Zoo InternQuest is a career exploration program for high school students. For more information see the Zoo InternQuest Journals. For more photos see the Zoo InternQuest Photo Journal.

For our first hands-on experience, Zoo Educator Guide, Rachelle Marcon, led us up and down winding paths at the San Diego Zoo. We saw animals of all shapes and sizes including binturongs, kookaburras, and giant anteaters! She also brought us into the housing area of the koalas. Continuing our journey through the zoo, we visited the giraffe enclosure and fed the giraffes right out of our hands! Travis, one of the younger male giraffes, had a hearty appetite, stuffing his face with acacia leaves. While I was feeding him, his long tongue touched my hand and got sticky saliva all over my fingers. What a strange feeling!

My favorite part of the day was feeding the Bactrian camels. I never really realized that camels are such social animals. As soon as they saw us coming with the food, they rushed over to the gate to greet us. I placed my hand out in front of the large male camel, Mongo, and watched nervously as he leaned in to inspect the pellet I was offering. I thought for sure he would take off a finger or two. Of course, I was just fine and he was delighted to get a tasty treat out of it. Because it’s nearly winter, he had grown a thick, shaggy winter coat that made him seem even bigger. The Bactrian camels are native to China and Mongolia where their winter coats keep them protected from freezing temperatures. What I found really intriguing was that during the summer, when the camels at the Zoo shed their coats, the fur is used as enrichment for other animals that like to roll around in it.

It was an exciting day for us all; an experience we will not soon forget. Feeding giraffes and camels is something not everybody gets to do and learning about so many different animals and why they are becoming endangered can be an eye-opening experience. I think that if everyone could share in these experiences, then a lot more people would have an appreciation towards animals and their habitats.

Eric, Real World Team

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