Healesville Sanctuary

[khiemtran]

Also on our trip to Melbourne, we drove out to Healesville to visit the Healesville Sanctuary.




As you can see, the Free Flight Bird Show was very entertaining. This is a Barking Owl about to do another low-flying swoop across the audience.



And a cast that included Black Kites, Buzzards and a Wedge-tailed Eagle.



Besides the birds, there was also lots of Australian wildlife. Like this little wallaby.



The Friends of the Zoo volunteers were the best part of the experience. They helped us identify the different birds and took us around so Liem could help feed the animals.



The obligatory koala photo...



While the keeper was giving this talk, an echidna walked up and sniffed her boots.



There was also a good chance to learn about Aboriginal culture. Here you can see where bark has been harvested from a tree to make a canoe.



An example of the finished product. It's not easy making a boat without any metal tools. Besides needing a skilled eye to find a piece of bark curved in the right way and then being able to harvest it, the bark then needed to be shaped and shrunk to close any leaks.

Comments

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

Yes, they really made the difference. Apparently they do a few days each month. It was great being able to talk to them about the different birds and to help them feed the animals. Although, as HL noted afterwards, Liem didn't wash his hands between having lunch and feeding live meal worms to some of the birds. Or before holding her hand.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Or before holding her hand. Worm cooties, ewwwww!