Australian Wildlife Photo Diary

Some of my favorite photos I’ve taken of Australian wildlife.

Because Australia is such an isolated continent, and has been for millions of years, its wildlife has developed in such a unique way.

87% of Australia’s mammals can ONLY be found in Australia. 93% of its reptiles, 94% of its frogs, and 45% of its birds are also unique to Australia. That is incredible!

(Percentages are taken from australianwildlife.org)

Since I’ve developed a recent love for wildlife photography, I’ve been trying to capture some photos of Australia’s amazing animals.

I’ve showcased a few photos in my other articles about Australia, but I wanted to dedicate one entire post to the beauty of these creatures.

Australian Wildlife Photography

The first animal I’ll show is probably the most well-known of all the Australian wildlife.

Kangaroos

I took these adorable kangaroo portraits at Woodbine Eco Cabins near Merimbula, NSW.

The kangaroos that live in the bush surrounding these cabins have become accustomed to humans, so they come up super close and you can even touch them.

They are just looking for food of course, but after taking some of these photos I have a feeling they enjoy modeling as well.

You’ll see three relatively small kangaroos, each one with their own headshot! After that you’ll see the cutest sight ever; a mother kangaroo with a baby joey in her pouch.

Koalas

Probably the second most famous and beloved Australian mammal is the koala.

They are quite rare to see in the wild because they only live in certain areas of the country and they aren’t always visible.

Koalas can sleep up to 22 hours per day, and they perch themselves high in Eucalyptus trees. If you spot one, they often just look like a gray ball of fluff stuck in a tree.

I was eager to see koalas along the Great Ocean Road, where a lot of them live. After driving for a while, the following photo was the absolute best shot I had of a koala. He was eating leaves instead of sleeping, so I could see his face and I was honestly thrilled at this photo.

But little did I know that my luck was only going to get better!

Later on down the Great Ocean Road, we noticed lots of cars pulled over on the side of the road. When we got out, we realized there were FOUR koalas in one tree! And the trees were relatively close to the ground and had barely any leaves.

So I was able to watch multiple koalas up close while they stretched and climbed, and I got these incredible shots. I was SO HAPPY!

Australian Birds

This country has some gorgeous birds, many of which are colorful and loud.

Throughout my time in Australia, I’ve managed to get a few photos of some different birds.

There are plenty more that I haven’t been able to capture since birds are quite unpredictable, but these photos are a nice introduction to Australian birds for those who have never seen any!

King Parrot

White Ibis

Yellow-Crested Cockatoo

Kookaburra

Rainbow Lorikeet

Australian Fur Seal

This photo opportunity was a complete surprise! This young Australian fur seal came ashore onto Cronulla Beach, just a 1 minute walk away from my apartment.

The entire beach had been closed off so the seal could bask in the sun in peace. I love that Australians take the protection and respect of wildlife so seriously.

Australian Dingo

The dingo is Australia’s native wild dog. Descended from Southeast Asian wolves, these apex predators are mysterious and beautiful.

I saw my first Australian Dingo on K’gari (formerly known as Fraser Island). This is the largest sand island in the world, and it’s home to the purest population of wild dingoes in the country.

Though dingoes look stunning and often act like normal house dogs, always admire them from a distance because they are wild carnivores.

Sea Turtles

Sea turtles are not only found in Australia, but it is always fun to see them!

I’ve run into a few green sea turtles in my time Down Under, but I only have photos of two times. The first is from snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef in Cairns, and the second is from snorkeling in the Whitsunday Islands.