Benz World Blog » Australia Zoo

Walking William

Jason Benz — Sun, 13 Aug 2017 00:23:29 +0000

This is William, a 6-year-old cheetah being walked at Australia Zoo in Queensland. I was a little surprised to see it as cheetahs are not listed on the zoo map. They must be kept out of sight until it is time for their walk. Captive animals are controversial, however, when it comes to cheetahs, the species survival may now be dependent on captive breeding. This cheetah came to Australia from the Ann Van Dyk Cheetah Centre in South Africa which has bred over 800 cheetah cubs and was largely responsible for cheetahs being removed from endangered species list in South Africa. A study of wild cheetahs in the Serengeti found 60% of all cubs were taken by lions in their first 8 weeks.

White Rhino

Jason Benz — Sun, 29 Jan 2017 11:00:25 +0000

This is a Southern White Rhinoceros at Australia Zoo on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia. The wild population is about 20,000. However the Northern White Rhinoceros has effectively become extinct recently. Only 3 animals remain in the wild. The Kenyan Government put the last male under 24hrs armed guard to deter poachers. The horn of the rhino is valued higher than gold. Thoiry Zoo in France lost one of their Rhinos to poachers in 2017.

This image has been accepted by Shutterstock for Stock Photography and is available for download here.

Tasmanian Devil

Jason Benz — Mon, 19 Dec 2016 22:34:49 +0000

We met this Tasmanian Devil at Australia Zoo on the sunshine coast in Queensland. They are Australia‘s largest living carnivorous marsupial. Scientists have been calling for them to be reintroduced to the mainland however they will find that cats and foxes now dominate their space in the food chain.

This image has been accepted by Shutterstock for Stock Photography and is available for download here.

UPDATE: After 3000 years a group called Aussie Ark reintroduced devils to the mainland in 2020.

Elusive Echidna

Jason Benz — Mon, 03 Oct 2016 08:10:16 +0000

I have been looking for an echidna to photograph since arriving in Australia in 2011. Echidnas and Platypus are the last survivors of an ancient branch of the evolutionary tree. Although they are warm blooded mammals they lay eggs like birds and reptiles. This was taken at Australia Zoo in Queensland this weekend. The search for a wild echidna pic continues…

This image has been accepted by Shutterstock for Stock Photography and is available for download here.

Carpet Python

Jason Benz — Sat, 12 Mar 2016 12:58:01 +0000

This is a Coastal Carpet Python. At up to 4 meters, it is the largest subspecies of Carpet Python and is found in Queensland and New South Wales. They are effective rat catchers but also eat bats, birds, lizards and even small dogs. Although they are not venomous I was glad this one was behind glass at Australia Zoo.

This image has been accepted by Shutterstock for Stock Photography and is available for download here.

Bengal Tiger

Jason Benz — Sun, 07 Feb 2016 02:39:09 +0000

This is an eight year old Bengal Tiger called Mika. She was born at Mogo Zoo in New South Wales and was the runt of the litter. She now lives with her brother and sister at Australia Zoo on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. Although keeping large carnivores in captivity is a little controversial, these animals look healthy and the handlers appear to put a lot of effort into keeping them physically and mentally stimulated. Such is their dedication that three handlers have been hospitalized in less than a year after curious tigers attempted human tasting.

This image has been accepted by Shutterstock for Stock Photography and is available for download here.

Southern Cassowary

Jason Benz — Sat, 23 Jan 2016 01:04:06 +0000

This is a Southern Cassowary. Like many of Australia’s animals it is weird, wonderful and potentially lethal. The bird weighs as much as 85kg, stands almost 2 metres tall and has a 12cm dagger like claw on each foot. Imagine an armed Emu. It lives in the dense forests of northern Queensland and Southern Papua New Guinea. As for eating the cassowary, it is said to be very tough. Australians stationed in PNG were advised that it “should be cooked with a stone in the pot: when the stone is ready to eat, so is the cassowary”