Resident icon at the Australian Reptile Park, Ranger Mick has hit an incredible milestone today, officially marking 30 years of service at the Park. To celebrate, staff at the Park surprised Mick with a very special cake, made in the shape of his favourite reptile, Rosie the Alligator.
From daily reptile shows, feeding Elvis the crocodile, koala talks, Tasmanian devil talks, spider talks, and more – Ranger Mick spends his days at the Australian Reptile Park educating visitors on about the unique wildlife that calls the Park home, leaving a lasting impression on families.
Ranger Mick started at the Park in 1992 with a noticeable love for animals and a flair for keeping visitors entertained and also educated while he told his stories and cracked his jokes to new audiences each and every day. Some flocking immediately after to get photos with the hilarious Ranger Mick.
It’s estimated that over five million people have witnessed an iconic Ranger Mick talk over his incredible 30 years at the Australian Reptile Park. He also heads up the Education section at the Park and visits schools from the Central Coast, Sydney and Newcastle to stand before hundreds of students at a time and introduce them in most cases to their first ever snake.
“It’s been a dream every step of the way being able to wake up every morning and talk about animals all day to visitors. I like to make jokes along the way and keep everyone’s attention the best I can, but there’s no better feeling than standing in front of everyone while an alligator decides to go to the toilet on you, mid-show,” says Ranger Mick.
Ranger Mick continued, “In all honesty, I have had people come up to me after a show and say thanks to my snake bandage tutorial he was able to save his brother’s life and get him to hospital to receive some of our antivenom.”
The Park icon isn’t going anywhere any time soon, and visitors can expect to see Ranger Mick around the park for a long time yet performing his iconic shows with fun jokes.
“I have seen many different visitors with different stories visiting here at the Australian Reptile Park over the years, and it truly never gets old listening to someone tell me about their impressive reptile collection or their favourite animal…there’s never a dull moment!”
The Australian Reptile Park is currently experiencing a BABY BOOM and the school holiday period in celebrating the Park’s cutest additions. Ranger Mick highlights the adorable babies during the daily Baby Animal Show at 1:30pm. This in addition to the 10 other shows Mick performs daily provides an action packed entertaining and educational line up for visitors young and old.