Toronto Zoo's White Lion Pride

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address: 2000 Meadowvale Rd.
Date: Jan 2017
Website: www.torontozoo.com

  The four white lions born at the Toronto Zoo in 2015 were part of a baby boom. They were all males and have the colour mutation, like their parents, that makes them rare.  The Toronto Zoo is one of only a few zoos in North America where you can see white lions on display.

  The Toronto Zoo has seven white lions, but very soon the four brothers will be leaving. We visited one last time to say goodbye to Hank, Harrison, Oliver and Gus.  The whole family was outside huddled together for a family portrait.  Only their mother couldn't sit still to pose for a good photo.

  Aside from their colour, white lions are just the same as regular African lions.  This means they like to sleep in the sun on a hot summer's day and are no more susceptible to sunburn than other lions.  The Toronto Zoo has both white and regular lions that take turns sharing the display so this means that you will see different lions on different days.  White lions also tend to be more of a beige colour so it can sometimes be difficult to tell which lions you are seeing.

Above is a picture of a regular African lion male for comparison.
Below is a male white lion.

 

  We enjoyed our last visit with the white lion cubs and it was great to see all of the brothers together one last time.  Soon they will be off to start prides of their very own.

 

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Click here to take a virtual tour and see our collection of Toronto Zoo animal photos.

Map of Our World
 Toronto Zoo (Lion House)

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Post # 154

Canada Lynx

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address: 2000 Meadowvale Rd.
Date: Nov 2016
Website: www.torontozoo.com

  A Canada lynx is a medium sized cat which closely resembles a bobcat.  The easiest way to tell a lynx and a bobcat apart is that lynx have longer legs and their back legs are actually longer than their front ones.  They appear to be on a bit of a slant when running or walking.  Like most large cats they are beautiful to look at, but scary to come across in the wild.

   We have only ever encountered lynx at the zoo as it is very rare to see one in the wild.  The Canada lynx above was at the Toronto Zoo and may be one of the parents of the two babies that were born in 2016.

  Canada lynx can be found throughout Canada as well as in the northern United States.  The lynx above was from the Assiniboine Zoo in Winnipeg and was already wearing his winter coat which made him look twice as large.

  In 2016, the Toronto Zoo was lucky enough to have two lynx kittens born at the zoo.  The Canada Lynx can be found in the zoo's Canadian Domain on a very steep hill that goes down into the valley.  The lynx are one of the first animals on the way down the hill for those that fear they may never make it back up if they venture down to the bottom.

  When we visited, the babies were already about 3 months old.  They were still as cute as ever.  A Canada Lynx's favourite meal is snowshoe hare.  As you can see from the picture above, this baby lynx has already developed a taste. 

The video above shows the babies walking around and giving wide eyed looks.

  We visited again when the lynx kittens were about 7 months old.  The two kittens loved to play fight and chase each other around the enclosure.

  The Canada Lynx usually prefers a quiet, solitary life and likes to stay hidden.  While these two juveniles are in the exhibit it is a great time to see these animals in action.

 

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Click here to take a virtual tour and see our collection of Toronto Zoo animal photos.

Map of Our World
Assiniboine Park Zoo (Grasslands & Boreal Forest) , Toronto Zoo (Canadian Domain)

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Post # 153

The Triple Dog Dare

Location: St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada
Address: 173 Niagara Street
Date: Jan 2016

   A Christmas Story is one of the greatest holiday movies ever made.  It is always playing somewhere on television during the holiday season.  One memorable scene is where a young boy named Flick gets his tongue stuck to a flagpole.  It was all the result of the sinister triple dog dare.

  The Victoria Public School in St. Catharines, Ontario is where they filmed all of the school scenes from the movie.  A group of children are out in the school yard where Schwartz has just double dared Flick to lick the flagpole.  The double dare soon becomes a double dog dare and from there, despite a breach of etiquette, it becomes a triple dog dare.

  Flick licks the pole and of course his tongue sticks.  The bell rings and all the other children head back inside leaving poor Flick behind.  On a trip to Niagara Falls we visited this filming location.  The school was now being used as a women's shelter and homes had been built in the schoolyard.

  One thing that had not changed since the movie was filmed in the early 1980s was the two houses that sit at the intersection of Gibson Place and Fitzgerald Street.  You can see these homes just behind Flick when the fire department and police arrive to help remove him from the pole.

    That would place the flagpole somewhere near this house that was built on the old school property.  If you are a fan of A Christmas Story we think that you should visit this location.  We dare ya!

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Map of Our World
Triple Dog Dare

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Post # 152