» Denver Zoo - The search for Tex

I won't lie. When I decided to go to the Zoo this morning, it wasn't to see zebras or giraffes. I wanted to see turtles. It was a special visit to the Ornate Box Turtles. You see, they were listed under the Amphibians and Reptiles directory of the Denver Zoo . I arrived about 11:00AM. I gotta say: the place is huge. Without "any ideia where to go" I wondered to the right of the gates. You have to realize that it is winter here in Denver (I didn't), a lot of the animals weren't there at all. On my way down the "Primate Panorama" I encountered some macaques. Two males and a female.

Feisty little guys. They kept knocking on the glass. If they knew what "giving the bird" was, I would've probably gotten several. I kept walking. Mountain Sheep, Kangaroos, Tigers... Giraffes, Birds galore, a couple of elephants and some bears:

Ok, the baby giraffe was really cute, but their habitat was so ugly, that I decided not to take a picture. So I walked some more...and found more Pachyderms!!! A Rhinoceros. The picture came out all fuzzed up. Bummer. At this point I was half way. Pretty hot for the middle of January...I drove my moped to the Zoo, so I had a lot of clothing on. It was then that I spotted the Penguins:

They had just fed them. The place smelled like putrid fish...But they were nice, sunbathing in the sun, doing their laps in the water.

I knew they had a Reptile Room or something. I had to be close. Across the "Northern Shores" where the Seals live, I finally saw the triangular building. "Tropical Discovery". I thought to myself: REPTILES...hehehehe. It was beautiful. The setups (habitats) were amazing...one after the other:

In the habitat pictured above, I spotted a Western Painted Turtle (native of Colorado) on the back. I knew it! I was on the right place. Then after passing the Boa Constrictors I found some Spot-Bellied Sidenecks:

They were full grown adults. I counted about four of those guys. I was still walking, when I realized I had gone through the whole place. Man...I didn't see no (#$%&^@) Box Turtles!!! Only then, I came to sense: Perhaps I should ask someone...
I made my way towards a clerk sitting at her desk. -Hi! I was looking for the Ornate Box Turtles, do you know where they are located? I asked. She smiled, but looked confused. -Have you seen the ones close to the entry? She was pointing towards the front door. -Yep, but no. Those are sidenecks. Funny how people have no idea about the difference. She got up and started to walk to the end of the room. She said there were some other turtles at the end of the hall. -Why don't I take you there? I was like: -Sweet!!!!. We passed the Tropical fish and then she stoped in front of a giant tank. -Here they are! She said, all exited. (sigh...) A tank. Box Turtles don't swim, unless they were doing some crazy experiment, I was on the wrong place. It turned out they were Reimann's Snake-Necked Turtles:

I wasn't all disappointed. After all they were turtles. But I still wanted to see the Ornates. So I told her a little about the turtles I was looking for. She went back to her desk and picked the phone up. After a few minutes she hang up and said: Tex is no longer with us. His girlfriend and he, were moved to New York to the Bronx Zoo/Wildlife Conservation Park. (His name was Tex. Was he from Texas? Tex-Mexican?). Apparently he was donated to the Zoo by a Denver family. Once they moved out of state, they decided to take him too. Weird. I was all bummed out when she continued: -The people from upstairs said there is a land turtle in here. Let me call Johnson... (I'm making his name up). She gets up again. We walk all the way to the west exit. And then, I saw the most beautiful turtle at the Zoo: A Black Breast Leaf Turtle!!! Soooooooo adorable! It took a break from eating crickets to let me take these pictures:

That made my day. No Ornates, but after seeing a Leaf Turtle I didn't care. I got back to where I parked my moped and smiled to myself...I hope Tex is doing well.

Ps: This one is for you Steve (MouhotiiFan)