Port Lympne Wild Animal Park, Wildlife park in Hythe, England
Port Lympne Wild Animal Park covers 600 acres near Hythe in Kent and incorporates the Edwardian Port Lympne Mansion with landscaped gardens designed by Sir Herbert Baker for Sir Philip Sassoon. The site holds over 650 animals of some 90 species, among them gorillas, black rhinos and African elephants, and is divided into a walking section and a safari area toured in open-sided trucks.
The reserve opened in 1976 after John Aspinall acquired the estate in 1973. The purchase provided additional space for his growing collection of animals.
The John Aspinall Foundation operates the park since 1984, focusing on breeding programs and conservation efforts for endangered species worldwide.
Visitors can walk through the grounds or join safari tours in adapted vehicles. Sturdy footwear helps when navigating the sloped paths across the site.
In 2022 Port Lympne became the only zoo in Europe to keep three rhino species: black, white and Indian. The gorillas sent to Africa went to the Batéké Plateau, where the Aspinall Foundation works with Congo-Brazzaville and Gabon to protect around one million acres of savannah.
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