Put me in the zoo.

Today we took our Girl Scout troop on their first field trip. The Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium offers educational programs for groups such as Girl Scouts where you can mingle with zoo residents. These are just some highlights of our hour session.

Above: Ernie the mallard duck made his grand entrance by immediately pooping on the instructor. It was a real show stopper.



Ernie then spent the rest of his time begging the instructor for treats.



During the program, the girls learned about how different kinds of animals live in different environments, like the sea and the rain forests. They were a great little audience with rapt attention.



Yazo the Skink got the biggest reaction.



Okay, maybe from just my kid. Look at the anticipation! Yazo was like a cold blooded version of Justin Bieber.



Unfortunately, Yazo had none of The Bieber's moves, and just kinda laid there, as skinks tend to do.



After the program, Lauren and I walked around and took in the sights of the zoo. We both brought our cameras and took a few photos along the way. I couldn't help but be amused by all the people around me with huge zoom lenses, and here I was toting around a my little 50mm prime. When you're in mommy mode, you never know when you're going to be called upon to carry something, so your hands can't be encumbered by a heavy zoom lens.



I really like her purple corduroy pants against the green of the grass.



And I swear, I do not pose her. She just does her thing, and I click away.



Due to the cold weather, most of the animals were inside. This visit, I liked the primate house the best because they were all hanging out right up against the glass so you were practically face to face with them.



Usually the gorillas are in the outside enclosure, a pretty far distance from the onlookers. Seeing them up close and personal really gave a sense of how formidable they are. I just loved how this one was basking in the glow from the above skylight.



Lastly, This little blossom inside the aquarium reminded me that, despite today's cold weather, spring really will be here soon. A side note, I was peeved to find that I accidentally shot this at ISO 800, which is a reminder to me to always check my camera settings (either that, or start shooting in auto ISO).