Almost five-year-old male common wombat Cooper came to Prague Zoo in December 2021 as the first representative of his species in the Czech Republic. Since then, the Hanover native has built a large fan base among supporters and visitors to Prague Zoo. Photo Oliver Le Que, Prague Zoo
Digging burrows, searching for signs of habitation, or curiously being pushed through backgrounds – the wombat way. Saturday’s program at Prague Zoo will offer a day inspired by Australian Peter John Nicholson, who, as a teenager, studied the life of wombats and contributed more to their knowledge than anyone else. In addition to fun activities for children, the Prague Zoo offers an extra treat: commented feedings and meetings with these popular marsupials, which it breeds as the only facility in the Czech Republic.
Visitors to Prague Zoo on Saturday will experience a day with three Prague wombats – the cute Cooper, the wild Winkleigh, and the first Czech wombat cub, the female Mersey. Young and old interested parties will playfully learn about the life of these marsupials, similar to how the then high school student Peter J. Nicholson studied them in the 1960s.
Female wombat Winkleigh (left) arrived at Prague Zoo the year before last, and this Tasmanian native surprised the keeper and her companion Cooper (right) with her temperament. Photo Oliver Le Que, Prague Zoo
“During the time examined, during one school year and at the age of just fifteen, Peter Nicholson gained a surprising amount of knowledge about wombats, which scientists nodded in approval even after decades – and in fact, he still does today,” explains the director of Prague Zoo Miroslav Bobek. The “wombat boy” not only found out when wombats are active, what they eat, how they build and maintain their burrows, but also how their young behave. His student work laid the foundation for further scientific research.
The thematic program at Veselovský meadow will start at 10 a.m. Children will also try digging burrows, distinguish the sound of a wombat from other Australian fauna, or find out how unexpectedly small newborn cubs are. The push-pull competition will be particularly interesting, in which children will try out the unusual wombat defense. Wombats have hard plates on their buttocks, with which they can, for example, push predators to the ceiling of their burrows.
Wombat keeper David Vala has built a close relationship based on mutual trust with his charges. This makes preventive veterinary examinations easier for him, for example. Pictured with male Cooper in the Darwin Crater exhibit. Photo Oliver Le Que, Prague Zoo
Day with Wombats – program
- 11:00 and 14:00 commented feeding of wombats (Darwin’s Crater)
- 12:00, 13:00 and 15:00 commented meetings with wombats (Darwin’s Crater)
- 10:00–16:00 research station (Veselovský meadow and surroundings)
o searching for traces of residence
o digging burrows
o measuring burrows
o treasures in burrows
o wombat communication
o small big wombat
o atypical defense
o stacking cubes
o creative workshop