Paradise park

I carried out some volunteering work with Paradise Park, Hayle, Cornwall. Learning how conservation strategies, and how animal sanctuaries are ran, as well as how to educate people about conservation.

Hayle

Hayle is a small town situated in West Cornwall. It has a population of around 9,000. But it is not just home to people it is also home to a wide array of species ranging from flora and fauna, as well as marine and terrestrial. This is because Hayle has a wide range of habitats such as a dune system which is listed as a SSSI (Special site of scientific interest). The dune system is home to many different species including Marram grass (Ammophila arenaria), which is particularly important to the dune system as its roots stabiles the sand allowing the dunes to form, so that other species can inhabit the area. Hayle also has many estuaries and wildlife reserves, mostly owned by the RSPB, due to the array of birds that migrate to the area at different times of the year.

Paradise Park

Paradise Park is a wildlife sanctuary and tourist attraction. The park is also connected and has supported many organisations and charities with conservation efforts of bird species globally. Including: Operation Chough since 1987 (this was established at Paradise Park) and the World Parrot Trust registered charity from 1989. The World Parrot Trust charity has conservation and wildlife projects worldwide and has helped the survival of 70 species of parrots in 43 countries. Operation Chough is a project which aimed to reintroduce choughs back to the Cornish coastline. Choughs are a member of the crow family, but they have red-legs and re bills. Paradise park was successful in reintroducing them to Cornwall with a sustained population now being established. So, now they reestablish Coughs in other areas such as Jersey which had not had Coughs in the area for 100years, and now they are trying to establish other areas in the UK where the birds can be introduced.

The park is home to over 1,000 birds plus mammals including Red Pandas, Red Squirrels and Asian Otters. The park specialises in endangered parrots and many rare species that may only now be found in captivity. As well as educate the public about conservation and what they can do to sustain animal populations for the future.

To find out more information about Paradise Park, this is a link to their website: https://paradisepark.org.uk/

My reflection

Paradise Park allowed me to further my knowledge in the tourism, and how to educate the public on conservation issue. As well as what it takes to set up charities and conservation projects, which is something I want to further my knowledge in as i would like to run conservation projects in the future. Therefore it is worthwhile me learning from places like Paradise Park how the conservation works, and how they educate the public to help with these efforts, and how they establish funding.

I also learnt a lot of information on the upkeep of sanctuaries such as this one. I helped with looking after some of the birds, and cleaning out their enclosures. As well as shadowing a vet to learn about medication that species like the ones at Paradise park need and what checkups need to be done to ensure the birds are happy and healthy.

So, while being at Paradise Park I have been able to further my knowledge in conservation, which will be useful for a future job prospect as well as further my knowledge in the tourism industry and how conservation works in different areas.