It’s been a year since our Ft. Worth Zoo membership ran out. Lately we’ve been missing it!

A napping lioness, tortoises who appeared to have been mating (I didn’t take a picture of them- that would have been rather intrusive), quibbling hyacinth macaws, juvenile flamingos, a mother/child orangutan couplet cuddling, and a request to look up further information on the differences between crocodiles and alligators- these were just the tip of the iceberg during our first visit with our friends Christine, Anna, Gretchen, and Alejandro.

Shortly thereafter, we were enticed to visit again with our friends, the Quinns. A new membership is in order. We renewed. The beauty of the membership is that there is no pressure to cover the enormous grounds in one day. The children are free to focus and wander. It really just makes for a lovely, leisurely, learning adventure. The Quinn/Parent endeavor set sail for the area called Texas Wild!- an entire section of the zoo devoted to the abundant wildlife that inhabits the various areas of the Texas landscape.
We stopped for lunch and spraying on the way.


The interactive stations in Texas Wild! are so fun. Here the kids listen to discussions of and differentiation between the big cats of Texas.

This was cool! The kids stood in front of this for a long time analyzing how prairie dogs dig their tunnels and (with tremendous instinctual intelligence) utilize the different rooms for different purposes. Then we turned around and were face to face with a prairie dog! We could clearly see the entrance to its tunnels- fantastic!


Sadie and Elijah could have constructed this area with all of the time that they have spent analyzing pollution issues and conservation lately. Here Sadie looks at what alligators eat (i.e. fish vs. tires). We highly recommend setting your DVR to record Captain Planet. Though the episodes aired first-run between 1990-1992, the content (pollution, conservation, war, genocide, over-population, etc.) continues to be relevant. It’s sad, actually, to consider that the significant threats to our planet and humanity that were impactful 15 years ago continue with very little action to improve them. Will this new generation- many of whom are self-directed learners functioning consciously in society- develop new ideas and have the wherewithall to infiltrate the current political infrastructure such that positive change can be had?
