Chessington says bonjour, hallo and ola to three new white rhinos.
Heavy snowfall can't halt animals' charge from Europe to Surrey for new multi-million pound safari attraction - ZUFARI
The first steps in bringing the African Safari to Surrey are underway with the arrival of three white rhinoceroses at Chessington World of Adventures Resort.
Rhinos Kanty, Dozer and Gyasi have arrived on British shores after travelling by land and sea from zoos in Arnhem in Holland, Beauval in France, and Lisbon in Portugal. Their epic journey took three days, with snowy conditions and road closures in Northern Europe threatening to derail the big move at the last minute.
The trio have moved into their new state-of-the-art enclosure at Chessington, where they will spend the next few months settling in and getting to know each other ahead of the launch of the resort’s new multimillion pound attraction, ZUFARI: Ride into Africa! in March 2013.
ZUFARI: Ride into Africa! will be a unique safari truck expedition into a mysterious African kingdom where a theme park adventure and live safari animals come together for the first time ever in the UK.
Marc Boardman, Zoo Manager at Chessington World of Adventures, says: “We are thrilled to welcome three white rhinos to the resort for the first time since Chessington opened as a Zoo 81 years ago. With any new animal arrival there are challenges to face, and we have recruited specialist rhino keepers to ensure they have the best care possible. The new rhino enclosure has some of the most modern facilities in Europe and it’s great to finally welcome its new residents.
“The zookeepers have had to learn special verbal commands in French, Dutch and Portuguese so the animals understand them in the first instance – until they are able to learn their English commands.”
After a standard bedding-in period, zookeepers at Chessington hope to welcome a female rhino to the resort in the future to allow them to add the species to the Zoo’s already highly successful breeding programme.
White rhinos are the world’s second biggest land mammal, usually weighing over two tonnes (6,000lbs), and were added to the red endangered list in 2010. The word rhinoceros comes from the Greek word rhino (nose) and ceros (horn).
Chessington is currently expanding its resort by over 10% into the 22 acre site and welcoming a number of native African species for the launch of ZUFARI: Ride into Africa!. Over the next few weeks, the white rhinos will be joined by Rothschild giraffes, greater flamingos, blesbok, Nile lechwe, Grevy’s zebra and many more amazing animals.
David Smith, General Manager at Chessington World of Adventures Resort, says: “White rhinos are magnificent animals and we’re sure our visitors will be very excited to meet them next year. As the only safari experience inside the M25 and the only theme park attraction of its kind, ZUFARI: Ride into Africa! will allow people to get an authentic taste of Africa without having to venture far from the big city.”
