Animals & Zones

This species has the most vibrant plumage of all flamingo species.

The Bali myna is almost entirely white with long head plumes and black wing-tips. Endemic to Bali where it formerly ranged across the north-west third of the island, the species was never very widely distributed.

Emus belong to a family of flightless birds called ratites, which also include ostriches, rheas, cassowaries and kiwis. As the second largest bird in the world after the ostrich, it can run at a speed of up to 50 km/hr.

Gentoo Penguins is the world’s fastest underwater bird, swimming at speeds of up to 36km/h!

The golden-shouldered parrot nests in conical termite mounds. Dubbed the ‘antbed parrot’, it excavates its nest during the wet season when the mound is rain softened.

Great Argus are amongst the largest pheasants, related to the peafowls. Males have long twin tail feathers, which grow to a whopping 1.5 m in length, while their flamboyant wing feathers boast many eyespots.

Among the 350 odd parrot species worldwide, grey parrots are best able to mimic human speech.

The King Penguin stands at a height of 1 metre. It is the second tallest penguin, after the Emperor Penguin, which is 1.3m tall.

The cackle of the laughing kookaburra is an iconic sound of the dry eucalypt forests of eastern Australia at dawn and dusk.

Out of six flamingo species, the lesser flamingo is the smallest and most numerous with around three million individuals.

Natives call the masked lapwing the ‘spear-carrying bird’ due to the sharp yellow spurs on its wings.

Rockhopper penguins are so named because of their ability to hop over rocks and boulders, sometimes reaching heights of up to 1.8m.

The palm cockatoo is the world’s largest cockatoo. Its distinctive cheek patch of bare skin flushes from pink to bright red when the bird is alarmed or excited.

The Papuan hornbill is the only hornbill in New Guinea. Called ‘Kokomo’ in local Tok Pisin language, it is a show stealer. In flight, its wings give off a very loud whooshing sound.

Cockatoos are large parrots, known for their long life spans that range from 40 to 70 years. They differ from other parrots in that they have a head crest and no blue or green feathers. Black cockatoos are found only in Australia.

Named for its unique spoon-shaped bill, the roseate spoonbill has attractive pink plumage and a defined carmine wing patch. The bare green skin on its head takes on a yellowish hue during the breeding season.

They are what they eat – scarlet ibises feed on crayfish, crabs and aquatic insects which give their plumage the bright red colour.

The southern cassowary is the third biggest bird after the ostrich and emu. Compared to the single wattled northern cassowary, it is slightly larger and has two wattles, which hang loosely from its neck.

Known for its melodious calls, the straw-headed bulbul has been hunted to extinction across much of its range in Southeast Asia.

Male and female eclectus parrots look so different that they were once thought to be separate species. Males are predominantly green; females are red or purplish red.

Often confused with owls, the nocturnal tawny frogmouth is closely related to night jars. It has a flat, wide beak like a frog’s mouth, hence its common name.