Australia Zoo Sunshine Coast

 AUSTRALIA ZOO

Australia Zoo is turning 40,  Steve Irwin's dream - come check out the size of it!

A team of passionate conservationists work round-the-clock to deliver an animal experience like no other. Cuddle a koala, hand-feed our Asian Elephants, walk with a Sumatran Tiger and watch a crocodile launch from the waters edge. Australia Zoo is the ultimate wildlife adventure delivering conservation through exciting education.

                                   

Dean Geyer and The Veronicas with Lenka After their Performance

Jessica Mauboy at the Zoo

       

Red Panda

• In April 2009, Australia Zoo welcomed two Red Pandas. Red Pandas are a shy solitary animal that are generally active at dusk, dawn and during the night. They are arboreal and will sleep in nests in hollows of trees and in the tree canopies.
• The Red Panda is found throughout the foothills of the Himalayan Mountains, from western Nepal to Northern Myanmar and South western china. They prefer to reside in altitudes between 5,000 and 15,000 feet on steep mountainous slopes that are covered with a dense canopy and mixed forests of coniferous trees, deciduous hardwoods and bamboo. The average temperature ranges between 10–25 degrees Celsius

TASMANIAN DEVILS 

• Tasmanian Devils are the largest living carnivorous marsupial (Dasyurid) in Australia. They have sharp powerful claws and a backward facing pouch. Each devil has distinctive white markings on their chest, which can be used like a fingerprint to identify individuals.

• Tasmanian Devils are disappearing at alarming rate - they need our help to survive.As little as ten years ago Tasmanian devils were considered to be common, abundant and secure in Tasmania.Today, approximately 1,500 devils remain in the wild, putting them on the endangered species list. And if nothing changes, the Tasmanian Devil will be extinct in ten to twenty years.

• Tasmanian devil population numbers have dropped dramatically since the introduction of the DFTD. This disease is fatal - devils suffer a slow and painful death from starvation.DFTD is a unique cancer that can spread like a contagious disease. Under normal circumstances, cancer cannot be ‘caught'. However, DFTD is the exception to this rule, making the research and science into finding a cure incredibly difficult.

      Australia Zoo has joined forces with Wildlife Warriors and Tassie Devil crusader ‘Nature Nic' to take action and raise money to find a cure for DFTD. 

BUDDHA IN AUSTRALIA

Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.

BRISBANE BUDDHAS FESTIVAL

• There are many special or holy days held throughout the year by the Buddhist community. Many of these days celebrate the birthdays of Bodhisattvas in the Mahayana tradition or other significant dates in the Buddhist calendar.
  
• The most significant celebration happens every May on the night of the full moon, when Buddhist all over the world celebrate the birth, enlightenment and death of the Buddha over 2,500 years ago. It has become to be known as Buddha Day.

• Buddhist Festivals are always joyful occasions. Typically on a festival day, lay people will go the the local temple or monastery and offer food to the monks and take the Five Precepts and listen to a Dharma talk. In the afternoon, they distribute food to the poor to make merit and in the evening join perhaps in a ceremony of circumambulation a stupa three time as a sign of respect to the Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha. The day will conclude with evening chanting of the Buddha's teachings and meditation.

ENTERTAINMENT AT THE OFFICIAL CEREMONY

Dancers Buddha Festival

Lion Dancing

Drums of the Islands

Theme for the festival was
THREE GOOD DEEDS

TAKE GOOD ACTIONS
Proves that actions do speak louder than words so it is important to backup what we say with the right actions.
THINK GOOD THOUGHTS
Shows that it is important to think before we speak or act,as it is important to keep a calm and peaceful mind.
SAY GOOD WORDS
Reminds us to always remember to take care of what we say and speak considerately of others and speak kind words to those we meet.

FESTIVAL OF THE ELEPHANT

The Buddha used the example of a wild elephant which, when it is caught, is harnessed to a tame one to train. In the same way, he said, a person new to Buddhism should have a special friendship of an older Buddhist. To mark this saying, Thais hold an elephant festival on the third Saturday in November.

FESTIVAL OF THE TOOTH

 

Kandy is a beautiful city in Sri Lanka. On a small hill is a great temple which was especially built to house a relic of the Buddha - his tooth. The tooth can never be seen, as it is kept deep inside may caskets. But once a year in August, on the night of the full moon, there is a special procession for it.