At least, I think so.<\/p>\n
Many years after my experience in the House of Reptiles at the Bronx Zoo,<\/a> I was walking home on Bleecker Street when I spotted an odd configuration on the opposite sidewalk.<\/p>\n A group of people, perhaps eight or nine, stood on the sidewalk in such a way as to form a long ovoid. They were all standing quite still as they looked down at the sidewalk, exuding an aura of mystic contemplation.<\/p>\n Odd. Then I looked at what they<\/em> were looking at: yes, a large snake about twelve feet in length, was lying fully stretched out on the sidewalk. What on earth?<\/p>\n Took me several moments before I realized the whole group was outside a corner store, Exotic Pets. Oh, ho! So somehow the snake had gotten out of its cage and wriggled onto the sidewalk. Given the snake’s current passivity, I figured she (why not?) was thinking, “What the hell did I do this for?” And, “Where am I going with this?”<\/p>\n Clearly, the group surrounding her was having a quiet conference on the question, “How TF do we get her back inside?”<\/p>\n I don’t know why I didn’t stick around to find out. I am now regretful.<\/p>\n \u03be<\/p>\n (That \u21d1 is the closest I could come to a symbol which looked like a snake. Sort of.)<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n We are chock full of wildlife in New York. At the moment, the town is a-buzz over a four-foot-long alligator found in Prospect Park Lake.<\/a><\/p>\n She — lucky ‘gator — is being evaluated at…the Bronx Zoo’s House of Reptiles! My cousin, once a New Yorker but now a D.C.-er — sent me an upgrade on this lethargic girl (yeah, another lady reptile):<\/p>\n An American alligator rescued from Prospect Park Lake on Sunday had swallowed a four-inch-wide bathtub stopper and is not strong enough for it to be removed right now, the Bronx Zoo said in a statement on Wednesday evening.<\/em><\/p>\n The alligator, a female, is \u201ctoo weak and unresponsive to eat on its own\u201d and is being tube-fed, according to the statement from the zoo, which has been caring for the animal since its rescue from the park.<\/em><\/p>\n The alligator is about 5 years old and is being treated with fluids, vitamin B, antibiotics and an antifungal medication, the zoo said. An X-ray taken during a medical evaluation revealed the bath stopper.<\/em><\/p>\n So now we realize her, uh, owner must have kept her in a bathtub. Many questions and images emerge from this story.<\/p>\n (Meanwhile, a news item from Florida: an 85 year old woman, walking her dog, was attacked and killed by an alligator, once again bringing me to ask: Why does anyone<\/em> live in Florida?)<\/p>\n And then there’s Flaco, an eagle-owl, another escapee and a most successful one. <\/a>Now that Flaco has alleviated the Central Park Zoo’s worries by showing he is able to live free and not<\/em> die, we’re all delighted. He’s been exploring his territory and caught a rat, demonstrating his predator instincts and creds as a native.<\/p>\n Isn’t this what we New Yorkers all aspire to, flying around Central Park and catching rats?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" At least, I think so. Many years after my experience in the House of Reptiles at the Bronx Zoo, I was walking home on Bleecker Street when I spotted an odd configuration on the opposite sidewalk. A group of people, … Continue reading