A day at Australia Zoo

Wednesday was not a working day for the people who attended the Video Convention, it was a day in which cameras could be used. Breaking from the norm (for this group of people) I opted for using my still camera in preference to the video (but I did take a couple of minutes of video for Youtube videos!) There was a choice of two outings and I chose the trip to Australia Zoo. Yes, I have been there many times before but I always enjoy seeing the changes in the place. It has grown from a reptile park with creatures in rather makeshift enclosures to a very attractive green and clean place and the animals are in such enclosures that they have plenty of room to move and yet are never too far away from the people who come to see them.
So I was there to take photos of the animals and not to see the shows. (I hate crocodiles!). Barely had we arrived when we came across a keeper explaining facts about the Galapagos Turtle (to me it looks more like a tortoise!) and straight away I was struck by the way the huge lumbering creature related to its handlers. I know these things are quiet and not prone to bursts of speed and aggression but the young man with it was hand feeding it and tickling it under its chin and the turtle would follow him about.
More amazing is the interaction and trust between the tigers and their handlers. There was no one around when Colin and I hovered in front of the huge plate glass barricades that separated the public from the tigers. I spoke to one of the staff who happened by and learned that the handlers lived 24 hours a day with the tigers when they were cubs and later spent every hour of their working days with them. We were treated to a private presentation explaining the way the daily health examinations are conducted. Its all to do with a small carton of milk with a tiny hole punched in it to allow drips of milk to be dripped into the eager mouths of these magnificent cats. One of the handlers came into the sunlight and stood about three metres away and showed us how he checked the teeth and the claws and many other health checks. My camera was kept busy. How lucky that I had changed the lens to the 40-150mm so I have been able to take my shots and non of them need any cropping.
My final shot is for readers of my blog who are not from Australia. This wonderful little animal is our echidna. When I lived in the UK he was known as the “spiny ant eater” but the only name we know him by is “ekidna” (that's the phonetic spelling, “echidna” is the correct spelling) The spines are hard and quite sharp and the head and snout quite soft, so to protect itself from being eaten by some hungry fox, Mr. echidna will tuck his head down so the spines all stand up and with no further ado will dig with all four feet and gradually disappear into the ground so that all that is above the soil are a few spines – and NOTHING, except a spade, will remove him from his protective pad.
There were several echidna in an enclosure and it was here that I took some video with the Samsung. I will share it when I am back to my PC and a more reliable internet source.
AJ