Zoological parks and Botanic gardens
Zoological parks and aquariums are primarily engaged in the breeding, preservation, study and display of native and/or exotic fauna in captivity, and are accessible to the general public. Similarly, botanic gardens have been established to collect, study, exchange and display plants for research and for the education and enjoyment of the public.
In 2002, the ABS conducted a survey to determine attendance at Zoological parks and Botanic gardens. More than 6 million Australians aged 18 years and over visited a Botanic garden, and in excess of 5.8 million visited a Zoological park in the twelve months prior to being interviewed between March and July 2002.
Residents of the Australian Capital Territory had the highest attendance rates for Zoological parks (50%) while Northern Territorians recorded the highest attendance rates for Botanic gardens (49%). Tasmanians recorded the lowest attendance rates for both Zoological parks (30%) and Botanic gardens (35%).
9.4 ATTENDANCE AT ZOOLOGICAL PARKS AND BOTANIC GARDENS, By state and territory - 2002(a)
ZOOLOGICAL PARKS (b)
|New South Wales |
|South Australia |
|Western Australia |
|Northern Territory |
|Australian Capital Territory |
|(a) Twelve months before interview in 2002. |
|(b) Includes other wildlife parks, aquariums and marine parks. |
|ABS, Attendance at Selected Cultural Venues and Events, 2002 (cat. no. 4114.0). |
For both Zoological parks and Botanic gardens and Nature parks and reserves, those aged 25-44 years were more likely to attend than any other age group. The presence of children was also an important factor for attendance at Zoological parks, although it seemed to have little bearing on rates of attendance at Botanic gardens.
9.5 Attendance at zoological parks and botanic gardens(a), By age - 2002(b)
9.6 Attendance at zoological parks and botanic gardens(a), By household type - 2002(b)