The Virginia Zoo

On Sunday, I went to the Virginia Zoological Park in Norfolk. Plenty of people were there taking advantage of the beautiful weather -- the zoo was very busy.

A map of the zoo. Look at all the fun things to do! Hey, that rhymed...

I took a ride on the ZooTrain, which goes around the park as a guide points out exhibits.

Kevin the peacock. I was surprised that he's allowed to roam around the entrance area, even near the train tracks, without being restricted to an exhibit.

A prairie dog!

Bison.

Statue at the entrance to the 'Trail of the Tiger', the Asian animals exhibit area.

Meercat.

Lions, lyin' around.

Turtles enjoying the warmth of a rock.

Endangered white rhinoceroses.

A pair of ostriches. One of them was guarding an egg. The birds are a lot bigger than I thought they would be.

 

Apparently there is a baby zebra somewhere (named Zelda), but I did not see her.

This tortoise is huge!

Amy the emu, in the Australian Walkabout area. You can walk around near the animals with no walls or cage between them, as long as you stay on the path.

Red panda!! My favorite animal!

At first, the panda was hiding in the tall grass, but as I watched I got to see the panda climb up and down into the tree. Lucky!

Here's Kevin again (?), wandering around outside the 'Beastro' snack bar.

After having lunch inside the Beastro, I went into the newly-reopened World of Reptiles building.

A zookeeper was feeding this Two-toed Sloth who was relaxing in a box.

There as another Red Panda enclosure in the Trail of the Tiger area. I looked around in vain for a minute hoping I could see the panda, but saw nothing. As I was about to leave, I looked up...and saw this furry face looking at me from a few feet up!

If you're ever in the Norfolk area, I highly recommend a visit to the Virginia Zoo!