After Zoos Close Down Due To Coronavirus, Zookeepers Decide To Show Animals To Each Other
You’ve seen penguins roaming around the empty aquarium. Now get ready for… more animals! At the moment, pretty much every company and organization has closed down due to the quarantine and zoos, together with aquariums, are no exception. While the facilities might not be open to the public, their caretakers still take time to share bits and pieces of the animals’ daily lives on social media, putting a smile on our faces.
One of the most fun activities for people to watch, as it appears, is the meet-ups of animals that live in the zoo territory. Just recently, one such adorable meet-up of a sea lion and a tegu went viral. The natural and adorable confusion seen on the sea puppy’s face was enough for the video to be shared over 16k times. Therefore, we, the people at Bored Panda, decided to look for more of this kind of footage and share it with you. So scroll down below to see the cuteness we found and get ready for your heart to melt!
More info: Mystic Aquarium | San Diego Zoo | Maryland Zoo | Shedd Aquarium | Dallas Zoo
Recently, a video of a confused sea lion meeting up with a tegu went viral
Image credits: mysticaquarium
The video became extremely popular online after one illustrator shared it on his Twitter. “Pray for the zoo animals in this time of crisis,” he wrote in his now-viral tweet. “I mean, they’re getting really well taken care of, but they’re also living through an era of zookeepers saying, ‘Y’know what? F**k it, let’s just show them each other!’”
Watch the video of the “staring game” below
When you got no game at the #StaringGame but your animal enrichment is on point. pic.twitter.com/dbp67i3mu3
— Mystic Aquarium (@mysticaquarium) March 19, 2020
Image credits: mysticaquarium
“When you got no game at the ‘staring game’ but your animal enrichment is on point,” Mystic Aquarium, that’s based in Mystic, Connecticut, writes in its tweet caption.
Apparently, other zoos are letting their animals see each other during the lockdown as well
Image credits: Cincinnati Zoo
“Red river hog Sir Francis Bacon got the rare opportunity to visit other Zoo residents earlier today,” Cincinnati Zoo shares. “His care team took advantage of the Zoo being closed and took him on an extended walk in the Africa habitat. The meerkats were particularly curious about the unusual visitor.”
“Our Indian runner duck stopped by the Penguin Education Center this week”
Birds of a feather…visit each other when the Zoo is closed. Our Indian runner duck stopped by the Penguin Education Center this week. #ClosedButStillCaring pic.twitter.com/Hvd8aSbSe7
— Maryland Zoo (@marylandzoo) March 21, 2020
Image credits: marylandzoo
Maryland Zoo also posted a video on their Twitter feed showing their beautiful Indian runner duck stopping by to look at the penguins in the aquarium.
And they are sharing the videos of the meetings on social media
Taki the coati cutie visited some prime-mates over the weekend.
pic.twitter.com/zG4mhLM6kS
— San Diego Zoo (@sandiegozoo) March 24, 2020
Image credits: sandiegozoo
San Diego Zoo was also among the ones to show different animal species interacting with each other. This Californian zoo took a “coati cutie” to meet a gorilla, who really seemed to be interested in the little animal.
Much to people’s delight
When in the water, penguins are powerhouses!
Magellanic penguins are excellent long-distance swimmers. With their powerful wings, they can hit speeds of 15 mph. Monte explored the Polar Play Zone and stopped to watch Dolores and Mercedes swim. pic.twitter.com/dYiDhdGhNM
— Shedd Aquarium (@shedd_aquarium) March 25, 2020
Image credits: shedd_aquarium
Shedd Aquarium—an aquarium located in Chicago, Illinois—captured and shared an adorable video of a Magellanic penguin, Monte, exploring the aquarium and inspecting his penguin friends in the water.
The zoos are hoping to offer people some much-needed relaxation from being bombarded by news on the coronavirus
Remember Hodari, our adorable little milky eagle owl chick? She took a trip to the Children’s Zoo recently to meet the koi fish! We are introducing her to all kinds of sights and sounds right now, so she’ll grow up to be confident and a great ambassador for her species. pic.twitter.com/4QdkVJj69l
— Dallas Zoo (@DallasZoo) March 25, 2020
Image credits: DallasZoo
Because as it later turned out, such animal meet-ups are a common practice for zookeepers
Image credits: AnimusPanthera
Image credits: AnimusPanthera
Image credits: AnimusPanthera
Image credits: AnimusPanthera
Image credits: AnimusPanthera
Image credits: AnimusPanthera
Many zoos and aquariums are now offering people the chance to tune in to their live streams, as well
“The main thing is, we want to not lose contact with the incredible base we’ve got, nearly 30,000 family members here in Dallas,” Gregg Hudson, the Dallas Zoo’s president and chief executive, told New York Times. “We know there’s probably a lot of families at home, and we hope to offer a respite from other news that’s bombarding people.” Since the lockdown due to coronavirus, the Dallas Zoo has begun sharing behind-the-scenes footage and educational videos on Twitter, using the hashtag #BringTheZooToYou, hoping to distract people for a while from the ongoing crisis.
But Dallas Zoo is not the only one offering a sneak peek at animals’ daily routines and cute meetups. If you’re feeling a bit blue lately, tune in to the animal live streams that some zoos are offering. One of these is Cincinnati Zoo, while Shedd Aquarium is also sharing soothing live streams from underwater. Tropical Reef Aquarium in Long Beach California also offers a chance to relax while looking at the colorful fish swimming among coral and on the official webpage of Kansas City Zoo, you can choose from a variety of cameras from which to watch the animals!
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