Over the past few months, On the Job has seen me feed a baby sloth at the Central Florida Zoo and destroy a line of chocolate covered potato chips at Angell & Phelps. But nothing could have prepared me for the moment when I would come face to face with Bomber, a 13-foot alligator with jaws like a steel trap. The St. Augustine Alligator Farm is a mecca for reptile viewing. Founded in 1893, the farm is one of Florida's oldest zoological attractions. It's true Old Florida and a location that shouldn't be missed.
My day started with an introduction by Gen Anderson, the head of the
bird and mammal department. After a little background, she led me to
the Birds of Africa exhibit. My first glance at a hungry vulture let me
know this would be an adventure.
"We're in an exhibit with five different genres of bird's. Here's Oldman," she says as she describes the giant, uneasy bird which is now perched ominously over my shoulder. "He's a marabou stork."
"We also have some different kinds of vultures," Anderson tells me.
"Cape griffon vultures, hooded vultures. We also have some guinea fowl
and a pair of cranes."
And then there's Neuman.
"Neuman is our other male marabou stork," she warns me. "We need to do a lot of work in this exhibit to keep it clean and Neuman is a problem child."
Neuman!
After capturing Neuman and locking him in a little stork prison, it's safe to continue on with our day.
An average day in the Birds of Africa exhibit consists of a lot of cosmetic work. Mowing, weed wacking, and other tedious yard work is necessary. And yours truly got his fair share of all of it. But the day took a turn when it was time to clean the pool.
The pool is a decent sized body of water that allows the birds to drink and bathe. Over time, the pool becomes overwhelmed with algae and other unwanted nastiness. And guess who has to clean that?
As I reach my hand shoulder deep into a dark abyss that contains the drain for the pool, all I can think about is how ready I am to move on to the next part of my day.
And that's where we meet Danny Lippi, a bird and mammal keeper.
"Today I'm preparing diets and doing shows," Lippi explains. "So we're going to prepare some diets for birds and mammals; monkeys, exotic birds and toucans. And it's not just pellets either."
I held my breath as Lippi tells me that the first thing we would be feeding is a red-knobbed hornbill, an omnivore with a four-foot wingspan.
"They're big birds and right now they have a chick," he says. "They need a lot of protein so we're gonna chop up a baby rat."
What?
"Yup," Lippi confirms. "A baby rat."
Now before you get all uppity, remember this: birds in the wild eat rodents. It's what they do. These birds are in captivity but they still want rodents. Somebody has to give it to them. I am that man.
But the diet of this rare bird isn't just chopped up Ratatouille, it's also bananas, sweet potatoes, apples and dog food, yes, dog food, for protein.
And as we finish up with lunch, we head to the next and final leg of our alligator farm adventure: Bomber.
At 13 ½ feet long, Bomber is the big daddy of the large alligator lagoon. And guess what? I get to feed him.
I'm led into the lagoon by the assistant reptile curator, Kevin
Torregrosa. It's here where he tells me that not only will I feed
Bomber, I will also be issuing him some commands. Now while I'm sure
these animals can be trained, one false move and my professional
basketball career is over if you know what I mean.
Torregrosa leads me to edge of the water and lets me know my next move.
"As far as the touch goes, your hand is gonna stay really high above his head," he explains. "That's his cue to lift his head up."
As I put my hand straight out, the creature lifts his bank safe-sized head out of the water.
"Now you're gonna lean down and do some very light touches on his snout," Torregrosa says.
As an expectant father, the next few moments will be make or break. Having my hand that close to this creature's mouth is possibly the most intimidating moment of my journalistic career.
"When you take your hand away, go straight up. Never side to side," Torregrosa warns. "If you need to bail, go straight back. Never approach from the side, never leave from the side."
Torregrosa hands me a few pellets to feed Bomber and instructs me to aim for the brown on his tongue. The second I toss in the pellets, the animal snaps his powerful jaws shut. I feel the wind brush against my fingers.
Having survived that experience with absolutely no loss of limbs, there is seemingly no better place to wrap up our adventure.
Thanks to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm for an amazingly enlightening day, especially to Bomber for allowing me to keep my fingers.
IF YOU GO
WHERE: St. Augustine Alligator Farm, 999 Anastasia Blvd., St. Augustine.
TICKETS: $21.95; $10.95 for ages 3-11.
CONTACT: Alligatorfarm.com; 904-824-3337.
"We're in an exhibit with five different genres of bird's. Here's Oldman," she says as she describes the giant, uneasy bird which is now perched ominously over my shoulder. "He's a marabou stork."
"We also have some different kinds of vultures," Anderson tells me.
"Cape griffon vultures, hooded vultures. We also have some guinea fowl
and a pair of cranes." And then there's Neuman.
"Neuman is our other male marabou stork," she warns me. "We need to do a lot of work in this exhibit to keep it clean and Neuman is a problem child."
Neuman!
After capturing Neuman and locking him in a little stork prison, it's safe to continue on with our day.
An average day in the Birds of Africa exhibit consists of a lot of cosmetic work. Mowing, weed wacking, and other tedious yard work is necessary. And yours truly got his fair share of all of it. But the day took a turn when it was time to clean the pool.
The pool is a decent sized body of water that allows the birds to drink and bathe. Over time, the pool becomes overwhelmed with algae and other unwanted nastiness. And guess who has to clean that?
As I reach my hand shoulder deep into a dark abyss that contains the drain for the pool, all I can think about is how ready I am to move on to the next part of my day.
And that's where we meet Danny Lippi, a bird and mammal keeper.
"Today I'm preparing diets and doing shows," Lippi explains. "So we're going to prepare some diets for birds and mammals; monkeys, exotic birds and toucans. And it's not just pellets either."
I held my breath as Lippi tells me that the first thing we would be feeding is a red-knobbed hornbill, an omnivore with a four-foot wingspan.
"They're big birds and right now they have a chick," he says. "They need a lot of protein so we're gonna chop up a baby rat."
What?
"Yup," Lippi confirms. "A baby rat."
Now before you get all uppity, remember this: birds in the wild eat rodents. It's what they do. These birds are in captivity but they still want rodents. Somebody has to give it to them. I am that man.
But the diet of this rare bird isn't just chopped up Ratatouille, it's also bananas, sweet potatoes, apples and dog food, yes, dog food, for protein.
And as we finish up with lunch, we head to the next and final leg of our alligator farm adventure: Bomber.
At 13 ½ feet long, Bomber is the big daddy of the large alligator lagoon. And guess what? I get to feed him.
I'm led into the lagoon by the assistant reptile curator, Kevin
Torregrosa. It's here where he tells me that not only will I feed
Bomber, I will also be issuing him some commands. Now while I'm sure
these animals can be trained, one false move and my professional
basketball career is over if you know what I mean. Torregrosa leads me to edge of the water and lets me know my next move.
"As far as the touch goes, your hand is gonna stay really high above his head," he explains. "That's his cue to lift his head up."
As I put my hand straight out, the creature lifts his bank safe-sized head out of the water.
"Now you're gonna lean down and do some very light touches on his snout," Torregrosa says.
As an expectant father, the next few moments will be make or break. Having my hand that close to this creature's mouth is possibly the most intimidating moment of my journalistic career.
"When you take your hand away, go straight up. Never side to side," Torregrosa warns. "If you need to bail, go straight back. Never approach from the side, never leave from the side."
Torregrosa hands me a few pellets to feed Bomber and instructs me to aim for the brown on his tongue. The second I toss in the pellets, the animal snaps his powerful jaws shut. I feel the wind brush against my fingers.
Having survived that experience with absolutely no loss of limbs, there is seemingly no better place to wrap up our adventure.
Thanks to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm for an amazingly enlightening day, especially to Bomber for allowing me to keep my fingers.
IF YOU GO
WHERE: St. Augustine Alligator Farm, 999 Anastasia Blvd., St. Augustine.
TICKETS: $21.95; $10.95 for ages 3-11.
CONTACT: Alligatorfarm.com; 904-824-3337.
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