Wet and Aggressive Corella challenges Magpie

Wet and Aggressive Corella challenges Magpie

Sunday 30 October 2011

Sunday Selections

Sunday Selections, brought to us by Kim, of Frogpondsrock, is an ongoing theme where participants post previously unused photos languishing in their files.

Anyone can join in, just post your photos under the Sunday Selections title, link back to Kim, then add your name to her Linky list at Frogpondsrock.

Like River, I like to have a theme for my post and this week my photos are from a trip we took to Dubbo Zoo.  I am extremely ambivalent about zoos.  I don't like to see anything caged but, as we encroach into animals' natural habitat, it seems to me that some day too soon the animals in zoos will be the only ones left.  A tragedy.


Simiang Ape

An elephant dutifully displaying its mouth for inspection

Cape Hunting Dog


And the tigers.  I love, love, love the big cats.  And tigers probably most of all.



With the chook it caught while in the water.


38 comments:

  1. these are great photos and the tiger shots are amazing. I went to Dubbo zoo a looooooong time ago. Are parts of it still open for the public to walk in amongst the animals? I got kicked in the butt by an elephant when I was there. Definitely a zoo experience I'll never forget :)

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  2. learncreatedo: Dubbo zoo still largely works on the premise that if you can't hurt the animals or they you, wandering amongst them is fine. And cages are largely created with moats and embankments rather than bars. And yes, being kicked in the butt by an elephant would definitely fall into the unforgettable category. I bet the bruise was something else.

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  3. I'm in love with tigers and chimpanzees, gorillas too.
    I feel the same as you about animals and zoos. Trees too, many years ago I saw a movie set far in the future where a man took his children to a museum and the son said "daddy, what's that?"
    It was a TREE in a sealed environment where it could grow but not be harmed by people wanting to touch it.

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  4. River: I really, really hope that film was fantasy but ....

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  5. I love seeing the animals at the zoo, and as long as their aim is conservation and education then I am okay with that. At least the habitats created for them these days are a bit more natural.

    Miss 5 freaked out at the elephant showing its teeth, she really didn't know what to make of it!

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  6. permanently amanda: I am so sorry. I didn't mean to freak anyone out - let alone Miss 5, who has been so nice about my photos in the past.

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  7. Ooh, I like the cape hunting dog.

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  8. Snowbrush: We were there and feeding time. The cape hunting dogs epitomised the slavering hordes. Not wasteful either, bones, skin and meat disappeared remarkably fast. And, of course, I was too busy watching in awe to take a picture of the classic feeding frenzy.

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  9. I like the tigers as well. I am coming down with a cold so I cant really think of anything worthwhile to say :(

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  10. Dominic would be so jealous of the tiger carrying the chook! He's the only cat I've ever had who gets very excited by the smell of raw meat coming out of a wrapper, as opposed to the smell of it cooking. Definitely a wild one, is he.

    I love the tigers too. All things considered, they're better off there than as some idiot's "pet" in a backyard (if you got that news story from the U.S?). They are magnificent. As are the rest, especially the primates. Brings back memories of when I was a university student and took a primate behavior class. My project was to go to the tiny zoo in Eureka to watch Bill, a chimpanzee who'd been rescued from a circus in the 50s and then lived in a big cage at the zoo. He was well-liked and treated ok, as far as those places go, but it was sad.

    At any rate, I do love your photos. Another great selection!

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  11. gosh! i haven't been to the zoo in years and years... i used to like going but i too hated seeing the animals caged...

    my favs were the monkey varieties... so much personality... lol and the big cats... wow... they are magnificent...

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  12. Some wonderful shots there. The tiger with its head above the water is my favourite.

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  13. Those are great shots, EC, I love the action shots of the tiger and the close up of the giraffe :)

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  14. I think sometimes the wrong species is behind bars.

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  15. I am also ambivalent about zoos, I don't visit them but I do enjoy seeing wild animals. This zoo seems like a good one. I keep remembering the last admonition on the Georgia Guidestones: "Be not a cancer on the earth -- leave room for nature."

    I fear we humans have become a cancer on the earth, pushing out all the wild things.

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  16. Bonza photos, i to like the Tiger and the Simiang Ape showing off for the camera :-).

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  17. Kim: I do hope you get over your cold quickly. Misery inducing things they are.

    Paper Chipmunk: Our cats love the smell of uncooked meat. Jazz (naturally) climbs up legs and leaps to the kitchen counters after it.

    And yes, as caged tigers go these ones seem to lead a reasonable life (I did see the stories about backyard tigers), but it cant compare to life in the wild.

    Sherri: Thanks - big cats every time for me.

    Carolina: Thanks. I liked the giraffe and the tiger series.

    Jayne: Thank you - my favourits too I think.

    mybabyjohn/Delores: You are right about the species which belongs behind bars.

    DJan: Dubbo Zoo is a good one, as they go. I hadn't seen that guideline, but it does fit. Sadly.

    Windsmoke: The Simiang Apes seemed to be having fun (unlike many of the other animals) which was nice to see. And any tiger (except for a tiger skin rug) is a good tiger.

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  18. Ann O'Dyne: I am sorry, but I understand. Dubbo is one of the better ones, devoted to conservation and education but. it. is. still. a. zoo.

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  19. Dear E Child, I am catching up on posts, emerging, sort of, from a big upheaval in my own life. Your blues of 3 posts ago resonated with me. I know what it's like to feel like a failure. But the beautiful pictures of your flowers and animals inspire me to get a grip and get on with life. I agree about zoos, but I think if they are done right they can actually help preserve some endangered species and add to our knowledge of how to protect them.

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  20. Anne: I do hope your upheaval is settling in the right way. I have decided that failure is fine, so long as I don't let it stop me from trying again. And the garden, the cats, the sky - the little things help so much.

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  21. Those are wonderful. Especially the elephant one. I can honestly say I've never seen the inside of an elephant's mouth till now. :)

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  22. white tigers my fans

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  23. Lou: Apparently elephants have delicate mouths, so the keepers need to check them daily. Also the soles of their feet. Incredible to watch.

    Anon: Welcome. Any tigers are fine by me.

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  24. What amazing close-ups you managed to capture. Wonderful!

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  25. what fabulous pictures.
    I love the tigers - especially my own tiny tiger at home. . .


    Aloha from Honolulu

    Comfort Spiral

    > < } } ( ° >

    ><}}(°>

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  26. Dubbo Zoo! Fond memories of bike rides and gynormous tortoises. Great photos.

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  27. Fantastic photos from your trip to the zoo. Like you I am also ambivalent to them but have begun to realize that there is a need for zoo's for a lot of reasons, the most important one saving those precious animals from extinction, though people might have strong objections with that way of thinking I suppose. I think most of us would prefer to see them in the wild, but sad to say as that's not possible for everyone, zoo's are the only way we get to see these beautiful animals with our own eyes. I've been to several over here where they have seemed very humane, large open areas that try to be as close to the animal's natural habitat as possible.

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  28. Cloudia: I would be v surprised if your own tiger considered himself tiny.

    Mitzi: Thanks.

    Denise: Dubbo Zoo is one of the better ones. I would still so much prefer that the animals could run free, unmolested by either habitat destruction or poachers/hunters etc. An idealist, thats me.

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  29. Tina's PicStory: Welcome and thank you.

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  30. I couldn't get the comments button to work. And have twice lost the fabulously witty thought I made. Since I'm only allowed 2 witticisms per day, I'll just say I love the cats and what's a chook? (A naked chicken?)

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  31. barbfroman: Blogger has these hissy fits from time to time. A chook is Oz speak for chickens. A person can go out to feed the chooks or have a roast chook for dinner.

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  32. Bad on me for missing pictures of TIGERS, my spirit animal! These are great, thanks, EC.

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  33. Two Tigers: Given the upheaval of moving, you are more than forgiven. And yes, tigers are wonderful.

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  34. That is an unusual looking tortoise, with the spines on the shell.

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  35. Strayer: A Galapogas turtle - and they are BIG.

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