I have only visited Woburn SP once before , over 25 years ago . I remember herds of American Bison and Wild Horse in the paddocks to the side of the drive to the entrance ( both still there plus the herd of Vietnamese Sika Deer now ) , a Hippo ( none now ) and the herd of Bongo ( then probably the only ones in the UK ) .
I am not a great fan of Safari Parks but decided I would use my Chester Membership card for a free visit to see recent developments .
I must say I was impressed , particularly by the standard of the new blocks of housing and hardstands that have been built - the Savannah House ( White Rhino etc. ) Elephant House with extensive yards and paddocks , and African Ungulate Conservation Centre ( the modest claim for the last is that it holds the biggest concentration of critically endangered African antelope and other ungulates on the planet with 6 species under 1 roof - Bongo , Grevy Zebra , Somali Wild Ass , Addax , Scimitar-horned Oryx , Mhorr Gazelle ) . In addition the Giraffe house has been extended , a new block for Lions is being built and there are reasonable houses for the monkeys in the African Forest .
I liked the Bears and Wolves enclosure with the sloping sandy soil ideal for digging dens , a pair of much darker Iberian Wolves are housed in a side enclosure ( I did not see a sign for them ) . The Lion Park is vast - 32 acres - claimed to be bigger than the area occupied by most zoos . The herd of about 10 Bongo , including 3 calves , looked superb in the African Forest , with new green leaves coming through on the trees . I caught sight of two of the male Drills , both well away from the road , I liked the piles of cut timber for the monkeys to forage in and sit on . The herd of Rothschilds Giraffe - with quite a few calves - were in their yard , too cold for the paddock . Two Asian Elephant were in the large grass paddock viewable from the road , a large light one I assumed to be the new female , probably with the bull .
There are fewer reserves and species than at West Midland SP but they are provided with far superior housing .
The Foot Safari area also had quite a few animal exhibits . Walk-throughs for Wallaby and Rhea , Squirrel Monkey ( lovely breeding group , one of the keepers explained how she manages to identify each of the 20 in the group ) and Lemurs . Rainbow Landing had Dusky and Red Lory , it is not a very big exhibit . My favourite exhibit in this area housed a large group of 13 Red River Hog with 3 adjoining pens and 2 houses , lots of loose soil for digging in ( a keeper moved the animals to a side pen and scattered a lot of food , though the local corvids took much of it before the Hogs were let back in ) . The Penguin pool has a planted slope to the rear for nesting and underwater viewing . The Sea Lions which are still present are not shown on the Park literature ( I wonder if the miss the daily shows - to me they seem to enjoy performing ) . I enjoyed the Bird Show with a strong conservation and anti pet parrot message .
Of interest to the Zoo Historians , as it is the Park's 40th Anniversary , a facsimile of the original 1970 guide book is given with the current guide , at no extra cost ( photos in this were mostly taken at Longleat ) .
I am not a great fan of Safari Parks but decided I would use my Chester Membership card for a free visit to see recent developments .
I must say I was impressed , particularly by the standard of the new blocks of housing and hardstands that have been built - the Savannah House ( White Rhino etc. ) Elephant House with extensive yards and paddocks , and African Ungulate Conservation Centre ( the modest claim for the last is that it holds the biggest concentration of critically endangered African antelope and other ungulates on the planet with 6 species under 1 roof - Bongo , Grevy Zebra , Somali Wild Ass , Addax , Scimitar-horned Oryx , Mhorr Gazelle ) . In addition the Giraffe house has been extended , a new block for Lions is being built and there are reasonable houses for the monkeys in the African Forest .
I liked the Bears and Wolves enclosure with the sloping sandy soil ideal for digging dens , a pair of much darker Iberian Wolves are housed in a side enclosure ( I did not see a sign for them ) . The Lion Park is vast - 32 acres - claimed to be bigger than the area occupied by most zoos . The herd of about 10 Bongo , including 3 calves , looked superb in the African Forest , with new green leaves coming through on the trees . I caught sight of two of the male Drills , both well away from the road , I liked the piles of cut timber for the monkeys to forage in and sit on . The herd of Rothschilds Giraffe - with quite a few calves - were in their yard , too cold for the paddock . Two Asian Elephant were in the large grass paddock viewable from the road , a large light one I assumed to be the new female , probably with the bull .
There are fewer reserves and species than at West Midland SP but they are provided with far superior housing .
The Foot Safari area also had quite a few animal exhibits . Walk-throughs for Wallaby and Rhea , Squirrel Monkey ( lovely breeding group , one of the keepers explained how she manages to identify each of the 20 in the group ) and Lemurs . Rainbow Landing had Dusky and Red Lory , it is not a very big exhibit . My favourite exhibit in this area housed a large group of 13 Red River Hog with 3 adjoining pens and 2 houses , lots of loose soil for digging in ( a keeper moved the animals to a side pen and scattered a lot of food , though the local corvids took much of it before the Hogs were let back in ) . The Penguin pool has a planted slope to the rear for nesting and underwater viewing . The Sea Lions which are still present are not shown on the Park literature ( I wonder if the miss the daily shows - to me they seem to enjoy performing ) . I enjoyed the Bird Show with a strong conservation and anti pet parrot message .
Of interest to the Zoo Historians , as it is the Park's 40th Anniversary , a facsimile of the original 1970 guide book is given with the current guide , at no extra cost ( photos in this were mostly taken at Longleat ) .