Hungry, Hungry Puma, and Others

I took a walk at the zoo after work today. The weather was so beautiful today, I had to wonder if Khuntami was wrong about there being six more weeks of winter (well, five now).

The octopus was hanging out on the glass. Seeing all those suction cups makes me hungry for takoyaki. Mmm.



This threesome of horseshoe crabs walked from one end of their tank to the other, then back again, without disengaging from one another.



The swan was not shy about getting into the mob of koi for a chance at the food I was throwing off the bridge.



This mountain lion was hungry. A small child ran in front of the cage, and the puma chased him--back and forth, back and forth. This went on for a while. When the family finally moved on to look at the tigers, the puma stood stock still in the corner of his cage, gaze locked on the child until the kid passed from view. He wanted that kid. Oh, how he wanted that kid.



I believe this is the same cougar who was captured here in Omaha a few years ago. (Not out at the edge of town either, but in the vicinity of 114th and Dodge Streets.) He's a lot smaller than the other mountain lions at the zoo, because he was born and raised in the wild. It was certainly a game to the child and his laughing parents, but not to this imprisoned hunter. The frustration on his face was evident. (Not so much in this picture, which was taken after the kid left and reflects a more "well, easy come, easy go" attitude.)