This morning's Calgary Herald notes that 4 horses were killed in a 24 hour period and that one rider was critically injured in that same period at the Stampede and that animal rights activists are calling for an end to the event. I guess that explains the cancellation of last night's events. There are two more Calgary "attractions" that I want to see - the zoo because they have whooping cranes, wood bison, and grizzlies and the Glenbow Museum because they reportedly have an excellent exhibition on the First Nations and on Canadian history. To the zoo. I've never been to a zoo without children in tow so this is sort of weird. I feel like I've lost something. The weather is beautiful, sunny and very warm - nothing like yesterday - and school and day-care groups are out in force. The exhibits are wonderful and the grounds are beautiful. I'm having so much fun, strolling leisurely, reading all the placards. Most of the animals are at rest - likely the very warm temp. My main focus is the Canadian Wilds portion of the zoo where I find a pair of whooping cranes - an endangered species that I have had to consider many times when performing critical issues analyses for potential wind farm sites. I've become keenly interested in this species that may be making a slow comeback (from 16 in 1942 to ~400 at present) but that is still perilously close to extinction. The western whoopers summer (nest - reproduce) in northern Alberta at Wood Buffalo National Park and winter (eat) on the Texas Gulf coast, mainly within Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. I've never managed to see one in Texas and Wood Buffalo Park is extremely remote (accessible only by air or boat) so this could be my only opportunity to see one in person. And they are magnificent! (pics) Around 5 feet tall with a windgspan of over 7 feet. I watch them for a long time. They are so placid and so regal. I would love to see them in flight. Their continuing recovery is due to the joint efforts of the Canadian government and the US Fish and Wildlife Service. I find the wood bison (pic). This is a larger, woolier bison species than the plains bison (buffalo) that we know in the south. They are a threatened species but have made quite a comeback thanks to the efforts of the Canadian government. Their range originally included the boreal forests of Canada and Alaska but the wild herd is now largely confined to Wood Buffalo National Park. I never saw a grizzly while hiking (thank my lucky stars) so I make sure I find the grizzly that lives at the zoo. He's in the zoo because he had become habituated to the human environment and was a threat to humans. If the zoo had not taken him in, he would have been destroyed :-(. I took several pics, one included, but he was dozing most of the time so I didn't get to see him in his big scary entirety. Something else I never saw in all the time I spent in the parks was a moose (pic) - I've seen them before but had hoped to see one again. They're so amusing to me - gawky looking (I don't know how the big bulls with the big racks keep from tipping over nose first), goofy looking (Bullwinkle the Moose, if you're old enough to remember), moving along languorously almost in slow motion. I include random pics of other animals that I found interesting or beautiful or both. On to the Glenbow. I beeline to the third floor where the First Nations and Canadian history exhibits are housed. Very well done. The First Nations exhibits are divided into four areas dictated mostly by geography (see pics) and I have a fine time looking and reading and listening - there's a small side theater featuring a video of members of the Blackfeet Nation relating folk stories and oral histories. The museum closes at 5:00 so I don't have a lot of time to take photos - I concentrate on taking in the exhibits. The history of the oil industry in Canada, particularly Alberta, and the government's involvement in same was extremely interesting. In this Socialist economy the government keeps rein on most industry, oil being no exception, and attempts to evenly distribute resulting revenues across the country. Albertans appear to be of the opinion that revenue generated in Alberta should stay in Alberta. Radicals :-) I'm shocked when a security guard rousts me and notes that the museum is closing. Time passes fast when you're mesmerized. There was an Impressionist exhibit on another floor that I missed entirely :-(. Just not enough time. I strike out for Drumheller.
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