With Father’s Day just around the corner, it’s time to celebrate and salute the dedicated dads that call Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary home. From the leader of the pack to the devoted nurturer, the most cooperative, and the foodie fanatic… we’ve rounded up some fatherly facts and tidbits about our awesome animals in residence.
The Snuggly Dad
Meet Banjo, our male yellow-bellied glider. He’s the ultimate snuggle buddy and an all-round family man. Banjo and his partner Mahogany have been blessed with a loveable little joey (the second ever bred here at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary!), and the trio can often be spotted cuddling up together within their enclosure.
THE DEVOTED DAD
And the award for the most dutiful dad goes to Curly the emu! This papa bird will build a nest from leaves, grass and twigs for the female to lay her eggs in. Once finished, she flees the coop, leaving dad to incubate the eggs for around eight weeks. Forgoing all food and even a few toilet breaks, papa emu will end up losing one-third of his body weight while he waits for his little ones to arrive – talk about dedication!
THE FOODIE DAD
He may be small and he may shy, but our male Eastern Bristlebird Snitch, goes above and beyond to provide for his female and chicks, particularly in the food department. Undertaking the majority of the feeding, this darling father dishes up the delicious goods for the family, including insects, seeds and even earthworms.
THE LOVING DAD
A papa with a whole lot of love to give is our male koala Gianni, who’s quite the Casanova and rather in-demand with the ladies here at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. Fathering Osha, Chardy, Enzo, Moet and Brut this season alone (with another joey on the way, too), you’ll find Gianni snuggling up to many-a adorable koalas, sharing the fatherly love around, and wooing the hearts of both koalas and Currumbin visitors alike.
tHE SUPPORTIVE DAD
We think Luzon bleeding-heart should be renamed the Luzon big-heart! This little guy is one supportive dad and helps his partner by taking turns to incubate the eggs until they’re ready to hatch. Once the nestlings are welcomed into the world, their father helps them to grow by providing a highly nutritious ‘crop milk’, and afterwards introduces solid foods into their diet. When they reach four weeks old, both mama and papa Luzon show their youngsters the ropes on how to forage for food for themselves. Teamwork for the win!
