Howletts Wild Animal Park facts for kids
Howletts House
|
|
| Date opened | 1975 |
|---|---|
| Location | Bekesbourne/Canterbury, Kent, England |
| Land area | 90 acres (36 ha) |
| No. of animals | 450+ |
| No. of species | 44 |
Howletts Wild Animal Park is a special place for animals near Canterbury, Kent, in England. It started as a private zoo in 1957 by John Aspinall. The park first opened its doors to the public in 1975.
Because the animal collection grew, another park called Port Lympne Zoo was bought in 1973. It opened in 1976. Both parks are now run by The John Aspinall Foundation, which is a charity.
Howletts is known for its unique way of caring for animals. Staff members often build close relationships with the animals. The park is also famous for helping to breed rare and endangered species. Even Steve Irwin, the famous "Crocodile Hunter," visited in 2004 and said the gorillas at Howletts were "the finest in the world."
Amazing Animals at Howletts Park
Howletts Wild Animal Park is home to many incredible animals. It's especially famous for its large family groups of western lowland gorillas. You can see some of the biggest gorilla families in the world here!
The park also has the largest breeding herd of African elephants in the United Kingdom. This means many baby elephants have been born and raised at Howletts.
Another special group of animals at the park are the lion-tailed macaques. Howletts has one of the biggest breeding groups of these monkeys anywhere. You can also see an open area for black and white colobus monkeys near the entrance.
Helping Animals in the Wild
The John Aspinall Foundation runs both Howletts and Port Lympne Wild Animal Park. This charity does important work to protect animals around the world. They have special conservation programmes to help endangered species.
Releasing Animals Back to Nature
The foundation has had great success in releasing animals born at the parks back into the wild. For example, they have released black rhinos and gorillas into their natural habitats. This helps to increase the number of these rare animals living freely.
Howletts on Television
Howletts and Port Lympne have been featured on a CBBC television show called Roar. This show lets viewers see what life is like for the animals and how the keepers care for them every day. The first series was filmed in 2006, and there have been four series in total, showing many exciting moments from the parks.
Howletts House History
The main house at Howletts, originally called Owletts, was built in 1787 for Isaac Baugh. Before that, another house belonging to the Hales family stood on the same spot for many years. In 1816, the Gipps family took ownership of the house.
The house is quite old and important, so it has a special status called "Listed Grade II*." This means it's a building of special historical or architectural interest. Today, the 30-room house is rented by Damian Aspinall and his family from the Aspinall Foundation.
