Welcome back to another Animal of the Month feature! There are no themes for this prompt, but this week we will be looking at members of the animal kingdom found in the zoo or a farm. So don’t let my post title fool you.
Last month we explored wild animals as a subtheme, HERE if you missed it.
There are six main groupings of animals: mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish and insects. Any one of these can be found in a zoo, and perhaps on a farm.
Again, you don’t have to follow this week’s theme to the letter.
At the Zoo
One of our stops on our Spring road trip was a visit to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in north San Diego county. The Safari Park opened in to the public in May 1972. I visited in 1973 during a summer school field trip. That was an interesting adventure! It was a treat to see how much had changed in 53 years!
“Not all those who wander are lost.” — J.R.R. Tolkien
My daughter suggested this adventure and we visited during a rare spring heat wave. Even these beautiful Ruppell’s Vultures sat with open wings to regulate their heat. Their wingspan measures 7-8 feet (2.2 to 2.6 meters) and they weigh in at 14-20 lbs (6.4 to 9 kg).
Now, I had been to the San Diego Zoo countless times as a child. My parents had an annual pass and it felt like we went every other Sunday! I enjoyed seeing the animals, but I used to joke with my friends, that I went so often the elephants and I knew each other by name 😊
Speaking of elephants, we arrived in time to walk through the recently opened elephant enclosure. Named the Denny Sanford Elephant Valley, the 13-acre enclosure took over three years to build. Eight African savanna elephants live here and range in age from seven to 36 years old. When we arrived, it was lunch time!
Moving on, we stopped at the gorilla enclosure and were treated to the sight of five female gorillas led by 37-year old Silverback Paul Donn. Another group of 5 young males live in another enclosure seen only by tour bus.
A “Silverback” is a mature male gorilla who becomes the leader of the designated troop identifiable by a prominent saddle of gray or silver-white hair on their back and hips. As the largest primate on Earth, they stand as tall as six-feet tall and can weigh up to 450 pounds. All that by eating a vegetarian diet!
Paul Donn, 37 year-old western lowland gorilla, stepped into the role of Silverback after Winston, the 52-year old Silverback passed in 2024. Sadly Paul Donn unexpectedly passed away in May 2026. I am glad I got some great shots of him living his life.
“Paul Donn was also known for his gentle nature — a devoted father, a vegetable enthusiast, and a gorilla with a playful heart.” Source
Spending the day with my daughter at the Safari Park was an amazing experience. Stay tuned as I share more photos from the visit in later posts.
Before we head to the farm, I wanted to share this clearer image of a javelina, shared here in last week’s post.
We saw this stuffed version at the Cabela’s Store on our shopping adventure last week.
On the Farm
Because we live in a rural community in northeastern Washington, there are not only small farms nearby but also horse stables. I’ve previously shared photos of a miniature Highland cow and a Fjord horse.
My neighbor has a goat farm where she breeds and shows dwarf goats. She uses the goat milk for her locally-famous goat soap products.
The Adventure at Home
Some days our property feels a bit like a zoo or a farm, especially with the wildlife and the birds. It is certainly a daily adventure wondering what animal, bird or insect you might see next! Though our Say’s Phoebes safely fledged July 1st, they are still nearby, successfully hunting for flying insects in the two vacant lots surrounding our place.
I watched this little female flitting around our backyard, looking for a tasty treat. You ask, “Terri, how can you tell it’s one of the fledglings?”
First, they are still learning skills and have a clumsiness about them when flying. They also perch awkwardly on random things in the yard like this sprinkler head.
Secondly, in both images, you can just make out the area under her eye where the yellow baby-gape (AKA gape-flange) is still present.
During this time, the fleshy gape flange slowly shrinks and changes to match the normal bill color of an adult.
Close-up of gape flange marked by orange arrow.
Baby birds keep their bright yellow swollen mouth corners until they leave the nest and become independent, which takes about 2 to 4 weeks after hatching. Audubon Magazine
That’s our animal adventure for this month!
“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.” – Oprah Winfrey
This week, I’m linking to Birds of the Week, Johnbo’s CellPic Sunday (everything but Phoebe images), welcoming back Lens-Artists: Adventure led by Anne-Christine this week, and Kym & Sadje’s WQ: Milestones.
Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Reminders
The Sunday Stills weekly-themed photo challenge is simple to join. You have all week to share and link your post. Please use your own original images, whether new or from your archives. Your original images reimagined with AI tools in post-editing are also welcome.
- Remember to title your blog post a little differently from mine.
- Entries for this theme can be posted all week.
- Tag your post “Sunday Stills.”
- Don’t forget to create a pingback to this post so that other participants can read your post.
- I also recommend adding your post’s URL to the comments.
If you are participating in the photo challenge, I look forward to seeing how you interpret this week’s theme! Creativity is encouraged, so please share your own photographs (old or new), poems, original short stories, and music inspired by the theme. Join me next week as we end the month of July exploring REFLECTIONS.
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