The Wichita Eagle
BY MELINDA SCHNYDER
Special to The Eagle
Posted on Sun, Mar. 02, 2003
San Diego Wild Animal Park provides up-close look
Rocky slowly lowers his six-foot neck across the back of the
flatbed truck where 10 eager feeders are holding crunchy giraffe
biscuits over their heads. His rough,
gray tongue - nearly 20 inches long - slurps the treat from your fingers,
begins chewing and eyes the next biscuit.
One of the tallest
living land mammals has just eaten out of your hand. You were
close enough to hug the beautiful, mild-mannered creature,
but safari
guides
warned you that a slight swing of his head would feel like getting hit
with a 50-pound bowling ball. So instead you sneak a quick pat
of his fuzzy mane.
Soon you'll be dropping apple slices into the
mouth of an Indian rhinoceros and rubbing his horn. Once widespread
in southeast Asia, the whole population
has
dwindled to less than 1,100 living in India.
But you didn't have to travel
to another continent for this experience. As a visitor to the
San Diego Wild Animal Park, you have just fed a successfully
reproducing
family group of Indian rhinos and the first third-generation offspring
in
the Western hemisphere.
For years tourists and animal enthusiasts have
flocked to the world-famous San Diego Zoo. The 100-acre zoo offers
4,000 animals representing 800
species, including
some of the world's rarest wildlife: giant pandas (and Hua Mei, the
only panda cub in the United States), koalas and polar bears.
But
for those looking for a truly unusual animal encounter, travel
32 miles northeast of the zoo to another Zoological Society of
San
Diego
facility
- the 1,800-acre
San Diego Wild Animal Park. While the park doesn't have the variety
of the zoo (it has about 3,500 animals representing 260 species),
it gets
you as
close to
an African safari as you can get without actually going to Africa.
The
San Diego Wild Animal Park, near the city of Escondido, began
in 1969 as a breeding facility for rare and endangered species,
and that
still
is its main
function. Originally, breeding with the eventual hope of reintroducing
the animals into their natural habitat was the only purpose of
the preserve. When the expense
of feeding all the animals became overwhelming in 1972, the park
opened its
gates to the public. Still, the park is designed first for the
animals, and second
for the people who come to observe them.
Whatever your beliefs
about keeping animals in captivity, the park has a number of
breeding success stories and is recognized
throughout
the
world for its efforts.
Thirty-three endangered species have successfully bred here,
and the park is considered the authority in breeding rhinos.
The male
southern
white
rhino
who
lives in the park has sired 50 offspring over 13 years, helping
to save the species.
More than half of the endangered California
condors in existence were hatched at the facility. In 2000, the
park opened Condor
Ridge, a North
American
wilderness exhibit that focuses on a dozen rare and endangered
native species and the story
of their survival in the wild. Even though the park has worked
with the birds for years, this was the first time visitors
were able to
view the
California
condor, North America's largest flying bird.
The park's breeding
efforts have been successful in part because its large acreage
allows for huge enclosures, which
make the
animals feel
more at
home and, therefore,
they behave accordingly. That's the draw for visitors,
too; territorial disputes and competition, herding behavior, courtship
and defensive
behavior are all
on display.
Animals that are naturally found together are
kept together; discrete fences separate the animals that are
found in
different regions
of the world (East
Africa, Asian Plains, South Africa, etc.). Entire herds
of Cape buffalo, giraffes, rhinos,
wildebeests and other hoofed mammals are among the hundreds
of animals you can see roaming the scenic rolling landscape
of East
Africa.
You won't, however, see predators among the mix
of birds and mammals. A few acres are set aside for zoo-like
enclosures with smaller
occupants as well
as predators.
The large habitats make up the majority of the park,
though, and are measured in acres rather than feet.
In fact, the
facility is
seven
times larger
than the Sedgwick County Zoo.
More than 1,800 acres
means a lot of walking, but the best way to start your visit
at the park is by riding
the Wgasa
Bush Line
Railway,
a
5-mile electric
monorail ride that shows visitors many areas that
can only be seen from the railway. The ride is a 55-minute
guided
tour of
the major
field enclosures
of Asia and
Africa. Safari guides provide narrative and pause
the train to point out interesting behaviors or newborns.
Taking
the first train of the day when the temperatures are cooler gives
you the best opportunity to see
the animals out and awake.
It also gives
you an overview
of the park and a chance to decide which enclosures
you want
to visit by foot. Make sure you bring a pair of
binoculars, and if
you plan
to take
pictures a
zoom lens will be helpful. For the best view you
should try to sit on the right side of the open-air
train.
Many visitors opt to take the train ride
several times throughout the day. You're sure to see and
hear something
different
every time. Although
you
can see the
majority of the park on the train ride, you'll
miss out if you don't visit some of the other
areas, such
as Lorikeet
Landing where you
can invite
colorful birds
to perch on your arm and drink nectar from your
hand. The park also has a bird show and an elephant
show
daily, as
well as
special
events
throughout
the year.
Sign up for the photo caravan tour for
an even more authentic safari. No more than 10 visitors
ride in
the back of
a flatbed truck (outfitted
with
seats) into
the animal enclosures, where you have great
photo opportunities and the chance to feed some animals
- like Rocky the
giraffe. The pace
is slower
than the
train ride, and knowledgeable guides provide
in-depth details on the park's animals
and breeding efforts.
The opportunity to get
within feet of a number of massive, endangered species is well
worth
the additional
cost.
There are three choices
of tours: Tour
1 goes to East Africa and the Asian Plains,
offering the chance to feed giraffes and
rhinos; Tour 2 goes to South Africa and the
Asian Waterhole, stopping to feed giraffes;
and Tour
3 goes to all four
enclosures, stopping
to feed
giraffes and
rhinos. The fee is $98.95 for the shorter
tours that last a little under two hours, $145 for
the three-hour
tour.
The three-hour photo caravan tour won't
give you much time to see the rest of the exhibits;
it might
be better
for
a subsequent visit
to
the park.
If you take
the shorter tour, you'll still need to
plan wisely in order to
see everything.
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