Safari West

Safari West
Location Sonoma County, California, United States
Coordinates 38°33′26″N 122°41′45″W / 38.5571°N 122.6959°W / 38.5571; -122.6959Coordinates: 38°33′26″N 122°41′45″W / 38.5571°N 122.6959°W / 38.5571; -122.6959
Land area 400 acres (160 ha)
Number of animals 850
Number of species 50
Memberships AZA[1]
Website www.safariwest.com

Safari West is a 400-acre (160 ha) private wildlife preserve located in Sonoma County, California, United States.

The selection of wildlife emphasizes species native to Africa, including giraffes, rhinoceros, cheetahs, and numerous species of birds. The park engages in breeding programs that, through exchanges with other zoos and parks, keep the gene pool healthy for the species that are involved in the program. The park is also home to species that are considered to be extinct in the wild.

The park, one of six accredited private zoos in the United States,[2] combines wild animal care with vacation lodging.[3] The establishment was started in the early 1970s on a cattle ranch in Beverly Hills, California, owned by Otto Lang, a film director who worked on The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Sea Hunt, Flipper, and Daktari.[4] Peter Lang, his son, inspired by his father's interest in animals, began to keep wild animals on the ranch.[2]

After selling the Beverly Hills property, for use as a park, Peter Lang moved the operation to a larger ranch near Calistoga, California, in 1978, and then in 1989 to its present location on a former sheep ranch near Santa Rosa, California. In 1993, he opened it to children's tours, and later added overnight lodging, safari tours, and a restaurant. As of 2013, it had about 900 animals of approximately 79 animal species.[3][4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "List of Accredited Zoos and Aquariums". aza.org. AZA. Retrieved May 13, 2012.
  2. 1 2 Jack Boulware (April 6, 2003). "The Green Hills of Sonoma:Mingling with wildlife just outside the 'burbs at Safari West". San Francisco Chronicle.
  3. 1 2 Patricia Leigh Brown (February 10, 2006). "Where Cheetahs Roam in Deepest California". New York Times.
  4. 1 2 "A Wild Time in California Wine Country". Washington post. March 14, 2004.
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