This was captured just outside the Chihuly Glass Museum and Gardens.
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The wife, daughter and I just returned from a trip to Denver; Chenjean had a meeting there, and Allison and I tagged along to see the sights. After this series on Seattle is published I'll make the pics from this trip the next priority.
Can't go to Colorado, however, without remembering one of the spookiest things I've seen in a zoo. In fact, it gave me chills.
It was a few years ago in Colorado Springs (which, by the way, has one of the best zoos on the planet). We were approaching the lion exhibit and heard a big THUNK. There was some excitement amongst the folks looking through a plexiglass window, surrounded by large fake boulders, built for viewing the lions inside. We didn't think much of the excitement that had been generated because that often happens at zoos when animals get frisky or show a little personality.
We were still walking, getting closer to the exhibit, when we heard another big THUNK. The first time it wasn't too loud, but this time the noise startled us a bit. By now we were almost there, and upon looking through the glass we noticed huge paw prints that had made contact with the inside of the glass, then scratched their way down. At that moment there was a lioness that was making her way to the back of the enclosure, which rose up to a height of maybe ten feet. After making it to the top of the berm she turned around, crouched, and ran as fast as she could, striking with all of her force, leaving scratch marks and mud trailing as her paws lowered to the bottom of the viewing pane. The impact was so hard that it made the plexiglass wobble with the force of her weight. This was the third THUNK, and by this time the giggles and excitement of the group there turned to concern - not least because the lioness lingered at the window, maintaining a steady gaze on a little girl in the group, probably about nine years old, who was wearing an orange dress. After drilling her with its hungry eyes it began to make its way back for another full-on attack.
As the uneasiness increased the adults of the group thought it might be best that they move on, because by now the little girl was visibly shaken upon realizing that she might be the target of this behavior. As they moved around the corner of the exhibit and down the sidewalk, the lioness leapt to the window and positioned herself to follow the little girl with her eyes, craning her neck as she moved out of sight. This was what gave me the chills - that the lioness wasn't looking at anyone else except that one girl and was very interested in following her every move. The thunks against the glass were actual attempts to break through in a full-blown assault on this small human, obviously looked upon as prey. Chenjean and I couldn't tell for sure, but guessed that it could have been her small size along with the color of her dress. So that is how a simple visit to the zoo turned into an uneasy episode for anyone who was there to witness the ferocity and focus exhibited by this lion that tried so hard to kill one of its visitors.
_________________
The wife, daughter and I just returned from a trip to Denver; Chenjean had a meeting there, and Allison and I tagged along to see the sights. After this series on Seattle is published I'll make the pics from this trip the next priority.
Can't go to Colorado, however, without remembering one of the spookiest things I've seen in a zoo. In fact, it gave me chills.
It was a few years ago in Colorado Springs (which, by the way, has one of the best zoos on the planet). We were approaching the lion exhibit and heard a big THUNK. There was some excitement amongst the folks looking through a plexiglass window, surrounded by large fake boulders, built for viewing the lions inside. We didn't think much of the excitement that had been generated because that often happens at zoos when animals get frisky or show a little personality.
We were still walking, getting closer to the exhibit, when we heard another big THUNK. The first time it wasn't too loud, but this time the noise startled us a bit. By now we were almost there, and upon looking through the glass we noticed huge paw prints that had made contact with the inside of the glass, then scratched their way down. At that moment there was a lioness that was making her way to the back of the enclosure, which rose up to a height of maybe ten feet. After making it to the top of the berm she turned around, crouched, and ran as fast as she could, striking with all of her force, leaving scratch marks and mud trailing as her paws lowered to the bottom of the viewing pane. The impact was so hard that it made the plexiglass wobble with the force of her weight. This was the third THUNK, and by this time the giggles and excitement of the group there turned to concern - not least because the lioness lingered at the window, maintaining a steady gaze on a little girl in the group, probably about nine years old, who was wearing an orange dress. After drilling her with its hungry eyes it began to make its way back for another full-on attack.
As the uneasiness increased the adults of the group thought it might be best that they move on, because by now the little girl was visibly shaken upon realizing that she might be the target of this behavior. As they moved around the corner of the exhibit and down the sidewalk, the lioness leapt to the window and positioned herself to follow the little girl with her eyes, craning her neck as she moved out of sight. This was what gave me the chills - that the lioness wasn't looking at anyone else except that one girl and was very interested in following her every move. The thunks against the glass were actual attempts to break through in a full-blown assault on this small human, obviously looked upon as prey. Chenjean and I couldn't tell for sure, but guessed that it could have been her small size along with the color of her dress. So that is how a simple visit to the zoo turned into an uneasy episode for anyone who was there to witness the ferocity and focus exhibited by this lion that tried so hard to kill one of its visitors.
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