Overview
Encounter curious Australian animals in national parks in the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges, or get up close to your favourite creatures at the famous Healesville Sanctuary.
Local creatures in their natural habitats
Watch out for wombats, swamp wallabies, possums, lyrebirds, platypus and deer in the region's magnificent national parks. Take a guided spotlight forest walk in the Yarra Ranges National Park near Healesville to meet nocturnal animals, or pursue mobs of kangaroos at dusk in Cardinia Reservoir in the Dandenong Ranges.
See more of the region’s wildlife up close on a visit to Birdsland Reserve. Take a wander through the 75-hectare bushland reserve that is home to more than 130 different types of native birds, including wedge-tailed eagles and powerful owls.
Iconic encounters of the wildlife kind
Stare into the snarling jaws of a Tasmanian Devil, spot koalas in gum trees, and peer at a joey in the pouch of a passing kangaroo at Healesville Sanctuary. Find the camera-shy platypus in its nocturnal creek habitat and explore the Flooded Forest Aviary. Join a Meet the Keeper session and be awed by the spectacular Birds of Prey presentation. Discover animals you didn't know existed with over 200 species on show in walk-through exhibits and along meandering paths.
Find your way into the hidden forests at the National Resources Conservation League in Warburton to meet the resident pair of sugar gliders.
