Chicago's O'Hare Airport Goes "Animal"

Llama at O'Hare Airport
(Image:redeyechicago.com)

I fly in and out of Chicago's O'Hare Airport every so often. My arrivals and departures are typically uneventful affairs. I certainly don't expect to see llamas near the runway. Yet, according to a story in today's Chicago Tribune, live animals help manicure the airport's grassy areas that humans prudently avoid.

The creatures who feast on O'Hare's apparently fertile grounds include sheep, goats, and burros, as well as llamas. I'll admit that catching a glimpse of an animal associated with the Andes Mountains on the airport's restricted areas seems like a mirage. However, there's a resourcefulness in O'Hare "going animal" that I admire. The alternative -- dull, machine cutting -- hardly seems like an option at all.