Canberra National Zoo & Aquarium
Visit Australia’s only combined zoo and aquarium and get up close to Aussie icons and endangered species at Canberra National Zoo & Aquarium.
Canberra National Zoo & Aquarium is spread over 47 picturesque acres. The animals have large enclosures and keepers who are dedicated to their care and enrichment. Animals living at the Canberra National Zoo & Aquarium have either been rescued and unable to be returned back to the wild or were bred as part of a regional breeding program.
The National Zoo & Aquarium contributes heavily in a large number of breeding programs designed to help save a number of animals from extinction. They also raise money through their National Zoo & Aquarium Conservation Trust (NZACT) to donate to a number of local and overseas conservation initiatives and charities.
NZACT (the National Zoo & Aquarium Conservation Team) is a volunteer organisation that works with the National Zoo & Aquarium to save some of the worlds most endangered species from extinction through breeding programs and educating zoo visitors as well as fundraising and donating to a number of local and overseas organisations, including Free the Bears, The Snow Leopard Trust, the RSPCA, 21st Century Tiger and Traffic.
The National Zoo & Aquarium is larger than it looks, so set aside the better part of a day to explore it all.
Be sure to check out daily keeper activities to learn more about the animals as they receive a feed or enrichment. On weekends and during school holidays, additional keeper talks are added to the schedule. Visitors also have the chance to meet or feed some of our the animals.
We did a tour of the National Zoo & Aquarium and really enjoyed learning from one of the experts about the animals who lived there.
Our keeper called every animal by name, down to the geese, and described their personality and individual circumstances such as how they came to be living there, as well as giving us further information about the species in the wild. It’s clear that these animals are very loved and cared for by their keepers.
The National Zoo & Aquarium has a large, excellent playground that will occupy kids for hours, so be sure to visit at the end of the day when you’ve seen everything else that you’ve got on your agenda.
Canberra National Zoo & Aquarium
Scrivener Dam, Yarralumla, Canberra, ACT 2611
Hours: Daily, Open 9:30am–5:00pm every day of the year, except Christmas Day.
https://nationalzoo.com.au
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