Mablethorpe Seal Sanctuary and Wildlife Centre facts for kids
The Mablethorpe Seal Sanctuary and Wildlife Centre is a special place in Mablethorpe, Lincolnshire, England. It's a home for sick and hurt seals, helping them get better. People also visit to see many different animals. The sanctuary is close to a big seal breeding area called Donna Nook. Many young seals born there sometimes need help from the sanctuary.
Besides seals, you can see other amazing animals like gibbons, meerkats, and birds of prey. The centre works with a group called Mablethorpe Animal Rescue. They care for many British wild animals that need help, as well as animals from other parts of the world.
There's a cool area called 'Time Walking'. Here, you can see fossils of huge, ancient creatures like dinosaurs. These include the mighty allosaurus, the bird-like archaeopteryx, and the giant sea reptile mosasaur. Another part of the centre is about the ice ages. It shows animals that used to live in Britain but are now gone, like the Eurasian lynx. After exploring, you can grab a snack at the café or find a souvenir in the gift shop.
Visiting the Sanctuary
The Seal Sanctuary is located on Quebec Road, North End. It's very close to the sandy dunes. The centre is open for visitors ten months a year, from 10:00 AM to 4:30 PM. There is a small fee to enter.
History of the Centre
Before it became a seal sanctuary, this land had a different past. During the Second World War, it was used as a lookout point. It was also a firing range and a campsite.
The Mablethorpe Seal Sanctuary opened because of a flood. An animal park called the Animal and Bird Garden started in 1965 in Suffolk. When it flooded, the owners, Jerry and Rene King, decided to move. They opened the new centre in Mablethorpe in 1974. It was still called the Animal and Bird Garden then. The very first seal arrived at the sanctuary in 1974.
In 1988, a newspaper called the Daily Mail helped the sanctuary. They asked people to donate money to fight a seal sickness called phocine distemper virus. Thanks to this, the sanctuary raised £20,000. This money helped them deal with the illness. The special Seal Hospital opened its doors in 1990.
In 2013, the centre officially changed its name. It went from Mablethorpe Seal Sanctuary to the Mablethorpe Seal Sanctuary and Wildlife Centre.
Sadly, there was a fire at the Seal Sanctuary in September 2016. But the Education Room, where visitors learn about animals, reopened in February 2017.
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