6Foot5

Adam Russell · Dayton, Ohio

Cincinnati Zoo

February 2011. Winter at the zoo means thick coats, thin crowds and a lot of animals who’d rather be napping. Less fun fact: Martha, the last passenger pigeon on Earth, died here in 1914.

Close-up of a gray crocodilian resting its head on a rock with its eyes half closed and teeth showing
This guy lives in the Reptile House, the oldest surviving zoo building in America, built in 1875. He looks like he’s been there since opening day.
Gaboon viper coiled up with its horned head resting on its patterned tan and brown body
A Gaboon viper. It has the longest fangs of any snake on Earth, up to two inches. The horns are just for style.
Burmese python resting its head on its own thick, boldly patterned coils
A Burmese python using itself as a pillow, which is the only option when you’re all neck.
Close-up of a green snake's head resting on a branch, looking toward the camera
A green snake with the calm, patient face of something that has never once been in a hurry.
Close-up of a dark monitor lizard covered in gold speckles, resting its chin on a rock
A monitor lizard with gold flecks all over, like somebody spilled glitter on a dinosaur.
Shaggy brown emu standing next to a bamboo fence
An emu. In 1932 the Australian army went to war against these birds with machine guns, and the emus won.
Bactrian camel with two humps and a thick winter coat chewing a mouthful of hay
A Bactrian camel in his full winter coat, chewing hay with zero urgency. Two humps means Bactrian. One hump means you’re thinking of a different camel.
Tan Przewalski's horse with an upright dark mane walking toward the camera
Przewalski’s horse, with the built-in mohawk. They had vanished from the wild by the late 1960s, and every one alive today comes from a handful of horses kept in zoos.
Close-up of a small, hairy Sumatran rhino with two short horns walking past
A Sumatran rhino, the small, hairy kind. In 2001 this zoo got one born in human care for the first time in 112 years. That’s a long time to wait for a baby.
Three Japanese macaques sitting on rocks with their backs to the camera, two of them grooming
Three Japanese macaques. Two of them are busy grooming. The third one is clearly done with everybody.
Western lowland gorilla sitting against a rock wall with its arms folded around its knees
A western lowland gorilla, slumped against the wall like a guy in the last hour of a three-hour meeting.
Mexican red-knee tarantula with orange-banded hairy legs sitting on wood chips beside a cactus
A Mexican red-knee tarantula. Eight hairy legs, orange knee pads, and absolutely no plans to move.
Pile of large Madagascar hissing cockroaches crawling over a log
Madagascar hissing cockroaches, a whole pile of them. They hiss by forcing air out of the breathing holes in their sides. The bug house here is the biggest building in North America devoted to live insects, so this isn’t even the weird part.
Scorpion glowing bright green under ultraviolet light against a dark background
Scorpions glow green under a blacklight. Scientists still aren’t totally sure why. Neither is the scorpion.
Spiny lizard with a black collar and pale spots perched on a rock
A spiny lizard wearing a black collar, dressed for a very small funeral.
Emperor tamarin monkey in profile with a long, curling white mustache
An emperor tamarin. Supposedly named after German Emperor Wilhelm II, because of the mustache. The monkey’s is better.
Barn owl asleep with its eyes closed, showing its white heart-shaped face
A barn owl, asleep on the job. Its ears sit at different heights so it can find a mouse in total darkness. Also very good at naps.
Fruit bat hanging upside down from a branch in blue nighttime lighting, wrapped in its wings
A fruit bat hanging around, which is a pun, but also exactly what it’s doing.
Close-up of a yellow monitor lizard with a black net pattern on its neck
Another monitor lizard, this one in yellow. He’s holding his head like he’s posing for a coin.
Two manatees swimming underwater in a green-blue tank, one waving a flipper
Manatees in Manatee Springs. The zoo takes in orphaned and injured manatees from Florida, gets them healthy, and sends them home. From Ohio, of all places.
Lion with a thick blond mane lying on dirt and dry leaves, looking off to the side
A lion with a mane that would make a shampoo commercial jealous. He’s lying down, but he’s very clearly in charge.
Close-up of a dark Steller's sea eagle with a huge pale arched beak
A Steller’s sea eagle, one of the heaviest eagles on Earth, with a beak like a can opener with a grudge.
Black-and-white ruffed lemur with a white fur ruff looking at the camera with orange eyes
A black-and-white ruffed lemur from Madagascar, wearing a fur collar like a 17th-century Dutch merchant.
Bonobo lying on its side with its head on the ground, looking at the camera
A bonobo lying on the floor, giving me a look like I’m the one on exhibit. Bonobos and chimps are our closest living relatives, and this one seems to know it.
Small monkey with a blue-gray face, black eye band and fluffy white cheek whiskers
A monkey with a better-groomed beard than most guys at a craft brewery.
Black lion-tailed macaque with a silver mane walking past a wire fence
A lion-tailed macaque, from the rainforests of southern India. Silver mane, black suit. Looks like a senator.
Tan white-handed gibbon with a white ring of fur around its dark face, looking down
A white-handed gibbon. Gibbon couples sing loud duets in the morning. This one looks like it’s still working on the lyrics.
Two polar bears with yellowish-white fur standing close together on rocks
Two polar bears. Their skin is black and their fur is actually see-through. White is just how it looks to the rest of us.
Black bear with a tan muzzle sniffing the end of a log
A black bear sniffing a log with the focus of a man reading a menu.
Gray southern screamer bird with a wispy crest and black neck ring among green plants
A southern screamer. It’s related to ducks, it has two sharp spurs on each wing, and the name is not ironic.
Green parrot with red forehead and red shoulder patch preening its feathers against a dark background
A parrot doing some personal grooming and very much not posing for me.
Carmine bee-eater with rosy red feathers and a long curved bill perched on a branch
A carmine bee-eater. They catch bees in midair and rub them on a branch to get the stinger out before eating. Somebody had to figure that out the hard way.
Close-up of a blue-gray heron with a long yellow bill and a white head plume
A heron with a beak like a fireplace poker and the patience of a guy fishing off a pier.
Sea lion floating on its back in green water with its nose pointed at the sky
A sea lion doing the backstroke, nose up, like he’s in the slow lane at the Y.
River otters sleeping piled on top of each other against a rock wall
River otters asleep in a pile. A group of otters on land is called a romp. This one is a nap.
Gray wolf walking with its nose to the ground across dirt and dry grass
A wolf working the ground nose-first, like it lost its keys.
King penguin lying on its belly in dry leaves, showing its bright orange ear patches and bill
A king penguin lying on its belly in the leaves, which is what penguins do when standing gets old.
Tiny little blue penguin standing on rocky ground beside a boulder
A little blue penguin, the smallest penguin there is, about a foot tall. I’m 6’5″. We did not see eye to eye.
Brown goat with curved horns and a long beard walking across concrete
A goat with horns, a beard, and the attitude of a guy who has never once been told no.
Close-up of a white turkey's bare pink head and neck
Ben Franklin once wrote that the turkey was ‘a much more respectable bird’ than the bald eagle. Looking at this face, I have follow-up questions.