I wanna go to the Bronx Zoo!

The other day I received some information about the Wildlife Conservation Society’s new exhibit at New York’s Bronx Zoo called Madagascar! that’s about… well, Madagascar, and specifically the animals residing therein.  View the full press release and more pictures by checking out the “SPECIAL REPORT: Madagascar!”

To be honest, when I first heard about the exhibit I was like, Well, that’s kinda cool, but I wasn’t totally stoked.  I mean, zoos come out with new exhibits all the time, right?  What could possibly be so great about Madagascar?

Then I looked at the photos of the animals in the exhibit, like this Conquerels Sifaka:

And then I really thought about it.

And now I’m convinced that Madagascar is one of the coolest places on the planet.  I’m also convinced that if you live within driving distance of the Bronx Zoo and have even the remotest interest in the natural sciences, it would be worth your while to go there and check out Madagascar! - unless you’d prefer visiting the actual island of Madagascar,  which would of course be even more awesome.

Need more convincing?  They have a mouse lemur!  I’ve wanted a one as a pet ever since scientists discovered a few new species of mouse lemurs a couple of years ago.

Do any of you want to join me in an attempt to smuggle one out of the zoo so I can love it and cuddle it and keep it forever (all smuggling assistants will earn visitation privileges as partial custodians of the mouse lemur, whom I shall name Frances)?  Let me know.

Speaking of lemurs, I bet you didn’t know this about them: “Lemurs comprise 40 species of prosimians, or pre-monkeys. Many eons ago, lemurs were in all the warm forests of the world, but they were eventually driven almost to extinction by the true monkeys. Now they only live in one place: the island of Madagascar, off the African coast.” (source) Can you believe that the “true monkeys” were such big mean bullies to the poor, cute little lemurs? Nature is cruel, indeed.

In addition to the lemurs, the Bronx Zoo’s Madagascar! exhibit houses a nifty little critter (not that little, since it’s the largest mammalian predator in Madagascar) that I’ve never heard of before called the fossa. They remind me of a cross between a leopard and a badger.  Look at the expression on this guy’s furry face:

In case you prefer creepy-crawlies, apparently the Madagascar! exhibit also proudly displays the hissing cockroach.  They might look gross, but a childhood friend of mine had them as pets and quite enjoyed them.  To each his own.  Personally, I prefer my pets to be of the furry or feathered variety.

If you do get a chance to go to this exhibit, let me know what you think about and it and send me pictures, if you like.  That way I can live vicariously through you.

-MJ, aka Kitty Mowmow

P.S. - You want videos?  The Wildlife Conservation Society’s Youtube Channel has tons of them! Animal enthusiasts everywhere rejoice!