Historic elephant house at Adelaide Zoo
Historic Elephant House, Adelaide Zoo
The beautiful old 19th century building shown above used to house the elephants at Adelaide Zoo. The zoo no longer houses elephants here and it has been converted into an historic interpretive centre (see photo below).
I can remember going for a ride on an elephant at the Adelaide Zoo when I was a child (more than 50 years ago). The last elephant held in this zoo’s animal collection died at the Monarto Zoo section a few years ago. While neither section of the zoo currently holds any elephants, I understand there are plans to re-introduce some to Monarto Zoo in the next few years.
Historic Elephant House, Adelaide Zoo
Meerkats at Adelaide Zoo
Meerkats at Adelaide Zoo
Both sections of the Adelaide Zoo in South Australia have a god collection of Meerkats on display. These delightful animals are always a favourite with visitors to the main zoo in Adelaide as well as the Monarto section of the zoo.
Meerkats at Adelaide Zoo
Meerkats at Adelaide Zoo
Southern Hairy-nosed Wombat
Southern Hairy-nosed Wombat, Adelaide Zoo
The Southern Hairy-nosed Wombat can be found within about an hour’s drive of my home. Despite having driven in that area many times over the last three decades, I’ve only ever seen one in its natural habitat on a handful of occasions. Being nocturnal accounts for the main reason for not having seen it more often.
Mind you, I’d rather not encounter this lovely animal on a dark night on a lonely country road. I’ve almost hit one while driving along late at night and would rather not do so. Not only would a car fatally wound a wombat (which is something I’d hate), but the car would not be in a good state after a collision with one of these solid, dumpy animals. It would be like hitting a rock.
This species is also found in other parts of southern South Australia and Western Australia. See the photo below for more information. There are two other species of wombat: the Common Wombat and the Northern Hairy-nosed wombat, the latter being critically endangered.
Further reading:
- Wombat – information on the Adelaide Zoo website.
Southern Hairy-nosed Wombat, Adelaide Zoo
Tammar Wallaby, Adelaide Zoo
Tammar Wallaby, Adelaide Zoo
Tammar Wallabies are found in south western Western Australia. They inhabit coastal mallee scrublands and eucalypt woodlands. They tend to stay in dense vegetation during the day and feed mainly at night.They were previously also found in South Australia, but land clearing and introduced pests like foxes and cats are thought to have made them locally extinct in this area.
A feral population was established on a New Zealand island, and in the last decade a large number of these had been repatriated to Monarto Zoo (a part of Adelaide Zoo) and then reintroduced into Yorke Peninsula where they have established breeding populations.
You can read more about this species on the zoo website here.
Tammar Wallaby, Adelaide Zoo
Sleepy Koala, Adelaide Zoo
Sleepy Koala at Adelaide Zoo
Some people… er… animals have the best jobs. This sleepy Koala caught my attention on a recent visit to my home zoo in Adelaide. All he has to do is sit there and entertain the zoo visitors. Not a very difficult job, really. I’m sure I’d cope with such a demanding position – though, to be honest, I think I’d be asking for a slightly more comfortable seat.