Where to find Australian wildlife
Best destinations to see a wild kangaroo, wombat, possum or dingo
Creature encounters in the Gondwana forest, Angelsea, Fraser Island, Hansen Bay Sanctuary, Kangaroo Island, Hyde Park, Tasmania, Victoria and Sydney.
Australia is well known for its weird and wonderful wildlife, but where can you see a kangaroo, wombat, possum or dingo in the wild if you travel there?
Wombats
The wombat, in all it’s half guinea pig, half tank glory, is unquestionably the best Australian animal. Unfortunately, they can be quite difficult to spot in the wild. However, if you make for the Gondwana forest near Cradle Mountain in Tasmania, and bring a torch, then you’ll probably be able to see a couple of these critters at night.
Kangaroo
You can spot kangaroos all over Australia – after all, most Aussies in major cities ride one into work every morning – but if you’re looking for huge collections of them in a bizarre setting, Anglesea in Victoria is the place to go to. Keen golfers in the town have a slightly more unusual obstacle than a water feature or bunker – there are hundreds of Eastern grey kangaroos that have decided to make the local gold course their home. Seemingly oblivious to shouts of “Fore!” the friendly roos hop along the greens, fairways and driving ranges, completely at one with the little white balls flying round their heads.
Dingo
The Australian wild dog regards Fraser Island as its manor, and presumably isn’t too impressed with the hundreds of 4WD ploughing up and down it all day long. You’d pretty much have to stay inside your car by the ferry port to not see one of them during your time on the island. The most fun comes when one is blocking the only path in front of you, and is standing there eyeing you up. Rest assured that it is probably bricking itself more than you and your group of four other people are, and if you just stand there, it will eventually scarper.
Koala
Whilst they may look adorable on postcards, koalas are really, really tedious. They are the animal equivalent of a stoner who just wants to sit in front of the telly for the rest of his life. It’s still obligatory to get a picture of them though, and they can be found all over the non-desert areas of the country. If you want a ful on, cast iron guaranteed sighting, though, go to Hanson Bay Sanctuary on Kangaroo Island, South Australia. If you can’t see one there, then you may as well rock back and forth on your piano and sing I Just Called To Say I Love You.
Possums
Made famous by the ever hilarious Dame Edna (wahey! Man in a dress! Talking in an Australian accent! Whatever will they think of next?), the possum is actually a bit of a pest. Still, you’re hardly going to stumble across any in deepest darkest Hampshire, so you may as well head to Hyde Park in Sydney to tick them off your list. They come out at night, and look like rather large rats. They also bite drunks who try and catch them, but people never seem to learn.
Where to find more Australian animals.
