Report from recent annual meetings...

I attended a couple meetings that are worthy of mention. First was the Friends of the Zoo annual supper meeting on January 31st. I enjoyed hearing about the successful zoo programs for which I volunteered, and the staggering amount of money the zoo raised with the support of our generous community. The highlight of the evening was the speaker Joe Collins, a herpetologist from Lawrence, KS who showered us with his vast knowledge of reptiles and amphibians. I was impressed that Joe and his colleagues recently discovered the first new frog species in the U.S. in over 20 years in the Mississippi/Louisiana area. I was equally impressed that Joe is still alive considering he's been bitten countless times by several species of poisonous snakes over his many years in the business. There were a few flutters in the audience when Joe opened his briefcase and pulled out a bag with something moving inside it. Yes, the guest of honor was a non-venomous 8-ft black western rat snake. The species is common to eastern Kansas. I thought it was cool.

Then I attended the annual meeting of the Friends of Sandsage Bison Range on February 9th. I was voted in as a new board member and the highlight of the evening was a presentation about the old west cowboy Buffalo Jones and his many adventures. Buffalo Jones was an important part of saving the buffalo/bison from near extinction from over-hunting. We were treated to restored footage of Buffalo Jones trip to Africa in 1909 where he famously roped animals like white rhino, zebra, and giraffe, just to show the world that you don't have to kill an animal to enjoy it up close. I enjoyed learning the local history and was fascinated by the stories of the man called "The Last of the Plainsmen" by the famous writer Zane Grey.