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Port Lympne Wild Animal Park

January 01, 1970

Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve near the town of Hythe in Kent, England is set in 600 acres (2.4 km2) and incorporates the historic Port Lympne Mansion, and landscaped gardens designed by architect Sir Herbert Baker, for Sir Philip Sassoon.

Port Lympne Wild Animal Park
Date opened1976
LocationLympne, Kent, England (South Kent)
Land area600 acres (240 ha)
No. of animals650+
No. of species50+

The estate with an Edwardian mansion near Lympne was purchased in 1973 by John Aspinall; the intent was to solve lack of space at the nearby Howletts Wild Animal Park. It was opened to the public in 1976. Since 1984 the animal parks have been owned by a charity (The John Aspinall Foundation, currently led by Damian Aspinall). The collection is known for being unorthodox, for the encouragement of close personal relationships between staff and animals, and for their breeding of rare and endangered species. The park now includes tigers, lions, leopards, gorillas, bears, giraffes and the UK's largest herd of black rhinos. The facility also plans to release some of the animals into the wild.[1]

Royalty and many other famous people have stayed at the mansion at the centre of the park. The rooms are lavishly decorated and the landscaped gardens have views of Romney Marsh. Other accommodations are also provided in the Park, some in Lion Lodge, Tiger Lodge, Bear Lodge (glamping), Rhino Lodge, Treehouse Hotel, The Bubble, Hogdeer Creek, Giraffe Cottage, Giraffe Lodge (glamping), Pinewood (glamping), Wolf Lodge and Forest Hideaway.[2][3][4] The latest accommodation options are Lion Lodge and the 20-bedroom Giraffe Hall.[5]

The Dinosaur Forest edit

Opened in 2016 to coincide with the park's 40th birthday, the Dinosaur Forest spans three acres of ancient woodland, and features over 100 life sized and anatomically correct models. Rangers discuss the animal kingdom of millions of years ago. Visitors are invited to dig for fossils and try the "create your own dinosaur" activity.[6][7]

Animal collection edit

 
Gorilla at Port Lympne Reserve

Port Lympne houses many rare and endangered species and the largest breeding herd of black rhinos in the UK. There are small cats, monkeys, tapirs, lions, painted dogs and many more, some of which are on the circular walk. The zoo has an 'African Experience' safari trail where visitors are transported on specially modified vehicles around the park to view giraffe, zebra, antelope and wildebeest.

In 2000, a 27-year-old keeper was killed whilst working in the stall of a female Indian elephant called La Petite.[8]

In 2015, the Park moved its herd of Asian elephants following numerous deaths amongst them related to a persistent outbreak of a strain of herpes virus found in captive elephant populations. In 2005, after many years of stillbirths, two infant mortalities, and several premature adult fatalities, the first surviving mother-reared calf, Sittang, succumbed to the virus. This incident occurred one month after an adult female produced a stillborn calf and also perished. Port Lympne's remaining calf, May Tagu, who was born in April 2005, was transferred to Antwerp Zoo following the spate of deaths, along with her mother and one other cow. The remaining adults were moved to Terra Natura in Benidorm, Spain, where many other former Port Lympne elephants reside. This move has allowed the park to focus on its breeding African elephants. Three cows have been moved from Howletts Wild Animal Park, followed soon after by a bull named Kruger from Knowsley Safari Park. Howletts is home to the UK's largest herd of African elephants. In 2022 Port Lympne became the only zoo in Europe to house 3 species of rhino including the Black Rhino, White Rhino and Indian Rhino.

Introducing captive animals into the wild edit

According to a U.S. report, Damian Aspinall had purchased about a million acres in Africa and turned the area into a park in an attempt to protect gorillas whose numbers have been declining due to the loss of habitat and poaching.[9] The Foundation's website however, clarifies this: "The Aspinall Foundation is working with the governments of the Congo-Brazzaville and the neighbouring state of Gabon to protect around one million acres within the unique savannah ecosystem of the Batéké Plateau. ... We have reintroduced over 60 gorillas back into the wild, including 22 who travelled from our Parks in Kent".[10] In a 2016 interview, Aspinall added that "we've reintroduced eight black rhinos into the wild" presumably, all born in Kent.[11]

A BBC report in 2014 stated that the Foundation managed two gorilla rescue and rehabilitation projects in Gabon and Congo, respectively.[12] A subsequent report stated that five of ten of the gorillas released in 2014 had been found dead soon after, possibly due to attacks by other gorillas.[13]

Tara Stoinski of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund made this comment on the television program 60 Minutes (aired 15 March 2015): "I think that humans have a very romantic notion of what the wild is like, and the wild is not a place where it is safe, and animals get to roam free and make choices". She wonders about the value of sending zoo-born animals to Africa and believes that it would be wiser for Aspinall to use his funds to save gorillas already in the wild.[14][15]

In a 2016 interview, Aspinall blamed one gorilla that the Foundation had released for killing the five others. He also complained about the negative publicity about the event. "What about the 60 we released that survived? There's no glory if you get it right. We get no press, no publicity - but boy, if anything goes wrong, they jump on you."[16]

The Park has also introduced other animals into the wild. However, a black rhino (called Zambezi), that was born and raised at the Park, died while being flown to Tanzania in June 2019. The rhino was part of a plan to repopulate the Serengeti.[17]

In 2022, the Aspinall Foundation announced that 13 elephants, born in captivity, would be returned to Africa, for release in the wilds of Kenya. Some experts questioned the wisdom of this strategy, citing issues such as the stress caused by "a hazardous journey", low temperatures at night in Africa, as well as "unfamiliar surroundings, foraging for food, predators and illness". Some concern was also expressed about water quality and the risk of conflict with the human population. The Foundation replied with a statement that it "has a 30-year history of successful rewilding projects around the globe".[18]

Animal enclosures edit

The park is split into two sections; one allows visitors to walk around (or use golf buggies) to view animals in enclosures, such as primates and carnivores like big cats. The other is a safari park toured in open-sided trucks, divided into South American, Asian and African safari sections.[19] Nearly 90 different species of animals are kept at the 600 acre Park.[20]

Palace of the Apes edit

 
Gorilla at Palace of the Apes

Palace of the Apes is the world's largest gorillarium, housing a large breeding troop. In late 2018, the Park announced the death of Britain's oldest gorilla, Babydoll, who died at age 57. At the time, a news report stated that Damian Aspinall, "whose father John created the Aspinall's casino empire, has dedicated his life to gorilla conservation".[21]

Africa edit

[22]

Asia edit

[23]

South America edit

[24]

Discovery Zone edit

The park has a small exhibition area called the Discovery Zone, home to a variety of smaller species, including meerkats, pygmy marmosets, Madagascar hissing cockroaches, plumed basilisks, false water cobras, Australian green tree frogs, green tree pythons and several species of tortoise and tarantula.

Other animals edit

On television edit

The BBC children's television series Roar was filmed at both Port Lympne and Howletts Wild Animal Park, and was broadcast on BBC Two and the CBBC channel. The programmes went behind the scenes at the two parks, following the keepers as they tended to the animals.

References edit

  1. ^ Dodsworth, Lucy (15 August 2018). "On safari in the UK: Glamping at Port Lympne Giraffe Lodge". On the Luce travel blog. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  2. ^ "Port Lympne Hotel and Reserve". www.visitkent.co.uk. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  3. ^ "This safari in Kent can live up to the real thing". The Independent. 9 October 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  4. ^ "Port Lympne Competition - KentOnline". Kent Online. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  5. ^ Karmali, Sarah (8 October 2018). "Run with wolves in this unique new hotel experience". Harper's BAZAAR. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  6. ^ "Port Lympne Hotel and Reserve". www.visitkent.co.uk. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  7. ^ "Dinosaur Forest opens in time for school holidays". 28 March 2016.
  8. ^ BBC News Elephant Crushes Keeper "[1]"
  9. ^ "Back to the Wild". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  10. ^ "Conservation Work In Congo And Gabon To Save Gorillas". The Aspinall Foundation. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  11. ^ "Meet Damian Aspinall, society's Dr Doolittle". Tatler. 14 June 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  12. ^ "Port Lympne's gorilla Djala and family join wild primates in Gabon". BBC News. 25 June 2014. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  13. ^ "Five gorillas raised in Kent wildlife park found dead". Kent Online. 6 September 2014. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  14. ^ "The Horrifying 60 Minutes Story Activists Beg You Not to See". Awesome Ocean. 18 March 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  15. ^ "Back to the Wild". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  16. ^ "Meet Damian Aspinall, society's Dr Doolittle". Tatler. 14 June 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  17. ^ "Black rhino dies on way to release in wild". BBC News. 29 June 2019. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  18. ^ "'Ridiculous' plan to rewild 13 elephants from Kent zoo to Africa 'doomed to fail'". Metro News. 2 February 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
  19. ^ "Party for Louango's first birthday". Kent Online. 15 May 2019. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  20. ^ Dodsworth, Lucy (15 August 2018). "On safari in the UK: Glamping at Port Lympne Giraffe Lodge". On the Luce travel blog. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  21. ^ The Daily Telegraph 'Heartbreaking' final moments of Britain's oldest gorilla
  22. ^ Aspinall foundation.org
  23. ^ Aspinall foundation.org
  24. ^ Aspinall foundation.org

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Port Lympne Wild Animal Park.
  • Zoo Website
  • Aspinall Foundation
  • Kent Tourism website
  • Roar (UK TV series) at IMDb  

51°4′34″N 0°59′58″E / 51.07611°N 0.99944°E / 51.07611; 0.99944

January 01, 1970
port, lympne, wild, animal, park, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, . This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Port Lympne Wild Animal Park news newspapers books scholar JSTOR April 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message Port Lympne Hotel amp Reserve near the town of Hythe in Kent England is set in 600 acres 2 4 km2 and incorporates the historic Port Lympne Mansion and landscaped gardens designed by architect Sir Herbert Baker for Sir Philip Sassoon Port Lympne Wild Animal ParkDate opened1976LocationLympne Kent England South Kent Land area600 acres 240 ha No of animals650 No of species50 The estate with an Edwardian mansion near Lympne was purchased in 1973 by John Aspinall the intent was to solve lack of space at the nearby Howletts Wild Animal Park It was opened to the public in 1976 Since 1984 the animal parks have been owned by a charity The John Aspinall Foundation currently led by Damian Aspinall The collection is known for being unorthodox for the encouragement of close personal relationships between staff and animals and for their breeding of rare and endangered species The park now includes tigers lions leopards gorillas bears giraffes and the UK s largest herd of black rhinos The facility also plans to release some of the animals into the wild 1 Royalty and many other famous people have stayed at the mansion at the centre of the park The rooms are lavishly decorated and the landscaped gardens have views of Romney Marsh Other accommodations are also provided in the Park some in Lion Lodge Tiger Lodge Bear Lodge glamping Rhino Lodge Treehouse Hotel The Bubble Hogdeer Creek Giraffe Cottage Giraffe Lodge glamping Pinewood glamping Wolf Lodge and Forest Hideaway 2 3 4 The latest accommodation options are Lion Lodge and the 20 bedroom Giraffe Hall 5 Contents 1 The Dinosaur Forest 2 Animal collection 3 Introducing captive animals into the wild 4 Animal enclosures 4 1 Palace of the Apes 4 2 Africa 4 3 Asia 4 4 South America 4 5 Discovery Zone 4 6 Other animals 5 On television 6 References 7 External linksThe Dinosaur Forest editOpened in 2016 to coincide with the park s 40th birthday the Dinosaur Forest spans three acres of ancient woodland and features over 100 life sized and anatomically correct models Rangers discuss the animal kingdom of millions of years ago Visitors are invited to dig for fossils and try the create your own dinosaur activity 6 7 Animal collection edit nbsp Gorilla at Port Lympne Reserve Port Lympne houses many rare and endangered species and the largest breeding herd of black rhinos in the UK There are small cats monkeys tapirs lions painted dogs and many more some of which are on the circular walk The zoo has an African Experience safari trail where visitors are transported on specially modified vehicles around the park to view giraffe zebra antelope and wildebeest In 2000 a 27 year old keeper was killed whilst working in the stall of a female Indian elephant called La Petite 8 In 2015 the Park moved its herd of Asian elephants following numerous deaths amongst them related to a persistent outbreak of a strain of herpes virus found in captive elephant populations In 2005 after many years of stillbirths two infant mortalities and several premature adult fatalities the first surviving mother reared calf Sittang succumbed to the virus This incident occurred one month after an adult female produced a stillborn calf and also perished Port Lympne s remaining calf May Tagu who was born in April 2005 was transferred to Antwerp Zoo following the spate of deaths along with her mother and one other cow The remaining adults were moved to Terra Natura in Benidorm Spain where many other former Port Lympne elephants reside This move has allowed the park to focus on its breeding African elephants Three cows have been moved from Howletts Wild Animal Park followed soon after by a bull named Kruger from Knowsley Safari Park Howletts is home to the UK s largest herd of African elephants In 2022 Port Lympne became the only zoo in Europe to house 3 species of rhino including the Black Rhino White Rhino and Indian Rhino Introducing captive animals into the wild editAccording to a U S report Damian Aspinall had purchased about a million acres in Africa and turned the area into a park in an attempt to protect gorillas whose numbers have been declining due to the loss of habitat and poaching 9 The Foundation s website however clarifies this The Aspinall Foundation is working with the governments of the Congo Brazzaville and the neighbouring state of Gabon to protect around one million acres within the unique savannah ecosystem of the Bateke Plateau We have reintroduced over 60 gorillas back into the wild including 22 who travelled from our Parks in Kent 10 In a 2016 interview Aspinall added that we ve reintroduced eight black rhinos into the wild presumably all born in Kent 11 A BBC report in 2014 stated that the Foundation managed two gorilla rescue and rehabilitation projects in Gabon and Congo respectively 12 A subsequent report stated that five of ten of the gorillas released in 2014 had been found dead soon after possibly due to attacks by other gorillas 13 Tara Stoinski of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund made this comment on the television program 60 Minutes aired 15 March 2015 I think that humans have a very romantic notion of what the wild is like and the wild is not a place where it is safe and animals get to roam free and make choices She wonders about the value of sending zoo born animals to Africa and believes that it would be wiser for Aspinall to use his funds to save gorillas already in the wild 14 15 In a 2016 interview Aspinall blamed one gorilla that the Foundation had released for killing the five others He also complained about the negative publicity about the event What about the 60 we released that survived There s no glory if you get it right We get no press no publicity but boy if anything goes wrong they jump on you 16 The Park has also introduced other animals into the wild However a black rhino called Zambezi that was born and raised at the Park died while being flown to Tanzania in June 2019 The rhino was part of a plan to repopulate the Serengeti 17 In 2022 the Aspinall Foundation announced that 13 elephants born in captivity would be returned to Africa for release in the wilds of Kenya Some experts questioned the wisdom of this strategy citing issues such as the stress caused by a hazardous journey low temperatures at night in Africa as well as unfamiliar surroundings foraging for food predators and illness Some concern was also expressed about water quality and the risk of conflict with the human population The Foundation replied with a statement that it has a 30 year history of successful rewilding projects around the globe 18 Animal enclosures editThe park is split into two sections one allows visitors to walk around or use golf buggies to view animals in enclosures such as primates and carnivores like big cats The other is a safari park toured in open sided trucks divided into South American Asian and African safari sections 19 Nearly 90 different species of animals are kept at the 600 acre Park 20 Palace of the Apes edit nbsp Gorilla at Palace of the Apes Palace of the Apes is the world s largest gorillarium housing a large breeding troop In late 2018 the Park announced the death of Britain s oldest gorilla Babydoll who died at age 57 At the time a news report stated that Damian Aspinall whose father John created the Aspinall s casino empire has dedicated his life to gorilla conservation 21 Western lowland gorilla Black and white ruffed lemur Black howler monkey De Brazza s monkey Drill Dusky leaf monkey Greater bamboo lemur Silvery gibbon Tufted capuchin Western lesser bamboo lemur Africa edit Rothschild s giraffe Chapman s zebra Eastern black rhinoceros Defassa waterbuck nbsp View of The African Experience Guinea baboon African wild dog Barbary lion Roan antelope Common ostrich Blesbok Blue wildebeest Lechwe Common eland Red river hog Eastern black and white colobus Meerkat Serval Southern White Rhino 22 Asia edit Mishmi takin Indian hog deer Axis deer Water buffalo Bactrian camel Blackbuck Barasingha Pere David s deer Przewalski s horse Sambar deer Malayan tapir Siberian tiger Binturong Fishing cat Pallas s cat Red panda Rusty spotted cat Indian rhinoceros 23 South America edit Spectacled bear Capybara Bush dog Greater rhea South American coati South American tapir Vicuna Margay 24 Discovery Zone edit The park has a small exhibition area called the Discovery Zone home to a variety of smaller species including meerkats pygmy marmosets Madagascar hissing cockroaches plumed basilisks false water cobras Australian green tree frogs green tree pythons and several species of tortoise and tarantula Other animals edit Eurasian brown bear European bison Northern lynx Red necked wallabyOn television editThe BBC children s television series Roar was filmed at both Port Lympne and Howletts Wild Animal Park and was broadcast on BBC Two and the CBBC channel The programmes went behind the scenes at the two parks following the keepers as they tended to the animals References edit Dodsworth Lucy 15 August 2018 On safari in the UK Glamping at Port Lympne Giraffe Lodge On the Luce travel blog Retrieved 3 March 2023 Port Lympne Hotel and Reserve www visitkent co uk Retrieved 3 March 2023 This safari in Kent can live up to the real thing The Independent 9 October 2017 Retrieved 3 March 2023 Port Lympne Competition KentOnline Kent Online Retrieved 3 March 2023 Karmali Sarah 8 October 2018 Run with wolves in this unique new hotel experience Harper s BAZAAR Retrieved 3 March 2023 Port Lympne Hotel and Reserve www visitkent co uk Retrieved 11 August 2023 Dinosaur Forest opens in time for school holidays 28 March 2016 BBC News Elephant Crushes Keeper 1 Back to the Wild www cbsnews com Retrieved 3 March 2023 Conservation Work In Congo And Gabon To Save Gorillas The Aspinall Foundation Retrieved 3 March 2023 Meet Damian Aspinall society s Dr Doolittle Tatler 14 June 2016 Retrieved 11 August 2023 Port Lympne s gorilla Djala and family join wild primates in Gabon BBC News 25 June 2014 Retrieved 3 March 2023 Five gorillas raised in Kent wildlife park found dead Kent Online 6 September 2014 Retrieved 3 March 2023 The Horrifying 60 Minutes Story Activists Beg You Not to See Awesome Ocean 18 March 2015 Retrieved 8 April 2015 Back to the Wild www cbsnews com Retrieved 3 March 2023 Meet Damian Aspinall society s Dr Doolittle Tatler 14 June 2016 Retrieved 11 August 2023 Black rhino dies on way to release in wild BBC News 29 June 2019 Retrieved 11 August 2023 Ridiculous plan to rewild 13 elephants from Kent zoo to Africa doomed to fail Metro News 2 February 2022 Retrieved 5 September 2022 Party for Louango s first birthday Kent Online 15 May 2019 Retrieved 11 August 2023 Dodsworth Lucy 15 August 2018 On safari in the UK Glamping at Port Lympne Giraffe Lodge On the Luce travel blog Retrieved 11 August 2023 The Daily Telegraph Heartbreaking final moments of Britain s oldest gorilla Aspinall foundation org Aspinall foundation org Aspinall foundation orgExternal links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Port Lympne Wild Animal Park Zoo Website Aspinall Foundation Kent Tourism website Roar UK TV series at IMDb nbsp 51 4 34 N 0 59 58 E 51 07611 N 0 99944 E 51 07611 0 99944 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Port Lympne Wild Animal Park amp oldid 1216829476, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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