Dubbo, NSW, Australia - 13th August 2008
By: sararingham
...continuing on with the last zoo post, I finally got the photos back... here's a better picture of the Ring-Tailed Lemur's they all seemed pretty cold as they all cuddled up together, aren't they cute?
...finally we were back to going through the zoo, we started back off at the beginning and stopped at the animals we hadn't yet visited, revisiting a few as the animals were being fed when we came through the second time... next stop was the African Lion after quite a bit of time of waiting something down the hill got their attention and I got some pretty good shots of the male and one of the two lionesses...
Then we got back down the hill and saw some African Plains Zebra's... funny enough when Sara took this photo the person feeding the animals stopped and gave them their food, one of the zebras ran right up to Sara thinking she was the zookeeper feeding her, then moved onto the zookeeper. Pretty cool. :-)
...we saw these in the earlier post... these are the Sambar Deer deer you saw far in the back of the photo, they were coming up to be fed as well, the antlers on the male were HUGE... very pretty!...
...next stop again was the Fallow_Deer... they were also being fed... they also came quite close... a few of them even rammed each other it must have been some kind of dominance thing within the herd...
...back into the car, it was another short drive there was the Spotted Deer (Chital Deer)'s they were so far away... like in the very back of the pen, Sara had to zoom in all the way which was around 12x to get them, and a bit farther again to see them a closely as these photos... they were all in a group, huddled together... :-)
Then we got back in the car, time to move onto the next area of the zoo... then we got out and seemed to walk for what seemed like forever in what seemed like circles, then we encountered the rare Greater One-Horned Rhino...
This endangered rhino is known as 'Dora', and the breed is known as a great success story, and here's a sign about the success story of this one-horned rhino...
...because it's so small I'll type out what it says...
A Great Success Story
Greater One-horned Rhino numbers have increased over the last century. However, poaching remains a critical issue and success is dependent on continued and increased support for conservation efforts in India and Nepal.
Pre-1600 - Greater One-horned rhino common in the wild.
Early 1600's - Early 1900's - Loss of Greater One-horned Rhino's habitat as floodplain grasslands used for agriculture.
Late 1800's-Early 1900's - Sport hunting of rhino is popular.
1871-1907 - 207 Rhino's killed by one hunter.
Late 1880's-Early 1900's - Government bounty on Rhinos to stop destruction of tea plantations.
Early 1900's - Rhino near extinction, 12 left in India, 50 left in Nepal.
Late 1900's - Period of intense poaching (Rhino horn in 1972 worth $35.00/kg (USD) and in 1991 it was worth $50,000.00/kg (USD).
Late 1900's - Rhino's in Chitwan National Park, Nepal protected by 1,000 troops and rangers.
Now - Rhino numbers increased to 2,400. Local support for tourism industry increases funding for Rhino protection officers. Not all eggs in one basket - some Rhinos relocated from large groups to other protected areas, decreasing possible impact of local disasters.
That was extremely interesting to read that the one-horned rhino's went down to only 62 individual rhino's at one point, and now have been brought up to 2,400... still a lot more work to do, but still amazing none the less... a few years ago one of the rhino's was actually born within this zoo, it was shown internationally as it was an amazing thing... especially for a zoo to successfully breed this animal. :-)
Next stop was the Asian Small Clawed Otter... their were two in the enclosure and didn't seem to be too active at the time... but were very interested in watching us... no swimming for them while we were visiting though...
...Time then to go back to the car and get to the next animal, as the zoo was getting ready to close... whoops! Next stop was the American Bison they seemed happy and well fed, this was the only good shot I got before the moved onto the back of the enclosure...
Now finally were in the Australian section of the zoo, first stop was quite exciting for Sara as she hadn't ever seen one, even in the zoo... the Dingo... they're not found in New South Wales as the sign reads below... and this one was actually quite cheeky, he was watching the people watching him and someone went to bring out their camera and the dog leaned forward and licked his lips... when the person said "no mate, I don't have food" and the dog sat back down and whimpered... it was pretty funny and cute...
Here's the information about the Dingo, and what it says:
Dingoes are regarded as one of the most ancient primitive breeds of dog living today. They are intelligent, good climbers and able to live in different habitats. Unlike domestic dogs, their ears are always erect. Although originally an introduced animal, the dingo has become an integral part of our Australian ecology.
The world's longest fence... The dingo fence stretches almost 10,000km from South Australia to Queensland. It is designed to protect sheep and cattle in the rich pastoral areas of south eastern Australia by keeping dingoes out. It is 1.8 metres high and extends below the ground to stop dingoes from digging under it.
...the next stop we all had to get out of the car and walk up a big long boardwalk type thing, we were going up into the trees... I wonder what Australian animal we'll find up here... of course we found a few Koala's...
...here's a bit of information about this little guy, they seemed a bit wobbly an one of them almost fell out of the tree before catching himself... :-)
No, they aren't drugged! The common belief that koalas are "high" is just a myth. These animals only eat eucalyptus leaves with are inedible and toxic to most other animals. They are also low in energy and hard to digest, which is why koalas sleep as much as 20 hours a day. When they're not sleeping, they're chewing leaves into green paste to get every bit of energy out of them.
A different animal at night. Koalas are much more active at night. They can be seen running along the ground between trees or jumping from one branch with surprising speed. They are also very vocal, 'bellowing' in a kind of snorty growl to chase subordinate males away and advertise themselves during the breeding season.
...next stop was something I've seen in the wild... one not the other... there was the Red Kangaroo and the much more common Grey Kangaroo... there aren't as many red kangaroos in the area I'm staying... they're more common in this area (Dubbo and beyond)... they're also more common in Western Australia than Grey kangaroos are over there... Red kangaroos are the largest species of kangaroo, as you can see this guy is pretty huge!
...kangaroos are very interesting creatures... these animals can be pregnant, and then stop or slow down their pregnancy in the driest of times... and when the land is more fitting for the baby (especially during the wet season) the baby will continue with the pregnancy that way the baby can flourish during this time and not die because of the extreme droughts that Australia goes through...
...time to move onto the next animal... another species of kangaroo, a smaller species called the Yellow Footed Rock Wallaby... there was actually two types of kangaroo in this enclosure but the other wasn't seen, it was called the Wallaroo which is surprisingly more common...
...here's some information about the Rock Wallaby and the Wallaroo...
The Yellow-footed Rock-wallaby lives on rocky outcrops in semi-arid Australia. Hunted for sport and it's beautiful coat this wallaby has become increasingly rare over the past 200 years. Introduced animals like rabbits and goats destroy its habitat and compete with the wallaby for food. Predation by cats and foxes has also reduced wallaby numbers in the wild.
Our Yellow-footed Rock-wallabies are part of a regional management program for this species. Wallabies from this program have been successfully reintroduced into an area of the Flinders Ranges in South Australia where their competitors and predators have been removed.
How can you tell a wallaroo from a kangaroo? If you look closely you will notice that wallaroos have a large, bare patch around their nose. Their ears are also bigger and rounder than the over-shaped ears of a kangaroo.
Although wallaroos live across most of Australia they prefer sheep escarpments and rocky hills. The name 'Wallaroo' is given to the shaggy, dark grey animals which live onthe slopes of the Great Dividing Range. Male wallaroos are extremely muscular, twice the weight of females and are usually more darker in colour.
Next stop again was another type of kangaroo... the Red-necked Wallaby... and the other type that's not pictured (because I didn't see it to get a photo of it) the Whiptail Wallaby... both are a bit uncommon, but after a bit of consideration I realised this photo is indeed of a red necked wallaby...
...and here's a bit of information about both species of wallaby... :-)
These wallabies are the ones most commonly seen in the south east Australian bush. You may see them in the Western Plains Zoo grounds during your visit, particularly in the early morning and late afternoon when they come out to graze. Red-necked wallabies usually live alone but will eat together. If they are disturbed though, they don't act as a group but scatter in every direction.
There are two types of red-necked wallaby, the mainland and Tasmanian. Mainland red-necks breed all year but the Tasmanian wallabies only give birth during late Summer.
The wallaby gets its name from it's long whip-like tail. It is also known as the pretty-faced wallaby from the beautiful markings on it's face. Like many wallabies Whiptails are social, living in groups of up to 50 and communicating with a series of soft coughs (fear), growls (anger) and clucking (courtship). When alarmed, these wallabies thump their hind feet on the ground in warning and hop away on a zig-zag course.
Whiptails are usually found in open forest on gently rolling hills. During the hotter part of the day, they find shade. Like all other kangaroos, if it gets really hot, they will lick their forearms to help themselves cool down.
Next stop wasn't an Australian animal, we're done with the Australian section for the time being and now were visiting the endangered Galapagos Tortoise...
...the tortoise was walking away after she had finished eating, she was a tortoise that actually was born in the wild... she is currently 120 years old and there are two other tortoises... they were both asleep, as you can see in the second photo. Aren't they just amazing animals? They're trying to breed them in this zoo. :-)
Nearing the end of the zoo now, there are only a few more animals, and one large enclosure to visit... this enclosure had Brazilian Tapir's and Alpaca's....
Here's a bit of information about both of the animals...
Is it a pig? Is it an anteater? No it's a tapir, which is most closely related to horses and rhinos. Tapir have a flexible nose which they use to grab forest plants and fruits and pull them into their mouths. They have a superb sence of smell and hearing and are mainly active at night.
Brazilian Tapirs live in lowland rainforest, always near water. They are excellent swimmers and are known to retreat into water if threatened. In the forest they create well trodden 'tapir trails', which connect their water sources, salt licks and feeding and sleeping areas. These well worn trails make them an easy target for hunters. They are also increasingly threatened by forest clearance.
The finest wool of any animal... The alpaca's luxurious, fine fleece was reserved for Incan Royalty as a sign of wealth and nobility. Alpaca wool is lighter, cleaner and stronger for its size than sheep's wool and its fibres can grow to 50cms in length.
Alpacas are found in South America's alpine grasslands which are almost 4,800m above sea level - twice the height of Australia's highest mountain. They carry more oxygen in their blood than most mammals and do well at high altitudes where the air is thin. Alpacas were domesticated about 5,000 years ago and are still used for food and clothing.
This again was an area where you had to walk around a bit to find the area, these were smaller enclosures which fit just the amount of animals per enclosure, we stopped first to visit the Meerkats... they were all quite active... :-)
Onto the next enclosure we got to see two other Australian animals... the Common Wombat... Sara said she's seen only a few in the wild, they're common, but not as much in the area where Sara has been... they're quite large, and very solid...
Here's a bit of information about the Wombat...
Wombats have powerful claws and dig large burrows, up to 20 metres long, in which they stay cool during the heat of the day. They usually live alone except during the mating season. Like other burrowing marupials, the femal's pouch opens to the rear to help keep it clean.
Western Plains Zoo's Common Wombats are part of a successful breeding program. Zoo staff are researching wombat reproduction in specially designed 'off exhibit' enclosures. It is hoped this research will help us to learn more about the breeding behaviours of the critically endangered Hairy-Nosed Wombat.
Next enclosure was the Short-Beaked Echidna... he was quite friendly and came up to us, and actually let us "pet" him... although as you can imagine their not the type of animal to pet... we did though and we just were sure to pet him the right direction. :-) Sara was actually telling us about the fact that they live in the area where were staying (Orange) and how Daniel (Sara's husband) has actually stopped finding them on the side of the road and helping them cross the road. He also said never to let them in the car because when they're frightened they'll dig and tear up the inside of the car out of fear.
...and here's a bit of information about the short-beaked echidna...
Spines or hair? Echidna spines are actually long, hard hairs. Fur growing between the spines keeps an echidna warm. There are no spines on the belly. Frightened echidnas burrow into the ground or roll into a spikey ball.
Echidnas rip into ant and termite nests with strong claws and lap up the insects with a long, sticky tongue. Sometimes they lay on an ant-mound with their tongue sticking out and the ants walk onto it!
...last stop was a huge aviary with a whole bunch of Australian native birds... we got one photo while we were in there which was the Diamond Firetail Finch...
Well, that was that, the zoo was closed and we were ready to head home... sadly no more photos as the battery had just died (good timing)... the drive home was long but we were all exhausted and ready to lay down at home... I hope you enjoyed my trip to the zoo!
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Posted Aug 28, 2008, 10:46 am Last edited Jul 22, 2009, 10:22 am by sararingham
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