Australia Zoo!

This past Saturday, my other WI friends and I went to the Australia Zoo with the QUEST (Queensland University Exchange Student) Society. Actually, I almost didn't go. I had found out about the trip on Wednesday, but didn't realize that you had to buy a ticket ahead of time until Thursday. On Friday, I got some information about QUEST from the UQ Union and gave the treasurer a call. And, well, they were sold out. But then I received an e-mail later that night from some one else saying that they actually did have room and that I should just show up on Saturday morning. So I did end up going in the end.

The zoo is about 1.5 hours straight north of Brisbane (or so I'm told, I was asleep about 15 minutes after we left). Now, I had heard that the zoo was massive and that it was jam-packed with so many amazing animals that it would be impossible to see the whole thing in a single day, even if you were that from 9a-5p. That definitely wasn't the case, although I will say that it was fairly large and the animals were really amazing. When we got inside, we broke up into smaller groups, thinking that we would be able to cover more ground. It was only a few short minutes later, that the low battery warning showed up on my camera. Bummer. But, I got some good pictures in before it died. And then when it did, I was standing right next to one of the executives, so I ended up meeting some new people as a result.

Definitely, the highlights of day were feeding kangaroos, feeding elephants, seeing red pandas, petting koalas, watching the main show at the Crocoseum, and seeing the tiger show. Overall, it was a complete zoo experience, except this zoo has mostly animals that are native to Australia, plus some other Southeast Asian animals. No penguins, polar bears, monkeys, giraffes, or lions. The hyena exhibit was soon to come. It wasn't just the animal selection that made this zoo experience different, however; the way in which the animals were exhibited was different as well. The two kangaroo pens were large areas, sparsely populated by trees, in which you walked through. The kangaroos came up to you or hopped away as they pleased. Feeding them was wild as well. They immediately recognize you as a potential food source and make their way over to you. The signs in the hut said to put the food low to the ground so it was easy for them to eat. I think they wrote that there so people don't get scratched when the kangaroos try to pull your hand when it wasn't low enough for them. Either way, they diligently eat the food and then perk up when they hear some one coming. Many times you will see their ears independently swivel towards nearby footsteps and their heads would remain perfectly still. Then when they walk around, they use their tail as a "fifth leg". Well, all I have to say is that it was a neat experience.

The main show in the Crocoseum was a one-of-a-king experience as well. The handlers started off with a bit of humor and then began bringing out the animals, from small to large. A majority of the animals were birds and they just kept squaking and flying circles low overhead after they were introduced. The only types I remember were the macaws and the only native Australian crane. But there were about 10 or so species total, all with different shapes and colors. Then they walked around with different species of snakes (all of them extremely venomous, of course). After that, they brought out the elephants and showed some diving birds. Predictably, they finished up with a crocodile, but it did not disappoint. The crocodile's tail is much large than I imagined it to be and is the source of much of its killing power. I would guess it's about half of its body mass. It helps launch itself out out of the water and swim really fast when it needs to. But on land, the tables are turned. It can barely walk at all with the stumpy legs that it has. Still, crocodiles haven't really changed in about 200 million years (an amazing fact, considering that dinosaurs went extinct about 65 million years ago), which goes to show how specialized they are at water's edge feeding.

The show also had a very strong message of environment conservation. So strong that they even had a warning to the parents before the show. I though it was a bit odd at the time, but after watching the show, I understood why. After each animal, they explained how it, or its habitat, was being destroyed and how we can take steps to prevent that from happening. And then they would throw in a quote from Steve Irwin. It was another thing that I thought sounded funny at the time, but after hearing about Steve Irwin over and over again, as if he had taken the day off, I realized that Australia may have an unhealthy obsession with the Irwin family. I guess the bronze cast of their family with a crocodile and a dog should have been a tip-off, but I thought that it was nothing more than a commemoration (albeit an odd one). The handlers in the show would relay opinions and thoughts of Steve as part of the show. Turns out that he coined the term "Crikey" and they don't want you to forget it. Its obvious that he was a very positively influential person and now that I've seen some of the things that he has done for the wild animals, I'm considering watching the Crocodile Hunter Diaries.

At the end of the day, I really felt as if I had stepped millions of years into the past. Even though the crocodile is actually millions of years old, everything felt so foreign to me. The emus, kookaburras, macaws, cassowaries, and kangaroos all seem fairytale-ish. It was a good experience and I would encourage everyone to visit there if they come to Australia.