Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: 28 September 2014

When I visited the Calgary Zoo on 28 September 2014, I called in to see the Meerkats. As well as this one, which was standing on guard to protect all the rest, there were several young Meerkats playing in their small enclosure, They were almost constantly on the move, providing entertainment for their human audience. "The meerkat or suricate, Suricata suricatta, is a small mammal belonging to the mongoose family. Meerkats live in all parts of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana, in much of the Namib Desert in Namibia and southwestern Angola, and in South Africa. A group of meerkats is called a "mob", "gang" or "clan". A meerkat clan often contains about 20 meerkats, but some super-families have 50 or more members. Meerkats have an average life span of 12–14 years." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meerkat

I have been taking so few photos recently, so am now having to dig into my archives most of the time. The few times I have been out, I have either seen nothing or nothing that I can photograph. I am longing for a day out with tons of things to see and photograph : ) I'm quite sure there are many other people who are feeling just the same way! This photo was taken through dirty glass at the Calgary Zoo on 28 September 2014. My last visit to the Zoo was about a year and a half ago, but hopefully these impressive animals are still there. "The world’s largest monkey, mandrills in the wild are found in the rainforests of equatorial Africa in countries such as Guinea, Nigeria and Cameroon. Known for the vivid red, blue and yellow markings on the muzzle and rump, mandrills also have long canine teeth that make a memorable impression. The monkeys are largely ground-dwelling omnivores that forage on grubs, eggs, fruit, leaves and reptiles, but they will climb trees for fun or for a safe place to sleep. Mature males can weigh up to 50 kg. and live up to about 25 years of age. Their colours also get brighter as they mature. Males can appear aggressive when they flash their canines at one another, but that is really a sign of friendly communication common in their complex social hierarchies, said Celli. In fact, despite their striking looks, mandrills tend to be quite shy. Because the group at the zoo is all male, you won’t see any displays of bravado that signal mating behaviour, but you will see the younger males following the lead of their dominant oldest brother, Yusufu. Zoo curator, Dr. Malu Celli, said the adolescent younger brothers will copy his mannerisms and even his walk. The trio were born in captivity in the Granby Zoo in Granby, Q.C. and were part of a family group there that had too many males. Celli said it is not unusual to find bachelor groups of mandrills in the wild, or males that hang out on the peripheries of a “super group.” From an article in the Calgary Herald on 16 May 2014. www.calgaryherald.com/technology/things+know+about+colour... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandrill

I have been taking so few photos recently, so am now having to dig into my archives most of the time. The few times I have been out, I have either seen nothing or nothing that I can photograph. I am longing for a day out with tons of things to see and photograph : ) When I visited the Calgary Zoo on 28 September 2014, I called in at the Penguin Plunge and found this Humboldt Penguin having a swim outside. This species is named after the cold water current it swims in, which is itself named after Alexander von Humboldt, an explorer. "The status of this species is IUCN Red List: Vulnerable. Current Impacts on their numbers are El Niño and La Niña weather patterns, predators, tourism, competition with fisheries, habitat change. Humboldt penguins groom their feathers before breakfast. They rub oil from a gland at the base of the tail into their feathers and the edges of their wings. Humboldts also groom each other. This species digs nesting burrows in thick deposits of seabird guano (droppings)." storage.canoe.ca/v1/suns-prod-images/file/1297237247336_C...

Yesterday's (15 February 2017) high of 16.4 C in Calgary broke a century-old record, beating the previous mark of 15.6 C set in 1916. Our crazy weather! Just the other week, we had windchills as cold as -34C. The last few days have been so mild and wonderful, and the snow is rapidly melting. Makes a wet mess on the roads and you can only drive for a few seconds before the car windows are filthy again. Now if only all the snow and ice could disappear before our next snowfall, it would be worthwhile washing the car. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/calgary-weather-record-hig... It's 11:30 am and there are only six new photos showing from my Contacts! Are there really so few people posting on Flickr today (and recently), or is it yet another Flickr glitch? I have been taking so few photos recently, so am now having to dig into my archives most of the time. The few times I have been out, I have either seen nothing or nothing that I can photograph. I am longing for a day out with tons of things to see and photograph : ) When I visited the Calgary Zoo on 28 September 2014, I called in at the Conservatory - my favourite place in the Zoo, for tropical plants and butterflies. I haven't been to the Zoo for about a year and a half now and really miss it a lot. This butterfly is a Chocolate Pansy / Chocolate Soldier / Junonia iphita. Though not a colourful species, it does have quite attractive markings. "The Chocolate Pansy or Chocolate Soldier (Junonia iphita) is a butterfly found in Asia.... Individuals maintain a territory and are usually found close to the ground level and often bask in the sun." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junonia_iphita "Both sexes are very similar in appearance, but the female has slightly broader and more rounded wings. On the underside the wings are pale brown with a dark stripe, and look like a dead leaf. Junonia iphita is found mainly in degraded and disturbed forest habitats including palm plantations, small clearings, and along roadsides and riverbanks at elevations between sea level and at least 1200m. It also occurs in primary rainforest and temperate evergreen and deciduous forests. Both sexes are low flying, and spend long periods basking on herbage or on the ground. They are relatively easy to approach, and rarely fly far if disturbed. When not basking they tend to sit on the leaves of bushes or saplings, where they often remain motionless for several minutes even in hot sunny weather." From Learn about Butterflies. www.learnaboutbutterflies.com/Malaysia%20-%20Junonia%20ip...

I have been taking so few photos recently, so am now having to dig into my archives most of the time. The few times I have been out, I have either seen nothing or nothing that I can photograph. Now, there are very urgent things that need to be done, and I must put them first. When I visited the Calgary Zoo on 28 September 2014, I called in to see the Mountain Goats in their large, open enclosure ('mountain scene'). I've only seen these impressive animals in the wild a handful of times, and only from a great distance. "The Mountain Goat (Oreamnos americanus), also known as the Rocky Mountain Goat, is a large hoofed mammal found only in North America. Despite its name, it is not a true goat, as it belongs to a different genus. It resides at high elevations and is a sure-footed climber, often resting on rocky cliffs that predators cannot reach. Both male and female mountain goats have beards, short tails, and long black horns, 15-28 cm in length, which contain yearly growth rings. They are protected from the elements by their woolly white double coats. The fine, dense wool of their undercoats is covered by an outer layer of longer, hollow hairs. In warmer seasons, mountain goats molt by rubbing against rocks and trees, with the adult billies (males) shedding their extra wool first and the pregnant nannies (females) shedding last. In the winter, their coats help them to withstand temperatures as low as -50 Fahrenheit (-46 Celsius) and winds of up to 100 mph (161 km/h). A billy stands about 1 meter (3'3") at the shoulder and weighs about 90 kg (200 lb.). It has longer horns and a longer beard than the nanny. Adult males typically weigh between 45 and 100 kg, while females are usually 10-30% lighter. The mountain goat's feet are well-suited for climbing steep, rocky slopes, sometimes with pitches of 60 degrees or more, with inner pads that provide traction and cloven hooves that can spread apart as needed. Dewclaws on the back of their feet also help to keep them from slipping."

I have been taking so few photos recently, so am now having to dig into my archives most of the time. The few times I have been out, I have either seen nothing or nothing that I can photograph. Now, there are very urgent things that need to be done, and I must put them first. The Calgary Zoo has a male and a female Mongoose Lemur, though I don't know if they are actually a "pair". They are to be found in the Transalta Rainforest building. Usually when I see them, they are up in their tree, curled up into a tight ball of fur, but when I spent a few hours at the Zoo on 28 September 2014, this one did occasionally open its amazing eyes. The lighting is far from ideal in this large exhibit, and usually my photos tend to come out a little blurry, though this time, I did a little better. These animals are not in a cage, but in a large "room" that has a pond and is shared with a variety of tropical birds, big and small, all flying freely. Warning - they may be cute but they do bite! Their status is Critically Endangered" "The Mongoose Lemur (Eulemur mongoz) is a lemur ranging from 12 to 18 inches long plus a tail of 16 to 25 inches. The Mongoose Lemur lives in Madagascar dry deciduous forests within Madagascar as well as in Comoros forests on the islands of Comoros. The Mongoose Lemur mostly eats fruit, though flowers, leaves and nectar also make up part of its diet. It is unusual in that depending on the season it is either diurnal or nocturnal. The Mongoose Lemur is arboreal and lives in small family groups, usually consisting of a bonded pair and 1 to 4 children. These groups rarely encounter one another, but when they do, they are aggressive." From Wikipedia. "Mongoose lemurs have soft grey-brown fur with a pale grey muzzle and black nose. The males have reddish-brown cheeks and may have a bald patch on top of their heads, caused by rubbing when scent-marking their territories. Females by contrast, have whitish cheeks." From www.bristolzoo.org . en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongoose_lemur

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY, everyone! It has been about a year and a half since I last went to the Calgary Zoo. The parking lot that I always parked in has been closed since then, because of road construction and the replacement of a bridge over the Bow River. I don't think it will all be finished till late this year and, by then, 'my" parking lot will close all winter. Hopefully, I'll once again be able to visit sometime in 2018. This photo was taken when I finally got to the Calgary Zoo, on 28 September 2014. I hadn't been since before the Alberta Flood of the Century in June 2013, which devastated the Zoo and made it necessary to close the Zoo for many months. Several of these small, colourful birds had made nests that were hanging from the leaves of a tropical plant in the Tropical building. Each bird looked like it just couldn't stop weaving, as it carefully, but quickly, chose long, narrow strands of leaf and wove the ends of other leaves together in such a meticulous way. "The Taveta weaver (Ploceus castaneiceps) is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family. It is found in Kenya and Tanzania. The name of the bird comes from the unique markings/coloration of the bird, as well as how these birds weave intricate nests. The male Taveta weaver is a vibrant golden yellow color; this color is duller on its back. The wings and tail are a greener color, whereas brown spots are located on the chest. The back of the head is red, and the bill, or beak, is black. The female is an olive color with paler streaks. In general, the Taveta weaver is a small bird, around the size of the finch and closely related to the sparrow. These birds live in large groups, or colonies. Weavers often make a unique—often described as "weird"—noise to communicate. Male weavers build extravagant oval nests over water attached to stems of reeds or grasses. The Taveta weavers lay two or three glossy, dark, olive-green eggs. The female bird chooses who she will mate, depending on how impressed she is with a male's skill to construct a nest." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taveta_weaver

28 September 2014 was the first time I had been to the Calgary Zoo since before the Alberta Flood of the Century in June 2013. I had been photographing wild things over the summer and just never made it as far as the Zoo. Couldn't resist these beautiful fall leaves - our autumn colour in Alberta is mainly yellow, as we don't get the amazing Maple trees here. So, leaves that have turned red here tend to catch the eye. There were so many people everywhere at the Zoo. Normally, I wouldn’t go on a Sunday, but I thought it might be a good idea to drive the dreaded Deerfoot Trail on my way home on a slightly quieter day. I usually avoid Deerfoot at all cost, as it’s a dangerous road to be on.