Tricks, beaks and seeds.
Friday, June 10, 2011 @ 7:09 pm leave a comment? | 0 shed some light
It's funny how one's perspective changes. I remember peering about excitedly when I went to Jurong Bird Park with my kindergarten class. My favourite exhibit was the penguins. It is still my favourite. But when I visited the Bird Park with Jolene on Wednesday, aside from getting awestruck, I felt something else. I actually felt sad that they were held in captivity.
It's a tricky debate about whether zoos are good. I remember my teacher asking the class to separate into two big teams to debate about the issue of keeping animals in captivity. Bird parks and zoos are educational because everyone is able to see the animals in real life right in their country. You don't see a coyote or a penguin in the wild in Singapore, do you? Neither would you see a toucan flying above rooftops in Alaska. You could find either of those in Singapore and Alaska zoos though.
There is also the problem of conservation. It's true that sanctuaries are being built for these animals. Unfortunately, there is a limit to what they can do at times. Land space and resources are major concerns for many countries - especially for the developing ones. Pollution is also inevitable everywhere and that is particularly so for the developing nations. It's no surprise that the habitats of the animals in the wild are getting destroyed day by day, bit by bit. That's the part where some would step in to say that zoos are actually providing a place for the animals to live and survive longer than they usually do in the wild, albeit in captivity.
Nevertheless, I still felt a twinge of pity each time I look at the birds kept in the wire cages. It wasn't so bad for the lories and the pelicans since they could still fly freely. But the owls and hawks were all still and stared out of their enclosures beseechingly. Then I'd remind myself again that the bird park protects these endangered birds which could be wiped out in the wild in a few years' time. It's a conflicting feeling, I suppose.
I did enjoy my trip there however. It was great being able to catch up with Jo while we plodded our way around the whole park. Being able to see so many different types of birds was also really captivating. It was a great chance to take good photos although most of the birds did not want to cooperate. It'd be cool to have a DSLR instead of a regular digital camera, but I guess we should make do with what we have. Jo also took a few photos (mostly shots of the both of us) with her phone. The initial plan was to take plenty of photos of us, but I got too carried away with taking pictures of the exotic birds that I forgot all about it. Oops.
This guy here loves to strut about, unafraid of visitors or cameras. I actually knelt down to take this photo.
Labels: Captured by the lens
