WATCH: New £6.5 million Discovery Centre opens at Highland Wildlife Park
The long awaited £6.5 million Scotland’s Wildlife Discovery Centre has finally opened its doors with kids from Kincraig the first to give it a big thumbs up.
Visitors young and old can now learn about nature and how they can help save wildlife thanks to the big-money new additions at the Highland Wildlife Park by Kincraig.
The centre in fact comprises three new buildings, an ambitious community outreach programme and a biodiversity action plan to help protect native species.
The project has gone through some major transitions since being launched and had to negotiate a number of big hurdles - not least the Covid-19 pandemic.
Six pupils from Alvie Primary School played their part in the opening by assisting park owners Royal Zoological Society of Scotland chief executive with the cutting of the ribbon.
Each pupil had a totally different passion, ranging from Scottish wildcats to tigers - and even lions!
For Talia Leil there was no argument: "Wolves are the best! That's why I love being here because they're so fantastic to see."
Her schoolmate Leah Keith loved the park too but had to confess: "I love lions the best! Maybe one day they will be here too."
Ben Supple, the wildlife conservation charity’s deputy chief executive, said: “With one in nine species at risk of extinction in Scotland and a million across the globe, it is more important than ever to engage and inspire people to create a world where nature is protected, valued and loved.
“We are incredibly proud to open the doors to the Scotland’s Wildlife Discovery Centre project which includes an interactive exhibition, a hilltop den where we will tell stories about how we work with partners to restore species, and new classrooms to support STEM learning and provide space to engage local communities with the natural world.
“A fantastic example is how we will place visitors at the heart of conservation as they enjoy 360-degree views of the wildcat breeding centre at Highland Wildlife Park and into the Cairngorms, where wildcats are being released as part of the Saving Wildcats partnership led by RZSS.”
Funding for the project will deliver new education and community jobs to broaden inclusion and access to nature.
It will also help protect native species found at Highland Wildlife Park.
Mr Supple explained: “Access to nature can have tremendously powerful mental and physical health and wellbeing benefits and this project will help more people and communities experience the joys of being close to wildlife.
“We are very grateful for the funding we have received, which has enabled us to considerably increase the size of our education and community team.
“Our aim will be to reach out to various, diverse communities which experience barriers to accessing nature, including poverty, loneliness and disabilities.
“The project has also helped to fund a biodiversity action plan to discover and protect native species at Highland Wildlife Park such as the small scabious mining bee.”
NatureScot's deputy director of nature and climate change, Eileen Stuart said: "We are pleased to see Scotland's Wildlife Discovery Centre open its doors today, with our support given through European Regional Development Funding.
“These buildings allow more visitors to experience meaningful connections with the wildlife that surrounds them, inspiring them to care more deeply for the nature on their doorstep as well as understanding the impacts on cold-environment animals from around the world."
The Scotland’s Wildlife Discovery Centre Project is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Natural and Cultural Heritage Fund led by NatureScot, and many other generous funders.
A little bit more about the new discovery centre:
An Doras: The Gateway (UN DOH-rus) (like gateway- dorus- door- can be a placename too- there is a place in Strathnairn called Dorus nan Gaidheal- the gateway or door of the Gaels)
An immersive and exciting space connecting amazing global species to wonderful Scottish wildlife through games, interactives, technology and stories of the past, present and future, animals, people and places.
A' Chaonnag: Learning Hive (A' CH UH- nyak) (Beehive- a hive of buzzing learning activity)
This is the big building you’ll see on top of the hill as you come into the park which will provide much-needed space, and enable groups and communities to explore the world of wildlife, removing barriers and accessible programmes to connect people to nature and conservation through engaging and adaptable sessions, STEM, outdoor learning and citizen science.
An Saobhaidh: Conservation Den (UN SUH-vee) (Fox Den - a common placename seen on many maps… a safe place, a place to nurture before setting out into the world)
This space offers 360 degree views of the landscape, looking into the area of the park where captive wildcats are bred for release into the wild and then out into the unique habitats of the Cairngorms.
In the den visitors can sit, take a moment, explore the amazing conservation work that is happening right here, right now including all about why wildcats in Scotland are on the brink of extinction and how RZSS and partners are working together to save the species.
Lots more on this story and pictures also in the next Strathy
