Wanneroo Lion Park, Safari zoo in Wanneroo, Australia
Wanneroo Lion Park was a safari zoo in Western Australia where visitors drove their own cars through open enclosures containing free-roaming lions. The park was home to two separate lion prides that lived within these drive-through sections.
The park opened in 1971 as a joint venture between the Bullen brothers, television station TVW7, and Michael Edgley after Bullens Circus closed. The circus background of the founders shaped how the animals were managed and presented to the public from the very start.
The Wanneroo Lion Park gave visitors a way to watch lions from inside their own cars, with no barriers separating them from the animals. Families from across the region made the trip specifically for this kind of close encounter, which was unlike anything offered at a standard zoo.
Visitors drove through the enclosures in their own vehicles, keeping windows shut at all times as the lions would approach and climb onto cars. Loose parts like windscreen wipers were best removed or secured before entering, as the animals tended to pull at them.
The lions became known for sitting on car bonnets and roofs for long stretches during the drive-through, turning the vehicles themselves into resting spots. Some cars left the park with visible claw marks on the bodywork.
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