No visitors at Australian zoo, but animals train for when lockdown ends

Marine mammals unit supervisor Danielle Fox practices a show routine with a sea lion named Pepper in front of an empty seating area, the result of a zoo closure to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at Taronga Zoo Sydney in Sydney, Australia, April 20, 2020. REUTERS/Loren Elliott

SYDNEY (Reuters) - There are no visitors at Australia's biggest zoo due to the coronavirus restrictions, but training and feeding times must keep to schedule, keepers say, particularly for animals that perform in live shows like sea lions and birds of prey.

"Animals don't seem to react differently, however they would definitely notice that there are no crowds out here when we are doing training sessions on stage," said Danielle Fox, supervisor of marine mammals at Sydney's Taronga Zoo.