I Went to the Zoo in Omaha: And I Really Want to Talk About It

Over our last three-day weekend, my sister invited me to go with her to the zoo. Being a person who loves a good zoo, I said yes right away. As the school year winds down, I know it can be difficult to find the time to go do things for fun. Because of this unfortunate reality, and the fact that I really want to talk about the zoo, I am going to tell you my favorite animals I saw while there.

-        Snow leopard: The snow leopard is absolutely gorgeous. It disguised itself easily with some rocks, making it hard to spot. According to the sign next to their enclosure, they’re really shy and you don’t always get to see them. But I recommend trying anyway. They are positively magnificent.

-        Sloth bear: The sloth bear looks like your average black bear but with the floppiest ears in the world. I cannot explain how adorable its ears are. The live-action Jungle Book does not do the sloth bear justice. I know it’s a wild animal but it looks so cuddly, I just wanted to go pet it!

-        Jellyfish: I’m not sure if you’re aware, but the Omaha Zoo has an aquarium. In this aquarium, they have quite a few species of jellyfish (even ones that hangout upside down on the bottom of a tank) and they are so beautiful. Watching them float around is the most relaxing thing I’ve done in years.

-        Rhinoceros: This is just a personal opinion, but I love rhinos. They’re just so big and funny to me. It’s like a unicorn had a really bad breakup and said, “Forget it, I’ll adopt 40 birds,” and then did it. There were quite a few at the zoo, but my favorite was the one that was just chilling in the watering hole without a care in the world.

Honestly, every animal at the zoo is really fun to go see, even when they’re just sleeping. I know now is likely not the time to go see them, but I highly encourage making plans to go. It’s a great way to get off campus for a few hours. (Just make sure you buy tickets online before going.)

Lacey Stecker is a sophomore

communication major from

Noblesville, Ind.