Welcome back!
Get ready for more fun and family at the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Tacoma, Washington, one of the most beautiful and entertaining places in the Pacific Northwest! In case you missed them, click HERE for Day 1 and HERE for Day 2 PART 1.
Let's just jump right in where we left off...with Rudbeckia Echinacea Purpurea. Or Eastern Purple Coneflower.
Coneflowers are just so damn photogenic.
I guess most flowers are photogenic really.
As I briefly mentioned in my last post, Point Defiance is involved in conservation of Red Wolves. In the 1970s, only 14 pure Red Wolves existed in the wild. Now there are 50 with nearly 200 spread among the 40 facilities that participate in the Species Survival Plan coordinated with the US Wildlife Service and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
They are so beautiful. It would be a shame if they had died out in the 70s.
One of the best exhibits of the day was the adorable baby Muskox, Hudson!
I just want to take him home with me, he is so damn cute!
But of course I can't because he will soon be huge, like this lovely lady. She weighs around 800 lbs, so definitely not house material.
Next on the Arctic Tundra was an amazing Reindeer. I mean, just look at the rack on this guy!
He's sticking his tongue out at me. ↑ How rude!
Here's something you've never seen before. ↓ A Reindeer Contortionist.
Not all creatures on the Arctic Tundra were as big as these two behemoths. The next little guys were about a 10th of their size. But just as cute! Possibly more so!
Arctic Fox
I caught a picture of this little guy floating around in the foxes' pond.
Somewhere between a tadpole and a frog.
Next we moved on to the Rocky Shores.
As you may have guessed, this exhibit features the beloved marine animals of the Pacific Northwest, including everyone's favorite, Sea Otters!
Next to the otters were Puffins and Murres which are so incredibly cute.
Ya'll know how I love birds, so of course there are quite a few pictures of these.
Bath time!
Oh. My Goodness. This is TOO CUTE to be real, right? It's totally fake. Except it's not. lol
Grandpa would like some food please. I don't know why I think he's a grandpa. maybe he is a punk rocker. I don't know what I'm even saying right now.
These are the Murres, which I've seen at a long distance at the Point Reyes Lighthouse. I was so excited to see them close up! They are amazing in the water.
Next we went inside and up top to watch the acrobatic Harbor Seals and their magnificent Walrus friends. I don't know if they're friends, but I'd like to think so.
My beautiful niece Sabrina contemplates life under water.
Those whiskers tho!
And last but definitely not least on the Rocky Shores were the adorable tuxedo-wearing Penguins.
That seems like a good place to take a break. This post was heavy on animals and flowers and short on the family, but we'll rectify that in the posts to come. =D
xoxo
