Patting the “world’s happiest animal” – time to cross it off your to-do list. Photo: Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park.
Residents of Eastern Australia often envy their Western counterparts for having easy access to the “world’s happiest animal”, the quokkas.
But what many may not realise is that Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park, part of the Australian Wildlife Parks group alongside Mogo Wildlife Park and Hunter Valley Wildlife Park, offers a chance to hand-feed these joyful animals and snap a selfie with them.
“When the quokka looks up at you, they always appear to be smiling, ” Australian Wildlife Parks director of sales Sara Ang said.
Featherdale gives the chance to have an up-close experience with Australia’s unique wildlife. Photo: Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park.
For first-time visitors, Sara suggested not missing the opportunity to pat koalas and hand-feed kangaroos and wallabies.
“If you’re lucky, the quokkas might come up to you, and you can use the same food to feed them,” she added.
“Obviously, we have very happy quokkas, and now you can find quokkas in all three wildlife parks.”
While these adorable members of the macropod family bring plenty of joy, Sara was particularly proud of Featherdale’s dedication to showcasing native bird species, many of which are near-impossible to find elsewhere.
“Featherdale is home to the largest collection of Australian native animals in the world – over 2000 native animals across 260 species,” she explained.
“We started with caring for native birds, and 52 years later, we’re still committed to caring for native birds, but now also 260 unique Australian species. Featherdale has always been proud of our origins, and we continue to honour that mission to bring people closer to Australian animals.
“And we’re very happy to have the only breeding pair of powerful owls in the country, and recently we welcomed baby owlets.”
At Featherdale, the animals always come first.
“The wellbeing of our animals is our highest priority, whether it’s their emotional, mental, or physical health,” Sara emphasised.
“When you visit, you’re coming into the animals’ space.
“It’s important that guests are respectful and understand the animals. That’s why we do have minimum age requirements for some encounters, so both our animals and our guests have a safe, enjoyable experience.
“As the largest privately owned group of wildlife parks in Australia, the support of our visitors is invaluable in helping us continue our mission.”
Visitors to Featherdale can take home more than just memories with their very own ‘Featherdale Passport’. International guests also don’t need to worry about language barriers, as the park experience is designed to be fun and easy for everyone.
“Guests purchase a cup of animal food, walk over a little bridge into the park, and are immediately surrounded by our Pademelon colony, some of Australia’s smallest wallabies. The emotions of meeting animals in this close-up are the same for every guest, no matter where they are from,” Sara explained.
“Our ‘Featherdale Passport’ is a fun way to engage with the park. Featuring a map with animal pictures, it helps visitors easily navigate and collect stamps as they see different animals.
“You can collect stamps in your passport as you see different animals.”
For those eager to explore more of Featherdale’s sister parks, Sara recommended the flexible ‘Explorer Pass’ annual memberships, which provide unlimited access to Featherdale, Mogo Wildlife Park and Hunter Valley Wildlife Park.
“It’s so flexible, “she said. “Families or groups of friends can share the membership.”
“If you have a group of uni friends, you can get a membership together – up to eight mates on the one pass.
“It doesn’t always have to be mum, dad, and the kids.”
Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park is located at 217 Kildare Road in Doonside and is open daily from 8 am to 5 pm. Discover more than 2000 animals across their three parks with the annual explorer passes.
Original Article published by Laura Liu on Riotact.
