Accommodation Directory for Kwazulu Natal | Places Of Interest
"The African Bird Of Prey Sanctuary"
LION PARK ROAD | KWAZULU NATAL | SOUTH AFRICA
The African Bird of Prey Sanctuary is
dedicated to the conservation of indigenous raptors and is base to ongoing
research, breeding and rehabilitation projects for birds of prey. The majority
of these projects run ‘behind the scenes’ to ensure that the integrity of the
wild birds is not compromised and that a high release success rate is achieved.
The sanctuary is, however, also home to a wide selection of captive-bred or
‘non-releasable rehabilitation’ birds of prey. These raptors can be viewed in
their ‘micro-environment’ enclosures by anyone who wishes to visit and learn
about South Africa’s magnificent aerial predators. Education and
awareness is paramount to the effective conservation of our environment and its
creatures.
To facilitate this, a specially trained group of raptors are flown
in daily flight displays. These demonstrations allow the raptors themselves to
become both teachers and ambassadors for their wild counterparts, so that
members of the public can experience these normally rare and elusive birds
first hand. The shows are daily at 10.30am (except Mondays) and 10.30am and 3pm
on week-ends. Entrance fees are R40.00 for adults and R25.00 for children.
Photograph by Andrea Goebel
Found on the Lion Park road in KZN, the African Bird of Prey
Sanctuary opened quietly in June 2006, but is an amalgamation or a variety of
projects that have been ongoing for that last five years in KZN.
The sanctuary
is headed up by husband and wife team, Ben and Shannon Hoffman and cares for
over 180 different birds of prey of 50 different species. Biologist Ben Hoffman has been actively
working with birds of prey both in South Africa and Zimbabwe for over 25 years. He specializes in
raptor rehabilitation and handles over 100 cases annually. He has also to date
successfully bred 15 species of birds of prey, many of which are released back
into the wild. Raptor trainer, Shannon Hoffman has been working fulltime with
birds of prey for the last seven years, both in South Africa and abroad, and handles the education and
public awareness side of the business. Over 20 thousand people have so far
witnessed first-hand the birds of prey in action.
Photograph by Andrea Goebel
Partnering this project is the Mayibuye community, who owns the land on which the sanctuary is built and shares a percentage of all gate takings. The centre is also base to the African Raptor Trust (No. IT 1467/2005), of which the specialist rehabilitation facility ‘Raptor Rescue’ is currently the primary working group.
The African Bird Of Prey Sanctuary
+27 (0)31 7854382
+27 (0)82 925 3023
+27 (0)86 524 9048
The African Bird Of Prey Sanctuary
Photographs By Andrea Goebel - Information Courtesy Of The African Bird Of Prey Sanctuary
