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April 2008

Easter being so early this year meant the weather was not as good as we would have hoped. However, bank holiday Monday was fairly busy for us. The new Valley of the Eagles arena was completed on schedule; in time for a few days of trial runs before the holiday, and staff and birds alike are now getting used to the changes. The views for the audience, especially those sitting in the top tier of seats, are virtually 360°, which means they can see birds flying down into the lower arena behind them, rather than only being able to see what’s going on in front of them in the meadow. Everyone agrees that this is a fantastic success and we all look forward to the summer flying displays up there, which should just get more and more spectacular as the season progresses, especially with all the new members of the flying team, such as the hooded vultures, joining in the fun.

Other building projects are ongoing round the grounds. The Gymnogene aviary rebuild I mentioned last month has been completed and the birds settled straight into their new environment, which includes enrichment in the form of thick ropes, a hollowed out tree stump and a replica weaver bird’s nest, all of which give them the chance to exhibit some natural behaviours. This is the second of our new aviaries that is covered with netting down to handrail height.

The study centre is currently having an extension built on to the end of it, which will house extra facilities for when it is being used by groups. Once the foundation work was completed, the building started going up very swiftly and the progress being made can be seen daily.

Lou Richie, Editor

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