You need the Adobe Flash Player plugin to view this brochure properly.

Jump to page

1.

2.
Carpet Patch
3.
Top of the avenue
4.
Outside the house
5.
Wild Flower Valley
6.
The Aviary
7.
Tree Ferns
8.
Badger Sett
9.
Bug Hotel
10.
Bird Boxes
11.
Farmland View
12.
The Stables
13.
My Notes and Drawings
14.
My Notes and Drawings
15.
My Notes and Drawings
16.
My Notes and Drawings
Text only version of page 6. The Aviary

To view this page as it is intended to be viewed please download and install Adobe Flash Player.

5 The Aviary
6 Tree ferns
Just beside you are the famous Aviaries.
Stroll along to the shady fern walk,
Take some time to look at them
passing the well-hidden water tank in
the rocks to your right
Miss Alice
“The Aviary was built in 1889. 
Miss Alice
Our guests loved to come and visit it 
“Isn’t this a mysterious and marvellous
Baron Ferdinand
and help feed the exotic birds by hand. Some were 
place? Where do you think these strange
tethered on perches outside so they could be seen – something you 
plants come from? Although they were introduced recently to the
would not do today.
gardens, my brother and I were fascinated by exotic plant species.
We had a huge set of glass houses at the bottom of the hill where we
But the Aviary was also about something more serious. My brother and other
grew orchids and other rare plants.”
members of my family were interested in the natural world and gathering
knowledge about rare species of birds and animals. They recognised the impact
The Victorians were great collectors and introduced many of the plants and trees
human activity has on bird and animal habitats and that some needed protection
we think of as being ‘ordinary’ today – like the Araucaria araucana, or Monkey 
to survive. There is even a bird named after us, the Rothschild Mynah. You can
Puzzle Tree and many of the beautiful bedding plants you will see in the formal 
see some of them here, although you can’t in the wild any more. They are extinct,
gardens.
which is why breeding programmes here and in other aviaries are so important.
Take a closer look!”
Paul
“These Tree Ferns come from warmer climates like New Zealand, but 
grow quite happily here. But climate change is a big worry for us and 
Ian Hadgkiss, Head Aviary Keeper
we are doing lots of research to find out how to manage a warmer 
“Hello. I’m in charge of this fantastic aviary and its team of scientific
world in the future. How do you think the gardens will change in the 
conservators who follow in the footsteps of Miss Alice and her family.
next 100 years if the climate becomes hotter and drier? 
Use your imagination to draw the view you might see from Stop 6.”
We’re all dedicated to protecting rare birds and helping them cope
with human activity, which can push them to the verge of extinction.
You can find out more about the work we do by watching the Explorer video in the
Powerhouse or online when you get home.”
• How many different birds can you see in an Aviary?
• How many have red colouring and how many have green colouring?
• Why do you think they need to have such fabulous colours?
                Write the answers in the “Notes” section at the back of the booklet
When you are ready please find your way back to Stop 1, the Carpet 
When you are ready please find your way to Stop 6.
Patch,which is where you started this walk.
Page5
Page6