Virginia Zoological Park

I went here Friday and was surprised at how crowded the zoo was for a weekday. There were a lot of school groups, and the parking lot was so full, people were parking at Lafayette Park. I’m pleased to report that the zoo maps have been upgraded since my last visit and are now up to date color maps. It seemed a little easier to find my way around this time, maybe just because I’ve been there before.

Yin, the red panda, didn’t cooperate much when I was taking photos of her (she was lounging in one of the trees), but I got some great shots of the male tiger.

The zoo now has a red panda! Her name is Yin and she arrived earlier this month from the San Diego Zoo. She escaped from her exhibit area twice, but I think it is pretty escape-proof now. She may get a mate later this year.

The zoo isn’t that big, but has a wide variety of animals. I want to go back when the weather is cooler. My one complaint about the zoo is that it was hard to navigate for such a small zoo. I got a B&W photocopy of a map at the entrance that didn’t even show where the new animals are located, and the signs in the zoo were pretty minimal.