Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary closes until further notice

Brisbane’s favourite wildlife attraction has survived World War II, the Great Depression and more in its 93 years. But coronavirus has forced it to temporarily shut.

Wildlife lovers will have to watch native animals on webcams from today after Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in Brisbane’s inner west announced it will temporarily close due to coronavirus.

But it has reassured the public that its animals will continue to be loved and cared for, and refunds or extensions to tickets will be offered.

After tourist numbers began falling several weeks ago it went live with 15 webcams, now expanded to 17, including eight trained on koalas and their antics.

The latest, which allows people to watch Australia’s biggest lizard, a lace monitor, 24 hours a day recently went live.

“In response to the latest Australian Government restrictions, Lone Pine will be closed as of Thursday March 26,’’ it revealed on its website last night.

“Our team of dedicated wildlife keepers will still be working tirelessly behind the scenes, caring for all of our animals and continuing training and enrichment programs to keep them happy and healthy.’’

Cancer fundraising march refuses to be beaten

Crowds flock to Enoggera Reservoir, Mt Coot-tha on weekend

Virus trips up Irish dancers

Ashgrove Golf Club closes

Westside hairdressers won’t cut and run

Those who have bought tickets via its website (www.koala.net), which have not yet been redeemed, can visit at a later time, or send them an email with a copy of the online ticket confirmation to receive a refund.

Those who have bought tickets through a third-party reseller such as Travello, Viator or Expedia should contact the resellers.

“If you are a current yearly pass member, your membership will be extended by a minimum of one month,’’ it said.

School holiday program ticket holders can also ask for refunds or extensions.

A Lone Pine spokeswoman said it had always planned to release the webcams but had been waiting for a good time to launch them.

They also include its famous koala cuddle train, koala joeys, kangaroos, emus, playful dingo puppies, reptiles and underwater platypus-cam, plus night-vision cameras.

She said Lone Pine hoped viewing the videos would not only show the animals were being well cared for, but remind locals and tourists to come back when the attraction reopened.

Lone Pine had increased hand sanitising stations and created a social distancing guide but in the end had to close.

Check out the exhibit cameras here:

https://koala.net/webcams

Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/lonepinekoala