UQ students get course experience at the Ekka

An expanded mouse circus will be one of the highlights of this year’s Animal Nursery at the Royal Queensland Show from August 8 to 17.

Nursery Coordinator and senior lecturer at The University of Queensland School of Animal Studies, Dr Mark Hohenhaus, said the miniature circus, complete with coloured lights and music, had proved a hit with visitors last year.

“We’ll also have an enlarged display of coloured rats, and Highland fold cattle, a type of Scottish cattle with long hair and long horns, will be making their reappearance after many years,” he said.

He said the Nursery would house all the usual favourites — including lambs, calves, foals, ducklings, piglets, and chickens.

Dr Hohenhaus said some 20 UQ Certificate in Animal Husbandry and Agriculture students would work and live at the Animal Nursery this year. The Nursery is one of the most popular attractions for young visitors and families at the "Ekka" at the inner Brisbane suburb of Bowen Hills.

"The Animal Nursery has been staffed by UQ Gatton (formerly known as the Queensland Agricultural College) students since it opened 36 years ago," he said.

"It is also a curtain-raiser to the UQ Gatton Open Day on Sunday, August 25, when potential students and their families can find out about the great courses including agribusiness, agriculture, animal studies, environmental management and horticulture on offer at the campus."

In the Agricultural Pavilion, staff from UQ`s School of Agriculture and Horticulture have created a display of fruit and vegetables representing the theme of "UQ Gatton Online" in a webpage.

Lecturer in Fruit Crop Production Dr Gavin Porter said he and technician Victor Robertson had created a map of Australia from fruit and vegetables mainly using citrus such as oranges and mandarins as well as a range of apple varieties and novel vegetables like potkins a small colourful type of pumpkin.

"The display has taken us two days to build but many months to plan and will be judged on Thursday morning, August 8," Dr Porter said. Staff from UQ Gatton will be at the display distributing Open Day flyers and course information.
Media: For more information, contact Jan King at UQ Communications 0413 601 248.