More than two dozen life-sized brick model animals have arrived at Knowsley Safari for this year's summer trail.
The Endangered Species Bricklive exhibition opened on Saturday and is running for eight weeks. Visitors will be able to see the models - made from a staggering 1.1 million bricks - along the attraction's Foot Safari, alongside the real giraffes, meerkats, Amur tigers and bush dogs who already reside there.
They include Bryn, a seven-foot tall Bengal tiger, which took a team of three builders more than 390 hours to create, using more than 81,000 bricks.
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Also included in the line-up is Oscar the Orangutang. He’s the handiwork of four modelmakers who spent 180 hours creating the masterpiece from 50,000 individual bricks. Other brick models include a giant panda, green sea turtle, snow leopard and cheetah.
Each model is accompanied by an eye-catching and educational information board, which shares fun and interesting facts about each endangered species, as well as its level of threat, according to the IUCN’s Red List categorisation. These range from vulnerable to endangered, to critically endangered.
Rachel Scott, head of marketing at Knowsley Safari, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to welcome back Bricklive. These displays have been hugely popular with our visitors in the past and this summer’s installation, our third, is set to be even more popular. Not to mention, more important.
“Our focus, this time, on Endangered Species perfectly aligns with the global and national conservation programmes that Knowsley Safari supports, and we know that our visitors are also really interested and passionate about them.
“The amazing high-profile work undertaken by Sir David Attenborough – and many others – has brought conservation and how we can protect our planet to the masses, which is incredible. Now, activities such as our brick models can bring their plight event closer to home.
"It will enable visitors to Knowsley Safari to see them up close, learn a bit about them and appreciate the progress being made to protect them – as part of a fabulously fun family day out.”
Christina Anthony, from model builders Bricklive, said: “At Bricklive we’re focused on creating an environment that encourages interactive play, fosters creativity, collaboration and physical experiences.
“By combining all of these fun factors with such an important and interesting design theme as endangered species, is a really powerful, enjoyable and engaging way to convey the importance of conservation to all ages.”
The event follows on from the successful Bricklive Ocean, which came to the park last year, and the Ultimate Brick Safari which thrilled visitors back in 2019.
Along with land animals, the Endangered Species collection will also feature some sea creatures, with visitors able to look out for a blue fin tuna, a green sea turtle and a dolphin.
The Endangered Species event runs from now until Sunday, September 4, 2022 to coincide with the school summer holidays.
Tickets cost £15 for children and £18.50 for adults, with cheaper tickets available for later time slots. Under threes and carers go free. Visitors must book online.
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