I was checking out the updates on Australia Zoo's website this morning and was a little shocked to see how many mammals were listed as "off display" and therefore unable to be seen by the general public. Species listed as off display: black and white rufffed lemur, ring-tailed lemur, cotton-top tamarin, rufous bettong, cheetah and white rhinoceros. To be honest the zoo doesn't have many exotics left to see after that list of mammals, and why are so many animals not available to the public? The white rhinos have been there for a year now (April 2008), and so I'm guessing that with some of those on the list the website is simply in need of an upgrade.
I would imagine that the lemurs are off display because the island is not yet built (how long has it been now...)
Australia Zoo lists 7 species of exotic (non-native) mammals on its website, and 5 of those species are off display. I'd be bitterly disappointed if I were to visit the park and find the website to be accurate, and it is astonishing at how popular the zoo has become as probably 85% of the animals are found in just about every single Australian zoo, aquarium or wildlife park. But not every Aussie zoo had a celebrity like Steve Irwin!
The lemurs, white rhino and cheetah can all be seen in special private hands on encounters. I believe the cheetah go on display once a day in the tiger exhibit (they used to). Steve. has it passed away?
i still dont understand the hype surrounding Australia Zoo per se. I understand the hype surounding Steve Irwin, both before and after he died, but 'the zoo'. despite great in-roads on the conservation/education front as far as the zoo is concerned i would never fly all that way to see it as it is, and all id be doing is flying interstate. i cannot understand why people fly from overseas to go there....well i can of course its cleverly marketed. but as far as im concerned, if i wanted to see a great reptile collection id head to any major Australian zoo, or the Australian Reptile Park. id be even more interested in going to the new reptile centre in Darwin. if i was flying there to see Australian natives, then in the state of QLD alone i could think of at least 5 other places id go before Australia Zoo....least not other great wildlife parks around the country like Healesville. and as for exotic animals.....there will have to come a day when AZ is pulled up for false advertising via the internet. about half of the animals you see on their page arent available to see to the general public,,,,,thats a general public that already pays a hefty admission price.
Thats a fairly way out comment!! And i dont beleive it would. When i went there (not sure if you have been glyn) all the visitors looked happy with what they saw!! It's advertised as you walk in if you would like to see those animals you can pay the extra AND people were!
Yeah, but you shouldn't have to! The admission price is very high (for what you get) and should cover everything. I wouldn't waste my money on the place as it presently is.
Admission to Australia Zoo is about $50, and that gets a visitor only 5 different species of mammal. Admission to the Cincinnati Zoo in Ohio gets a visitor 21 species of cat, plus thousands of other animals. Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo is one of the largest and best zoos in North America, and admission is $11. It takes all day just to see the place, and the same goes for the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle as it also has an admission of $11 in the winter season and it is an outstanding zoo. I would still love to visit the Australia Zoo as the Crocoseum alone appears to be quite intriguing, but the price is simply outrageous for what is on offer. I am still in shock at the limited number of exotics on display for the public...
Australia zoo is a very well looked after zoo. It is the cleanest one I have ever been to. not a single cigarette butt, piece of gum or rubbish to be seen outside a garbage bin while I was there. Maybe they spend all that admission fee on celaners. . .
maybe if they spent less on cleaners and more on animals they'd have more of a zoo. i dont think my comment is that way out there ZYB; just keeping it real.
Australia zoo is in my eyes a bit unfairly priced but I think the name suggests it all, Like any zoo it is there to attract tourists... Most tourists would prefer to see our Australian native species, and I think Australia Zoo has a good reputation for this. I would agree it is one of the cleanest zoo's I have ever seen. Of course our zoo's will never have the amount of exotic species similar to oversea's but most will make do with what they can get. Australia Zoo did originate from a small reptile park I think it deserves a bit of respect for its progress... The family is happy to put more funding and money into conservation before growth of thier captive population and zoo. Isn't this what all zoo's are about education can only go so far. Plans are in draft with some planned for completion soon. Don't forget im sure more species are in the works including a recent giraffe import from New Zealand currently in quarantine at Western Plains.
I went to Australia Zoo today and have just jumped on the 'net to find out why I saw no lemurs, rhinos, cheetahs etc. That's how I came across this website. The AZ website is a little misleading - I got the impression that you could see all the animals, but if you wanted to get closer, you could pay extra to spend the time with them. I can understand that the zoo is there to educate people and raise money to sponsor their conservation projects, but for the admission price I expect a little more. I was last at the zoo just over 4 years ago and a keeper told me that Steve had plans for elephants and monkeys - the elephants were out, so where were my lemurs?? I was looking forward to them the most!
That's quite true; though I haven't been to a zoo in years, I've been following this site and the TV long enough to know that at least three of the animals I most want to see (dingo, platypus, Tasmanian Devil) arn't kept in the UK or even Europe (with the exception of the TDs). I'd have to visit Australia to see 'em. However, that doesn't mean the zoo shouldn't display more exotic animals like the rhinos and cheetah, at least for the benefit of native Australians Lemurs too, which are forever popular
Hmm.. I do believe they've 'moved on' for reasons xyz which may not be allowed to be posted on a public forum. (Not sure if it ever hit the press..) BUT, that is one of the reasons I no longer want to visit that zoo, and also, the price, it's just crazy.
oh do tell! did they die?!!! weren't they the werribee bred males? if they did due to some sort of malpractice then i see no reason to bite your toungue
