Australian Wildlife: Penguins and The Roo

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Australia? The Kangaroo. 

our Roo friend

Endemic to Australia, these marsupials live what appears to be a pretty great Aussie life. They get to hop around through the bush all day and are found extremely exotic to those who live off the continent. Portrayed as kind and lovable through the cartoon Kanga and Roo in Winnie the Pooh, it is not uncommon to have the desire to envelop them in a cuddly hug. However, that is unadvisable because they pack a wicked punch and have extremely powerful hind legs. 

Even though I was forewarned that because my University is in the suburbs of one of the largest Australian city there would not be kangaroos running through campus, I was still a little disappointed not to have one greet me at the airport. My obsession with finding one grew as they taunted me on the one dollar coin, in the media advertising, and upon finding out that I would be missing a chance to see them at the Healesville Sanctuary for a trip to Sydney. Being in Australia has felt so incredibly unreal that I knew when I saw a kangaroo the enormity of the trip I was on would finally hit me. 

me with the Kangaroos

So when the chance to spend a Saturday at the Melbourne Zoo came about, I jumped on the opportunity.

After taking the wrong bus, sitting on a train for over an hour, and wandering through a poorly laid out zoo in the pouring down rain, reaching the kangaroo pen was like finding the prize at the end of a particularly unflavorful cereal. 

We entered the pen and was immediately greeted with an emu making its way along the  path with the other human guests of the zoo. The enclosures in the pen were no more than a simple log fence, with no wire or ability to restrain any animals, so they made their way as freely as the guests. The emu’s massive body, long neck, pointy beak, and beady red eyes did inspire some fear as it stared into my soul and made its way directly for me, only to divert its path at the last second. 

However we soon reached the kangaroos and all the perils of the day were gone as a brief ray of sunshine shone and we waited patiently for the annoying teenagers to leave and the roos to come out and play. And come out and play they did. One smaller guy seemed to take a particular interest with us and got close enough to touch and take pictures with. Unwilling to turn my back on the creature, I did not get a picture taken with it, but did get to touch its fur quickly before backing up and pretending I didn’t just violate it’s personal space. 

 kids the kangaroo almost punched

Others were much bolder with their endeavors to befriend the creatures; especially a group of young children who got so close the roo raised up to its full height and I was sure it was going to punch the plucky young kid right in his chubby gut. But of course, the roos seemed to enjoy the attention and hopped about happily unafraid of confrontation. 

It struck me how a place like this could never exist in America as there would always be security guards telling you not to touch for fear that one animal could be provoked and would attack, resulting in a nasty lawsuit for the zoo. 

Extremely pleased with the day, I finally felt content with Australia. They had not disappointed me yet. 

The next weekend we went to see another important part of the Australian wildlife, the penguins of Philip Island. 

These little guys, no bigger than the seagulls who stood fearless and proud on the beach as if we were there to see them, tumbled out of the surf, waddled a little farther along only to be swept up by the next wave and drawn back into the ocean. After their struggle against nature they battled the line of seagulls blocking them from the dry land where their homes and food lay. The group of five or six little penguins formed a single file line and darted for land like a group of nerdy high school students making their way through the halls dodging the jock bullies. Luckily they all made it home safely, avoiding whatever the wildlife equivalent of being stuffed in a locker is. 

As awed by cuteness as everyone was with these unique little penguins, we all still leapt into a frenzy at the sighting of a wild kangaroo. Outside of the bus window, if you looked hard enough, one or two could be seen standing in the tall grass watching carefully. On the way out of the penguin center a wild wallaby stood grazing on a tree planted for the walk into the center. We all stopped and tried to take a picture as close as we dared, toying with the possibility of using a flash for fear of scaring it away. 

On the way home, before falling into a deep slumber, I realized that these moments of pure happiness have hit me at the weirdest of times. Sitting in a basement on St. Patrick’s day debating what game to play, on the bus gazing at the familiar-feeling countryside pass with movie soundtrack-like music playing, walking back from class alone on a nice day, falling asleep soaking in the sun when visiting the beach for the first time, getting lost in the vibrant stars; these moments are not ones to write home about, but will been the ones I remember most because for me they are the kangaroo: my wildest expectations of this Australian experience come into fruition in ways better than I could have ever predicted. 

Carol with the Kangaroo

Sam with the Kangaroo