| African Lion Safari | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 33°53′58″S150°36′10″E / 33.8994868°S 150.6026459°E | |
| Date opened | 1968 [1] |
| Date closed | 1991 [1] |
| Location | Warragamba, New South Wales, Australia |
| Annual visitors | 200,000 [1] |
| Website | No Web site available |
The African Lion Safari was a wildlife park that Stafford Bullen opened in 1968. It operated near Warragamba on the outskirts of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia until 1991.
There was also a dolphinarium in the African Lion Safari.
African Lion Safari was opened by Stafford Bullen (1925–2001) in 1968. At the time, Bullen was still operating a travelling circus, in 1969 he opened a second venture in neighbouring wallacia Bullen's Animal World. For the opening, a promotional single of The Tokens' "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" was recorded by a band using the name "The Love Machine" (the band turned out to be Tymepiece). The safari was popular in its early years and attracted up to 200,000 visitors each year. [1] [2]
With the suburbs encroaching on the facility, and extensive work required to upgrade the park following legislative changes, it eventually closed in 1991 but continued to hold animals on site that were used in a circus but not displayed to the public. [1]
African Lion Safari originally opened in Warragamba, where it had a drive through area full of wild animals i.e. lions, tigers and bears.
On 7 August 1995, a lioness escaped from the park, roamed the nearby townships of Warragamba and Silverdale, and killed a dog. The lioness responsible for killing the dog was shot by a park employee. [3] As a result of the escape, the park was required to upgrade facilities. A bear also escaped and was shot by residents, as reported by Michael Feeny. [4]
Whipsnade Zoo, formerly known as ZSL Whipsnade Zoo and Whipsnade Wild Animal Park, is a zoo and safari park located at Whipsnade, near Dunstable in Bedfordshire, England. It is one of two zoos that are owned by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), a charity devoted to the worldwide conservation of animals and their habitats.
Warragamba Dam is a heritage-listed dam in the outer South Western Sydney suburb of Warragamba, Wollondilly Shire in New South Wales, Australia. It is a concrete gravity dam, which creates Lake Burragorang, the primary reservoir for water supply for the city of Sydney. The dam wall is located approximately 65 kilometres (40 mi) W of Sydney central business district, 4½ km SW of the town of Wallacia, and 1 km NW of the village of Warragamba.
Warragamba is a town in New South Wales, Australia, in Wollondilly Shire. Located on the eastern edge of the Blue Mountains, Warragamba is one and a half hour's drive west of Sydney. The name Warragamba comes from the aboriginal words Warra and Gamba meaning 'water running over rocks'.
The white lion is a rare colour mutation of the lion, specifically the Southern African lion. White lions in the area of Timbavati are thought to have been indigenous to the Timbavati region of South Africa for centuries, although the earliest recorded sighting in this region was in 1938. White lions first became known to the English-speaking world in 1977 through the book The White Lions of Timbavati.
A safari park, sometimes known as a wildlife park, is a zoo-like commercial drive-in tourist attraction where visitors can drive their own vehicles or ride in vehicles provided by the facility to observe freely roaming animals.
Chipperfield's Circus is a British family touring show, continuing a 300-year-old family business.
Bullen is a surname, and may refer to:
Woburn Safari Park is a safari park located in Woburn, Bedfordshire, England. Visitors to the park can drive through exhibits, which contain species such as southern white rhino, elephants, tigers and black bears. It is part of the estates of the Duke of Bedford that also includes Woburn Abbey and its 3,000-acre (1,200 ha) deer park. The Safari Park itself covers 360 acres (150 ha).
Bullen's Animal World was a circus style theme park located at Wallacia on the outskirts of Sydney. Its address was 11 Park Road, Wallacia. An equivalent one also existed at Wanneroo Lion Park in Wanneroo in Perth.
Stafford Bullen was an Australian circus proprietor and co-founder of the African Lion Safari, Warragamba.
Alfred Percival Bullen was, along with his wife, Lilian Ethel Bullen and brother, a founder of Bullen's Circus.
Shambala Animal Kingdom was a 53 hectares zoological park outside Kuranda, Queensland, Australia. The park was privately owned. It was formerly known as "Cairns Wildlife Safari Reserve", "Mareeba Wild Animal Park" and "Out of Africa Reserve". After being purchased by a Sydney lawyer, the zoo was renamed "Shambala Animal Kingdom". The zoo was closed in April 2013 citing financial reasons.
Burragorang or Burragorang Valley is a locality in the Macarthur Region of New South Wales, Australia, in Wollondilly Shire. It is home to Lake Burragorang, which is impounded by Warragamba Dam. It is located within the Blue Mountains National Park – specifically the Nattai National Park.
Animal Liberation is a nonprofit animal rights organisation based in Sydney, founded by Christine Townend and led by current CEO Lynda Stoner. It was formed in 1976, one year after the release of Animal Liberation by Australian philosopher Peter Singer. Animal Liberation's primary campaigns are to advocate against the use of animals for food, clothing, research, sport and entertainment, by promoting a vegan lifestyle.
Shenzhen Safari Park is a zoo in Shenzhen, China. It is located in near Xili Lake in Xili Subdistrict. and covers an area of 1.2 million square meters. It is the first zoo in China to have uncaged animals. There are over 300 species and more than ten thousand animals in the zoo, including endangered ones such as Giant Pandas and South China tigers.
Wanneroo Lion Park, formerly Bullen's African Lion Safari Park, was an open-range zoo in Carabooda, in the north of Perth, Western Australia. It operated for 17 years, between 1971 and 1988.
Bullen's African Lion Safari Park was the name of several open-range safari parks in Australia:
Wirth's Circus, also known as Wirth Brothers' Circus, was Australia's largest and most prestigious circus company for eight decades. Billed as Australia's own 'Greatest show on Earth', the travelling circus held an international reputation.
