It has always amused me that the tourists to the US that I’ve spoken to are often very excited to see raccoons, and disappointed if they don’t see them before they leave.
Some others I’ve noticed on the east coast of the US are blue jays and cardinals. Boy, do people get excited about those if they’ve never seen them before! Very pretty birds of course, just very easy to get used to and see as uninteresting as well.
for australia i think most people would assume kangaroos, and sure people are excited to see them but they’re not quite as common - youre probably only going to see them if it’s intentional
i think common AND excited is probably rosellas - they’re a bright red and blue/green parrot that are kinda eeeeeverywhere
If I was in Australia I’d be so excited to see wombats. Is also be scared of seeing spiders…
Still not seen a wombat outside of a sanctuary. They come out at night and leave square poos on the paths.
Honestly - even seeing one of their square poos would be quite a thing!
As a local I smile seeing lorikeets and kookaburras, but rosellas are very rare where I am and I have to do a double take