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Our latest trip to Lincoln Park Zoo started out with a roar of excitement and ended with a whiny whimper. It had been two months since the zoo got its new lion, Adelor, a 300-pound dude from South Africa, and we had waited long enough to see him. Finally, we got a chance last week to play hooky and check him out.

Guess we’ll have to wait a little longer. (But we don’t want to, sigh, whine, sob.)

We waited for what seemed like forever for the gorgeous guy to appear from the hidden part of his exhibit. Then we checked out the snow leopard and cheetah, and wandered back to the lion’s pen. No luck. He wasn’t showing his face, his tail, one single paw… nothing. So much for the mane event.

Maybe he was grumpy. We would be, too, stuck in that pen. But an outdoor addition is expected to be ready in the fall, and two lionesses are supposed to be brought for him to breed with. So life is definitely looking up for Adelor. And it will be for us once we see the guy!

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The Lincoln Park Zoo, 2200 N. Cannon Drive in Chicago, is at Fullerton just west of Lake Shore Drive. It’s free and open daily from 9 a.m. till 5 p.m. Call 312-742-2000 for more info.