Yes, another zoo! And no, I never get sick of going to zoos, even if I keep seeing the same animals again and again. But here at Sydney Zoo, we definitely got to see some unique creatures that I’ve only seen once or twice at bigger zoos and wildlife parks, some you may see a lot in the media, but never up close! Others you may have never heard of before. This is why I love visiting all kinds of animal parks, despite many people believing they have nothing to offer. Because they do!
Sydney Zoo is a fairly recent endeavour compared to its surrounding wildlife parks, being founded in 2015. Their aim is to bring awareness to animal welfare and conservation with the vast range of experiences they offer, and the 4000 beautiful animals they house within the zoo. Sydney Zoo is also home to Australia’s largest reptile and nocturnal house, allowing visitors to discover what they don’t usually see, or want to see!
We’ve arrived! Again, probably shouldn’t have come on a Sunday because it was BUSY. We really need to remember that next time, because I kept getting pushed around and people were shoving my bag without even looking back to apologise, which really started to get on my nerves towards the end of the day. But we were here for the animals, so let’s focus on that! We had just missed the otter feed, but they were still running around like adorable little sea ferrets. And right behind us was a group of capybaras! Just chilling like always. I had to laugh when my mum said, “I don’t see why everyone loves them so much, they’re just giant rats.” I mean, she’s not wrong, but also they are very cute, so I was a little offended.
Before the chimp talk started, we walked through Primate Boulevard to say hello to their friends. Their very hungry friends! I’m not sure if the tufted capuchins were fighting over the food, or they’re just very energetic and like to swing around when they eat, but whatever makes them happy I guess. There were also some sacred baboons! You know, the ones with the big pink bottoms. A LOT of kids had something to say about these guys, and all I could do was laugh. Now, back to the chimps! The keeper was telling us about these animals while she was throwing frozen vegetables to them, a snack they quite enjoy, apparently! In the middle of the talk, two of the chimps also started to uh… “play” with each other. The keeper just said, “We’re just going to ignore what they’re doing there,” and moved on with the rest of her talk. She told us about their diet, lifespan, strength, and how they like to “paint” with their poo to mark their territory. That’s one way of doing it, I suppose.
Now, to the Australian animals, something every Australian zoo will always make space for. There were the classic emus, wallabies, kangaroos and wombats. Hidden in the corner of its enclosure was an adorable little Tasmanian devil sleeping! Another Aussie classic we met at Sydney Zoo were the koalas, which were surprisingly active! Usually, when you see koalas at any zoo, or if you spot them in the wild, they’ll be sleeping, but these guys were climbing about from tree to tree. They must’ve been putting on a show for all the visitors.
Now this was probably my favourite area of Sydney Zoo, the Reptile and Nocturnal House. I know, most people hate snakes and weird-looking bugs, but I love seeing these weird and wonderful creatures, and even find some of them quite beautiful. A few of my family members even have pet snakes, and I always ask to hold them when I visit! I could’ve stayed here forever looking at the reptiles, including some of the world’s most venomous. Did you know that Australia is home to 80% of the world’s most venomous snakes? We even got to observe (from a safe distance this time) one of the snakes my mum and I came across during a hike a few years ago… a tiger snake! But to the more traditionally cute animals, there were green bell frogs, geckos and Australia’s nocturnal creatures like the ringtail possum, eastern quoll and the bilby. There were also some adorable little hopping mice, which seemed to be having the same amount of fun as the chimps… so I thought I’d give them some privacy. There must be something in the air today.
Next was the aquarium, and honestly, it was a lot smaller than I expected. But it still had a lot of pretty fish and cute little turtles. As well as one big alligator snapping turtle! Mum thought it was fake since it wasn’t moving, like a decoration you put in a fish tank, but Dad and I were determined to wait until it moved to prove her wrong. And we did! There was even a pig-nosed turtle, which is honestly the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen. Trust me, look it up. We also got to see a Little Penguin, who didn’t really want to see us. It actually seemed kind of grumpy, as if it just wanted to go back to bed.
Last but not least, Asia and Africa! We had already seen the otters, and we tried to get a look at the red pandas, but they were hiding up in the trees. The orangutans, however, came right up to meet us! It still shocks me how human they are, especially when they were looking at us through the glass. As we kept walking towards the African animals, we passed a pack of African Painted Dogs, probably the coolest wild dog, or animal, I’ve ever seen, or never seen at any other zoo I’ve been to. The pattern on their fur, which they get their name from, is unique to each dog. Just like a zebra’s stripes! Speaking of zebras… here they are! Along with the giraffes, ostriches, rhinos and nyalas, all in a big open safari-style enclosure. I actually loved the idea of this enclosure having these animals together in one big space. It allows the animals to have a large area (as big as possible for a captive animal that is), while still saving space for the zoo. It also mimics their natural environment as much as possible, with visitors walking over the top of the enclosure instead of stressing them out by putting them in the middle of the walkway.
You guessed it, it’s gift shop time! Since I’ve never really seen an African Painted Dog before at any other zoos, and they’re such a cool animal, I immediately knew I would be taking home one of those stuffed toys to add to my ever-growing collection. And yes, I give all of my stuffed animals names still as an adult. Welcome to the family Picasso! I also bought a little capybara keychain for one of my friends who has been especially helpful and understanding at the moment, while I’m going through a difficult phase in my life. I appreciate her a lot, so I hope she appreciates this gift.
All photos and videos in this post were taken by me. For more information, visit https://sydneyzoo.com/
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