Wildlife and hiking park Südliche Weinstrasse

Wildlife and hiking park Südliche Weinstrasse
particularities	Wildlife Park School
place	Hauptstrasse 76857 Silz
surface	100 hectares
opening	April 18, 1973
Animal species	approx. 15
Individuals	about 400
Visitor numbers	approx. 100,000
organization
management	Daniel Kraus
Sponsorship	Southern Wine Route district
Funding organizations	Förderverein Wildparkschule e. V.
Wildlife park landscape
www.wildpark-silz.de

Coordinates: 49 ° 8 ′ 24 ″  N , 7 ° 55 ′ 56 ″  E

The wildlife and hiking park Südliche Weinstrasse is a recreational facility that combines the viewing of wild animals in a wildlife park with the possibility of hiking in a low mountain range . The park is located in the south of Rhineland-Palatinate near the municipality of Silz im Wasgau , which is formed by the southern part of the Palatinate Forest and the northern part of the Vosges . It is not named after the German Wine Route , which is about 6 km away, but after the district of Southern Wine Route . The leisure facility is used by around 100,000 visitors annually.

Geographical location

Pond in the wildlife park

The park, part of the Franco-German Palatinate Forest-Northern Vosges biosphere reserve , is located 12 km north of the French border in the valley of the Klingbach , which flows by 200 m to the north and sends its water over the Michelsbach into the Rhine . The park area, surrounded by elevations, is between 200 and 350  m above sea level. NHN and an area of ​​about 100 hectares; a larger and a smaller pond are dammed at a lower point . They are fed by a left tributary of the Sandwiesenbach , which flows 1 km further from the right into the Klingbach.

From northeast to southwest, Landesstrasse  493 ( Klingenmünster - Vorderweidenthal ) passes southeast of the park . The next motorway is the A 65 ( Karlsruhe - Ludwigshafen ); It is 19.5 km to junction 18 Insheim .

history

The park is based on a planning study by the President of the Game Enclosure Section of the International Hunting Association, Heinrich Prinz Reuss. The planning placed particular emphasis on family-friendly facilities and only used land that would otherwise have fallen into the social wasteland. The then mayor of Silz, Franz Andelfinger, worked as a senior official at the Südliche Weinstrasse district administration to combine professional expertise and community needs and to locate the wildlife and hiking park in the district of Silz.

The designated handover of the wildlife and hiking park took place on April 18, 1975 by the then Rhineland-Palatinate Minister of Economics and Transport, Heinrich Holkenbrink .

The operating company "Wild- und Wanderpark Südliche Weinstraße GmbH" existed from 1998 to 2019. Marianne Geppert and Michael Müller were the managing directors. The district of Südliche Weinstrasse, to which the site belongs, then bought back the GmbH and hired Daniel Kraus as managing director on January 1, 2020.

Livestock

15 different types of larger animals live here with around 400 individuals and can be observed - some in the wild. In mammals there are u. a. European bison , red and fallow deer , European mouflons , wild boars , wolves and ferrets . From April to October you can watch the feeding of wolves every day at 11 a.m. In the aviaries are owls kept, there are owls and around the ponds possibilities have ducks and geese settled.

• 

  Bison

• 

  Red deer

• 

  doe

• 

  Mouflon ram

• 

  wild boar

• 

  wolf

• 

  Eagle owl

• 

  Little owl

Facilities

In addition to a restaurant, kiosk and barbecue hut, there is a viewing tower , a petting zoo , a children's and an adventure playground . The small circular route can be covered in a maximum of 60 minutes, the large one in twice as long . There are no significant differences in altitude to overcome on either. Side paths are sometimes a little steeper and not suitable for wheelchairs or prams .

For school classes, the "Wildlife Park School" offers courses with different topics, including a guided tour through the entire park, during which all animal species are briefly addressed. The information is prepared in a child-friendly manner and is supplemented by small tasks, games and puzzles. The courses in the park last about two hours and are designed for 25 to 30 participants. Teachers can request free didactic material from the park administration to prepare for class.

Web links

Commons : Wildpark Silz  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Wildlife and Hiking Park Managing Director Geppert retired. Report of the Pfalz Express from December 16, 2019.
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Wildlife and Wanderpark Südliche Weinstrasse. Operator website, accessed March 2, 2015 .