A Day with the Birds

If you grew up near me then you'll have heard of, and visited, the infamous Birdworld. While I think its a massive landmark, i'll let you off it you have no idea what i'm talking about. Apparently it's one of England's largest bird parks, and covers over 26 acres. Its owned by the neighboring garden center and its all beautifully landscaped, and full of little gardens and greenery.

Toucan

While the trees are nice and all, obviously the main thing is the birds.

I'm really fussy with animal parks. I think they can do amazing things, but the animals need to come first. Birdworld gives them nice clean enclosures, most are pretty roomy, and they all have space to fly and/or run around.

Kookaburras

Zebra Finch

Rea

Bustard

Birdworld used to feel like an extension of my garden when I was little, and the road signs always told me that I was getting near home, and long car journeys were coming to an end. Despite all this, until the other day, I hadn't been in years.

Rob and I decided to give it a revisit. It still has lots of the same birds, but excitement of the day, it now has a second penguin enclosure!

Penguin Island homes the original Humboldt's Penguins. Birdworld is also really involved in conservation and has mastered penguin breeding. If you've been to Longleat, chances are you've seen a Birdworld born Humboldt's penguin.

The new Penguin Beach homes the African Penguins. You can see both sets of penguins being fed, and there's lots of other shows that help you get the most from your visit. You can also buy small pots of bird food to feed certain birds as you walk around, I became great friends with some turkeys.

Two of the African Penguins. The fellow at the back loved sliding down the sandy bank on his belly.

Despite the name, its not just birds. There's also a small farm and we got to stroke some gorgeous goats, although apparently turning my garden in to a goat field isn't okay with the family.

Annnd last, but not least, there's an Underwater World. You can walk through the aquarium in no time, and most of the fish are all pretty small - but still really interesting and it's worth taking your time. You also get to see some rather large piranhas and even crocodiles!

All in all, it was a good day out. It was nice to go somewhere that was so familiar and see how it's changed, but more importantly to look at some really cool birds. I'm super nerdy, I know. It was also great to see all the different people walking around. All ages seemed to be enjoying themselves, which can only be a good thing! :)