Tolin's 2024 World Cruise blog posts, Day 40 Feb 18, 2024, Sydney, AU, Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park & Sail Away

OUR ANIMALS COME FIRST

WE'RE PROUD TO BE CUSTODIANS OF OVER 260 SPECIES OF NATIVE AUSTRALIAN ANIMALS

Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park is dedicated to the future of all Australian native animals and takes pride in its role as custodians of the world's largest collection of Australian native animals - with over 2000 native animals in our care. Our Featherdale animals are like family to us, and are exceptional ambassadors for their species.

More info: https://www.featherdale.com.au/

Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park is a zoo located in Doonside, Sydney, Australia. The park is located in Sydney's west, approximately 25 miles from Sydney's CBD. The park contains various species native to Australia, and is known to be one of the world's largest collections of Australian fauna. The facility provides displays, events and interactive experiences. The site covers 8.1 acres, ranging from animal enclosures and display areas to visitor facilities, including picnic spaces, shops and basic amenities. It specializes in Australian native wildlife and birds, as well as reptiles and marsupials. The premises is accredited by the Zoo Aquarium Association Australia.

More info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Featherdale_Wildlife_Park

A wallaby is a small or middle-sized macropod native to Australia and New Guinea, with introduced populations in New Zealand, Hawaii, the United Kingdom and other countries. They belong to the same taxonomic family as kangaroos and sometimes the same genus, but kangaroos are specifically categorized into the four largest species of the family. The term "wallaby" is an informal designation generally used for any macropod that is smaller than a kangaroo or a wallaroo that has not been designated otherwise.

There are nine species (eight extant and one extinct) of the brush wallaby (genus Notamacropus). Their head and body length is 18 to 41 inches and the tail is 13 to 30 inches long. The 19 known species of rock-wallabies (genus Petrogale) live among rocks, usually near water; two species in this genus are endangered. The two living species of hare-wallabies (genus Lagorchestes; two other species in this genus are extinct) are small animals that have the movements and some of the habits of hares. The three species (two extant and one extinct) of nail-tail wallabies (genus Onychogalea) have one notable feature: a horny spur at the tip of the tail; its function is unknown. The seven species of pademelons or scrub wallabies (genus Thylogale) of New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, and Tasmania are small and stocky, with short hind limbs and pointed noses. The swamp wallaby (genus Wallabia) is the only species in its genus. Another wallaby that is monotypic is the quokka or short-tailed scrub wallaby (genus Setonix); this species is now restricted to two offshore islands of Western Australia which are free of introduced predators. The seven species of dorcopsises or forest wallabies (genera Dorcopsis (four species, with a fifth as yet undescribed) and Dorcopsulus (two species)) are all native to the island of New Guinea.

One of the brush wallaby species, the dwarf wallaby (Notamacropus dorcopsulus), also native to New Guinea, is the smallest known wallaby species and one of the smallest known macropods. Its length is about 18 inches from the nose to the end of the tail, and it weighs about 3.5 lbs.

Wallabies are hunted for meat and fur.

The name wallaby comes from Dharug walabi or waliba. Another early name for the wallaby, in use from at least 1802, was the brush-kangaroo.

Young wallabies are referred to as "joeys", like many other marsupials. Adult male wallabies are referred to as "bucks", "boomers", or "jacks". Adult female wallabies are referred to as "does", "flyers", or "jills". A group of wallabies is called a "mob", "court", or "troupe". Scrub-dwelling and forest-dwelling wallabies are known as "pademelons" (genus Thylogale) and "dorcopsises" (genera Dorcopsis and Dorcopsulus), respectively.

Doe (mommy) wallaby with joey in pouch

More extremely info: https://au.search.yahoo.com/search?type=E211US105G0&p=wallaby

The koala (Phascolarctos cinereus), sometimes called the koala bear, is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia. It is the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae and its closest living relatives are the wombats. The koala is found in coastal areas of the mainland's eastern and southern regions, inhabiting Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. It is easily recognizable by its stout, tailless body and large head with round, fluffy ears and large, dark nose. The koala has a body length of 24–33 inches and weighs 9–33 lbs. Fur color ranges from silver grey to chocolate brown. Koalas from the northern populations are typically smaller and lighter in colour than their counterparts further south. These populations possibly are separate subspecies, but this is disputed.

More info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koala

Koalas typically inhabit open Eucalyptus woodland, as the leaves of these trees make up most of their diet. This eucalypt diet has low nutritional and caloric content and contains toxic compounds that deter most other mammals from feeding on it. Koalas are largely sedentary and sleep up to twenty hours a day. They are asocial animals, and bonding exists only between mothers and dependent offspring. Adult males communicate with loud bellows that intimidate rivals and attract mates. Males mark their presence with secretions from scent glands located on their chests. Being marsupials, koalas give birth to underdeveloped young that crawl into their mothers' pouches, where they stay for the first six to seven months of their lives. These young koalas, known as joeys, are fully weaned around a year old. Koalas have few natural predators and parasites, but are threatened by various pathogens, such as Chlamydiaceae bacteria and koala retrovirus.

Because of their distinctive appearance, koalas, along with kangaroos and emus, are recognized worldwide as symbols of Australia. They were hunted by Indigenous Australians and depicted in myths and cave art for millennia. The first recorded encounter between a European and a koala was in 1798, and an image of the animal was published in 1810 by naturalist George Perry. Botanist Robert Brown wrote the first detailed scientific description of the koala in 1814, although his work remained unpublished for 180 years. Popular artist John Gould illustrated and described the koala, introducing the species to the general British public. Further details about the animal's biology were revealed in the 19th century by several English scientists. Koalas are listed as a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Among the many threats to their existence are habitat destruction caused by agriculture, urbanization, droughts, and associated bushfires, some related to climate change. In February 2022, the koala was officially listed as endangered in the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, and Queensland.

Due to their low-energy diet, koalas limit their activity and sleep 20 hours a day. They are predominantly active at night and spend most of their waking hours foraging. They typically eat and sleep in the same tree, possibly for as long as a day. On warm days, a koala may rest with its back against a branch or lie down with its limbs dangling. When it gets very hot, the koala rests lower in the canopy and near the trunk, where the surface is cooler than the surrounding air. It curls up when it gets cold and wet. A koala will find a lower, thicker branch on which to rest when it gets windy. While it spends most of the time in the tree, the animal descends to the ground to move to another tree, leaping along. The koala usually grooms itself with its hind paws, with their double claws, but sometimes uses its forepaws or mouth.

An albino

The Dingo (scientific name: Canis lupus dingo) is an animal native to Australia and Southeast Asia. Though nearly identical to dogs in appearance, Dingoes are a separate species; a majority of these animals live in the wild, either alone or in packs. Throughout history, some Dingoes have been domesticated, though many of these are, in reality, crossbreeds produced by mating purebred Dingoes with dogs. As pets, adult Dingoes have proven to be wholly unpredictable and difficult to live with; if raised with humans from a very young age, Dingoes can be affectionate and loyal, but may become troublesome as they mature.

More info: https://www.dog-learn.com/dog-breeds/dingo/#google_vignette