Trevor's Travels

Chapman’s Zebra at Monarto Zoo, South Australia

No Comments »4th July, 2010; Category: Animals, Murray Bridge, Zoos

Chapman's Zebra, Monarto Zoo, South Australia

Our local Monarto Zoo has a small herd of Chapman’s Zebra on display. On my recent visit I had trouble getting good photos of these lovely animals due to the reflections of the sunlight on the windows of the shuttle bus. These buses take visitors on guided tours throughout the open range zoo, and the public is allowed to alight from these buses at many points and take the walking trails through the mallee scrubland between enclosures.

Further reading:

Archived articles – there are many links to previous articles about my visits to zoos.
ZooChat Forums – my son’s web site about nearly 1000 zoos from around the world, including over 100,000 photos of animals and zoos.
Monarto Zoo – more information from their web page.

Chapman's Zebra, Monarto Zoo, South Australia

Rhino at Monarto Zoo, South Australia

No Comments »2nd July, 2010; Category: Animals, Murray Bridge, Zoos

Rhino at Monarto Zoo

The Rhino is the largest animal on display at Monarto Zoo near Murray Bridge in South Australia. This is an open range zoo, the largest of its type in the world and only a ten minute drive from my home.

Monarto Zoo is a part of our state’s major zoo, the Adelaide Zoo. Many improvements have been made since it came into being in the early 1990s. There are many walking trails through the mallee scrub land surrounding the enclosures, and shuttle buses ferry visitors from one exhibit to the next, or take them on guided bus tours through the park.

Further reading:

Monarto Zoo its web page with details of location, entrance fees and details of the animals.
Adelaide Zoo – its web page with plenty of details.
ZooChat Forums – my son’s web page featuring nearly 1000 zoos from around the world. It includes over 100,000 photos.
Archived stories – more articles from my archives.

Post updated September 2015.

Rhino at Monarto zoo

Mongolian Horses, Monarto Zoo, South Australia

No Comments »30th June, 2010; Category: Adelaide, Animals, General, Holidays, Murray Bridge, South Australia, Zoos

Mongolian Horse, Monarto Zoo, South Australia

The Mongolian Wild Horse, or Przewalski’s Horse was once very common throughout much of central Asia. It is thought that they became extinct in the wild, but conservation efforts by zoos like Monarto Zoo in South Australia have been instrumental in reintroducing this species back into its natural habitat.

The breeding programme here at Monarto just a few minutes’ drive from my home has been very successful, and quite a few horses from the zoo herd have been returned to Mongolia. It is conservation efforts like this that make me pleased to be a supporting member of the zoo.

Further reading:

You can read more about this horse by clicking here.

To read more about zoos around the world, go to my son’s web site called ZooChat Forums. It features almost 1000 zoos and over 100,000 photos of zoos and animals.
To read more about my visits to zoos, click here.
To read about birds in zoos, click here.

Mongolian Horses, Monarto Zoo, South Australia

New field guide to birds of Australia

No Comments »28th June, 2010; Category: Australia, Birds, Books, Reviews

Simpson and Day Field Guide to the Birds of Australia 8th edition

From time to time I feature birds on this travel blog. Birding is one of my major interests and I write about my sightings on Trevor’s Birding blog.

Many people carry a bird identification guide book with them on their travels. I make sure I always have one with me to help work out what I am seeing.

If you are a traveller – and interested in birds – I’d suggest that you find room for a bird field guide too. Most of them are compact enough to fit easily into a day pack or even a handbag.

Today sees the publication of a new field guide of Australian birds. The Simpson and Day field guide has been around since 1984 and has sold over half a million copies. Today the fully revised and updated 8th edition is published.

The publicist at Penguin Books Australia sent me a review copy a few weeks ago. I’ve written an extensive review of this exciting new book here on my birding blog.

Chimp enclosure, Monarto Zoo, South Australia

No Comments »26th June, 2010; Category: Adelaide, Animals, South Australia, Zoos

New Chimp enclosure, Monarto Zoo, South Australia

Monarto Zoo near my home town of Murray Bridge in South Australia is only about a ten minute drive from home. It is a part of the Adelaide Zoo and only about a 40 minute drive down the south eastern freeway from the capital city. Monarto is an open range zoo. It has many walking trails through the large zoo, the largest of its type in the world. Shuttle buses take visitors on guided tours through the various large enclosures. These stop at certain spots along the tracks so that visitors can get close up views of the animals.

Earlier this year a new, elaborate enclosure opened for a group of chimpanzees (see photos). On my most recent visit the chimps were already in the building and were almost ready to go into their night quarters. Consequently I didn’t get any good shots of the animals themselves. Always a good excuse to go back for another visit! Instead I have included below several photos of their outdoor activity area.

Further reading:

Monarto Zoo
Adelaide Zoo
Zoos SA (South Australia)
ZooChat Forums – my son’s site about zoos from around the world (over 100,000 photos of animals and zoos)
Zoo articles – from my archives.
Birds in zoos – from the archives of my blog Trevor’s Birding.

New Chimp enclosure, Monarto Zoo, South Australia