Select a region
The Lemurs and Langurs at a wildlife reserve in Kent have had 4K TVs installed in their enclosures as part of a trial aimed at helping reintegrate them into the wild.
The Sony Bravia X90C 4K Ultra HD TVs are being used to show the animals scenes from their natural habitats in Java and Madagascar in ultra high definition, with the hope it could help them familiarise themselves with their future surroundings.
The move is an experiment as part of the Back To The Wild programme at Port Lympne Reserve in Kent, a world renowned scheme that reintroduces animals to the wild.
Simon Jeffery, animal manager at Port Lympne Reserve, said: “We’re always looking for new ways to engage and stimulate our animals. We use all sorts of different techniques to do this to keep our animals as interested and healthy as possible.
“Sometimes the enrichment can involve scents or tastes or even new climbing features or toys but this time we wanted to try something a little different to see if they would be interested in their natural habitats in the wild.
He added that giving the animals the chance to see their potential new home on the TVs worked with the theme of the enclosures, which are also designed to match the habitat.
“Since 2012, we have successfully reintroduced several groups of langurs, gibbons and grizzled leaf monkeys from Port Lympne Reserve and our sister park, Howletts Wild Animal Park, to protected forests in Java. We plan to send this particular group of langurs in 2016,” Jeffery said.
“Although we have been working closely with local communities in Madagascar for some time, we haven’t yet introduced captive born lemurs from the parks to this unique island. Our surveys and ground work have been very successful and we’re really excited to start exploring the possibility of sending captive born lemurs back to the wild, where they belong.”
The Reserve is part of The Aspinall Foundation, the conservation charity which does extensive work protecting and breeding rare and endangered animals.
We doubt many of them have seen a 4K TV before, but they seem to like it.
