Tasmanian wildlife lines up as lures for German tourists

A new tourism campaign has chosen the “Big 5” Tasmanian native species to lure international tourists to the state.

A wombat on Maria Island, one of the animals promoted in the ‘Tasmanian 5’ tourism campaign. Picture: TOURISM TASMANIA AND DOMINIC ZENG.

A NEW Tasmanian tourism campaign has chosen five native species to lure Germans to the state.

The campaign plays on the concept of photographing the “Big 5” game animals of Africa and encourages tourists to travel to see “The Tasmanian 5”.

The five are the Tasmanian devil, wombat, platypus, quoll and wallaby.

Tourism Tasmania chief executive officer John Fitzgerald said the ad was a response to research into what the German market wanted.

“Our research shows that the German travelling market are interested in destinations that offer stunning wilderness, unique walking or nature experiences and a ‘sense of adventure’ away from city life.”

The campaign has tips for how to see the animals, suggesting platypus spotting at Geeveston, Latrobe and Waratah. Suggestions for wombats are Maria Island and Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary, near Brighton.

You could catch sight of a platypus at Geeveston, in the Huon Valley. Picture: Ash Thomson Photography.

But animal behaviour expert Bruce Englefield questioned the line-up. He said some of the “Tasmanian 5” were extremely difficult to see in the wild.

“Nobody will see a devil or quoll except in wildlife parks because they are nocturnal,” he said.

“The only ones they are likely to see are the ones that are dead on the side of the road.”

Mr Englefield said he would have placed an echidna on the list, as they are often seen and tourists love photographing them.

“Most people who come to Tasmania are likely to see an echidna, and they are such unique animals,” he said.

He said Tasmania should also highlight its snakes.

“As someone who previously lived in England, I was attracted to the fact I was coming to a place with all these nasty beasts that can bite you and kill you. There is a thrill in that.”

He said wallabies were a good choice as tourists were likely to see those, but platypus were unlikely and wombats could be elusive.

The new Tourism Tasmania advertisement has stunning clips of the animals on the “natural paradise” that is the “island under ‘Down Under’.” The ads are in German are will be shown across social media and German websites.