Supermom chats with Bindi Irwin.

One day I was checking my email and found a FUN one!  I was being asked if I wanted to review Bindi Wildlife Adventures, a new book series for children.  OF COURSE I DID!  I was a super huge fan of her dad and I thought it would be totally cool that I had the chance to ask her some questions. 

Here are my questions and Bindi's answers.  *big huge smile*

Supermom ~  What was it like growing up around all these wonderful animals?  If you could pick just one, what would your favorite animal be?

Bindi ~ The best thing about living at Australia Zoo is that I am surrounded by wildlife. After school every day I get to hang out with all the animals. I might feed the echidnas or hug the koalas at our wildlife hospital. One of my favourite memories would be, when I was little I’d sit in the enclosure with the newly hatched Burmese Pythons and play for ages

I really love crocodiles and snakes but my favourite animal at Australia Zoo would have to be the gorgeous echidnas. Even though they are not the cuddliest animals in the world I love them so much because they are sweet and cute. Did you know echidnas have a 17cm long tongue? It is also one of only two montoremes – which are egg laying mammals. The other is a platypus!

Supermom ~ I know that you want to keep the memory of your dad alive in helping endangered animals and I think it's amazing, I admire that in you.

Bindi ~ Thanks, my dad always taught me that one man can make a difference, and I believe that one kid can make a difference too.  My dad’s important work must continue and I’m inspired by all the support my family has received. I’m determined never to give up!  I don’t want Dad’s passion to ever end; I want to help endangered wildlife just like he did.

Supermom ~ What made you start writing these amazing books for young readers?

The idea behind the books was to write stories that were enjoyable to all kids and that were fictional, based on our family’s real life adventures.

It was a lot of fun helping with the books because I was a co-creator. I got to proofread the final copy of all of the books to make sure that the facts were correct and that the story line was how I wanted it to be. I also got to pick the animals and the storylines that the books were based on.

 The first book, Trouble at the Zoo, is about my birthday at Australia Zoo and how it almost got ruined by a 10 year old boy trying to sneak one of our beautiful water dragons out of the zoo. It is fantastic!

The second book, Rescue, is about a trip to South Africa. My friend Hannah and I discover a nature preserve for the giant stable antelope that is being used for illegal hunting at night.  It’s an exciting story!

Supermom ~ So, what do you want to be when you "grow up"?

When I get older, I would like to tackle bigger issues. I would like to tackle even greater issues that are troubling our planet. We have a lot of problems. The single greatest challenge we face today is an ever exploding population. There are serious issues with wildlife farming, for example, which also need to be considered.

I want to carry on my dad's legacy. I think of myself as a teacher and I know my dad was a teacher too. I'm lucky that I'm not only talking to adults, but also to children. I think it's so important to empower kids because we are the next voters. We are the next decision makers, and we are the next generation making a difference on our planet.

I will be continuing to fight to save the Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve from the threat of being strip mined and carrying on in my dad’s footsteps. If you would like to help me Save Steve’s Place please go to www.australiazoo.com and sign the petition.

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There you have it!  Let's all help fight to save Steve Irwin's Wildlife Reserve by going to Australia Zoo and sign the petition.  I did.