Fota Island Wildlife Park

Conservation - Learning - Fun

Fota Wildlife Park is one of Ireland's top ten visitor attractions and a perfect place to visit for people of all ages.

Fota Wildlife Park is not like an ordinary zoo. Wherever possible the park  have chosen animals that thrive in a free-range environment, which allows them to roam free, while mixed with other species and with us human visitors! These species are also able to adjust to the Irish Climate. The animals themselves make the choice of seeking shelter when necessary. In some cases, for example the giraffes, only a barrier separates visitors from the animals but this is always unobtrusive and does not reduce the animals' quality of life.

Fota Wildlife Park has now opened the first Cheetah Run in Ireland. This device makes the cheetahs work for their food by suspending it on a wire that travels 10 feet off the ground, at approximately 65kph. Cheetahs by their very nature, will not work for their food if they do not have to. So in an effort to exercise them, and as part of their enrichment program, Fota Wildlife Park have installed this device. You can see the cheetahs being fed in their new run daily at 3pm