Zoo

Nobody told Cajun the crocodile he would be in a show on Honolulu Avenue Sunday afternoon, but when he made his entrance the crowd went wild. The fifth annual Kids 'n' Kritters Day at the Montrose Shopping Park featured two petting zoos. One with pythons, kinkajous and crocodiles and another with more provincial animals. Kimberly Wright, an animal handler for Wild Wonders Productions, held Cajun on her forearm and passed his tail around for children, young and old, to touch.

This summer and fall, the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens will be the home of a rare white alligator. The white alligator named Claud is a true albino and is on special loan from an AZA accredited institution in Florida. This will be the first time a white alligator has been displayed at the Los Angeles Zoo. The animal will be featured in the main entrance plaza. Zoo guest will be able to compare and contrast the visiting white alligator with the Zoo's other alligators.

The Los Angeles Zoo unveiled a new, temporary addition to its collection on Thursday morning — a rare albino alligator. Zoo officials and staff, Los Angeles City Councilman Tom LaBonge, members of the media and a horde of children with the zoo's summer-camp program were on hand for the unveiling of the gator, which is a regular American alligator but lacks the genes for coloration. "It makes it very unique," said Russ Smith, the zoo's reptiles curator. The white-skinned, pink-eyed alligator is on loan from St. Augustine Alligator Farm in St. Augustine, Fla. In the wild, albino alligators are easily killed off by predators because they are so visible, said Smith.

The side lawn of the Central Library was transformed into a tidy barnyard on Saturday as a laid-back band of farm animals set up camp in Glendale. And where animals roam, children are sure to follow ? which is just what library staff intended, to attract children to the library during the summer as a part of the Summer Reading Program. Two pygmy goats, two alpacas, two chickens and a smattering of ducks and bunnies composed a handy rural backdrop for entertainers Sandy Walker and Barbara Leone, who introduced each animal with a lively jingle.

The Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association (GLAZA) presents two nights of "Music in the Zoo" under the stars featuring World Music Night from 6 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, July 11, and All-American Music Night from 6 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, July 25. Musical acts will perform on both nights in different locations throughout the Zoo, and guests will be able to spot more than a few animals staying up past their bedtimes (until 8 p.m.) to enjoy the music. There will also be strolling entertainment including jugglers and a cowboy roper.

The Los Angeles Zoo has planned some egg-citing events in observance of the Easter season. April 14 through 16, the zoo will have its Big Bunny's Spring Fling, which will include bunnies available for petting, face painting and photo opportunities with Big Bunny. Other characters, including the Energizer Bunny and Tony the Tiger, will be present. Musical entertainment will be provided by Dan Crow and Jim Gamble's Big Bunny Puppet Show. Children can plant their own carrots to take home or build a bunny, similar to those seen in Wallace & Gromit's "Curse of the Were-Rabbit."

The Los Angeles Zoo is pleased has announced the birth of two different primate species at the Zoo. On Dec. 5, a golden cheeked gibbon was born; on Dec. 12 a Kikuyu colobus monkey. The golden cheeked gibbon is a species of lesser ape that inhabits the rain forests of Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos. The gibbon is regarded as the greatest acrobat of the animal kingdom. Its long arms (which are 40% longer than its legs) help it swing through the forest. The young gibbon is able to cling to its mother's fur unaided as she leaps and swings through the trees and ropes of her zoo home.

The Grevy's zebra is the largest species of zebra, and it is now on display in a newly renovated habitat at the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens. The exhibit is a renovation of a paddock that was originally built in 1966. The zoo staff added several new features to the exhibit to improve it for the animals and zoo visitors. Improvements include sand for the animals to roll around in and the planting of native African vegetation, including acacia trees. In addition, the moat was filled in, expanding the living space for the zebras while changing the topography so that the animals can be viewed at eye-level by zoo visitors.

Robert Chacon A raucous group of chef Narciso Hernandez's customers tore through his culinary creation Tuesday, whooping loudly, grunting and grabbing food from each other's hands like a bunch of apes. The meal, prepared by the head chef at the Crocodile Cafe in Glendale and 10 others chefs, was a preview for the 32nd annual Beastly Ball at the Los Angeles Zoo, a major fundraiser that benefits the zoo's conservation projects, education programs, construction of new exhibits and other endeavors.