"The Earth is Not Only For Humans"

January 7, the first Sunday of 2007.

I held a koala. I fed the kangaroos and wallabies. I saw the kangaroos humping on one another. I saw the joey popping out from kangarroos' pouch- the younger one which was pink and furless and the slightly older one with furs. How can I leave this place without getting in touch with these adorable creatures. I miss them already. I miss them right this second.

The 430 bus took off from Indooroopilly (the suburb that I currently live in) at 8.49 am and arrived at Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in approximately 20 minutes. Lone Pine is worth visiting with only AUD 18 (student conssession) to experience the world's first and largest koala sanctuary.

This time, I went with Tomo and Shio. We were right to arrive early and to catch the scheduled shows that interest us. We watched the presentations on wombats, koalas, kangaroos and wallabies. The sheep dog show. The birds of prey show- Owl and eagle. We fed the barn animals, kangaroos and lorikeets. And as we roamed around the sanctuary, we saw other Aussie wildlife. Among those, were the dingos, echidna, wombats, possums, kookaburra, huge fruit bat, and the reptiles.

Some highlights:
Koala

• belongs to the same family as wombats and kangaroos
• koalas are marsupials, not bears
• baby koalas are also called joeys
• sleeps for approx 19-20 hours a day
• eats eucalyptus plants
• "koala"="no drink" because koalas get most of their fluid from the eucalyptus leaves
• males are larger than females and can be differentiated with the scent gland that is visible at the chest area
• a newborn joey is as small as a jelly bean
  

Wombat

• is closely related to koalas
• has a pouch for its joey (like the koalas and kangaroos)
• eats grasses, herbs and roots of shrubs
• nocturnal
• digs burrows with teeth and claws
• has rootless teeth that continues to grow throughout life
  

Kangaroos and Wallabies

• the difference between the both are their sizes and tails- kangaroos are bigger and the base of their tails are thick unlike the thing and long tail of the wallabies
• belong to the group of animals called macropods (big feet)
• can jump as high as 9m
• red kangaroos are the world largest marsupial
  
  
  

Rainbow Lorikeets

• have distinctive loud screech
• green, blue, yellow and red feathers
• can fly long distance and at great speed for food
• feed on flowers, pollen, nectar, berries and fruits
  
  
  
  
  

Barn animals

1. I'm amused by how ponies can sleep while standing.
2. Feeding one of my relatives is an honour. I was born in the year of ox.
3. I love sheepdogs! and the sheeps too! He was born in the year of *bbbbeeeeeek bbbeekk*
   
   

We were lucky to watch the koalas during their waking time ( they sleep most hours of the day). It was fun to witness them doing their activities like eating, eating and just eating basically. We spent nearly the entire day at the sanctuary and were all satisfied with our learning experience. Koalas seem to have such luxurious lifestyle-sleep, eat, mate and sleep some more. But they are such darlings and I simply love them!
Lone Pine has its motto that says: " The Earth Is Not Only For Humans"
The motto, I kept close to my heart as a reminder that we, humans often take the earth for granted.