Chimp enclosure, Monarto Zoo, South Australia
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
New Chimp enclosure, Monarto Zoo, South Australia
New Chimp enclosure, Monarto Zoo, South Australia
Red Pandas at Adelaide Zoo
Red Panda at Adelaide Zoo, South Australia
Adelaide Zoo has had a great influx of visitor numbers since last December when the Giant Pandas Wang Wang and Funi went on display. You can read about them here and see many of the photos I took.
Right alongside their wonderful enclosure is a smaller display featuring their smaller cousins, the Red Pandas. I must admit, I prefer the Red Pandas to their larger cousins. Both are beautiful animals, of course, and we are very privileged to have both species on prominent display here in South Australia. I’m also pleased that the Red Pandas have a much more accessible enclosure, right next to the entrance to the zoo. Previously they languished near the back of the zoo in an area often neglected by visitors.
For details about Adelaide and Monarto Zoos, click here.
Red Panda at Adelaide Zoo, South Australia
Hippos at Adelaide Zoo
Hippopotamus at Adelaide Zoo
One of the larger animals on display at the Adelaide Zoo here in South Australia is the Common Hippopotamus.It is quite often hard to get good photos of them because they are largely aquatic animals, preferring to spend most of their day in or under the water. This one came up within camera range and posed nicely for me.
To read more about these animals on the Adelaide Zoo website click here.
Hippopotamus at Adelaide Zoo
Binturong in the Adelaide Zoo
Binturong at the Adelaide Zoo
I enjoy visiting zoos and take every opportunity to visit the Adelaide Zoo where I am a member. I usually take a great interest in the birds on display so I can show my photos of them on my birding blog (click here).
I don’t only have eyes for the birds. I enjoy looking at and photographing the animals too. On a recent visit earlier this year to the Adelaide Zoo I saw a Binturong for the very first time. I don’t think I’ve seen one before, and I can’t recall even reading about this carnivorous animal from SE Asia. Because it is also nocturnal, it could be that it has been asleep on every other visit.
Whatever the reason, this one was out in full view in the late afternoon. I took the opportunity to get some good shots, including the information board in front of the enclosure (click on the image to enlarge).
To read more about this vulnerable animal click here.
You can also read more about zoos from around the world on my son’s site called Zoo Chat (click here). This site covers nearly 1000 zoos and includes over 100,000 photos of animals.
Binturong at the Adelaide Zoo
Binturong at the Adelaide Zoo
Binturong at the Adelaide Zoo
Birds of Adelaide Zoo
Australian Pelican, Adelaide Zoo
I enjoy visiting the Adelaide Zoo on a regular basis. Not only does the zoo have a good selection of animals and reptiles, all kept in animal friendly and appropriate enclosures, but it also boasts an excellent collection of birds. Birding is one of my passions and you can read more about our birds on my blog called Trevor’s Birding.
On this post I feature only 4 of the species represented at the zoo; there are many more in the numerous aviaries. Some of the aviaries are walk-through, giving excellent close-up views of the birds.
The Australian Pelican shown above is a common water bird seen throughout Australia where there is suitable habitat. It is one of our most easily recognised birds and has featured in many books, documentaries and even feature films (Storm Boy).
Australian Bustard, Adelaide Zoo
Shown above, Australian Bustards (or wild turkey) are turkey sized birds of the inland regions of our country. Before land clearing for farming this species was far more widespread.
Below is a photo of the beautiful Princess Parrot, another bird of the arid inland regions. It is commonly kept in aviaries but is not often seen in its natural environment due to the remoteness of its preferred habitat. Another bird of the interior regions is the Flock Bronze-wing Pigeon, shown in the last photo.
Princess Parrot, Adelaide Zoo
Flock Bronzewing Pigeon, Adelaide Zoo