Rtas' zoo pics

At the zoology part of this college about 40 minutes from my village they have a small zoo which includes Tanukis. They also keep coatis, chameleons, poultry and many more (they are all pets that have been seized) When I visited with school we were allowed to feed them chicks which they very much enjoyed.

Your photo illustrates how beautiful they are.

Species : Chimpanzee

Spot : La Flèche zoo, Sarthe, France
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When I posted my first zoo picture, I remember Roger told me he wondered what animals were thinking about visitors watching them and photographing them. Well, this chimpanzee looks absorbed in an intense introspection about its captive animal status. There is melancholia and resignation in his eyes, like if he had accepted his fate and stopped dreaming about a better life, elsewhere. Confined for life...

Very beautiful individual :)

Species : Toco toucan

Spot : La Flèche zoo, Sarthe, France
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I did not post many birds' photos on this topic and it's time to rectify it. This toucan is the first animal you see when you visit La Flèche zoo, a quite large park not far from my parents' hometown. A beautiful introduction to the wonders of wildlife.

Nice pics again

I agree about the chimp! Primates are also the most expressive or at least those we think we can understand their expressions. For instance, which expression has this beautiful toucan? They look all to me as they're asking for some nuts. Great pictures again!

Thank you Andreas and Roger !

Very marvellous bird as he perches in his 'rainforest' home

Species : Cheetah

Spot : Pont-Scorff zoo, Brittany, France
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A cheetah portrait from Pont-Scorff zoo I visited several times before it closed and became a wildlife rescue centre.

I absolutely adore cheetahs, slim and sleek with their tiny chirps and squeaks

Species : Panther chameleon

Spot : Alligator bay, Normandy, France
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A nice chameleon from Alligator Bay, one of the main reptile centres in France, close to the the famous Mont-Saint-Michel in Normandy. Not content with having the largest alligator and Nile crocodile groups in Europe, this park also has a very diversified squamates collection. Undoubtedly one of my favourite places to visit as I am definitely a reptiles lover.

Gorgeous, I love the funny looks of chameleons their eyes amuse me as they move individually in the sockets.

Chameleons are so much interesting

Species : Rothschild's giraffe

Spot : La Boissière du Doré zoo, southern Brittany, France
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Here is a pose you can almost only see in zoos ! Indeed, giraffes usually do not sit down in the wild as it would take them too much time to stand up and thus, they would be too vulnerable. But there is no predator in zoos and as a result, these giant ladies can unthinkingly have a rest. This picture was taken in "La Boissière du Doré", a zoo I have visited many times with my grandparents as it has a very rich collection of apes and my grandfather loves primates. It has also two huge African plains with lots of antelopes, giraffes and rhinos. Fortunately for that giraffe, those plains do not include lions !

Giraffes are marvellous animals, and my mother can't resist borrowing my camera to snap a few photos (I'll see if I can find some photos from other zoo visits) 90% of the giraffes I have seen are Rothchild's and I have only seen reticulated giraffes once.

Species : Ring-tailed lemur

Spot : Trégomeur zoo, Brittany, France
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The ring-tailed lemur is undoubtedly one of the most common species in animal parks. They are so common that they can even be found in a zoo specialised in Asian wildlife such as Trégomeur zoo ! As a result, there are plenty of opportunities to take good pictures of them.
In Madagascar, ring-tailed lemurs inhabit dry forests in the south of the island. These are sunny regions and they enjoy taking sunbathes in lotus position as on the first picture. At night, or when temperatures fall here in Europe, they gather into sleeping parties huddling closely together to keep warm, as on this second picture :
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There are 437 zoos in Europe that hold them and every zoo I have ever been to has had them. My favourite position of a lemur is certainly their meditating one.

And they're so photogenic creatures! Every single photo I have of them is beautiful. And I know nothing about photography really...
I was a bit scared once, because I was in the Zoo with a stroller for my 1 year-old daughter back then, and within seconds they were all over the stroller climbing and wouldn't come down.. My baby was laughing so much though..

Species : Brown bear

Spot : The Ark's refuge, Mayenne, France
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I had posted no picture from the Ark's refuge yet, it is time to rectify it. This zoo holds a special place in my heart as it is the closest to my parents' hometown and thus, the one I visited the most in my childhood. I also love its philosophy and purpose : it only keeps injured wild animals and exotic animals seized from illegal trade. It's also a retreat where abused animals can finish their lives in peace. The bear Miljen fell into this last category. Before being rescued by the refuge, Miljen had been kept in a tiny cage in a gangster's private zoo in Bosnia for eight years where he was mistreated. When the crime boss was sent to prison for human trafficking, the bear stayed in his cage without being fed for a long time and almost died from starvation. He weighed just 70 kg by the time a Serbian film-maker saw him while shooting footage in the area and alarmed animal protection groups. The bear was sent to the Ark's refuge in France and regained his strenght until becoming the largest brown bear I have ever seen ! Unfortunately, he died in 2015 because of sequelas from his past life of abuse...

Wonderful picture and sad story. It's so nice you have captured him in all his glory splashing in the water..

What a happy ending to a sad story, he's probably running in the clouds of heaven having the time of his life. RIP dear bear

It was not much of a happy ending really...

Thank you guys !

Indeed Kostas, he was a force of nature and looked truly glorious. It was hard to believe he still had problems "inside of him" which finally killed him after he had recovered.