Ed and I took a day trip to the Bronx Zoo. Never been before, or at least not been since childhood, many decades ago. It is over an hour’s ride by subway from our place in Brooklyn, but well worth it as the park is quite wonderful. I expected it to be very large and full of attractions. What I didn’t know was just how many gorgeous examples of species we’d never even heard of before we would encounter. And we both took some spectacular pictures of many of them.

We entered at the Asia Gate (bottom left on the map) and made the Wild Asia Monorail our first stop.

Our monorail driver and guide Vladimir.

The rail twice crosses the Bronx River into an area only viewable from the monorail.

I’ll do better naming the animals we’d see later (because we photographed most enclosure’s animal labels to remind ourselves), but while Vladimir told us about these large Asian bison-like animals and all the others we could see (or not see if they were hiding well, or choosing to stay in their air-conditioned optional cells during this hot summer day), I did not record what he said to type here later.

We didn’t see the tiger for example, at least not yet here…. (just wait…), and it was hard to get good pics of what we did see (again, just wait)…

Still, I can vouch that this is an Asian elephant…

This fella rather impressively chose to stand with all four legs on top a narrow tree stump.

Our next stop:

The superbly adorable Tree Kangaroo with offspring.

Well, hello there Mr. Turtle.

Ebony Langurs are usually black, but the Bronx Zoo also has some rare reddish brown ones.

Silver Leaf Monkeys

Malayan Tapir

Passing to and fro by a particular window, this leopard was clearly jonesing for silver leaf monkey…

Giant Malayan Stick Insect

Pink-winged Stick Insect

Malayan Giant Walking Stick

Spiny Leaf-Insect

Yellow Spotted Tree Toad

Asian Black-spined Toad

Frilled Lizard

Central Bearded Dragon

Tinfoil Barb

Waldrapp

Leaving Asia Plaza…

These fellows surely need no introduction…

Nyala – an African Antelope

In the Himalayan enclosure, the Snow Leopard

The Red Panda made it nigh impossible…

…to see his head.

Nearly silhouetted, the Tragopan Pheasant

Dholes – Asian wild dogs

A few more large animals that need no introduction…

Pére David’s Deer – Asian deer saved from extinction

Local swans and other birds join the deer in their enclosure.

More exotic birds await us in the World of Birds

Like the White-fronted Bee-eater

Not to be confused with the White-throated Bee-eater

Grey-winged Trumpeter

Pink-necked Fruit Dove

Mariana Fruit Dove

Luzon Bleeding-heart

Blue-crowned Motmot

Red Bird-of-paradise

Tawny Frogmouth

Golden-headed Quetzal

White-crested Hornbill

Scarlet Ibis

Southern Bald Ibis

Pied Imperial Pigeon

Taveta Golden Weaver

Bearded Barbet

Blue-billed Curassow

Great Blue Turaco

Various Hornbills

Blue-headed Macaw

(Didn’t find the specific label for this parrot)

Toco Toucan

Bison

Seals near Astor Court

Peacocks wander freely in the park

Flamingoes at the Aquatic Birds exhibit

Snowy Egret

Flat-billed Heron

Lots of Scarlet Ibis

Anhinga – we took some pretty good pics of these birds in the wild when we toured the Pantanal of Brazil

Little Penguin

Tufted Puffin

Laughing Kookaburra

Sulawesi Hornbill

Roseate Spoonbill

Inca Tern

Magellanic Penguin

Coscoroba Swan and Gray Gull

Fountain Circle

We then did the Dinosaur Safari – which I’m saving for a later post. Definitely something else!

Next, at the Birds of Prey, two Borrowing Owls

Cinereous Vulture

King Vulture

Bald Eagle

Zoo Center

The Rhino gets pride of place inside the Zoo Center

We concluded our circuit, but because it was closing time – we had been there 5 1/2 hours, but clearly needed more – we did not get to see everything. The map at top will show you what we will need to return for.