Conservation
Birds
Port Moresby Nature Park stands as a vital sanctuary for Papua New Guinea’s avian heritage, recently celebrating the rare success of breeding the Raggiana Bird of Paradise in captivity. Through its dedicated Bird of Paradise Precinct and large-scale walk-through aviaries, the park provides a safe haven for over 350 native animals, including endangered species like the Blue-eyed Cockatoo.
Beyond its fences, the park leads As PNG’s only internationally accredited rescue and conservation facility, it educates over 30,000 students annually to inspire the next generation of wildlife guardians.
Plants
As the guardian of the former National Botanical Gardens, Port Moresby Nature Park preserves a vital 30-acre rainforest oasis, housing one of the region’s most extensive collections of native and hybrid orchids. In late 2025, the park unveiled a new, regionally-themed orchid garden that showcases unique flora from the Highlands to the New Guinea Islands, integrated with cultural artifacts.
The park also leads urban reforestation through its “Love Your Nature Park, Protect Our Biodiversity” project, which has distributed over 700 native trees to local schools and communities. Through its Climate Science Fairs and school programs, it fosters a new generation of environmental stewards dedicated to protecting Papua New Guinea’s botanical heritage.
Reptiles
The Port Moresby Nature Park leads vital reptile conservation through its award-winning Reptile Haus, which features the largest public collection of native snakes, lizards, and turtles in Papua New Guinea. A cornerstone of their work is the world-first Pig-nosed Turtle “Head-start” program, which has successfully raised hatchlings in a protected environment to increase their survival rate from 1% to 30% before releasing them back into the Kikori River.
The park also runs the “Snaketastic” initiative, a community program designed to dispel myths about snakes, promote their ecological importance, and provide life-saving education on snakebite first aid. By combining scientific research with public outreach, the park serves as a critical rescue and rehabilitation center for reptiles displaced by the illegal wildlife trade.
Mammals
The Port Moresby Nature Park serves as a critical refuge for Papua New Guinea’s unique marsupials, featuring the popular Tree Kangaroo Trail where visitors can see the rare Goodfellow’s and Huon Tree Kangaroos. In early 2026, the park expanded its rescue efforts, successfully rehabilitating and housing endemic species like the Common Spotted Cuscus and long-beaked echidnas that were saved from the illegal wildlife trade.
Through dedicated walk-through exhibits like the Wallaby Walk, the park provides a semi-wild habitat for Agile and Grey Dorcopsis wallabies, promoting natural behaviors and successful breeding. As PNG’s only internationally accredited wildlife facility, it combines these on-site displays with powerful “wildlife is not a pet” campaigns to reduce the domestic demand for protected mammals.