Knowsley Safari Park

Knowsley Safari Park

A baboon, photographed from inside a car
Date opened	1971
Location	Borough of Knowsley, Liverpool, England
Coordinates	53.442°N 2.812°W / 53.442; -2.812
Website	www.knowsleysafariexperience.co.uk

Knowsley Safari Park is a tourist attraction in the borough of Knowsley on the outskirts of Liverpool, England. The park was also home to a former RAF airfield which closed at the end of World War II.

History

The park was opened in July 1971 by Edward Stanley, 18th Earl of Derby and Jimmy Chipperfield using the expertise of General Manager Laurence Tennant MBE formerly the Chief Game Warden of Parks in Uganda and Botswana. Initially the road through the park was 3.5 miles (5.6 km), with visitors driving past lions, cheetahs, monkeys, giraffes, zebra, elephants and various antelope. Due to the popularity of this route, an additional 1.5 miles (2.4 km) of road was added in 1973, and camels, buffalo, white rhino, and tigers were added to the park. Over the years, a few modifications have been made. For instance, lions and tigers are now displayed in enclosures within the reserve, and a bypass around the baboons was built for visitors who are worried about damage to their cars.

Zoological collection

Situated around Knowsley Hall on the ancestral estate of the Earl of Derby, the reserve is home to many different animals including elephants, giraffes, lions, bongos, tigers and baboons. The Derby Estate have a tradition of keeping animals, ever since the famous artist and nonsense-poet Edward Lear was employed there in the 19th century to paint pictures of the Earl's collection. Smaller animals, including domestic pets, are also kept on site as part of the attractions for visitors. The 'Bug House' provides a collection of smaller animals including Madagascar hissing cockroaches, iguanas and a kingsnake.

• Barasingha
• Pere David's Deer
• Cape Buffalo
• African Forest Buffalo
• Fallow Deer
• African Wild Dog
• Amur tiger
• African Lion
• Red-necked Wallaby
• Emu
• Nilgai
• Chital
• Blackbuck
• Bongo
• Brow-Antlered Deer
• Wildebeest
• Red Lechwe
• Sitatunga
• Ankole cattle
• Olive Baboon
• White Rhino
• Eland
• Ostrich
• Bactrian Camel
• American Bison

Walk-round enclosures

• African Elephant
• Red River Hog
• Giraffe
• Oriental small-clawed otter
• Meerkat
• California Sealion
• Common Marmoset
• Peacock

Baboons

The park is open to the public and customers drive around the park in their own vehicles. There is a car friendly bypass route past the baboons for those who don't want to risk damage to their car, as these animals have attracted a certain reputation for mistreating the vehicles of their visitors. Spoof TV presenter Alan Partridge remarked of monkeys that "if you’ve been to Knowsley Safari Park and they’re pulling the wipers off your windscreen and nicking your hub caps, you lose sympathy. In 2009 the baboons made the news all over the world when a video was released showing how they were intelligent and curious enough to open car roofboxes.

Future Developments

Knowsley is going through a period of development starting with a Baboon House in 2006, the introduction of African Wild Dogs that same year, a Lion/Tiger House in 2007, the addition of Red River Hogs and Marmosets to the walk around section and a new Sealion outdoor pool. Future developments include a new elephant house, a new giraffe viewing area and an extension of the bug house.

Press Coverage

In January 2011, local animal rights activists held a peaceful demonstration after an inspection by government vets found one instance of a breach of regulations on the disposal of animal ‘by-products’. Pictures in the Daily Mail showed animals lying dead on the ground and in binbags, although the park's directors claim the pictures were staged by the photographer, whose husband the paper claimed had recently lost his job at the park. The park has since installed an enclosure for the storage of animal carcasses prior to disposal. The British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) later said it had ‘full confidence’ in Knowsley and praised its ‘excellent standards of animal husbandry and welfare’.

Webcams

In early 2010 Knowsley Safari Park added webcams to allow internet users to view the Meerkat and Baboon enclosures.

Railway and other attractions

The park features a 15 in (381 mm) gauge railway, 'The Lakeside Railway', on which visitors may tour parts of the site. There is also a collection of amusements and fairground rides on site plus paintballing, off-road driving challenges, and aerial extreme ropewalks.

External links

• Knowsley Safari Park official website
• Knowsley Safari Park on The Liverpool Echo