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Many mothers would say their lives already revolve around wild animals — of the human species.

Perhaps that’s why a trip to the Naples Zoo to visit wild animals of another type seemed so appropriate for so many mothers on Sunday.

Moms were encouraged to come out and use free coupons for Mother’s Day only, available at the zoo’s Web site.

“I’m gonna guess between all of us, we’ve probably seen at least 500 families with the coupons, which has been great for the zoo,” Dan Longen said as he held up a stack of coupons redeemed while he was staffing a ticket counter. “This would rank next to our free Saturdays, probably.”

Zoo officials used the coupons and the promise of new animal mothers to lure families out.

The newest mom at the zoo is a Solomon Island Skink, a large lizard that gives birth to babies up to a third of her own size.

The new skink mom at the zoo gave birth to twins not long ago. The new mom and her babies — whose faces only a mother could love — were on display in the morning at the zoo.

Many human moms used the day as an opportunity to stretch their legs and indulge both themselves and their young ones.

“When she was little, we used to have a membership here,” said Linda Teerling, as her 9-year-old daughter, Cassidy Beckwith, admired the zebras. “As she got older, we stopped coming, but she could remember certain things about it. It’s like a walk down memory lane.”

Dawn Price spent her first Mother’s Day as a mom strolling the zoo with her husband, Chris, and their son, 11-month-old Logan. The family, from Tallahassee, is visiting relatives in Naples.

“I wanted to see the monkeys,” Dawn Price said, laughing. “I’m not sure (Logan) is really into the animals yet.”

Her husband chimed in, “It’s a good starter for us parents, I guess.”

The Prices, like many other families, moseyed through the winding paths at the Naples Zoo, watching animals that seemed perfectly aware of what day of the week it was. The lions lounged in the sun, grooming themselves and staring lazily at their visitors.

A kangaroo sprawled in the shade while her joey wandered quietly into the trees.

“Is she sleeping?” one inquisitive child asked her mother.

“No, she’s just lying down watching TV,” she joked.

It was a typical Sunday afternoon, even for the animals.

Only the tigers seemed on edge, pacing back and forth in the heat.

“You see him?” a dad asked his wide-eyed toddler. “He’s worried because it’s Mother’s Day and he forgot to get a present.”