, the Sleeping Bear Dunes were immense and very impressive. The national park also has beaches, forests and inland lakes. We were told the dunes were sculpted by the advance and retreat of huge glaciers over the last two million years. Its the world’s largest collection of freshwater sand dunes and some that rise up to 400 feet above the surface of the lake. There were people climbing all over the steep one that has an overlook that gives a panoramic view of the area. There is also a sign that says if you climb down the dune to the water and can’t get back up, it will cost $3000 to have them come and bring you back up!         Traverse City was the next memorable stop. It is known as the “Cherry Capital of the World” and yes, we sampled lots of cherries. While sitting in a cafe eating cherry pie we glanced out the window to see some small acrobatic planes doing maneuvers over the water. We decided to check it out and as we were approaching the shoreline we were met by the rumbling sound of The Blue Angels overhead! We had no idea they were going to be putting on an airshow over the lake that day and we just happened to walk right into it. It was wonderful and they performed for quite a while. This was made even more fun by serendipity at its best. After the show we looked around for a place to buy some cherries to bring with us and came upon a farmer’s market where you could pick your own. I never picked cherries before and it was a new experience to be out in the orchard with the beautiful fruit laden trees. I picked a few pounds of them, ate cherries for several days, and still didn’t get tired of them.         For our time in St. Ignace we stayed in a quaint campground literally across the road from Lake Michigan. We had a view of the lake and it was just a short walk to their little beach area. John did some running every morning on roads where he barely saw any cars. We were also within sight of The Mackinac Bridge, a suspension bridge that spans the straits of Mackinac and connects the Upper and Lower peninsulas of Michigan. It’s the 4th longest suspension bridge in the world, and has a total span of about 5 miles. In the small town there is an old lighthouse and its also where you can take the ferry to Mackinac Island. The ferry takes about 20 minutes and drops you off in the crowded, touristy area where there are many shops and lots of people. There are no cars allowed, so you will see the streets crowded with people on bicycles, intermingled with the horse-drawn carriages that are quite popular. Once out of the main street area there is a lot to explore and if you’re ambitious you can hike in the state park, kayak and even golf. We chose to walk around the island where we saw Fort Mackinac, the Butterfly Garden and other sites. Once up over the hill where the fort is located, we walked further about a 1/2 mile through a beautiful forested area to their famous Arch Rock that towers above the water and is more than 50 feet wide. We had a good time there on a beautiful weather day, and on the way back to the ferry I gave in and bought some of their tasty fudge from one of the many shops where they make it on the premises.         Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore hugs the south shore of Lake Superior in the Upper Peninsula (town of Munising). The small boat cruise took us through an area of dramatic multicolored Pictured Rocks cliffs. The colors were stunning and we delighted in picking out all the faces and other images we could see in the formations. From the water we had excellent views and the captain gave us some interesting commentary.         Looking for more to explore we decided to take the Soo Locks Boat Tour out of Sault Ste. Marie. The educational boat tour took us through the locks while highlighting stories of historic Sault Ste. Marie. We met 3 women seated in front of us on the upper deck and towards the end of the tour learned they were friends traveling together on a bus tour. It was mentioned that I recently published a book and all 3 of them wanted to purchase a signed copy. They say things happen in 3’s and I was happy to oblige.         We moved on through Iowa where John got to do one skydive at Des Moines Skydivers. I finalized more of what I needed to do to get my 2nd book published and we squeezed in a visit to a Botanical Garden that we forgot we had already visited some months back. Maquoketa Caves State Park near Dubuque was full of caves and rock formations in an area we climbed down into and hiked through. It was a bit of a workout for me, but a walk in the park for John. In Omaha, Nebraska we drove through Lee Simmons Wildlife Safari Park, making several stops to take photos. Henry Doorly’s Zoo and Aquarium in Omaha is worth a mention as well. The layout was somewhat different and they had a really interesting bird aviary featuring birds you don’t often see. In Oklahoma City we stopped at a fascinating museum dedicated to bones, called SKELETON'S Museum of Osteology. Most of the skeletons were real and covered just about any living thing with a skeleton.         In between visiting all of these places we stopped in Kansas to visit our friends John and Alice who are really good people and an inspiration to be around. We also were able to meet up with our skydiver friend Serena and her dog Rex. We’re fortunate to have friendships with many amazing people that we can meet up with all over the country. Another great thing about our travels these last several months is how many books I’ve sold. John is an excellent marketer and talks about “Obscure Felicity” to anyone he feels might be interested. The joy I get out of someone being excited to get a signed copy of my book is beyond rewarding. In just about every campground, and many of the places we visited, people bought my book. I’ve gotten so much positive feedback and several are asking when the sequel is coming out. Soon!         We are now slowly making the last legs of our journey back to Arizona for my 2nd foot surgery I have scheduled for early October. Things will be slowing down for sure as we’re more stationary, but I know there will be further exciting stuff to tell, so stay tuned.        For all the photos see John and Charlotte’s flickr sites. Just click on either of our names.

#Michigan #world tour #Blue Angels #Traverse City #UP #Upper Pennisula #Museum of Osteology #Oklahoma City #Arizona #Obscure Felicity #Kansas Hicks #Omaha #Nebraska #Kansas #Summerfest #Skydive Chicago #Maquoketa Caves State Park #Dubuque #Iowa #Henry Doorly's Zoo and Aquarium #Lee Simmons Wildlife Safari Park #Soo Locks Boat Tour #Mackinac Bridge #New Jersey #Cherry Capital of the World #cherries #Sault Ste. Marie #Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore #Lake Superior #Arch Rock

[skarlettriott]

#original content #Zoo #Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo #Summer 22

[why-animals-do-the-thing]

Every so often, I remember that I have something like 2,000 animal photos I've been meaning to edit and post from zoo trips over the past few years. This creates a problem, however, when it comes to animal ID. I'm great at mammals, and reasonable at birds. Reptiles and amphibians, though... not so much. Luckily we can outsource help on the internet!

I finished editing the incredibly cool frog photo at the bottom of this post (linked to on IG because I'm shameless) a little while ago and was absolutely stumped as to who they were. I knew I'd taken them at the Omaha Zoo this spring, but that facility has a truly spectacular set of frog breeding programs, so that narrowed it down to basically nothing.

I pretty much immediately sent it to @kaijutegu for help with an ID, because if she doesn't know the species of something, it's pretty guaranteed she'll know someone who will. And yet she was still stumped! There's not a ton of frogs with that unique face shape and mottled coloration, and still, it eluded us. Until one morning, a day or so later, when I woke up to this text:

Gotta love a friend having an honest-to-god Ebenezer Scrooge moment pre-dawn to help you figure out what type of frog you saw half a year ago. I could have just contacted the zoo, probably, but this turned out to be more fun.

Anyway, these really cool looking buddies are fringed leaf frogs, and they actually shift from being bright green and yellow to being burgundy at night! They've got super complex pigment cells in their skin, some of which reflect light, and others of which can contract to hide the reflective ones to increase their camouflage in dark settings. It's kind of unfortunate they're displayed under blue light at the zoo (although obviously nocturnal habitats are important) because it means the color shift isn't really visible.

To my endless disappointment, I can't find a good photo of what that burgundy coloration looks like! If you know of one, please, please add it in a reblog. I must know. I must see the red frogs.

#the IG post has alt text but I don't think I can add it to an image that is part of an embedded link #fringed leaf frogs #cool frogs #zoo animals #my photography #Instagram