Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, Zoo in Gold Coast, Australia
Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, presenting native animal species across numerous enclosures and open-flight zones. Visitors can walk along shaded paths between eucalyptus trees while observing kangaroos, koalas, crocodiles, and different bird species.
Beekeeper Alex Griffiths founded this facility in 1947 as a refuge for rainbow lorikeets, feeding the birds at that time with homemade nectar from his garden. Over the decades, the place developed into a broader protection center for endangered Australian animal species and a research facility.
The name comes from the local Currumbin Creek, and today the grounds serve as a place where visitors can experience real encounters with native species such as wallabies and wombats. In the bird encounter area, free-flying parrots move between visitors and often land on outstretched arms.
The grounds open daily from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM and are easily reached by public transport from Gold Coast Airport and Surfers Paradise. The paths are flat and paved, so families with young children or people with limited mobility can move around comfortably.
Hundreds of free-living rainbow lorikeets descend into the visitor zone twice daily when the nectar offering begins, often landing on heads, shoulders, or hands of guests. This feeding routine has existed since the founding days of the sanctuary and has developed into a fixed ritual that the place continues to this day.
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