Adelaide Zoo

I took the twins to Adelaide Zoo today. It was my first visit there and my first to a zoo since Melbourne in April 2009.

James had been to Adelaide Zoo previously on a school trip, but today was Maggie’s fist time.

Unfortunately the weather was ordinary, with regular showers sweeping through. It wasn’t too cold though for the first day of July.

Adelaide Zoo is famous for its resident pandas, Wang Wang and Funi. They are the only giant pandas in the Southern Hemisphere and the first to live permanently in Australia.

Adelaide Zoo is home to more than 1800 animals and almost 300 species of exotic and native mammals, birds, reptiles and fish exhibited over eight hectares.

The zoo is the second oldest in Australia and has retained many original and significant architectural features.

Administration building, Minchin House (pictured below), was built as the director’s residence in 1887 and served this function until the 1970s. Richard Ernest Minchin was the first director.

I found the overall experience enjoyable. The botanic garden setting is delightful and would make a a lovely picnic venue in better weather.

An interesting animal to mention is the Malayan tapir (above). I had never seen one of these before.

According to Wikipedia, the Malayan tapir was once found throughout the tropical lowland rainforests of Southeast Asia, but its numbers have decreased in recent years, and today it is in danger of extinction.

It’s a pig-like, black-and-white animal with a long snout. Apparently its vision is poor and it relies on a strong sense of smell to survive.

I didn’t take many photos today because of the erratic weather, but rather like the bottom one of a meerkat.