"The Waterhole" is a popular African themed zoo water play precinct that allows children to cool off within the Taronga Western Plains Zoo.
Safari zoo water play area
The large African themed zoo water play area features automated jets that spray water from an African Elephant’s trunk, much to the delight of children. There are also wading hippopotamus adults and calf that children can climb and play on. The Natureworks team enjoyed making these zoo animal sculptures, and only wish we lived closer to Dubbo so our families could enjoy them regularly!
The custom fabricated African water features compliment the surrounding live animal exhibits. Guests can rest and enjoy lunch or a coffee at the nearby Waterhole cafe, keep an eye on their children in the water park and be entertained by meerkats and tortoise.
Recreating an African waterhole
The zoo water play area needed some safari animals to enhance the Waterhole theme. The project team reached out to Natureworks to custom fabricate safari animals suitable for their water play area. Knowing that the Dubbo Western Plains Zoo is a very popular tourist attraction, the animal sculptures would be enjoyed by thousands of children and needed to be realistic, sturdy, durable, safe and most of all, fun.
This is what we came up with…
African Elephant with jet sprayer
1 x heavy duty fibreglass African Elephant Calf with custom fabricated trunk to accommodate an internal spray nozzle – (nozzle provided by a hydro engineer). We remodelled the trunk to face upwards in a natural trumpeting elephant pose.
The addition of an angle rock base not only provided a sturdy platform, it enhanced the orientation and impact of the water flow so it would jet out over the children’s heads.
Hippopotamus sculptures – 2 adults and 1 calf
Two heavy duty fibreglass full size hippos without legs (to give the appearance of wading) were an ideal alternative to a full size standing hippo. This meant the hippos were low to the ground and easy for the younger children to climb upon. We added a 2-pack polyurethane paint system with a clear coating to waterproof the sculptures, and included brackets so the hippos could be fastened to a concrete slab.
The hippos’ heads were reconstructed to sit above the ground instead of in their natural pose looking down. This provided added interest and enhanced the characteristics of the finished climb and play item.
Elephant and hippo sculptures in production
A tourist drawcard for Dubbo and the zoo
The Taronga Western Plains Zoo are delighted with the completed safari zoo water play precinct. It helps keep their guests entertained and provides an interactive area for the children to cool off and have a break from walking around the zoo.
Project details
| Client: | Taronga Western Plains Zoo, Dubbo |
| Project: | African themed water play animals for zoo water park |
| Target audience: | Tourists, families and kids of any age! All animal enthusiasts |
| Location: | Obley Road, Dubbo NSW 2830 |
| Date completed: | 2020 |
| Related products: | African elephant with water spout, Hippopotamus wading, Hippo calf |
| Related catalogues: | Mammals |
| Similar projects: | Broadwater Parklands water play, Giant lizards at Australian Reptile Park, Water playground in Exmouth WA |
Create your own water playground
If you have a grand vision you can create something truly unique that becomes a world-class tourist attraction. Natureworks is happy to provide input to funding proposals and advise on cost, feasibility or design to help your project get off the ground. For guidance, see our blog post about playground safety or read about custom playground and water park design.
Contact us to discover how we can help you create a custom waterpark, themed display or tourist attraction that provides a unique visitor experience.
