Knowsley Safari Park Knowsley Safari Park News 2012

From the latest post in 'Life in Leisure' from the park - news on the construction going on:

New Raptor Experience & Bat House are the latest projects, see below:

"The main part of the work is going on at the former Lake Farm area with the construction of the new Raptor Experience that will be opening soon. The main farm building has been revamped inside and out with new aviaries being built for the birds. The outside aviaries are already starting to look impressive. The area facing the lake at the back of the building has been opened up with beautiful vistas looking over the lake to the rest of Knowsley estate, this will be the main amphitheatre for the bird of prey shows but will also make a fantastic spot for picnics in the summer.

Everything needed to develop our new bat house has been ordered and work should start on that project very soon . The bats themselves will need to be quarantined for a few months before we can make this a walk through exhibit but we hope to have a viewing window installed as well so that visitors will still be able to see the bats before this time."

all sounds good to me!

 

More Lion Cubs

Just had a quick trip to Knowsley this morning as part of "Project Huffy Breath"

and on chatting to the keepers at the lion enclosure found out the following:

They currently have 3 x 8 weeks old cubs - not yet sexed but watch this space

From last years cubs 1 of the older males has recently gone to Denmark and others may be moving soon.

Kenya the Male is 13 years old and his favorite female is Alice who is 15 years old (useful for your cat age project Jordan) Alice doesn't like sitting on the cold ground so she generally sits on Kenya - quite amusing really.

The pride currently numbers about 20 - the maximum the keepers reckon they could house in the current area size and relationship wise is 26 - if they keep breeding at the rate they are that capacity will be reached quite soon.

In fact there was a 'live mating' that blocked the road and posed quite nicely about 2 feet from my front bumper (fender if you're on the other side of the pond) I did feel a little obvious clicking away whilst they were enjoying 'relations' as I'm not sure I would be so unphased if the boot was on the other 'paw' so to speak

 

Thanks karoocheetah.

 

New cubs go on display with the pride:

Cubs Gold, Silver and Bronze are one of the park’s latest attractions, named in honour of this year’s London Olympics.

The three male lion cubs will join first-time mum Handeya, who is almost three years old, and dad Kenya, Knowsley’s breeding “alpha male” on public view when the main season opens tomorrow and will run until October.

 

One of the reasons they closed for a long period over the winter this year was "To make essential repairs to the roads around the park" the webiste said.

So far not 1 sq foot has been repaired.

PS - Like the Lion cub names, bet they are all male again though

 

And probably inbred too, if there mother's only nearly three!

 

that's one hell of an assumption Jordan - her age has absolutely nothing to do with genetic inbreeding -that's her lineage - so if you are saying that the cubs, mothers' sire is also Kenya - then that would indeed be a classic case of inbreeding - I can't believe that KSP would be that daft - I don't know if and when new females came to KSP but I'll ask the keepers next time I go - purely for self interest if nohting else - Lions social structure is fascinating and I would think that introducing new females to an established pride is not an easy task!

 

It's very common for inbreeding in lions in Safari Parks, for example Flamingo land. Kumali and Zazzi have the same sire which is Mafue. Kumali and Zazzi have five cubs together as well as Zazzi's other two cubs being Mafue's. I'm not blaming Knowsley but most Safari Park lions are inbred.

 

I'm speaking from ignorance here, but citing one example isn't 'most'. Why would parks encourage inbreeding. Again I'm speaking from no basis, bit wouldn't biaza status discourage places from the active inbreeding you are suggesting.

What knowledge do you have of the knowlesley lions family tree? I'm interested in seeing the extent of the relationship you suggest.

 

Introducing new lionesses into an established lion pride is not just "not easy", but impossible. It doesn`t even work in small zoo groups and sure as hell not in a larger pride in a safari park. The only way to bring in new blood is to exchange the dominant male(s).

 

They don't encourage inbreeding, West Midlands SP is also a case of inbreeding, most particularly among the white lions. I know a little bit on the Knowsley lions but I'm getting a keeper to confirm there relations before I say more. I am certain there is inbreeding among this group somewhere.

 

Yes but all White Lion's are inbreed so this isn't unique to West Mids!

 

I think what he's suggesting is that her age points to inbreeding as there have been no fresh males added since she was born, therefore the father must be her own or a related one? Right or wrong?

 

Yes, I concur - just being a pedant - I'll stop now

But the whole inbreeding argument is an interesting one - I hate the tought that places will deliberately inbreed their animals knowing full well the physical timebomb it presents for the future - it's short sighted.
Of course I know it happens but I don't have to like or agree with it - unfortunately my opinion counts for sod all so I just have to fume in silence!

 

Whereabouts in the park are the warthogs going?

 

I totally agree with your point on inbreeding, it does cause some problems too, I watched a documentary recent on Amur leopards I was really shocked when I watched it. The basic story was two Amur leopards mated and had a cub, once the cub got older and reached sexually maturity there was no space for her to have her own area because of buildings, towns etc. She stayed in her mother's terror try, the end product she mated with her father, which produced a male cub. The father had another cub with the mother which was a male, eventually there was only the two, the father and his daughter, who had reached sexually maturity, they then mated and a had a male cub. At six months old the mother started becoming aggressive towards the cub.

 

I also watched that show... but it wasnt about inbreeding in zoos if its the same show i watched. It was regarding the problems with amur leopards being in isolated populations in the wild, they werent in a captive situation

 

I believe they are in the exhibit in the walk around area of Knowsley where the Red River Hogs lived near the Giraffe house. The RRH are still at the Park but kind of off show until they find somewhere else to show them or somewhere to move them to I assume. Knowsley have recently put a fence around what was the RRH house, so you cannot get up to the glass to put your hand above your eyes to peer in anymore, probably done to stop the minority who would tap or bang on the glass. Saturday just gone (11th Feb), on a very frosty morning I did manage to see a pair of ears which I think where warthogs under a heat light, I was on tip toes (and I am 6'4'') and leaning over this new fence trying to avoid the glass reflection, so you can imagine not an ideal view.

Also noticed a sign but didn't see them - baby Meerkats born this month.

Also (as already mentioned here) what was the 'farm yard' barn area appears to be converted nicely to a bat house and the new 'raptor section' which is next door seems to be coming along nicely, another new and good step forward these two attractions for the coming warmer months.

 

I visited the park yesterday and can confirm that the Warthogs, all 4 of them (I was only expecting one or two...), are in the old Red River Hog house and first paddock.

Photo should be attached

 

A couple more zebra (Grants) have been added to the collection taking the current totals to (1:4). The latest two appear to be a little younger than the others. Hopefully a breeding program will develop, time will tell.

On Saturday I saw something that I personally have not witnessed before myself and that is Baboon cannibalism. We don’t drive through the baboon enclosure so watch from the other side of the fence. I noticed what looked like toy being pushed and dragged along the road by a mid sized male baboon, then quickly realised what it was, a young baby, not the tiniest but still very much a baby. The male that was carrying the dead infant had a lot of interest from others of a similar size as he carried it over cars and spun it around freely. I lost sight of it then for a few mins as the drive through was very busy with cars. About five minutes later after driving on a little, I saw pretty close to the fence a male baboon (possibly the same one that was carrying it around) eating the dead baby from the back end, he seemed quite content tearing the flesh off and chewing as a smaller baboon watched closely as if waiting for his/her turn to have some meat.