Safaripark Beekse Bergen Safaripark Beekse Bergen

Sneeuwpanter said:
3rd straight record year for SBB...1,56 million visitors
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Would be interesting to see how they actually count visitors, especially all the resort visitors. The increase in recent years has been so large, it does make me question whether they really count actual visits (like the traditional big-3 in the Netherlands do).
 
KevinB said:
According to ZooInside, referencing a Dutch newspaper article, the car safari will be modified in the coming season, and will no longer run through one of the cheetah exhibits, but only along the outside of the cheetah exhibits.

Zoo inside
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I guess this may be in response to preclude the need for crowd control measures (keeping full time staff occupied daily) and the stupidity for visitors that would step out of the car to pat the cheeta's on the back some time back. Even so, I am never too enthousiastic about cheetah exhibits where zoo visitors have a free way through. Cheetah are highly strung and easily stressed and for breeding purposes ... it is all for the best and better animal welfare/well-being.
 
Kifaru Bwana said:
I guess this may be in response to preclude the need for crowd control measures (keeping full time staff occupied daily) and the stupidity for visitors that would step out of the car to pat the cheeta's on the back some time back. Even so, I am never too enthousiastic about cheetah exhibits where zoo visitors have a free way through. Cheetah are highly strung and easily stressed and for breeding purposes ... it is all for the best and better animal welfare/well-being.
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I really don't feel like the cheetahs on the car safari are stressed. They have many places to hide, but often are seen near the road in full view of the people (if they look close enough). Every time I see them, they look relaxed and seem not to care about the cars or the people in them. Admittingly, assuming those people follow the rules.
But yes, a drive-through will always have potential risks and I am not against this change. The stupidity of people is undeniable the main cause of problems.

Also, the zoo has multiple other cheetah enclosures for breeding purposes and cubs are born on a regular basis. The car safari enclosure I believe always has a group of surplus animals, but with so many enclosures its easy to switch animals around when the situation requires it.
 
People became too reckless these days… people stepping out at the cheetah exhibit, people stepping out at the giraffe savannah, … Imagine if you step out at the giraffes and a giraffe comes to say hi. Humans forget that this is an animal of +- 1 ton and there can always happen something. It’s a wild animal we are talking about. It would be a pity if Beekse Bergen needs to quit with the car safari because of people not using their head.
 
When I was there last year, despite being told the rules at the entrance to car safari, signage and the rear-view window hangers given at the entrance, I saw quite a few people with sometimes completely open windows in the car safari. The year before I also saw people trying to touch a dromedary that was walking right next to cars. You can't fix stupid, and too many people don't think rules actually apply to them, so honestly I am starting to fear for the car safari a bit.
 
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The mentality of people these days ‘rules are there to break them, if they say can’t do it, I will do it’. Unbelievable, even if their own safety is at risk or if it would harm te animals, ‘who cares’ they think. Also heard some people wanted to feed the giraffe. The park can’t do checks all the time.
 
 
Haliaeetus said:
3 Nubian (Northern) Giraffes are born so far in January.
Beekse Bergen on Instagram: "Driedubbel feest! ✨ In januari mochten we niet één, niet twee, maar zelfs drie Nubische giraffen verwelkomen: Bata, Kito en Milele. De jongen en hun moeders maken het goed. De geboortes zijn niet alleen fantastisch nieuws voor ons park, maar ook belangrijk voor het behoud van deze kwetsbare diersoort. Wil je de halfbroers en -zus bewonderen? De bezoekersruimte is geopend en zodra het weer het toelaat, schitteren ze op de savanne. @mariska_vermij_van_dijk #beeksebergen #safaripark #hilvarenbeek #giraffen #jongedieren #geboren #geboortenieuws #driedubbelfeest"
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Birth of a fourth Nubian Giraffe !
Beekse Bergen on Instagram: " Vierde Nubische giraffe geboren! Nadat we vorige week het heuglijke nieuws deelden over de drie geboortes bij de giraffen, kwam er afgelopen vrijdag nóg een jong ter wereld. Het mannetje, genaamd Iggy, is de halfbroer van Bata, Kito en Milele. Iggy en zijn moeder maken het goed. Bezoekers kunnen hem al bewonderen in de bezoekersruimte en over een tijdje ook op de vlakte. #beeksebergen #safaripark #hilvarenbeek #giraffen #geboorte #jongedieren"
 
ralph said:
I really don't feel like the cheetahs on the car safari are stressed. They have many places to hide, but often are seen near the road in full view of the people (if they look close enough). Every time I see them, they look relaxed and seem not to care about the cars or the people in them. Admittingly, assuming those people follow the rules.
But yes, a drive-through will always have potential risks and I am not against this change. The stupidity of people is undeniable the main cause of problems.

Also, the zoo has multiple other cheetah enclosures for breeding purposes and cubs are born on a regular basis. The car safari enclosure I believe always has a group of surplus animals, but with so many enclosures its easy to switch animals around when the situation requires it.
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It is a biological fact that cheetah are the most vulnerable and ecologically sensitive species to any disturbance(s) among all the Carnivora species in Africa. The same is true for any zoo with cheetahs and one reason it took so long to actually be successful and be able to have ultra high strung temperament and disturbance sensitive cheetahs' breed, reproduce and successfully raise cubs in captivity and ex situ conservation breeding programs globally (EAZA, AZA, ZAA, JAZ(G)A ... others - if you have any further regions to suggest I am open to feedback -)?


I actually made an impromptu visit to the Safaripark after a view years (I visited before they opened the black rhino breeding reserve cum wild dog presentation and I also suspect before they modified the African elephant habitat into 2 separate exclosures.

CHEETAHS SBB on the MENU: While I was on the foot path safari, I was glad to stop over and have a long view along the cheetah breeding area. The exclosures and complex is well designed and purrfectly suited to its purpose ... to bring out cheetah males to a receptive or near cycling female prior to introduction (the keeper actually brought out a male in one of the corridors' along a female territory/ex-closure. They were probably testing her ground prior to perhaps re-breeding her.

Anyhow, a local gentleman and apparent frequent visitor and season-ticket holder had actually come out to check upon the cheetahs that afternoon and informed me that this female had had a set of cubs (5, I think ... him saying) all of which perished and that she was given adoption of another cub from a French zoo (choose your pick where this might have occured) where a female had 4 or 5-sitter cubs and lost all but one.

SPECULATION: Aparently the French zoo female might not have cared properly for the singleton surviving cub (I did not ask him as we were also waiting for nice photo opps..... while talking, so this might be a hard guess and speculation completing the narratieve ... on this). This particular cub was transferred quickly from the French zoo to SBB for surrogate mothering by another lactating female. Well, that being the one above we are talking about right now - and given the cub over for adoption by her ... which she apparently duld accepted for further rearing ....

On this bleak, cold and wettish, if largely dry misty Saturday, the gentlemanI was looking out for the cub ...., however .... he observed that he had not seen it that afternoon ... even though the female was out and pacing nervously up and down her enclosure .... like she was looking for something ... A missing cub perhaps??? Anyhow, just after he left the keeper came out and unlocked one of the males from their exclosure and let him out in the corridor along this female's parameter fence ....! They could both be heard making welcoming presence calls and intermittent hissing/miaowing/scowling calls while both checking each other over the fence line while frequently disappearing from view, coming back and re-appearing and disappearing once more and vice versa .... et cetera et cetera.

Prior to this episode and before meeting the gentleman, I had stood on the corner overlooking the exhibit with 2 male cheetahs that were pacing up and down as well and clearly looking across to - at least one of them - to an exhibit on the far side with another pacing cheetah - I assume this to be another female (and not the one I talked about above). I could clearly hear both males calling out to the other cheetah across and that every individual was on high alert and purrfectly aware of the other sex' individual across the divide.

Now I have not a complete plan of the cheetah breeding area nor how they set up the safari drive exclosure for the safaripark visitors (either on their own private drive or in one of the SBB special opps multiple passengers' vehicles traversing the safari drive experience). But that exclosure will probably only house out-of-season or non-breeding individuals as ... for all intense purposes ... putting out cheetahs in front of drive through guests is not exactly conducive to effective breeding of a ultra high strung temperament and sensitive species like the cheetah. How long the new set up has been there is open to speculation.

Having said all this, I would do a "killing" for actually seeing the complete plan for the cheetah complex (They do have several graphic info boards and labels describing how the EEP, the breeding project at SBB and their conservation activities and in-situ situation and work ..., but not the complete article save for a drawing of 3 exclosures and the corridors round these complexes and which sex individuals are in which exclosures ....)


NOTA BENE: Personally, I the drive-through car safari experience honestly don't do it for me anymore and it is like getting wildlife delivered in McDonald's burgers' style delivered upon your dinner Plate! I actually at times do get reminisces of over-the-top African safaris where some guides with an assemblage of - rather ignorant or almost "party oriented" - tourists on safari drives in Toyota Landcruisers and/or luxury SUV's hound a group of lions or crouch up close to a cheetah with cubs .... (then the stress levels in both cheetah and other Carnivora like lions go absolutely haywire ...., and to that in the hottest part of the afternoon heat, with 6, 8, 10 or even 15 cars in tow all cowering around the suffering "subjects as objects").

Anyhow, enough of that as that is my personal perception..., but perhaps you get things ...then as I like to see animals and wildlife exhibiting their natural behaviours unrestrained by our presence and/or absence! In a zoo or safari park setting I much rather prefer and get triggered by a walking or personal/private safari without all the hassle, hussle and bustle around ... and see the animals / wildlife at my own pace and in tune with their temperaments ... and take time at exclosures and exhibits actually observing for a good time (can be 5-10 minutes to say ... half or 3/4 of an hour degending on how the animals move, are visible or become active .... when most zoo visitors pass by not neticing anything nor being aware there is actually something to be observed in that wide open bushwood space and concealing the animals.... Often you get just that ... an amazing experience or how beautiful the animals or their behaviour or their activities are and what you may learn and take away home in acquired knowledge, experience and being inside Nature.

MY MOTTO: Like nature, only leave memories and no footprints!
 
The young Gorilla MOOS passed away suddenly.
Beekse Bergen on Instagram: "Met verdriet delen we het nieuws dat de jonge gorilla Moos onverwachts is overleden. Moos werd in 2020 geboren in Safaripark Beekse Bergen als zoon van Tuena en Komale en halfbroer van Mies. Hij had een speels en eigenzinnig karakter en trok vaak op met de kuifmangabeys in het gedeelde verblijf. De afgelopen weken was Moos minder actief en vertoonde hij ziekteverschijnselen, waarvoor hij behandeld werd. Helaas mocht dit niet baten. De doodsoorzaak wordt onderzocht bij de faculteit Diergeneeskunde van de Universiteit Utrecht. Gorilla’s leven in hechte groepen en een overlijden heeft impact. De andere gorilla’s kregen daarom de tijd om op hun eigen manier afscheid te nemen. Zijn overlijden is een groot verlies voor de groep en voor de verzorgers die hem jarenlang met liefde verzorgd hebben. #beeksebergen #safariparkbeeksebergen #hilvarenbeek #gorilla #gorillamoos #overlijden"
 
KevinB said:
When I was there last year, despite being told the rules at the entrance to car safari, signage and the rear-view window hangers given at the entrance, I saw quite a few people with sometimes completely open windows in the car safari. The year before I also saw people trying to touch a dromedary that was walking right next to cars. You can't fix stupid, and too many people don't think rules actually apply to them, so honestly I am starting to fear for the car safari a bit.
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Same is happening in Ramat Gan, there was even a case of someone getting out of the car. Its genuinely really disturbing for me
 
Tea Rex said:
Like, are people that oblivious, to think going out where wild animals are is ok?!?
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Well, the common sense on the averagle individual on what a WILD animal is, is starting to decline. I live in a forested / natural area and the times you see people doing the craziest things... A coworker shared a video with me where she biked by a large group of wild boars and saw a group of tourist feeding the boars sandwiches... it was a large group of boars and people were getting between mothers and piglets... a trainwreck waiting to happen...

In the next village over people started to put out cans of dog food for the wild wolves to come out of the forest :') When people get bored with feeding boars and wolves, the animals roam further into the villages to see if there's food in trash cans...
 
MClaeys said:
People became too reckless these days… people stepping out at the cheetah exhibit, people stepping out at the giraffe savannah, … Imagine if you step out at the giraffes and a giraffe comes to say hi. Humans forget that this is an animal of +- 1 ton and there can always happen something. It’s a wild animal we are talking about. It would be a pity if Beekse Bergen needs to quit with the car safari because of people not using their head.
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In addition, when I went 3 times, whilst staying in the Safari Resort for a week. There were people, and I quote: stroking lemurs, going off-road without a safari vehicle and crossing the barriers to feed giraffes. Also, rangers need to be supervising these enclosures, that's the reason we don't get those things in the UK.
 
Albert Thomas Budd said:
In addition, when I went 3 times, whilst staying in the Safari Resort for a week. There were people, and I quote: stroking lemurs, going off-road without a safari vehicle and crossing the barriers to feed giraffes. Also, rangers need to be supervising these enclosures, that's the reason we don't get those things in the UK.
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I was at Safaripark Beekse Bergen today.

I saw several individuals or families driving with open windows, once even in the soon to be closed cheetah drive-through. I also saw one driver going off-road to get past two rows of cars having to wait for an ostrich that was on the road.

This is why we can't have nice things.

Safaripark Beekse Bergen does try, and they actually remind every driver entering the car safari of the rules. But there is sadly a significant minority that just does not give a crap about rules and doesn't follow them if they don't feel like it, despite being aware of them. This minority ruins things for everyone else, unfortunately. Sadly this is a broader social issue zoos can't do much about.
 
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