Altina Wildlife Park Review

[akasha]

Situated on the south bank of the Murrumbidgee River, Altina is a working cattle and cropping farm, which also holds a two-hundred hectare zoo. Owned by the Altin family, it is the realisation of a dream to ‘bring Africa home to Australia’. It began with exotics obtainable by private holders, and then started operating under a zoo licence in 2004.

The only way to see Altina is by booking a tour, and when you see the scale of the operation, and the fact that it is intwined with the farm, it’s clear why an escort is necessary.

I visited on 21.09.2023. It was a cool day, reaching a top of 19 degrees, after a heatwave the previous couple of days.

I booked my tour online, with the horse-drawn cart option unavailable, though I was able to get on a standby list for that. I booked a motorised cart for myself, my cousin and her four kids, aged 19, 16, 8 and 4. In total it cost us $200.

We drove to Altina from Narrandera for our 1pm tour. There was one small sign on the highway 2.5km from the front gate, and then suddenly the giraffe adorned gate was there on the right with no further warning. We arrived at 12:50pm as instructed, to begin our tour.

We checked in, paying the balance (50%) of our tour cost, and found out then that we had been upgraded to the horse-drawn cart option which all of us were excited about. (It cost us an extra $4 each and was absolutely worth it.)

Shop and museum

For the first half an hour of our visit, we were given the chance to explore the ‘mini zoo’ and museum on foot, with instructions to meet out the front at 1:30pm for the cart tour.

The first exhibit was for Red Panda. The exhibit had high casuarina trees. I saw two pandas snoozing high up in the branches.

Red Panda exhibit

Next was a small lake with two islands. The first island was for Ring-tailed Lemur. The second was a refuge for Black Swan. Cape Barren Goose was also signed but I didn’t see any.

Ring-tailed Lemur exhibit

Opposite here was the croc house. It had three exhibits, one each for Saltwater Crocodile, Freshwater Crocodile and American Alligator. The crocodilians all had an indoor basking area, including a pool. They also had access to grassy outdoor areas, but those were closed off on my visit due to the cool weather. These reptiles add a nice bit of diversity to the Altina collection, and were the number one thing my four-year-old cousin wanted to see.

Croc house

Saltwater Croc exhibit

Saltwater Crocodile

Freshwater Croc exhibit

Freshwater Crocodile

American Alligator exhibit

American Alligator

There were also free range Indian Peafowl. One of the males was displaying in an empty croc enclosure, which the kids found quite exciting.

Indian Peafowl

Next there was an exhibit for Meerkat. It was large and enriching, and gave good views.

Meerkat exhibit

Meerkat

Next was a row of three exhibits for tamarins; Emperor Tamarin, Golden Lion Tamarin and Cotton-top Tamarin. The Emperors and Golden Lions were happy to come to the front of their enclosures to interact with guests. (I believe Altina also hold Common Marmoset, but I didn’t see any. I could have missed them, or maybe they are only seen on the behind the scenes tour?)

Tamarin (right) and Serval (left) enclosures

Emperor Tamarin

Golden Lion Tamarin

Cotton-top Tamarin exhibit

Cotton-top Tamarin exhibit

Opposite here was a complex of two exhibits for Serval. I saw one serval in the front enclosure, but it wasn’t great for viewing with the mesh front.

Next were two exhibits for Tasmanian Devil. I didn’t see any devils, but presumably they were in their dens sleeping.

Tasmanian Devil exhibit

Near here was an empty enclosure which I assume held the coati.

Empty enclosure

To be continued…

 

[akasha]

There was an exhibit for Common Wombat. I saw one munching on some vegies, and another snoozing in it’s den.

Common Wombat exhibit

Common Wombat

Next was an exhibit for Black-capped Capuchin. The monkeys were lively and engaging, and a hit with the kids.

Black-capped Capuchin exhibit

Black-capped Capuchin

The final exhibit in this section of the zoo was for Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby. I really like this species, and they were a good one to end this section of the zoo with.

Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby exhibit

Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby exhibit

Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby

Half an hour was plenty of time for average zoo guests to explore this part of the zoo. As a zoo nerd I would have like an extra fifteen minutes, but overall it’s a good system, letting the kids burn off some energy between the drive to the zoo, and the cart tour. It also allows any visitors who might be running a little late not to miss the cart tour which is the main attraction.

Lake

To be continued…

 

[akasha]

From the mini zoo, we headed back to the entrance to meet for the tour. Having run out of time I skipped the museum.

Everyone assembled in front of the shop where zoo staff loaded us onto one of two horse-drawn carts or a motorised cart. This process was efficient and after a quick safety talk, and introduction to our horse Jack, we set off to see the rest of the zoo.

Jack the Clydesdale

Using the horses in this way makes for a peaceful drive around the zoo, and adds to the novelty for everyone. It’s also a great way to keep a dying craft alive, and for these heavy horses to do what they’re meant to do.

We passed the Clydesdale paddocks, and then one of the farm paddocks with Angus cattle which had small calves with them. For city kids, that was just as exciting as anything we saw on the tour. The guide explained a little about the logistics of Altina growing their own fodder etc, which I found very interesting.

Clydesdale paddocks

Oat field with Angus cattle

Next was a paddock for Texas Longhorn cattle which are very impressive with their wide horn span and flashy coat colours.

Texas Longhorns

Jack continued his steady pace, taking us to the Fallow Deer paddock, and then the Red Deer. The paddocks were a good size, allowing the animals plenty of room.

Fallow Deer paddock

Red Deer paddock

Red Deer

Turning a corner, we came to an exhibit for Dingo. It was spacious, and gave good views.

Dingo exhibit

Opposite here was a paddock for Altina’s Clydesdale stallion. He was very spirited, showing off along the fence-line, and with his gleaming black coat was one of my favourite animals in the zoo.

Clydesdale stallion

Personally, I am a huge fan of PUREBRED livestock in zoos. I believe that rare breeds are worth preserving just like threatened species, and if done right, can make for interesting and engaging exhibits. (If anyone from Altina is reading this, think about acquiring some Chianina cattle. An old, rare breed with a white coat, they are the largest cattle available in Australia. They are triple purpose; meat, milk and draught. Who knows, maybe bullock-drawn cart tours could be offered in the future too.)

Continuing, there was a rocky exhibit for Barbary Sheep on one side, and two paddocks for Alpaca on the other. The sheep came right up to the fence, giving great views.

Barbary Sheep

Alpaca paddock

Next we approached a huge paddock for Water Buffalo. This exhibit more than any other gives the feeling of ‘wildness’ with the herd moving across the plain. In the distance, species of oryx and antelope could be spotted. The irrigation channel runs along the front of these paddocks, allowing the paddocks to be partially flooded to create wallows for the buffalo. Situated in the Riverina, there is ample water from the river. All the water laying around Altina attracts many wild birds, like ducks, herons and egrets, which add another layer of interest and complement the feeling of ‘safari’.

Water Buffalo paddock

Water Buffalo

Altina have a white buffalo in their herd which was fun to see.

White Water Buffalo

On the opposite side of the road was an exhibit for Himalayan Tahr, which are now a rarity in the region. Good on Altina for maintaining them. I’ve only seen tahr at Taronga on their faux mountain, but this tour gave me a chance to see them much closer which was great.

Himalayan Tahr

Next were two paddocks for Hog Deer, which had some little spotted fawns with them and probably take the award for cutest animals at the zoo.

Hog Deer paddock

Next to the buffalo paddock, was a paddock for Bison. The bison were grazing at a distance, but the guide stopped the cart and called to them, prompting the bison to run towards us. It was a cool way to see them.

Bison paddock

Bison

The genius of the Altina tour system is that the animals don’t get desensitised to people, because they are only seeing guests briefly, twice a day. (Including the animals in the mini zoo. Which only have guests looking at them for half an hour, twice a day.) The tour being escorted by keepers, means the animals are anticipating it in a positive way, and for the most part approach the fences eagerly. I think it adds to both animal welfare and guest enjoyment.

To be continued…

 

[akasha]

Next was a row of paddocks for antelope. There was a paddock each for Blackbuck, Waterbuck, Eland and Nyala. The ungulate collection at Altina is impressive, and was certainly appreciated by me, and other zoo nerds I’m sure.

Blackbuck paddock

Waterbuck paddock

Waterbuck

Eland paddock

Nyala paddock

Nyala

Turning another corner, on the outside of the loop was a paddock for Highland Cattle. Opposite there was a paddock for Banteng.

Highland Cattle paddock

Banteng paddock

Banteng

Next was the White Rhino complex, which had four paddocks the animals could be rotated around. I saw all three rhino, but they were back near their shelter and difficult to see. I understand Altina is in the process of trying to breed the rhino, having borrowed a male from Mogo to mate with the two females, so I wasn’t too worried. Hopefully Altina will be successful with this species, as they have been successful with so many others.

White Rhino complex

Near here were the farm sheds with lots of farm equipment like tractors. That probably isn’t too exciting to most people, but for my young, citybred cousins it was just as exciting as everything else we saw. Here we also saw some free range Helmeted Guineafowl.

Next was a paddock for Domestic Goat, including a cheeky hand-raised individual that jumped the fence and then after a stickybeak at the cart promptly returned herself to her paddock, getting a laugh from all the guests.

Goat paddock

The next part of the zoo is made up of smaller exhibits, mostly for carnivores.

There were several exhibits for Capybara on one side and several for Maned Wolf on the other. Our guide stopped the cart at each species, allowing everyone close views.

Capybara exhibit

Maned Wolf

Next was the Plains Zebra paddock, the three females approached the fence, allowing for great views.

Zebra exhibit

There were some female Ostrich in the distance at the back of their enclosure.

Next were the Spotted Hyena exhibits. The one at the back held potential breeding pair, Malika and Mkali. The one at the front held male, Amani. The guide stopped the cart here and one of the keepers ran through some behaviours with Amani, getting him to stand on his hind legs, then sit, and finally lay down. She moved along the fence, repeating this activity, so that everyone on the cart got a good, close view of him.

Spotted Hyena exhibit

Spotted Hyena - Amani

Next were the African Lion enclosures, it’s a complex of three. The first held the white sisters, Elsa and Neferity. The keeper repeated the behaviours with the lionesses, to give everyone a good view.

The second enclosure held white male, Holden, and tawny female, Mana. After Jabari’s death, Mana was fretting, so Holden was chosen as a companion for her and she is happy again now. The behaviours were repeated with Mana.

The enclosure at the back held the second white male, Kimba. Kimba and Holden can see each other through the fence and both looked super chill and satisfied with their situations.

Lion enclosure

White lionesses - Elsa and Neferity

Lion enclosure

Lioness - Mana

To be continued…

 

[akasha]

Next were the African Hunting Dog enclosures. We stopped at the breeding pack, where the keeper tossed food over the fence, allowing us to see the dogs being active.

African Wild Dogs

Leaving this part of the zoo, we passed the Domestic Pig pen, and the goat paddock, then stopped at the Giraffe paddock. The giraffes were sitting down at the back, but when the cart stopped they got up and approached. The bull, Shaka, came to the fence first, eager for some carrot. Also in this paddock were females, Manzi and Matilda, as well as the young male born in 2021, who will be leaving Altina soon.

Giraffe - Shaka

From here the road goes up a slight incline, and Jack was coaxed into a slow gallop to get us up the hill, which was fun. We passed the Scimitar-horned Oryx paddock, then stopped at the Rusa paddock, where the deer approached the fence. This paddock also held male Ostrich.

Rusa paddock

Rusa

Next was a paddock for the bull Arabian Camel, and opposite was the Addax paddock.

Camel paddock

Arabian Camel

Turning a corner, we travelled along two sides of the Wapiti paddock. The paddock was quite wet and also had a huge flock of Australian Wood Duck. Though they are a common species, I’ve never seen them in numbers like this, and I enjoyed them as much as the deer.

Wapiti paddock

On the opposite side of the road was an Emu.

The next paddock was for Przewalski’s Horse, which were the final species on the tour.

Przewalski’s Horse paddock

Here the loop finished, and we returned to the shop, past the Texas Longhorn and Clydesdale paddocks.

Overall, the tour is great and works really well, certainly satisfying the average zoo-goer. As always with tours, I got slightly frustrated, just because I like to be in control of my time and examine things in more detail, but that is no fault of Altina’s. That being said, I did thoroughly enjoy the tour and saw everything I wanted to see.

At the end of the 1.5 hour tour, everyone was offered a complimentary cuppa and some biscuits. Having missed the museum earlier, I took this opportunity and asked if I could quickly pop back in there instead, which I was allowed to do.

The museum is a converted railway container, and holds taxidermy specimens, pelts and skulls of animals that have passed away at Altina. It’s probably not for everyone, and we were told earlier that it was fine to skip it, with staff understanding that fact. Personally, I thought it was really cool, and a great opportunity to study some of these animals in detail. Some notable exhibits were white lion, Tim, and bongo, Mshindi.

Altina museum

White lion - Tim

Bongo - Mshindi

Before going to the zoo, everyone I spoke to in Narrandera LOVED Altina, telling me things like; ‘it’s the best zoo in the world’, ‘you won’t believe how close you get to the animals’ and ‘you’ve never seen zoo animals this happy’. For the most part, I can’t really disagree with them.

Altina’s location is key to it’s success, with western NSW being a nice stand-in for South Africa, habitat and climate-wise. By combining a working farm, expansive zoo exhibits, flooded paddocks full of wild birds, and a horse-drawn cart tour including keeper interactions with animals, Altina isn’t just a zoo, it’s an experience. It’s certainly unique among Aussie zoos, and I definitely recommend visiting if you get the chance.

That’s it for this review. Any questions, fire them at me. I’ll add a species list at some point too. Thanks for reading

 

[Jambo]

Thank you for taking the time to write out this comprehensive review. Really enjoyed reading it.

I haven't previously visited Altina myself; but after reading, I certainly feel as if I have been! Would love to get up there one day.

The concept of the museum is certainly one that is very intriguing to me, and it's a shame many zoos don't have something like this nowadays.

Altina seem to have quite the collection; especially on the ungulate side. Can't wait for the species list.

 

[Zoofan15]

Thank you for what’s been a thoroughly enjoyable and comprehensive review of Altina’s collection. I certainly learnt a lot and feel even more inspired to visit myself one day.

Altina’s ungulate collection has always been their focus and it’s exciting to see so many species housed at one facility. It’s like looking at a historical species list for one of the region’s main zoos. I like how they dedicate resources to consolidation (multiple exhibits to facilitate breeding) rather than a next species, next species mentality towards expansion.

The ‘musuem’ aspect is unique on this level and a fascinating display of past animals. It’s closest rival would be Adelaide, who within the old elephant house have the skeletons of Janice the pygmy hippopotamus and George the orangutan.



Photo credit: @Patrick Keegan

 

[akasha]

This is a list of species I saw at Altina on 21.09.2023, so I can confirm they were there. I believe Altina also hold Common Marmoset, but I didn’t see any and therefore haven’t included them in the count.


Species List

Mammals (43):

Plains Zebra
Przewalski’s Horse
White Rhinoceros
Arabian Camel
Alpaca
Rusa
Red Deer
Wapiti
Fallow Deer
Hog Deer
Giraffe
Banteng
Water Buffalo
Bison
Barbary Sheep
Himalayan Tahr
Blackbuck
Eland
Nyala
Waterbuck
Addax
Scimitar-horned Oryx
Ring-tailed Lemur
Golden Lion Tamarin
Emperor Tamarin
Cotton-top Tamarin
Black-capped Capuchin
African Lion
Serval
Dingo
African Hunting Dog
Maned Wolf
Spotted Hyena
Meerkat
Red Panda
Capybara
Common Wombat
Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby
Tasmanian Devil
Domestic Horse (Clydesdale)
Domestic Cow (Angus, Texas Longhorn, Highland)
Domestic Goat (Boer, Crossbred)
Domestic Pig (Large White)

Birds (5):

Ostrich
Emu
Black Swan
Indian Peafowl
Helmeted Guineafowl

Reptiles (3):

American Alligator
Freshwater Crocodile
Saltwater Crocodile

Total Species: 51

Species signed but not seen:

Cape Barren Goose

 

[Zorro]

Thank you for the detailed review and wonderful photos.
Did they ever mention anything regarding Hippos?

 

[akasha]

Thank you for the detailed review and wonderful photos.
Did they ever mention anything regarding Hippos?

You’re welcome

No mention of hippos, though having seen it, the habitat would be perfect for them. With the river right there, and irrigation infrastructure in place, they could do something special with them.

 

[Swanson02]

Altina’s location is key to it’s success, with western NSW being a nice stand-in for South Africa, habitat and climate-wise. By combining a working farm, expansive zoo exhibits, flooded paddocks full of wild birds, and a horse-drawn cart tour including keeper interactions with animals, Altina isn’t just a zoo, it’s an experience. It’s certainly unique among Aussie zoos, and I definitely recommend visiting if you get the chance.

That’s it for this review. Any questions, fire them at me. I’ll add a species list at some point too. Thanks for reading

AMAZING review! Personally, I much prefer facilities focussed on breeding and the simplistic presentation of a species than the overly expensive faux-rock monstrosities we get in inner city zoos these days. So Altina would definitely be my cup of tea!

I 100% agree that the Riverina in NSW and the Riverland in SA definitely lend themselves to the environments many of these species come from. Warm enough to emulate sub-Saharan Africa but still relatively temperate for species like Bison and Wild horses.

Altina is also one of few zoos in the region with swathes of space and the opportunity to grow even further. A factor even major open-range zoos like Dubbo and Werribee would struggle to claim these days.

 

[Zoofan15]

AMAZING review! Personally, I much prefer facilities focussed on breeding and the simplistic presentation of a species than the overly expensive faux-rock monstrosities we get in inner city zoos these days. So Altina would definitely be my cup of tea!

I 100% agree that the Riverina in NSW and the Riverland in SA definitely lend themselves to the environments many of these species come from. Warm enough to emulate sub-Saharan Africa but still relatively temperate for species like Bison and Wild horses.

Altina is also one of few zoos in the region with swathes of space and the opportunity to grow even further. A factor even major open-range zoos like Dubbo and Werribee would struggle to claim these days.

I too was really impressed by Altina’s exhibits. The grassed exhibits for ungulates were simple, yet spacious; and the housing of one species per exhibit exemplified the potential to expand. There was no city zoo mentality of mixed species exhibits to make efficient use of space. I look forward to seeing any further expansions Altina undertake in the future.

I also really liked their lion exhibits. This photo in particular gave me Melbourne Zoo Lion Park vibes. A large grassed exhibit, a wire fence, a block of dens at one end!