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15-520: In 2009, USA Travel Guide ranked Lion Country as the 3rd best zoo in the nation. Developed by a group of entrepreneurs, Lion Country Safari became a place where families could experience an African safari. Due to its year round climate, South Florida proved to be an ideal location for the park. In the beginning, the park had its own 2 ft ( 610 mm ) narrow gauge railroad, the Everglade Express. The architects of Lion Country Safari based

30-501: A petting zoo , mini golf, paddle boats, two water slides, a small water park, and the popular giraffe-feeding exhibit. Food is available at Lion Country Safari's main restaurant. Las Pampas Ruaha National Park Kalahari Bushveldt Gir Forest Gorongosa Reserve Serengeti Plains Hwange National Park The Lion Country Safari franchise in Irvine, California , briefly featured Frasier , an old lion that became

45-490: A celebrity in his own right. An aging circus lion from Mexico was given to the Irvine facility in 1970. Already 18 years old, analogous to a human aged 80+, the lion was toothless and ill. Named "Frasier," he became a major attraction at the park when, despite his advanced age, Frasier fathered litters totalling 35 lion cubs by the park's pride of six lionesses. As a result, T-shirts, watches, and other souvenirs were made featuring

60-510: A photo of Frasier, which quickly became popular merchandise. In 1973, Lion Country tried to capitalize on their star with a feature film called Frasier the Sensuous Lion . The film featured a song, by the same title , performed by Sarah Vaughan . However, the film was a major flop, financially and critically, being roundly panned for using a different lion in Frasier′s place and for employing

75-462: A voice actor for Frasier to fictionalize the story. Frasier the Sensuous Lion died of pneumonia in 1972. He was buried at the park, with a sendoff by the Frasier clan of Scotland, which had adopted Frasier as its mascot. After his death, attendance at the Irvine park declined sharply. The park closed in 1984, with the owner still holding 13 years of the original 29 year lease, which he then subleased to

90-464: Is the only one remaining in operation. Lion Country Safari previously operated parks in Irvine, California (1970–1984); Grand Prairie, Texas (1971–1992); Stockbridge, Georgia (1970–1984); Mason, Ohio (1974–1980) and Doswell, Virginia (1974–1993); all of them subsequently closed. The original park in Florida consists of over 1,000 animals, throughout seven sections in the 4-mile preserve as well as

105-731: The Ffestiniog Railway in Wales and the Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad in Colorado . World War I trench railways produced the greatest concentration of 600 mm ( 1 ft  11 + 5 ⁄ 8  in ) gauge railways to date. In preparation for World War II , the French Maginot Line and Alpine Line also used 600 mm ( 1 ft  11 + 5 ⁄ 8  in ) gauge railways for supply routes to

120-632: The South African Class NG15 2-8-2 locomotives started their career on the 600 mm ( 1 ft  11 + 5 ⁄ 8  in ) gauge. The Otavi Mining and Railway Company in South West Africa (now Namibia ) were transferred to the 2 ft gauge railways in South Africa and currently some surviving locomotives reside in Wales on the 1 ft  11 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 597 mm ) gauge Welsh Highland Railway and

135-414: The 33-acre Amusement Park. Visitors who purchase a ticket enter the park in their own vehicle (no convertibles or soft top covers), driving slowly at their own pace, and view the animals while listening to a recorded narration which is available via streaming from SoundCloud . Many of the animals, such as giraffes , antelope , and zebras , are allowed to roam freely throughout the preserve, even crossing

150-458: The chimpanzees, named Little Mama , recorded as the oldest known living chimpanzee, was born around 1938, died on November 14, 2017, from kidney failure. Lion Country Safari also serves as a retirement facility for chimpanzees who were once used in research laboratories and entertainment. After visitors have driven through the park, they can visit Safari World , a theme park featuring exhibits, and amusement park fare such as an Animal Theater,

165-753: The design of the property on Jack Murphy Stadium. This attraction was eventually closed and the Crown Metal Products 4-4-0 locomotive was put on static display. Later, the locomotive was donated to the Gold Coast Railroad Museum in Miami before finally being bought and fully restored by the Veterans Memorial Railroad, located in Bristol, Florida's Veterans Memorial Park. It runs on that railroad to this day. The original South Florida park

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180-536: The fixed border defenses. Australia has over 4,000 kilometres (2,500 mi) of 2 ft ( 610 mm ) gauge sugar cane railway networks in the coastal areas of Queensland , which carry more than 30 million tonnes of sugar cane a year. Many 2 ft ( 610 mm ) gauge and 600 mm ( 1 ft  11 + 5 ⁄ 8  in ) gauge railways are used in amusement parks and theme parks worldwide. The interchange of rolling stock between these similar track gauges occasionally occurred; for example,

195-522: The frequently seen ostrich is not recommended, as they often peck on the reflective windows and windshields of passing cars. A unique aspect of Lion Country Safari is the chimpanzee exhibit. The chimpanzees live on an island system where they move to a different island every day, replicating their natural nomadic lifestyle. The chimpanzees live in complex social groups, as they would in the wild. Because of this, Lion Country Safari has been useful to those interested in behavioral studies of chimpanzees. One of

210-1158: The operators of the Wild Rivers water park, the Camp Frasier (later Camp James) summer camp and the Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre . The water park and summer camp closed in 2011, with the land turned into a housing development. The same fate befell the amphitheatre in 2016, such that the original Irvine-based Lion Country Safari land is now a 3,700-unit housing development. 2 ft and 600 mm gauge railways Two foot and 600 mm gauge railways are narrow gauge railways with track gauges of 2 ft ( 610 mm ) and 600 mm ( 1 ft  11 + 5 ⁄ 8  in ), respectively. Railways with similar, less common track gauges, such as 1 ft  11 + 3 ⁄ 4  in ( 603 mm ) and 1 ft  11 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 597 mm ), are grouped with 2 ft and 600 mm gauge railways. Most of these lines are tourist lines, which are often heritage railways or industrial lines, such as

225-507: The road in front of vehicles. Others, such as lions or apes , are segregated behind fences or water barriers. Visitors are warned to drive slowly and carefully, to avoid stopping too close to animals, and not to open their car doors or windows. The lions, whose ability to roam freely with cars was one of the park's original attractions, were separated from visitors by a fence around the road in 2005, due to visitors ignoring warnings and opening their car doors. Additionally, opening windows near

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