Community
25 September, 2020
New rainforest aviary a huge hit
One of Australia’s leading wildlife experiences, Wildlife Habitat Port Douglas, celebrated the grand opening of their new aviary, the Rainforest Habitat last Saturday September 19.
Hundreds of visitors flocked to the Habitat for the opening which also coincided with its 30th birthday celebrations, featuring lots of fun activities and special prices to mark the start of the school holidays.
The new area takes visitors for a multi-level adventure through lush flora while interacting with rainforest inhabitants like Cassowaries, Pademelons, and a wide variety of stunning tropical birds.
New features in Rainforest Habitat include the breath-taking Birdseye Bridge which takes you up to the treetops and Licuala Tower which offers stunning views of the whole aviary. Over the past 18 months, the wildlife sanctuary has been busily upgrading the park with two massive new aviaries, the world’s first Predator Plank, a state-of-the-art, ultra-modern Nocturnal Habitat, the Rainforest Habitat and will soon break ground on CrocArena.
The opening of the Rainforest Habitat marks completion of stage two of Wildlife Habitat’s three major improvement projects. These three projects are the Nocturnal Habitat which opened in 2019, the Rainforest Habitat and CrocArena which will open in 2021.
The cost of the projects will come in over $2,300,000 which has been funded by the CaPTA Group and the Australian Government with $900,000 being provided through the Community Development Grants programme. Wildlife Habitat Manager Andrew Hearn said the projects were creating construction and operations jobs and were part of Wildlife Habitat’s efforts to bring tourists back to Port Douglas.
“We are incredibly grateful to the local visitors that have been supporting Wildlife Habitat while borders are shut,” he said.
Brook Allen who visited with her two children Emilia (5) and Oliver (4) said the new Rainforest Habitat was a hit. “It really gives you the feeling of being in a real-life rainforest - the new tower and treehouses really help you get in and amongst the display and the animals,” she said. Brayden Wilson from Port Douglas said it got the thumbs up from his children.
“Climbing the tower and seeing all the wildlife was wonderful, the kids got a thrill crossing the suspended bridge,” he said.
