Continuous Travelers – Monday Morning Safari

Someone told me it’s all happening at the zoo…
Paul Simon

We are learning that Tucson is not just blue skies, cactus and hiking trails, although there is much of that to enjoy. Today we left our hiking shoes at the trailer and drove 15 minutes to the Reid Park Zoo, a 24 acre, city-owned zoo with over 500 animals. Our first stop was the aviary.

Obviously, I am not a birder or I’d have better identification for you…although I do know my flamingos.

We moved on, peering down on a capybara that was nosing around for something to eat and a tapir, standing still as if contemplating plunging into the pond.
Our path led us around to much larger and more recognizable African animals.
Ybonga, the female rhinoceros pictured below, will soon celebrate her 53rd birthday. We didn’t see Fireball, the zoo’s 24-year-old male.

”Expedition Tanzania” is the 4-acre, state-of-the-art African elephant exhibit. A natural terrain, water feature, sand bathing area and feeding area are all designed with the physical and psychological health of the herd in mind.

There are six elephants in the herd. One male and five females. The youngest member was born in March 2024.

We finished up our tour of Africa, and our time at the zoo, with the zebras. For a small zoo, there is a lot of building and expansion happening. The cages and pens were clean and tidy and the animals seemed reasonably happy.

As a bonus, through May 12, 2026, visitors can enjoy Sean Kenney’s Art With LEGO Bricks. Over 40 sculptures made from more than 800,000 LEGO pieces are on display and scattered about the grounds of the zoo. Described as whimsical, bold and bombastic, the sculptures will surely drive you to get creative and pull out that old tub of your children’s LEGO pieces.

So, it seems Paul Simon was right. It is all happening at the zoo.