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  1. #1
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    A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Went to the zoo today. Let me know what you think......and be frank. I'm kinda new at this.....LOL.



    "siesta time"










    "Black and white in black and white"




    Thanks for looking and all comments welcome,
    Blair

  2. #2
    Senior Member Knight's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Great series ,looks like you had a wonderfull day taking photo`s
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Thanks Knight! Yes I love photographying animals........I hope to get good at it. I will be traveling to Tanzania and Malawi Africa in Oct. hope to improve alot between now and then.

    Thanks again,
    Blair

  4. #4
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    You've got some real keepers there. The albino and the siesta shot are two I really like how they came out.

    The first one though is definitely "a face only a mother could love". I'd like to see it composed slightly differently, but still it does stand out.

    Thanks for showing and I'll also say it looks like you had a fun outing!!
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  5. #5
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Nice images! I really like the detail in the lapwing and that ocelot is so cute. One thing that I would suggest is watch your frame edges... you went too tight on the ocelot.
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Thanks,
    That's a Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa)
    Actually I was forced to come in closer than I wanted to in that shot. I was shooting through glass and fighting a bad glare. I was afraid I was going to miss the shot completely as I didn't know how long he was going to sit there looking at me.

    The lapwing was on a nest when the shot was taken.

    Thanks again for the critique.....That's what I need. I'm fairly new at this and want to learn.

  7. #7
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    OOPS.... Clouded leopard it is ;) They are even cooler looking and far more endangered too!

    BTW...I though the Albino alligator was in lousiana, but I guess I was mistaken.
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    You're batting 1000 today...........The Alligator isn't albino.....He's leucisistic. His eyes are normal colored ...........LOL

    I'm not sure if he was moved he to San Antonio due to the damage to the New Orleans Zoo or what but we do have a true Albino Alligator he as well but he's very small and housed in the reptile house. Here's a photo (a bad photo but a photo):



    and heres a full photo of the big guy:


    He has to be atleast 8 or 9 ft long.

  9. #9
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    grat stuff and wlecome. enjoy looking at pics like that.

    what glass are you using on your rebel. is that the kit lens?

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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Thanks!

    No, most of these photos were taken with the 75 - 300 zoom.

    The photo of the small albino gator was taken with the 50mm macro

  11. #11
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Are the eyes normal or BLUE? I know about genetic and environmental color morphing and normal or BLUE eyes in leucistic reptiles in the rule depending on the cause of the leucism.

    I don't know about batting 1000, but I do connect alot(faul balls happen) ;)
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    I haven't seen his eyes but I did some checking and found out this guys eyes are blue.

  13. #13
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Well... I too just did a quick search and it seems a good number of leucistic alligators exist. Audubon zoo aquired 18 in 97 and some brothers from SC found 3 last year(one lived). Depending on the variable that made them leucistic, it may not be a trait that will be able to be passed on geneticly. I sure hope it wasn't an environmental cause, because breeding them in zoos would be great.

    They are pretty cool looking .
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  14. #14
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Do you know which is rarer Albino or leucistic among alligators?

  15. #15
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Well, I do believe only 8 true albino american alligotors are known of, so that would make them rarer. St augustine alligator farm in FL has one, that they loan out to zoos .
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    I thought the true albinos were more rare also but a guy on another forum said no that leucistic was rarer.....I don't think he knew what he was talking about.....

  17. #17
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Well.... in the snake world he would be correct by all means, but I found an image through google stating that only 8 albinos are known of and it's pretty much common knowledge that Audubon zoo aquired 18 leucistics from one clutch.
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  18. #18
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    The 1st and last shots are fantastic! It's been years since I've been to the zoo, I think I'll have to make a trip of it this summer.

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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    When I'm wrong I admit it.......It's rare but it happens.....LOL

    I just got off the phone with the curator of reptiles for the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans. There are 14 known leucistic gators in captivity....all belong to the Audubon Zoo. There is a farm in LA that has a breeding pair of Albino Alligators. They produce albino young every year although most do not live to over 18 inches, (It seems the albino gene is self-destructive) they are available to zoos and individuals. The exact number of how many are out there is unknown.

    I also found out both gators at San Antonio Zoo are Albinos from the farm in LA. (I apearently spoke to a girl who didn't know what she was talking about at the SA zoo yesterday)

  20. #20
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    I am usually right too, but.........

    thought you might like this article ;)

    http://www.livescience.com/animalwor...alligator.html

    Add 1 to your number ;) then figure in the collectors who own them without people knowing. Genetic and environmental color mutations happen alot more than people think in nature, but the young are weak(geneticly) and become prey items due to no natural camoflage.
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  21. #21
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    I discussed how often leucistic gators apear in the wild with Rick Atkinson from the Audubon Zoo and he said the same thing but he said they seem to be genetically strong, just as strong in fact, as a normal gator.

    A side note:
    He said seman from a male leucistic gator was used to fertalize a female normal gator. None of the babies came out leucistic but he said if they are crossed back again with a leucistic male some if not all the babies would probably be leucistic so it is very possible that more of these "white Gators" will be bred in captivity. Although, he said, at this time they had no plans of doing so.

  22. #22
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    I bred boids(albino boas, python abnormalities..) for years.... Shall we discuss heterozygose and the percentage of normal, het and trait carrying offspring from a mating ;) Leucism is not always a genetic trait as bob clark found out after dropping 10s of thousands for his first leucistic bermese python who never produced any offspring that carried that trait. he crossed and recrossed to no avail.

    A mating of leucistic to normal should produce 100% het for L and a cross back will produce 50 L/ 50 het for L on paper. Het to Het will produce 50%normal/ 25% L and 25% het, so the normal looking offspring from a het/het mating are called 33%het( meaning your chances of having one that carries the gene are 1 in 3)

    Not bad for a high school grad who only cut down trees or worked at a super market his whole life huh ;)
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  23. #23
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    LOL.....OK Doc......I bow to the expert!


    Now let's talk African Cichlids.......My field of expertise........(Why do feel like this turned into a genetics forum)......LOL

    (I'm actually going to Lake Malawi in Oct for a 14 day scuba safari. That's why I'm trying to brush up on my picture taking skills.....)

    Thanks again.... I learned a lot.

  24. #24
    nature/wildlife co-moderator paulnj's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    I am not an expert at anything, but I do have a hidden wealth of knowledge

    I can help you find fish with my fishing pole, but you will need to ID them before we bait the fish eagles that I will be taking images of :thumbsup:
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  25. #25
    Panarus biarmicus Moderator (Sports) SmartWombat's Avatar
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    Re: A trip to the San Antonio Zoo

    Het to Het will produce 50%normal, 25% L and 25% het
    So, it's classic Mendelian, single allele, with "normal" appearance dominant phenotype.

    N for normal, L for leucistic
    NN x LL produces only heterozygous NL

    an F1 cross
    NL x NL would produce
    NN NL NL LL
    Giving the 3:1 ratio of phenotypes and 1: 2 :1 by genotype

    that's 25% normal, 50% het and 25% L


    so the normal looking offspring from a het/het mating are called 33%het
    1: 2 :1 means that 66% of the normal looking are carrying the L gene

    meaning your chances of having one that carries the gene are 1 in 3
    I make it 2 in 3 carrying the L gene and 33% totally normal
    PAul

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