The Keeper of the Giant Anteater Speaks

A lucky encounter in the rain forest of the Buffalo Zoo

Wednesday was a lucky day.

I got to meet the Keeper of the Giant Anteater!

Remember, a few weeks ago, I was planning on going to see a scheduled speech by the Giant Anteater’s keeper. However I was not able to make it. That wrong has now been righted.

I almost did not even go to the Buffalo Zoo. I am a member and I go there a lot — however I had a lot of work to do so I was just going to walk the Delaware Park Ring Road, do what everyone in my family now calls “a once-around.” A once-around is one time around the Ring Road, just enough to clear your head and put things in perspective.

So I set out, counter-clockwise. However a crazy appeared. This big guy, standing in the middle of the road, by himself, yelling and swearing.

As a Buffalo native, I do not let situations like this bother me. I just turn around. I walked in the other direction, toward the zoo.

And, what the heck, I went in. Life is too short not to go to the zoo! And, it being a cold day, I headed toward the Rainforest Exhibit.

The capybara was snoozing. Monkeys were in the trees. And … the Giant Anteater was up!

Usually she is sleeping. You see a mop in the corner of her enclosure. That is what she looks like asleep. She looks like a mop, or a broom.

Wednesday was different. I saw her in the distance, walking around. “You’re kidding!” I said. I hopped, skipped and jumped across the rope bridge by the waterfall so I could get a good look. Monkeys, a capybara, a rope bridge, a waterfall, a Giant Anteater. All across the street from me. Do I lead a wonderful life or what? It is like something out of a children’s book.

While I was watching the Giant Anteater …

… a woman turned up and lowered something — a treat, a toy, some kind of big cylinder — into the enclosure. I took a deep breath.

“Are you the keeper of the Giant Anteater?” I asked.

And she was!

We talked about the Giant Anteater, whose name is Maria, while the animal circled around with her vacuum-cleaner nose. I have rarely seen the Giant Anteater. Once when I saw her I took this picture.

However pictures of her are few and far between. I could find hardly any in my Google Photos.

One thing the Keeper of the Giant Anteater told me is that Maria was a twin. There is another Giant Anteater out there who is just like her! Maria’s twin is at another institution, the keeper told me. I assume that means another zoo.

While we were talking a few other people turned up, a girl in a plaid school uniform and her mom.

“What is this animal doing here?” the mother asked. “Is it endangered?”

And it struck me: That is what people think zoos are, a place just for endangered animals. You want to say, no, this animal is just in the zoo.

It is here because we like it!

I do like the Giant Anteater! You can tell by my starstruck tone in the video where I am talking to the keeper, at the top of this post. I was really winging it. And I forgot to ask a question I should have asked, which is:

Can you pet the Giant Anteater?

More importantly: Can I pet the Giant Anteater?

These are questions that will have to be answered. But meanwhile, we are off to a good start.

Some things were just meant to be!