Giraffes are big new attraction at Yorkshire Wildlife Park - VIDEO
HERE is a real tall story - a group of giraffes are set to become the big new attraction at Yorkshire Wildlife Park.
The park’s owners are waving a huge hello to the four towering beasts who are already settling into their new £350,000 enclosure.
VIDEO: Press the play button to watch our video report.
Two giraffes have already arrived from across the UK and Europe with the remaining two set to arrive later today - the end of a huge operation spearheaded by park director Cheryl Williams to bring the giraffes, Palle, Jambo, Jasper and Behansin, to Doncaster.
She said: “You never know what is going to happen when you are transporting animals but we are absolutely delighted to be welcoming the four giraffes and delivering our visitors what they wanted most.”
One of the giraffes, two-year-old Jambo, who arrived from Woburn Safari Park, is an endangered Rothschild Giraffe. Only 650 are still believed to exist in the wild.
Specialist animal transport teams brought the beasts to the Branton-based park with two-year-old Palle travelling by land and sea in a 30-hour journey from Copenghagen in Denmark to his new home.
Meanwhile, Jasper, aged 12, and Behansin, seven, are both fully grown and were due to arrive from the West Midlands Safari Park near Kidderminster today.
The foursome will be living in style and comfort in their new home and, once they have settled in, visitors to the award-winning park will be able to see the animals from just a metre away as well as eye to eye viewing from a neighbouring 8m high platform.
In addition, there are also ground level and high level feeding stations, an outside yard and in good weather, the giraffes will be able to roam in 16 acres of African style reserve.
Mrs Williams said: “The enclosure can house up to 16 giraffes and while it will hold a bachelor group of makes initially, we hope that in time we will be able to set up a breeding group in future.”
Bosses decided to house the giraffes after asking visitors which animals they most wanted at the park from a list of endangered breed projects.
The 20mx30m giraffe enclosure follows the recently-opened leopard enclosure and the park, borne out of the former Brockholes Farm visitor attraction now plays host to tigers, lions, wallabies, meerkats and many more animals across a 70-acre site.
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Weather for Doncaster
Friday 24 May 2013
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Light showers
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