Adelaide Zoo Tours

If you are considering a visit to the Adelaide Zoo then you should consider one of the free tours. Most people are aware of the dedicated team of animal keepers, but how many know about the equally dedicated volunteers. Every day at 11am and 2pm, they run free tours of the zoo. The tours run through the South-East Asian rainforest which is part of a 20 year redevelopment of the Zoo. In the past animals were kept in individual cages but the trend is now toward large areas where several species can live together. The theme the Adelaide Zoo is following is of the ancient super-continent Gondwanaland which included what we now know as Australasia, Africa and Asia.

The tour guides tell stories about the animals that go beyond the facts and figures printed on the enclosure signs, such as how they came to be in Adelaide and what personality traits they have. The tours are only one area in which the volunteers are kept busy. Another is what is called watch-volunteers. For various reasons the keepers may want an animal to be watched, possibly to check on breeding or illness. In these cases volunteers will often sit for hours taking notes on an animals behaviour. Sometimes the watch volunteers simply sit there so new animals can get used to being watched. The volunteers also staff an information booth at the front gate and supply material for the touch tables where visitors can get a "hands-on" look at the animals.

The volunteers are well organised and selected from members of the Zoological Society. Every year a training course is run for those interested in becoming a volunteer.

Otherwise consider taking one of the free tours on your next visit to the Zoo. The tours are at 11 am & 2pm each day and the Zoo can arrange group tours by appointment. Ph: 8267 3255 for more information or email: info@postcards-sa.com.au