Coronation: Whipsnade Zoo's Big Help Out volunteers to weed giant lion - BBC

Senin, 08 Mei 2023

Coronation: Whipsnade Zoo's Big Help Out volunteers to weed giant lion - BBC

A group of volunteers are to weed a landmark lion figure on a hillside as part of the Coronation weekend's The Big Help Out initiative.

The giant 147m-long (483ft) lion, near Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire, was created in 1933 and is the largest hill figure in England.

The zoo said it was "not in a great state", despite being restored in 2018.

It is hoped that Monday's volunteer taster event will lead to more maintenance events in the future.

Restoration work on the famous figure, which overlooks the Dunstable Downs, started in 2017 and was completed the following year using 800 tonnes of unwanted chalk from beneath a local resident's house.

Volunteer manager Rhiannon Green said it was "routinely maintained but it needs a lot of maintenance".

"The Big Help Out is a chance for us to launch a new initiative for the community to take ownership - and if it goes well, we will do more regular events in the future," she said.

About 20 people will undertake the first session and will have about an hour on each section of the figure.

"It is a chalk lion but weeds poke through, so they will be weeding and then scraping the chalk back over," Ms Green said.

"By doing this, the volunteers will really be able to see a difference, in terms of clarity of the shape of the lion.

"We are keen to make sure it has regular maintenance, so we will hopefully extend the project."

The Whipsnade White Lion

Designed by RB Brook-Greaves
Work began in November 1931 and it was finished in spring 1933
By April 1932, a rough outline was visible and Ivinghoe Beacon was used as a vantage point to check its accuracy
Almost two acres (0.8 hectares) of land had to be cleared to reveal the chalk
During World War Two, the lion was covered to prevent it from helping German pilots navigate
In May 1981, as part of ZSL Whipsnade Zoo's 50th anniversary celebrations, it was illuminated with 750 lightbulbs

The Big Help Out is organised by The Together Coalition to highlight the positive impact volunteering has on communities across the nation.

Maintenance of the lion is one of several volunteer taster events at the zoo, which include making silage and helping with maintenance in the elephant enclosure.

Ms Green said it currently had about 200 volunteers in a "whole host of roles" that offered "fun, positive relationships and enjoyment".

"Whipsnade is a wonderful place to work and volunteer, it's very much like a family," she said.