Milwaukee got some distinguished visitors from Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium today, and they popped into the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel newsroom to say “Hi” to the staff. OK, so only a few staffers were brave enough to say “Hi” back.
The visit marked the 10th anniversary of the Shedd’s “Amazon Rising” exhibit, the dramatic recreation of the wildlife in nine South American countries. Our buddies included Circle, the caiman lizard, a real beauty who has been a mother at least 20 times.
Rosie, the Chilean Tarantula, showed her gentle nature by letting us sort of shake hands with her (sorry, Rosie, we didn’t have any crickets in the newsroom for ya). Another scene-stealer was Rico, the red-tailed boa, who snuggled with human Shedd rep Erin Boyle. At 5 feet long, Rico is still growing and someday, maybe, may do a cameo in Hollywood. Erin tells us that these boas are known as “gentle giants” and often get cast in movies because of their sweet nature.
The Shedd guys were also set to do another meet-and-greet with the kids at Milwaukee’s Atlas Preparatory Academy.