New wildlife park in Donegal.

dublinlion

dublinlion

Well-Known Member
10+ year member
A new park will open this Friday in Burnfoot co. Donegal. They have Brown Bear, Wolves, Lynx, Wild Boar, Barbary Macaque in large wooded enclosures and other smaller species and Wilfowl. It is set in 23 acres of mountain forest very near the Derry border. It has been a bit under the radar till now but I have heard that it looks great and have seen videos and pics and intend to visit soon.
Almost all species held were native to Ireland in times past and are rescued animals.
 
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Zootierliste lists only 6 species for this park but there are several additions.
2 pairs of Common Crane, Golden Eagle with a huge new Aviary, Red Fox, European Otter, Capercaille?, Barn owl, Whooper Swan, Ferrets, Greylag Geese and other waterfowl, Rabbits, Guinea pigs and one American Mink as an educational animal. Other species are expected.
also the Wild boar had 6 young.
They post regular five minute videos on utube and facebook and are building a loyal fanbase, and I have heard great reports from people including conservationists. I think most animals are rescues.
 
Some more details re. this amazing new park. They have planted thousands of native trees including 300 Oaks and are involved in the conservation effort for the rare breed, "old irish goat"
(hmm I know plenty of these lol) which has been native to Ireland for 5000 years. The current site is 23 acres with the hope to extend to 100 acres. The venture enjoys good support locally as it puts them on the map, and all shops, b&bs etc benefit.
The owner is a 36 year old solicitor who also studied zoology and multimedia and web design as well as finding time to do work experience at Dublin Zoo, so he is very well qualified with the skills needed for such a venture. To cap it off he is also a workaholic visionary and we are lucky to have him. Doug Richardson of Highland Park advised on some of the habitats.
Other animals on site are Snowy owl, Capercaille and Soay sheep.
Best news is a four part series is due to air in September on RTE.
 
dublinlion said:
Best news is a four part series is due to air in September on RTE.
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The first episode of Return of the Wild: The Bearman of Buncrana is on this Thursday at 8:30pm on RTE One. :):D

Gripping tales from Wild Ireland unleashed on TV – Donegal Daily

I visited the sanctuary last month and I was really impressed with the enclosures and the collection! My main highlights were seeing the three bears get their food at feeding time, watching the male capercaillie in a small aviary, and it was my first time seeing wild boar. They even have a section based around introduced species to Ireland, including grey squirrels and mink. I also saw two white storks under a wooden shelter in the enclosure with the deer, cranes and Soay sheep. The storks were being kept isolated from the other animals by a metal fence, so they were evidently new arrivals undergoing quarantine. To sum it all up, I really think this is an excellent place!
 
Good review babyrousa, have they any other Raptors with the golden eagle yet. Can you post a species list and how long does it take to walk around.? I was looking forward to visiting but with the covid restrictions it is offputting at this time.
 
dublinlion said:
Good review babyrousa, have they any other Raptors with the golden eagle yet. Can you post a species list and how long does it take to walk around.? I was looking forward to visiting but with the covid restrictions it is offputting at this time.
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Of the birds of prey at the park, they just have the one barn owl, two snowy owls, and the one golden eagle.

I'll just list the species kept that are not mentioned on ZTL (in case you haven't looked, more of the species kept at Wild Ireland are now listed by ZTL):
-Domestic pigeon (no-breeds status)
-Indian peafowl (domesticated?)
-Domestic chicken (no-breeds status)
-Common pheasant
-Eastern grey squirrel
-Snowy owl
-Soay sheep
-European white stork (which I mentioned were in quarantine when I visited)
-Western capercaillie
-Tufted duck
-Common mallard
-Barnacle goose
-Common shelduck
-Old Irish goat (not on ZTL)

We spent about 2.5 hours on the day of our visit, as we stayed to watch the macaques, otter, lynx, wolves and bears at their feeding times. I'd say it would take less than half an hour to get around the park without stopping.
 
The first episode of the TV show was quite good, unlike some programs about zoos, which have evolved into repeditative soap operas full of cliches.
Looking at the program and from what I've read and heard, the owner Killian reminds me of Gerald Durrell. He has been keeping and rehabbing wildlife since childhood and he has great passion and ambition.
The four part series starts with the land aquisition and details the planning, building, landscaping and financial trevails. It shows some of the research trips to rehab centres and museums and some chats with conservationists and curators. There is also plenty of animal footage and insight into future plans.
I reckon the inspiration comes from places like Jersey, Highland park and good rehab centres. They were very unlucky with the virus problem coming along so soon after opening, but I'm sure they will be fine as they are gathering great support and goodwill. There are plenty of rich people in Ireland and I expect some of these might add financial support.
Also I'm sure the series will be attractive to the big international TV companies such as nat. Geo and animal planet as it's very different from the usual stereotyped shows.
 
This series is due to air on Netflix this week starting from the 1st of March. It will be available on Netflix in the UK and it’ll be very interesting to watch a series about the construction of a zoo on Netflix. I hope it’s not like tiger king. It’s called Return of the Wild the Bearman of Buncrana

I’ll post a link as soon as it comes online
 
Vulpes said:
This series is due to air on Netflix this week starting from the 1st of March. It will be available on Netflix in the UK and it’ll be very interesting to watch a series about the construction of a zoo on Netflix. I hope it’s not like tiger king. It’s called Return of the Wild the Bearman of Buncrana

I’ll post a link as soon as it comes online
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Not remotely like tiger king! Killian McLoughlin is an inspiring individual and certainly knows his stuff. Most of the animals are rescued from bad circumstances abroad e.g the brown bears and rhesus macaques.
 
A Barbara macaque has been born at the park. Am a bit surprised as I assumed all held specimens were older rescued animals.
They issued a guide book earlier this year which I ordered online, its quite good with lots of information, mostly general conservation articles.
 
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