Photography . . . Travel . . .

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Menacing Cat

I thought that these 3 shots deserved their own post. This is Nindiri, the female Jaguar at the San Diego Zoo who became the mother of 2 cubs back in late April of this year. You can sort of see one of her cubs in the background blur of the third shot in this series, and of course, there are lots of shots of them in earlier posts on this blog.

I'm not sure just what she's thinking here, but I'm glad there is a sturdy fence between us.




These were taken tonight at the San Diego Zoo.
     

More Nice Early Evening Light at the San Diego Zoo

I went back down to the San Diego Zoo this evening, mostly with the intention of getting in a  bit of a walk. They're open until 6:00pm for a few more days - I got there at about 5:00pm. The temperature and the light were quite nice. The Flamingo pool is generally pretty active late in the day, tonight was no exception.


One of the adult female Malayan Tigers was napping up against the glass at the upper pool area, pretty much too close for me to get much of a picture with the long lens I was carrying. After a while she did look up a couple of times, and I was able to step back far enough to get enough of her face in the shot to make it recognizable.


I stopped off at the Red Pandas for a few minutes.


The Red Pandas are right next to the Takins.


I wanted to get up the hill to the Lion and Jaguars before closing, and that took me past the Grevy's Zebras. It seems like all they ever do is eat, occasionally looking up to see what else is going on around them.


I got up to the Lions right after they went inside, so I went over and hung out with the Jaguars for a while. Just as it was time to leave, M'bari, the big male Lion, came back out and started pacing back and forth along the fence. Well, actually he was sort of nonchalantly stalking a lady in a wheelchair who I had been talking with earlier. Whichever direction she went, he went. Most of the tine he was way too close for a picture, but I got one shot of him through the dusty glass at the end of the enclosure. There was a lot of glare and reflections (some of which you can still see here), but I kind of like the way it turned out anyway.


Click here to see a few more images from Sunday evening, September 30, 2012 at the San Diego Zoo.
     

Saturday, September 29, 2012

A Protective Mother Jaguar, A Polar Bear In A Food Coma . . . All Sorts of Interesting Things Today

I had a pretty good morning at the San Diego Zoo today. Ran into some friends, met some new friends, got in a good bit of walking, and even got a few pictures I liked along the way. What more could I ask for?

When I got to the Polar Bears my first sight was of this one, pretty much out cold on top of a ledge, drooling. I recognized the little orange bits - these bears have developed quite a taste for carrots.


When I moved around to a different angle I could really see what was going on - food coma . . . massive carrot overdose - and one out-cold Polar Bear.


Meanwhile, over at the Jaguars, the cubs were napping. One was way up on top of the highest rock ledge, pretty much out of sight, while the other was on the ground back up against the fence. One very protective mother was resting nearby, but never quite letting down her guard.


Here are a few more of the Jaguars. The little cub looks almost friendly, but I'm sure a certain amount of blood would be shed by anyone trying to get too close.




There is a new little butterfly garden near the entrance to Elephant Odyssey.


I walked past the Grevy's Zebras on my way too and from the Jaguars.


I spent a fair amount of time at the Malayan Tigers, but didn't get many shots. 



Click here to see more images from the San Diego Zoo on Saturday, September 29, 2012, including an assortment of birds and lots more of the Jaguars.
     

Friday, September 28, 2012

A Few Images From Last Weekend at the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park

It's been a pretty hectic past 2 weeks, with lots going on. I figured if I was going to keep this blog in more or less chronological order I had better put up the shots from last weekend before I got to this coming weekend. Of course, I still have to put up the Seattle trip shots from earlier in September. With any luck those will go up later this weekend.

In the meantime, here are a few images from the San Diego Zoo on Saturday and the Zoo's Safari Park (formerly known as the Wild Animal Park) on Sunday.

Gao Gao the male Panda was just hanging out. Usually I see him munching away on some bamboo, but he was taking a break when I got there on Saturday.


I spent most of my time at the Malayan Tigers, but when I first got there this was the best I could see of the 2 brothers.


They weren't even visible at all from the 3 "official" viewing areas, but I found a spot along the trail where you can just see over the rock wall at the right angle to see them when they're at the top of the enclosure. I wound up spending a fair amount of time helping other people get a glimpse of these 2. You might think that at least the only way it could go was to get better - but that would not be the case. For a while, this is most I could see. You really had to know where and what to look for, and have something with a fair amount of magnification too.


After quite a while the wait became worth it, when they finally came partway down the hill. The fence in the background is pretty ugly, but there's nothing to do about that.



Click here to see a few more images from the San Diego Zoo on Saturday, September 22, 2012.

On Sunday I joined some new friends for a walk around the San Diego Zoo's Safari Park in Escondido. This used to be called the Wild Animal Park, and I still mostly call it that out of habit.

They have a new baby Elephant.


I got some nice views of the Lioness.


One of the keepers let us get up close and personal with a couple of these guys, I think they are called Sitatungas.


Right by the entrance / exit there are these really cool crested-something-or-other birds. Next time I go back I'll remember to write down the name.


Click here to see a few more images from the San Diego Zoo's Safari Park on Sunday, September 23, 2012.
     

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Reptiles, Birds, Tigers . . . A Few Hours at the San Diego Zoo

We're back from our week in Seattle but those pictures will have to wait a few days, as there are quite a few to go through. In the meantime, here are a few images from this morning at the San Diego Zoo.

I went to the Reptile House for my first stop today, and got to the Green Mambas just as they were noticing their Sunday treat - fresh mice.  You'll have to click through to the gallery with the link at the end of this post to see those. Here's one of the Mambas checking us out first.


There was a lot of glare on the glass, but these 3 huddled together up under the heat lamps  were just too good to pass up.




I think this one is a Black Skink, and I don't think I've noticed him before.


There's a big bottle-brush tree just outside the Reptile House, the flowers back and side-lit by the low morning sun caught my attention.



It turns out that the tree has caught the attention of a few hummingbirds as well.


This Mandrill was hanging out under a tree on the trail down to the Tigers.


I stopped by to see what the Malayan Tigers were up to - not much it turns out. Ran into a friend there, and we talked for a while. Eventually one of the males (Christopher) came out briefly, but he didn't stay in view long.


Last stop before heading back out the same way I came in was the large bird pool at the bottom of the canyon. I think this is a Great Blue Heron.


Here's an Egret.


Neither of these 2 birds had bands on their legs - like me, they've just stopped in to the Zoo for a visit.

Click here to see a few more images from this morning at the San Diego Zoo.
     

Monday, September 3, 2012

Balboa Park - Night and Day

I made a couple of visits to Balboa Park over the long weekend.  On Sunday I went down there after dinner to practice a bit of night photography. It was a beautiful evening for a walk around the Park.  I was hoping for some clouds in the sky, but the great display of clouds that started out the morning were pretty much all burned off by late afternoon.




The Reflecting Pool in Balboa Park has been cleaned up and restored after the recent vandalism, and is back to doing what it does best - reflect the images of the surrounding buildings.



On my way back to the car I ran across this cool looking red motor-scooter.  A passing car's headlights were timed just right for me to get a shot.


On Sunday I went back to Balboa Park, this time to take Heather to see the Pastranna Tapestries exhibit at the San Diego Museum of Art.  We also spent some time just wandering around the Park.  We found this bust in the German Expressionism exhibit.


The San Diego Museum of Art building is itself a work of art. 



We wandered around the Park, checking out the people and the architecture.


Eventually we found our way to the Zoro Garden. The stone grotto was originally built in 1915, in 1935 at the California Pacific International Exposition it was the site of a nudist colony.  Most recently it's the site of a butterfly garden. 


Click here to see a few more images from Balboa Park on the evening of September 2, and the afternoon of September 3, 2012.
     

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San Diego, California, United States
About me . . . When I'm not working I like to be out exploring and photographing. I do this blog just for fun, and to be able to share these images with friends. I hope you enjoy viewing these images as much as I enjoyed creating them.

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All of the content and images on this site (c) Frank B. Baiamonte. If you would like to use any of these images please contact me via email at frank@frankbaiamonte.com to discuss terms of usage. Note that images from the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park are not available for commercial usage. You can also see more on my Instagram page @frankbaiamonte.

Header image: Cibola National Wildlife Refuge, Cibola, Arizona. End image: Downtown San Diego, California skyline from Coronado Island. Profile picture: Craters of the Moon National Monument, Idaho, by Heather Baiamonte.