Whipsnade Zoo

Whipsnade Wild Animal Park is a zoo located at Whipsnade, near Dunstable in Bedfordshire, England. It is owned by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and is a companion to London Zoo in Regents Park, London.

The park covers 600 acres (2.4 km²), and can be located from miles around and from the air because of its large white lion hill figure carved into the side of the Dunstable Downs (part of the Chiltern Hills).

Whipsnade Wild Animal Park is one of Europe's largest wildlife conservation parks. It is home to more than 2,500 animals, many of which are endangered in the wild.

Whipsnade opened in 1931. Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell (ZSL Secretary 1903-1935) envisaged the Park as a conservation centre and it was the first open zoo in Europe, to be easily accessible to the visiting public. Some of the animals are kept within sizeable enclosures; others, such as the peacocks, the South American mara and Australian wallabies, roam freely around the park.

The park (and ZSL for that matter) receives no government funding, and therefore relies on the Gift Aid scheme. A very large slice of the income for the charity comes from Gift Aid.

In 2006 the entry fee was £15.00 for each adult, and £11.50 for children aged 3-15 years.

Lions

The park now has 2 African lions (1 male & 2 females) which bred earliar this year.

Photo Gallery

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  Penguin area at Whipsnade Wild Animal Park
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  Elephants wandering around Whipsnade Wild Animal Park
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  Giraffe at Whipsnade Wild Animal Park

External links

• Whipsnade Zoo website
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