STILL MORE ABOUT THAT ZOO

The Lincoln Park Zoo seems to be trying valiantly to wrest from the National Zoo the title of "Worst-Run Zoo in America." A new report brings to light additional recent animal deaths that were previously un- or under-reported, including: "Meadow, a cow euthanized in June 2004 after she was suspected of having tuberculosis. A postmortem exam found no evidence of TB. A baby marmoset fell face down in flowing water and drowned in April. The audit team called it 'an unfortunate accident' that could occur in the wild. A heart defect killed a 3-day-old lion cub in December 2004." The latest fiasco was the deaths of three langurs who died in May when they were moved into an area where they could grab, or were thrown, some toxic yew plants growing near the exhibit.

Additionally, the bombshell that "Lincoln Park Zoo officials were given an advance copy of the findings" and that "after input from the zoo, the report was changed before public release for what the audit team called 'greater accuracy and clarity'" is noted only because a PETA representative draws attention to it. There's still more crap to flush out of this system, that's for sure.