The Australian Reptile Park has unveiled a miniature replica of its beloved and iconic statue Ploddy, roughly one sixth of the original dinosaur’s size.
The unveiling marked the start of the Park’s Spring holidays season as it celebrates its 75th birthday.
The Park is encouraging visitors and fans to participate in a photo competition held on Instagram.
Visitors can take a selfie with the new replica and post their creation to Instagram with the hashtag #InstaPloddy for the chance to win an annual pass for four people to the Australian Reptile Park.
Park Director Liz Gabriel said many adults had fond memories of getting up close and snapping a photo with Ploddy the dinosaur when the park was located at Wyoming.
“I can imagine there won’t just be kids lining up to get a selfie with our miniature statue of Ploddy, but there will surely be adults too,” she said.
The original Ploddy the Dinosaur was Australia’s first ‘Big Thing’ and was a roadside icon for more than 33 years.
Once the Park relocated to Somersby, Ploddy was positioned in a more prominent vantage point and can now be seen from the M1 at the northbound Gosford exit and enjoyed by more than 40 million commuters each year.
Daily until October 8, there will be live shows and animal meet-and-greets throughout the Park, with special events occurring each weekend to celebrate the 75-year milestone.
Heading into the October long weekend, each day will be filled with live shows, stilt walkers, free face painting and a massive jumping castle.
The last weekend of the school holidays will see the Park celebrating 15 years of housing Australia’s crankiest crocodile, Elvis, with daily shows at 1.30pm.
Source:
Australian Reptile Park