Daily Archives: June 8, 2009
Tour Trains & Komodo Dragons…
Today Jan and I did ‘touristy’ stuff
We started off at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm. This is probably the nicest small zoo we’ve been to. And believe me, we’ve been to a bunch of them.
They had some very unique displays including komodo dragons, the bird rookery, and the albino alligators.
Founded in 1893, the St. Augustine Alligator Farm is one of Florida’s oldest zoological attractions. In the early 1880s, two men began collecting alligators they found on Anastasia Island. These individuals, George Reddington and Felix Fire, were the founders of the St. Augustine Alligator Farm at South Beach.
In 1937, Reddington and Fire sold it to a pair of young business men in the community: W.I. Drysdale and F. Charles Usina. And the Drysdale family still owns the park today.
In 1989, The American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums extended accreditation to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm, thereby elevating the institution to a select list of facilities throughout the nation recognized for the quality of their collections and the care afforded them.
The Alligator Farm is the only zoo to have all 23 species of the worlds’ crocodilians exhibited in individual habitats.
Here are some pics:
Toucan
These alligators are true albinos with pink eyes. They have no skin pigment.
White Alligator
There are other white alligators, called leuistic alligators. Unlike albinos, leuistic alligators have pigment. It’s just a white pigment.
And they don’t have pink eyes. They have bright blues eyes. There are only about 12 known in the world, and they are all males.
Leuistic White Alligator
Pile of Gators
We really enjoyed seeing the Komodo Dragon again. The last time we saw them was at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. in 1971.
Komodo Dragon 1
Komodo Dragon 2
Reticulated Python
Northern Cassowary
This is ‘Gomek’. He was a 17 foot, 2000 pound Saltwater Crocodile who lived at the Alligator Farm. When he died, they had him stuffed and put back on display. He just doesn’t move around as much anymore.
Gomek – Tha Saltwater Crocodile
We really enjoyed The Rookery. This is a walk-thru area with nesting birds in some cases, just inches from the walkway.
Nesting Egrets
The Rookery
Wood Stork
Nesting Roseate Spoonbills
Stork Chicks
Nesting Tri-Colored Heron
Snowy Egret and Hungry Chicks
This is a fake dead zebra. It is used for the realistic feeding of the vultures and storks who regularly feed on carcases.
“Dead” Zebra
Hooded Vultures
West African Crowned Crane
Black Swan
Blue and Gold Macaw
Indian Gharial Crocodile
The hand belongs to Christie. She goes into the pen to feed the alligators. And yes, that is a rat, a dead rat. Apparently, dead rats are alligator treats. The zoo buys them already dead. She said the rats are cheaper than chicken and the gators like them better.
Alligator Feeding Time
Feeding Skipper
He knows it’s here somewhere
Gulp!
All Gone!
Taste like Chicken!
Golden Lion Tamarin
After we left the Alligator Farm, we headed over to take the Old Town Trolley Tour. This is same tour company that we took in Key West. They also have tours in Savannah, Washington, D.C., Boston, and San Diego. We plan on taking this tour in all these cities as we visit them.
One of the places we passed thru on the tour was Magnolia Ave. Strangely enough, there are no magnolia trees on Magnolia Ave. Just some beautiful oaks trees in a canopy over the street.
Magnolia Ave
After our Trolley Tour, we drove down the road a ways to eat lunch again at the Oasis Restaurant. We ate here a couple of days ago and really enjoyed it. And it was close by.
Oasis Restaurant
After lunch, we headed over to Walmart to pick up our prescriptions, and then it was on to Camping World to get some more parts for my new toad tail light setup.
After that, we stopped off for coffee before heading back to the coach.
All in all, an enjoyable day.
And tomorrow? Road trip!!!
