On Lawrence Hargrave Drive at Helensburgh, between the southern edge of Sydney and the northern Illawarra, a family-owned wildlife park keeps more than 500 animals from Australia and around the world. Koalas, wombats, kangaroos and echidnas share the billing with red pandas, cheetahs, meerkats and lemurs, alongside dingoes, emus, wedge-tailed eagles and reptiles, a short drive from the southern reaches of the Royal National Park.