Kangaroo Island (SA): seals, koalas, & roos
Devastating bushfires in the 2020 Australian summer (December 2019-March 2020) wiped out a significant fraction of flora and fauna on Kangaroo Island. For many plant and animal species, recovery will require years to decades.
Kangaroo Island in South Australia was named for the large number of kangaroos, which were a source of fresh meat for the crew of the British ship HMS Investigator in 1802. The ship was captained by Matthew Flinders, who was tasked to chart the southern Australian coastline. Desperate without fresh supplies for months, Flinders named the island in gratitude for the abundance of roo meat.
Then again, the indigenous name for the island is “Karta” or “Island of the Dead.” That’s a little sinister, as something must have happened; either the aborigine population left the island or they died out.
But life bounces back, and there’s plenty of it on this island.
There are plenty of sheep where on grassy meadows, seals at Kingscote Jetty, young and adult seals relaxing and sleeping in the sun at Admirals Arch, free-climbing koala bears and free-roaming kangaroos at the Hanson Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, Ligurian honey bees at Clifford’s Honey Farm, and a lone echidna by the side of a dirt road in the middle of the island.
In making these photos, I used my long-zoom lens; no animals were harmed, poked, prodded, or ridiculed in the process.
Kingscote
New Zealand fur seal pups (Admirals Arch)
Oh hai! (Boop!) New Zealand fur seal pup, at Admirals Arch.
Sleepy (Hanson Bay Wildlife Sanctuary)
Marsupial kangaroo mum and joey (Hanson Bay Wildlife Sanctuary)
Curiouser and curioser.
Marsupial koala mum and her joey (Hanson Bay Wildlife Sanctuary).
Clifford’s Honey Farm
On the road, an echidna shy
How to reach Kangaroo Island:
From Adelaide by car, you’ll need at least 90 minutes to drive along the Fleurieu Peninsula to Cape Jervis. From here, you’ll hop on Sealink‘s passenger- and vehicular-ferry for the 45-minute voyage across Backstairs Passage to Penneshaw.
Disclosure: No Connection, Unpaid, My Own Opinions. I have not received any compensation for writing this content and I have no material connection to South Australia, Sealink, or Kangaroo Island. I’m grateful to EC and JL for making this visit happen. I made the photos above on 25 and 26 August 2012 with a Canon EOS450D (Rebel XSi). This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com as http://wp.me/p1BIdT-2hv.
Fotoeins Fotografie 
9 Responses to “Kangaroo Island (SA): seals, koalas, & roos”
I always love your photos, but this is the first time I’ll share a whole collection with Leah, she’ll go nuts!
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Hola, Eva. That’s some very high praise, especially because Leah can appreciate the luverly animals! Perhaps, she’ll “suggest” to Mama y Papa about this “wondrous land” called Australia. 🙂 Please let me know how Leah likes the pictures of the animals, and thanks for your comment!
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Great shots. Has been a while since I visited Kangaroo Island, but I just loved it! Thanks for taking me back.
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Hi, and you’re welcome, Anita! I knew very little about Kangaroo Island initially, but my friends “sold” the idea to me very well. Thanks for your comment!
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[…] More close-ups: Seals, koalas, & roos from Kangaroo Island […]
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[…] Hanson Bay Wildlife Sanctuary lies in the southwest corner of Kangaroo Island in the Australian state of South Australia (SA). The sanctuary is home to a lot of mammalian […]
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