thanks for the continued narrowing-down!

MikeD- I'm excited about the heads up on penguins under Manly Wharf. We want to go Phillip Island for the fairy penguins, but unsure of whether we'll have enough time. The Manly penguins may have to suffice if we can't make it out there! :) I googled it and found a wealth of info, thx!

We'll def be seeking animals in the wild, but I'm still torn on which zoo-zoo to go to.

Any strong thoughts on the Melbourne Zoo (a friend told me this was one of the most well laid-out zoos he'd ever visited, whatever that means)? Or the Kuranda Koala Gardens / Butterfly Sanctuary / Birdworld?

Another vote for the Taronga Zoo--we went both visits to Sydney. Also went to the one in Cairns and went only to hold the koala (for a fee) but ended up enjoying the whole zoo, especially the part with the Bad Crocodiles (the ones who had eaten livestock or other sins) and surprisingly the snake house (surprisingly because we aren't that fond of snakes, but the variety was great). The food there was even quite edible. It's smallish, so won't take too much time, but there is a kangaroo enclosure so you can feed them (except by the time we got there, they were not interested in eating the pellets, too full we presumed.) The most exciting part for DH was seeing the cassowary, which, sadly, was the only real cassowary we have seen despite numerous hunts for them in the wild. Next time. . . . .
Sally in Seattle

I admire the strong support here (and on another forum) for Taronga! But, worried that I won't have enough time in Sydney. Can anyone who's been to Taronga suggest a 2nd choice, perhaps in Cairns? Or, any takes on the Melbourne Zoo, the oldest in the world?!