Mar/110
The Taronga Zoo Sydney, Fun, Excitement, And Education Around Every Turn
If you are looking to make a trip to the city of Sydney in the near future, then you seriously need to make it a point that you look at getting to the Taronga Zoo Sydney. This is one of the premier zoos in the area and often times leads a person to be in awe at all of the various animals that are housed in the zoo and allowed to be enjoyed by the rest of the world.
For a family that may be on a little bit of a budget, there is a reasonable priced admission to the zoo. While there is an extra fee for a few of the up close and personal experiences, these fees are more than fair and allow a person to experience all there is to see and do for a reasonable amount of money.
Conservation is the most important aspect that needs to be addressed when it comes to the purpose of the zoo. While many zoos are looking at just showing the animals of the world, the Taronga Zoo Sydney, is focused on ensuring that these animals are able to continue to be enjoyed. There are a lot of different advantages that are able to be enjoyed by visitors both young and old.
Speaking of learning. There are several opportunities for a person to learn from all that the zoo has to offer them. As mentioned before there are several experiences that allow you to get close to a Koala bear and have your picture taken. This is not something that often times you have the opportunity to do when at you local zoo.
There are also programs and lectures that you child will be able to take a part in to learn about many animals that they may have never even heard of before. This can give them a lot to talk about when they get back home to talk with their friends.
While the zoo is a rather large place to explore, it is a wise decision that you take a day or two to fully explore the zoo and see all that it has to offer the visitor. There is too much beauty and wonderfulness that is associated with the zoo to see it all in a single day. This is a trip that many people will want to make on a regular basis in order to get the full experience of the zoo.
Make sure that you plan to visit the zoo for a couple of days. This is a large zoo and it will be difficult to get all the zoo has to offer in just a single day, this is why it is a good idea that you make the point that when talking to your travel agent, you make sure to have the zoo on your schedule for a couple of days.
The next time that you and the family are looking for a fun place to head in order to have a fun filled adventure, consider a trip to the Taronga Zoo Sydney and see all that the zoo has to offer its guest that come into their own wild kingdom, this will be well worth the price of admission.
Fraser Brown is seen as a seasoned correspondent who is really a Sydney Accommodation consultant and is certainly recognised for concentrating on Sydney tourism and information initiatives
Jul/100
Central America Wildlife – White Lipped Peccary
This species typically prefers dense, humid tropical forest, usually with primary growth, although their habitat also includes dry savannas and tropical dry forests. They live in Central and South America. White lipped Peccaries are the big and aggressive brothers of the collared peccary. They have even killed jaguars when trying to defend themselves. That is why white lipped peccaries are considered as the most dangerous peccary.
The pelage of the white-lipped peccary is an overall dark reddish-brown or black. A curious thing is that each and every hair has two different tones: light at the base, and then dark. The average length of these animals is reported to be: body length, somewhere between 90 and 140 cm, shoulder height 40-60 cm, and body weight 25-40 kg. The maximum a white lipped peccary has lived is 13 years. It is an omnivorous animal because it feeds on fruits, roots, tubers, palm nuts, grasses and some invertebrates.
The white-lipped peccary is a diurnal mammal. It is also a social animal. It is known that they live in large herds of 50 to 300+ individuals, though there have been reported sightings of up to 2,000 individuals. With such a large number of herd members, it is necessary for white lipped peccaries to constantly move in order to obtain enough food. Studies have shown that a herd can cover about 10 km per day.
156 to 162 days is the gestation period of white lipped peccaries. When it comes to babies the great majority of births are twins. There are weird cases of single or triples births. The white lipped peccary doesn't have a specific breeding season. They breed throughout the year.
Although not immediately endangered it is threatened by deforestation and increased hunting pressure. This species is economically important, and one of the principal species for neo-tropical hunters.
Marina K. Villatoro, lives in Central America - Costa Rica and Guatemala for the past decade. She has traveled all over these areas with her family and now she loves to organize vacations to Costa Rica and Guatemala. Contact her for advice and to plan your perfect trip!
Jul/100
Fun Facts About Kinkajous
They are also known as honey bear, because when tin captivity they seem to enjoy eating honey. Kinkajous are related with the raccoon and coati. The kinkajou's woolly fur consists of an outer coat of gold or brownish-gray overlapping a gray undercoat.
The kinkajou's woolly fur consists of an outer coat of gold or brownish-gray overlapping a gray undercoat. Studies have shown that 90% of their diet consists primarily of ripe fruit. They may play an important role in seed dispersal. Leaves and flowers make up much of the other 10% of their diet. Also they sometimes eat insects, particularly ants.
They normally live 23 - 24 years, but in a Hawaiian zoo they had a kinkajou that lived for 40 years. These nocturnal animals also have a short-haired, fully prehensile tail like some New World monkeys, which it uses as a "fifth hand" in climbing. Scent glands near the mouth, on the throat, and on the belly allow kinkajous to mark their territory and their travel routes. Kinkajous sleep in family units and groom one another. While they are usually solitary when foraging, they occasionally forage in small groups.
Kinkajous sleep in family units and groom one another. While they are usually solitary when foraging, they occasionally forage in small groups. The kinkajou's peak activity is usually between about 7:00 PM and midnight, and again an hour before dawn. During daylight hours, kinkajous sleep in tree hollows or in shaded tangles of leaves, avoiding direct sunlight. Also, kinkajous do not have a specific season for breeding.
They breed throughout the year. Female kinkajous give birth to one or occasionally two small babies after a gestation period of 112 to 118 days. This arboreal mammal is not an endangered species, though it is seldom seen by people because of its strict nocturnal habits. However, they are hunted for the illegal pet trade, for their fur and for their meat. They are forest mammals, native to Central and South America.
Marina K. Villatoro, has lived in Central America - Costa Rica and Guatemala for over 10 years. She's traveled these parts extensively and now loves to organize vacations to these amazing parts of the world. With her first hand experience, she can recommend the best options for you. Contact her for advice and to plan your perfect trip!
Jun/100
Some Facts About El Quetzal
Who are they? Quetzals are considered one of the world's most beautiful birds and the Guatemalan currency is named after them. They are also beautiful and exotic birds known for their bright colors and long tails.
Color: The male is unmistakable. Its feathers are from a vibrant green with its distinctive long tail feathers. There is also their scarlet belly and the white lower tail surface. Female on the other hand has darker green fathers and a red belly,
Food: Quetzals are specialized fruit-eaters, but can also be called omnivorous becuase they also like to mix their diet with insects and small frogs.
Growth: Males can be a meter long and can weigh up to half pound because of their tales. The body itself measures only 38 to 40.5 cm, the tail on the other hand can be 61 cm.
Age: Quetzal can't live in captivity, they get depressed and die. That's why no one has been able to study how long they can live.
Habits: Quetzals spend their days sitting on the forest canopy eating. Generally they live groups of 4 or 6 individuals or in couples.
Kids: Females can only have two eggs at once, these eggs are blue and measure around 3 centimeters. The male and female quetzals take turns incubating the eggs. The time it takes the young to come out of the shell is 17 to 18 days. Young quetzals can fly at about three weeks of age, but males do not begin to grow their long tail plumes for three years.
Mating: During mating season, male quetzals grow the twin tail feathers that characterize them and can grow up to one meter long. Females do not have long tails, but they do share the brilliant green and red coloring of their mates. The reproductive time is between March and June.
Importance: There are six different kinds of Quetzals and they are all endangered. These beautiful exotic birds because of all the illegal hunting and the destruction of their habitat are in the list of to be extinct animals unless things change.
Quick Fact: A Guatemalan legend says that when the Spaniards came there was a horrible fight between them and the Quiches (ancient town of Mayan natives), once it was over many quetzals landed on dead Mayan's bodies, where they got stained in their blood and that's where they got their red chests from.
Where can they be found? They need to live in a tropical forest. They can be found from Chiapas, Mexico to Panama.
Marina K. Villatoro, the Travel Experta, lives in Central America - Costa Rica and Guatemala for the past decade. She's traveled these parts extensively and now loves to organize vacations to these amazing parts of the world. Having first hand experience of all the places with her family, she can recommend the best options for you. Contact her for advice and to plan your perfect trip!
Apr/100
Safari Chapin – Much More Than An Animal Park In Guatemala
If you are looking for a day filled with adventure Auto-Safari Chapin is the solution it.
What you can do here:
Be in the middle of an exotic collection of animals in this car safari
Eat around like a king
Flop around in a huge pool
Take a gorgeous ride in a boat
You can take a leisure, rather, pleasure walk in their zoo!
You don't need a car to go in this safari. You can rent one from them and it won't cost more than the same price of the entrance fee of a car. You can drive close to the animals. When I say close, it's because they will be right out your window!
The park has different entrance fees: $8 for only the safari ride and $12for the safari ride, the pool, the boat ride, the zoo and a great lunch with a drink and dessert. The kids get discounts. I took the $12 package because the food is great and much more expensive when you buy them separately and I don't regret it.
Between the safari exhibits, you get to relax in a rest stop where the kids can play around and you can stretch your legs.
After that, you can head to either the pool or to an ultra-relaxing boat ride. I recommend the boat ride because it is really beautiful and calm.
To be honest, when I first paid the entrance fee, I didn't expect too much of it. But after all, I must admit it was pretty good.
Marina K. Villatoro, the Travel Experta, lives in Central America - Costa Rica and Guatemala for the past decade. She's traveled these parts extensively and now loves to organize vacations to these amazing parts of the world. Having first hand experience of all the places with her family, she can recommend the best options for you. Contact her for advice and to plan your perfect trip!
Sep/090
Dangerous Animals Of Australia
Thinking about visiting Australia. Have you heard all those horror stories about dangerous Australian animals? This article intends to introduce some of those nasty creatures to you but also reassure you that the likelihood of you meeting one is extremely unlikely.
Australia probably does have more than its fair share of horrible creatures. There is one that can in fact kill you in less than 3 minutes. There are at least 10 that could kill you and they range greatly in size. The Great White Shark is probably the biggest and the Funnel Web Spider is one of the smallest. These two are often talked about by travellers.
Examining the facts clearly shows that you have nothing to worry about in terms of meeting a dangerous Australian animal. Did you know that there have only been 11 shark deaths over the last 50 years? Media hype would make you expect more. In the same time period, there have been NO deaths caused by the Funnel Web Spider due to the availability of anti-venom
Lets have a look at some of the dangerous Australian Animals.
The Great White Shark
The White Shark can be as long as 6m and weighs over 2,200kg(!!) All sharks have an extra sense which allows them to detect the electromagnetic field emitted by the movement of living animals. It's certainly not something you would want to meet whilst out swimming!
Swimming in the Australian ocean is fantastic and should be done as part of your Australian holiday. There are sharks in Australian waters but its rare that they come up to the shore line. You should avoid swimming at dusk and dawn when sharks are more active. Don't go too far from the shore and stay away from schools of fish as a shark could mistake you for food! Also don't go into the water if you have an open cut which is bleeding.
Shark attacks have risen slightly in the last couple of years and experts are unsure why. It is thought that it may have something to do with our waters getting cleaner and the fact that there is an algae in our waters which is bringing the sharks further into the bays.
The funnel web spider
This spider looks like something you might find in a joke shop as it's very black and can be glossy. You are unlikely to see one on the grass as they prefer to create little burrows in places like garden rockeries or garages. They are fond of water so are sometimes find floating in swimming pools when they have accidentally fallen in. The Sydney funnel web is so called because it lives in and around Sydney.
The safest thing to do is to keep away from any spider you see in Australia. The reality is most of them are totally harmless. They may however be a bit bigger than what you are used to. The funnel web spider will rise up onto its back legs and show you his fangs if he is about to bite you. That's when you should run!
Even if the funnel web spider does bite you, there is a 1 in 4 chance that it will inject any venom. If there is venom in the bite, you are likely to feel pain instantly and you should get yourself to hospital for anti venom as soon as you can. You need to stop the venom from spreading around your body. (For more details go to the website. Details are below)
Saltwater Crocodile
There are in fact 2 reported deaths from crocodiles every year. That makes them the most dangerous animal in Australia from a statistics point of view. They are found in the very north of Australia but can be seen as far down as Broome to the west and Tropical Queensland in the East. It's easy to avoid an encounter with a croc by following some simple rules.
These crocodiles don't actually live in salt water and prefer to cruise around in freshwater lakes and rivers. They are very large and can be very ferocious. They are extremely territorial.
If you see any NO SWIMMING signs in the top end of the country, usually with a picture of a crocodile on them, then don't even think about going for a dip. Remember that if you go off the beaten track, the government may not have put signs up here so think twice about swimming there.
Don't camp too near the waters edge and vary your washing habits. That means, don't go to the same spot every day, otherwise a crocodile could be waiting for you one morning!
There are 7 other dangerous Australian animals to find out about. Which one could kill you in less than 3 minutes? What would you do if you got bitten by a snake? For more information go to the Real Australia Travel Website.
Jennifer Schellington has nearly 5 years of experience in travelling Australia and has recently had a baby. Her website, www.realaustraliatravel.com offers practical information for planning your trip to Australia as well as where to go and what to do. Click here for more information on the 10 most dangerous Australian animals