Advertising feature: Gold Coast

Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary

The birds and the bees, and much more

Pass by Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary in the early morning or late afternoon and decide for yourself who makes the most noise at its famous lorikeet feeding session - the birds or the scores of people feeding them.

Feeding sessions have been an integral part of the Currumbin experience since the 1940s when local beekeeper and flower grower Alex Griffiths began feeding the native lorikeets to keep them away from his flowers.

Originally known as the Currumbin Bird Sanctuary, Griffiths gave the 26ha property to the National Trust and people of Queensland in 1976. It adopted its present name in 1995 to reflect the growing collection of animals, now numbering around 1400 if you tally up all the reptiles, birds and mammals.

A visit to the sanctuary is a delight - from the noisy bird feeding to the enormous crocodile resting in his waterhole, lazing koalas with their joeys, fun playgrounds and the train which runs regularly through the grounds. At first that's a fun adventure; as the day passes it makes a welcome break from walking.

We visited for my daughter's 11th birthday with her friends and younger brother. As I organised entry, they rushed off to check out the baby crocs being cradled by a keeper, and to have the first of several photos taken.

Birthday cake eaten as quick sustenance, we jumped on the train and headed to the Free Flight Bird Spectacular. Stunning birds of prey, including a wedgetail eagle, patiently wait in nearby trees for their turn to fly to the keeper to display their natural beauty and abilities.

This is just one of a number of well-presented shows held throughout the day. It's a case of what takes your fancy; from the first lorikeet feeding at 8am to the pelican, eel and kangaroo feeding, various talks on echidnas, dingoes, wombats and koalas, the crocodile encounter and a showcase of the world's deadliest snakes.

Between all this my active group still managed to check out the range of animal exhibits and was most impressed to find a wombat scratching around in his enclosure and a very active Tasmanian devil running around his pen. There are two walk-through aviaries - the Forest Fringe and Rainforest - visited several times as the kids tried to capture images of the more elusive residents.

Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary is between the beachfront and the M1 Motorway at Currumbin on the southern end of the Gold Coast.

For more information on the Sanctuary, the Wildlife Hospital, Amphibian Ark (a safety house for critically endangered frog species), Behind the Scenes Tours and Wildnight Adventures visit www.cws.org.au