A World of Discovery

   I went to A World of Discovery Conservation and Rescue Center in Ann Arbor, MI http://glzszoo.com/index.php today with a couple of friends. It was pretty cool. They had two Macaws, and two African Grey Parrots. But primarily it is a reptile conservatory.

   We went to celebrate my friend Melissa's birthday. She has her own three and a half foot Green Iguana, and is a huge fan of the reptile and amphibian world. She thought it would be a good place to spend her birthday, I thought it was a good chance to take a few pictures. It was, on both accounts.

   I think Melissa had a good day. I had technical difficulties, but I was able to get a few good shots. The first problem I had, I couldn't find my spare batteries before I left the house. I'm betting you can guess one of the other problems I had.

   The birds weren't to bad to photograph, they were out in the open. The reptiles were in glass and acrylic enclosures, which made for a lot of glares and reflections. Also there were heating lamps everywhere, and it made for a strange yellowy light.

   They were planning on doing a hands on demonstration for our group, but we arrived a bit ahead of the others so we walked through the reptile exhibit while we waited for people to arrive. They really do have some cool animals. And I thought it looked like they worked very hard to take care of them.

   I really struggled to find positions to take pictures through the glass with all the reflection from the lighting. And while some of the animals were just chillin', a lot of them were quite active, and not quite cooperative. But I thought I ended up with a few decent pictures.

   Once the majority of Melissa's guests arrived we gathered in a private room for the demonstration. The guy running the demo got out the first animal, I got out my camera and my batteries died. One of the employees actually went and found a couple of AA batteries and offered them to me, my camera actually takes four, but I really appreciated the gesture.

   I had a spare, smaller camera in my bag but I haven't used it for a while, and as I expected that battery was dead as well. I had my charger for that battery so I plugged it in for a quick charge. However by the time I got a sufficient charge on the battery, the demo was over.

   It probably was better, I was able to pay closer attention to the demonstration. They had some very cool snakes and reptiles that they brought out to show. He would talk a bit about the animal and then bring it around the group for a close up look. Or a quick touch if you felt so inclined, I didn't. I have touched and handled plenty of snakes, like the one that bit me last year in the garden. I'll stick to looking...

   I really enjoyed the day, I enjoyed the company, and I enjoyed the sanctuary. I will be sure to go back in the future with a little better idea of what to expect. Maybe I will even call ahead and try to set something up with them for a little better picture opportunity.

   The python below was my favorite, he (or she) was awesome. Eighteen feet long, and a little over one hundred and fifty pounds. They said they need three people minimum to enter it's enclosure. A truly impressive creature.

   I think I got my seven bucks out of the day. I hope you enjoyed the pictures, I certainly enjoyed taking them. I will go back to do it again. There is also a raptor sanctuary in my area I hope to visit some time in the near future. If your ever in the area A World of Discovery is worth a look.