Wildlife., Gold Coast

While you are enjoying your vacation, and soaking in the sights on the backroads around the Gold Coast, make sure you keep at least one of your eyes on the road, or simply make more frequent landscape stops. Queensland is still populated by its native fauna, especially koalas, kangaroos, wallabies, and the like.

It is highly recommended to "Wipe Off 5" from your odometer, and keep the wildlife there for future generations.

One of the great things about Australia is the variety of wildlife you will encounter. Getting up close and personal with some of australia's finest may seem like fun, be be warned, there are some dangers. For example, koala's may look cute and cuddly, but they have razor sharp claws and if you approach them in the wild, they are more likely to attack you than to sit calmly on your shoulder like they do at say Dreamworld. The wildlife can also be a problem when you're driving, as no one tells them that the road is for cars, so it is common for animlas to wander/ fly onto the road in front of your car. Not only is this bad for the animals, but it can do some serious damage to the car!!
The Dingo: you will often come across these dog-like animals, particularly in areas like fraser island. Please, do not feed them, as this encourages them to hang around camp sites and hassle people. There have been cases of people being killed by dingo's who attack without warning, so it's best to stay away from them and keep your food to yourself. Store food and dispose of rubbish properly.
The Ibis: These tall white and black birds have long beaks and are creating a huge problem in Queensland. They feed on scraps and are generally annoying when you're trying to enjoy lunch in the park. The numbers have grown to almost plague proportions. To help you can dispose of all rubbish properly, close the bin lid after use, and refrain from sharing your food with them.
The list could go on, so I would advise you to research any animals you're interested in seeing, or to ask someone who knows what they're doing. Steven Irwin often gives the impression that tackling some of Australia's less friendly species is easy. It isn't. Having said all that, meeting some of Australia's animal locals is lots of fun and if done properly, can be really ejoyable.

Not a danger - but a warning. Our parks on the Gold Coast are filled with Visitors enjoying their picnics, etc., but are also filled with Ibis's. These birds are like scavengers on the Coast, and unfortunately many tourists feed them their bits and pieces of food. This has created a huge problem, with the Ibis's ripping into the rubbish bins (hence the 'locks' on the top of the bins now) - they'll tear the lids off and pull all of the food out onto the ground. It's caused such a problem, that the Council has even considered culling these birds. At some parks now, the council have installed signs to warn against feeding these birds.