A walk in the wild
by Cristina Viramontes-Tobola
UHCLIDIAN STAFF

Bayou Wildlife Park in Alvin offers a true exotic animal paradise without the costly expense of a wildlife safari.

Clint Wolston and his wife, Barbara, established Bayou Wildlife Park in 1980. The Wolston's bought the land in four different tracks and are the sole owners of the 86-acre natural habitat.

"We have built the whole place ourselves," Wolston said. "We dug all the lakes, built all the fences, all the barns, and then we began buying all the animals." The park officially opened its doors to the public in 1986.

Bayou Wildlife Park is a completely natural setting where a variety of birds and exotic animals roam freely through the prairies and woods. The park is home to 400 birds and animals. None of the animals are caged.

"The rhinoceros and giraffe are in an enclosure, which is required by law," said Maureen Waggoner, park employee. "All the other animals are running free. We find that they [animals] tend to stay happier and healthier not being caged. The animals breed much better as well."

A tram ride takes visitors on a 3-mile trip, approximately 40 minutes in duration.

During the tram rides, wildlife guides deliver an informative talk about the 40 different species.

"We are going to tell you about every one of the different species," Wolston said.

"We will tell you where they are from, and what they do and how they got here. We have been doing this for 16 years, so we know a little bit about them."

The tour ride makes frequent stops in various parts of the park. These stops allow passengers to meet and feed the animals on a closer basis. Park visitors are highly encouraged to feed the animals from buckets of food and not by hand.

"The animals are not tame but they associate the tram ride with an extra food supply," Waggoner said. "So as soon as they see the tram, they all come running over. People get to feed them and pet them."

Bayou Wildlife Park recently received a new member to its family. A female Rothschild giraffe, named Jennifer, was born March 2. The much anticipated delivery lasted two hours. The pregnancy lasted fifteen months. There are only 70 Rothschild giraffes left in captivity.

"We will keep this new female giraffe, and I am hoping to get a male giraffe so they can breed," Wolston said. "I am going to try to do my part to keep this species of giraffe going because there aren't a lot of them left."

Of the 40 different species of birds and animals, eight endangered species inhabit the park. The endangered species in the park at this time include: Bantang cattle, white rhinoceros, gaur cattle, barasinga deer, ringtail lemur [monkey], Pere David deer, addax, and the scimitar horned oryx.

Wolston established a program to obtain more endangered species and help them reproduce in captivity. Bayou Wildlife Endangered Animals, Inc., is a non-profit organization that accepts donations from anyone who would like to contribute to this cause.

"I created the organization for the purpose of this park," Wolston said. "If people want to donate [to the organization], then that money helps keep the animals fed and keeps them going."

Contributions are used to purchase endangered animals and birds listed by the U.S. Department of the Interior, the maintenance and feeding of the endangered animals and birds, and the maintenance of the facilities for these animals.

The park is operated by an average of three to eight employees. The animals are fed about 16 tons of feed a month and 2,500 bails of hay a year. The average feeding cost for the animals is $3,400 a month.

"This is a pretty expensive place to run," Wolston said. "There aren't a whole lot of parks left because they can't make it. By coming out here to Bayou Wildlife Park and paying admission to see the animals...that helps us to pay for everything out here."

The park offers field trips for children and elderly people. People can also host birthday parties at the park.

For brochure information, write to: 5050 FM 517, Alvin, TX 77511 or call (281) 337-6376 for operation times.

Don't forget to bring your camera.

Top of Page | Front Page