Woburn Safari Park facts for kids
Southern White Rhino on the Road Safari at Woburn Safari Park
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| Date opened | 1970 |
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| Location | Woburn, Bedfordshire, England |
| Land area | 360 acres (150 ha) |
| Coordinates | 52°00′18″N 0°35′20″W / 52.005°N 0.589°W |
| Memberships | BIAZA, EAZA |
Woburn Safari Park is a super fun safari park located in Woburn, Bedfordshire, England. Here, you can drive your car right through areas where amazing animals like southern white rhinos, elephants, tigers, and black bears roam freely!
This park is part of a huge estate owned by the Duke of Bedford. This estate also has Woburn Abbey and a massive 3,000 acres (1,200 ha) deer park. The Safari Park itself is about 360 acres (150 ha) – that's a lot of space for animals! Woburn Safari Park is also a member of important groups like the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) and the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA). This means they follow high standards for animal care and conservation.
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History of Woburn Safari Park
Woburn Safari Park first opened its doors in 1970. It was started by the 13th Duke of Bedford and Jimmy Chipperfield. They created the park on the grounds of the Duke's estate, Woburn Abbey. The idea was to help bring in money to fix up the Abbey, which had been damaged during World War II and faced high taxes afterward.
Even before the safari park, the 11th Duke of Bedford was very interested in animals. He was even the president of the Zoological Society of London. He had already brought different animals like American bison, deer, antelope, lions, and tigers to the park.
Since 2004, Woburn Safari Park has spent a lot of money, about £4 million, to make their animal homes even better. For example, in 2004, they improved the wolf areas so the wolves could go outside at night. In 2007, they built the African Ungulate Conservation Centre. This special center helps with conservation efforts for hoofed mammals.
In 2008, the Asian Elephant Conservation Centre opened. This is a big home for the park's Asian elephants. The next year, in 2009, new homes were built for the Southern white rhinos and other hoofed animals. The giraffe house was also made twice as big!
Amazing Animals at the Park
At Woburn Safari Park, many animals get to roam freely. Visitors drive through their large enclosures to see them. Some of the cool animals you can spot include Southern white rhinos, elands, Scimitar horned oryxes, Addaxes, Gemsboks, Ankole cattle, Zebras, African wild asses, Asian elephants, Bactrian camels, North American bison, bongos, African lions, Canadian timber wolves, North American black bears, and Barbary monkeys.
The park also has a 40 acres (16 ha) leisure area. This area has fun things like animal talks, petting zones where you can meet friendly animals, a gift shop, and a family restaurant. There's even a Go Ape! course for adventure. In this area, you can find animals like lemurs, wallabies, rheas, penguins, goats, ponies, reptiles, red pandas, and marmosets. There's also a big indoor play area called the Mammoth Play Ark and an outdoor adventure playground called Jungle Jamboree.
The Exciting Road Safari Experience
The Road Safari is divided into different sections. Each section is home to many kinds of animals, and you can drive your car through all five areas.
The Northern Plains is where you'll find Chapman's zebras, North American Bison, Przewalksi's horses, and Bactrian camels. You can often see these animals as you first arrive at the park's entrance!
Next is the Savannah Grasslands, which covers 40 acres (16 ha). Animals in this section include Southern White Rhinos, Elands, Ankole cattle, Dwarf forest buffaloes, Ostriches, Grevy's zebras, Brindled Wildebeest, and Sable antelopes.
After that, you can enter The Kingdom of the Carnivores. This area is 71 acres (29 ha) and is home to big predators. Here, you might see Amur Tigers, North American black bears, Canadian timber wolves, and African lions.
During the warmer months, Giraffe Junction is home to tall Rothschild's giraffes, Grevy's zebras, Scimitar Horned oryxes, Somali wild asses, and Addaxes.
Finally, the African Forest is where you'll find Barbary Macaques. They share this enclosure with the very rare and critically endangered Eastern Mountain Bongo.
The Fun Foot Safari Adventure
After you've enjoyed driving through the Road Safari, you'll naturally move on to the Foot Safari. This part of the park is home to many smaller animals that you can see up close.
Here, you'll find Slender Tailed Meerkats, African Crested Porcupines, and Asian Short Clawed Otters. There are also four different kinds of lemurs: Ring Tailed Lemurs, Black and White Ruffled Lemurs, Red Bellied Lemurs, and Red Fronted Lemurs. You'll discover many other species too!
Visitors can also enjoy special animal talks and demonstrations throughout the day. These happen daily with many animals, including Greater Sulphur Crested Cockatoos, Californian Sea Lions, Humboldt Penguins, Red pandas, Capybaras, and even the Asian Elephants. It's a great way to learn more about your favorite animals!
Helping Animals: Conservation Efforts
Woburn Safari Park is very dedicated to animal conservation. This means they work hard to protect animals and their habitats. They are part of international breeding programs that help save endangered species. The park has one of the world's largest facilities for hoofed animals, called the African Ungulate Conservation Centre. They also have a special facility for Asian elephants.
The park helps manage the breeding program for the Mountain Bongo, a rare type of antelope. Woburn has also been one of the most successful places in Europe for breeding Rothschild giraffes. These giraffes are very rare in the wild. Did you know Woburn Safari Park is the only zoo in the UK that has Vietnamese Sika Deer? This deer species is actually extinct in the wild, so the park is helping to keep them from disappearing forever!
Woburn has won awards from BIAZA (British Association of Zoos and Aquariums) for how well they care for their animals. They won awards for their Californian Sea Lions in 2008 and their Rothschild Giraffes in 2004. They also won a BIAZA award in 2008 for their education and marketing efforts.
More Cool Features of the Park
Woburn Safari Park is part of the Duke of Bedford's large estate. When you combine the safari park with the huge deer park that surrounds it, it becomes the biggest "ex-situ" (meaning "off-site" or outside their natural habitat) conservation facility in Europe. The deer park is home to the endangered Père David's deer.
Woburn was also the first "captive" breeding facility to save a species from extinction in the wild. They did this with the Pere David's deer! Woburn was also very important in helping to save the Mongolian Wild Horse.
Images for kids
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Southern White Rhino on the Road Safari at Woburn Safari Park
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Lion enclosure
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Rothschild giraffes are rare in the wild, but Woburn has many.
