Welcome to the Arizona Daily Star's new blog, Tucson Tails, stories about the cute and the strange animals as found in the pages of the Arizona Daily Star and the Tucson Citizen over the last century.
Hello everyone, we would like to say that this is our very first blog so if there is anything that might have some room for improvement please comment and let us know.
Today's "tail" is about Simbaa, an air-mailed ocelot.
- Tucson Citizen, October 12, 1959
Tucsonâs first airborne ocelot arrived in the Old Pueblo yesterday via American Airlines from New York. His new home will be at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.
A 3-month old kitten, Simbaa is a very much displaced person. He was born in Central America and came to Long Island. The people who imported him were told by the apartment building superintendent that no wild animals were allowed - to get rid the ocelot or else.
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Dr. Joseph E. King and his wife, Bette - former Tucsonians- decided to give the kitten a home in their New York apartment. So Simbaa moved with them. But the apartment was too small to permit the baby ocelot much exercise, and the doctorâs work necessitated considerable traveling.
The Kings had visited the Desert Museum and were highly impressed by its program of wildlife education. What better place for Simbaa? The desert climate, the care, and a place where his beautiful markings could be seen and admired by museum visitors.
Dr. King called William H. Woodin, director, and offered Simbaa to the Museum. Woodin gratefully accepted.
The Kings spent many hours trying to find a way that Simbaa could be âair-mailedâ to Tucson. Most major airlines had restrictions against carrying unaccompanied animals on passenger flights.
But American Airlines had just adopted a policy change, effective Saturday, which permitted transporting pet dogs and cats. Simbaa passed as a pet cat - and arrived in Tucson in fine fettle.
