Quokkas, Koalas and Wombats...Oh My!

Last Sunday morning's long awaited zoo trip started off with more of a fizzle then a bang, as often happens with long awaited events. I remember crowing out the words "kangaroo day!" before my eyes were even opened.

My enthusiastic cry was met with a groan from the other half who had woken up with an aching stomach. Looking out the window was another dampener to my enthusiasm. Grey rolling clouds scuttled along the sky, promising a chilly morning.

Fortunately a shower and a large glass of water cured the sour stomach, and hot coffee chased away the chills. Very soon we were ready for our whirlwind tour of the Adelaide Zoo, and my personal quest to see what the inside of a kangaroos pouch feels like.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to accomplish my mission. All the 'roos in the petting area were more interested in taking naps off limits then coming over to be petted by me. However, there was a very cute quokka that was happy to have behind his ears scratched.

I'd never heard of a quokka before. To me they looked like a cross between possums and rats that hopped like kangaroos. I'm not the only one that thought they looked like large rats. In 1658 a Dutch explorer named an island full of quokkas "Rottnest" which translated literally means rats nest.

Quokkas have pouches, like 'roos, but it seemed offensive to flip it on it's back and grope around just to alleviate my curiosity. Empathy probably bars me from claiming a shining scientific career someday, but at least no animals will need counseling due to my curiosity... yet.

The zoo had the usual giraffes, tigers and lions, but the highlights were definitely the native animals. Australia has developed so isolated from the rest of the world, that the animals and plants here evolved on completely different paths from the rest of the globe.

Two thumbed koalas, fuzzy red Tree Kangaroos that are nearly extinct, solid wombats and the owlish looking Tawny Frogmouth (which I'm told is not an owl, despite looking like one and being nocturnal) look like no animals I'm used to. Seeing these animals is taking a peek into a world that has been left to itself to evolve creatures uniquely adapted to an often unforgiving climate.

I didn't get to satisfy my curiosity about the kangaroo pouch, and seeing so many different animals just opened up more questions for me, but in the end I would rather have questions then answers. The day I have all the answers would be a very boring day with no tomorrow to wonder about.