#national zoo

[the-birth-of-art]

The Smithsonian has made over 4,000,000 images in its archive open source.

An example:

Fishing Cat, Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Photo by Mehgan Murphy.

[istandonsnowpiles]

Panda at Panda Palooza

[johnnyslittleanimalblog]

National Zoo's Cheetah Cubs Go Outside for the First Time by Smithsonian's National Zoo Via Flickr:

[sitting-on-me-bum]

Redd

Orangutan at the National Zoo

By Miki Jourdan

[mizmollywrites]

I'm waiting for our order at the very crowded Mane Grill at the National Zoo, wondering if it would be inappropriate to open AO3 to the L&O:SVU fiction I was in the middle of or if that's a thing adults do now.

Barbra/Carisi forever

[petsincollections]

Red Pandas, or Lesser Pandas, at National Zoological Park, 1973

Smithsonian Institution Archives, Acc. 11-009, Image No. 73-3841

Smithsonian Institution Collections

[fridaybear]

[tiny sloth bear roar] IT'S FRIDAY! You did it. Be kind to one another. Lead with love. See y'all next week. 🐻 - - - - - - -

"Sloth Bear Cub Debuts at the Smithsonian's National Zoo" by Smithsonian's National Zoo is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

[is-the-primate-vid-cute]

Writing to say I went to the Washington DC zoo and I was very very sad because the orangutan and the gorillas were looking kinda depressed and they didn't have enough space to move or to hide from people. Whyyyy

It's great that you care about the animals' wellbeing! Zookeepers, Curators, and Managers care about the animals too, with their whole heart in fact, and dedicate their lives to ensuring the zoo's animals have a happy, healthy life. The apes housed at the National Zoo do have multiple spaces, and much care is taken to ensure the are utilizing their mental and physical abilities.

Photos From Smithsonian National Zoo

The apes have off-exhibit indoor spaces; All reputable facilities do the same. Just because you can't see it as a visitor doesn't mean it's not there; as you mentioned, private spaces are importent for well-being.

Enrichment ensures the animals' use their brains by solving puzzles or utilizing tools, like above. Or, novel items like below

The orangutans have the amazing "O-line", this allows them to move between 2 outdoor enclosures, and their "Ape House" where their public and behind the scenes spaces are.

Below is a peek at orangutan behind the scenes areas

When you say "looking depressed" do you mean lying around? When you look at an animal, you can't assume their emotional state or thoughts. You can find clues in their behavior and body language, but each species has different gestures and it takes training to understand their facial expressions, as it's often not the same as ours.

Do you spend all your waking hours playing, walking, etc? You probably spend quite a lot of time relaxing and socializing. For us, this looks like social media, tv, chatting with a loved one. For apes, it looks like lounging together, grooming, sunbathing, foraging together, and napping often as a pair or group. Regardless of facility, if you went during a hot day, you're more likely to see animals napping and conserving energy than you are to see animals running around. That's perfectly okay, they're trying to stay cool!

I've personally attended the National Zoo and saw happy, curious animals playing, grooming, and foraging togher. I saw the orangutans utilize their O-line and I felt very comfortable with the size of the enclosures.

[guy60660]

National Zoo Washington DC | Lance Wyman | LogoArchive

[dire-straits-fn8ic]

Big fish at the zoo got me acting uneasy

[sabistarphotos]

April 16, 2022

Smithsonian National Zoological Park

Washington, DC

[istandonsnowpiles]

Bearded Emperor Tamarin

[rjzimmerman]

Amani, the mother, with her two cubs born October 3.  Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

[johnnyslittleanimalblog]

Red Panda Cubs at Smithsonian’s National Zoo Named for Stormy Night by Smithsonian's National Zoo Via Flickr: Photo Credit: Mehgan Murphy, Smithsonian's National Zoo 

[sitting-on-me-bum]

Zahra in Calaya's Arms

National Zoo

By Miki Jourdan

[thornescratch]

Tag yourself, I’m Tom Petty.