AVIARY

One of the most unusual features of the garden is the Aviary. Completed in 1889 by an unknown architect, it was built for Baron Ferdinand as a reminder of one he had grown up with in his childhood home, the Villa Grüneburg outside Frankfurt. It is made of cast-iron in the style of a rococo trelliswork pavilion, such as those erected at Versailles and Chantilly in the early eighteenth-century.

Among the species that bred successfully in 2005 were the Pekin Robin, Silver-Eared Mesia, Grosbeak Starling, Snowy-Crowned Robin Chat and Bearded Barbet. In addition the White Bellied Go-Away bird and Sumatran White Crested Laughing Thrush are thought to be the first breedings in the UK.

New arrivals in the aviary include White Crested and Fischer's Touraco from Africa, Yellow Throated Laughing Thrush from China (critically endangered), Chestnut Backed Thrush from Indonesia, White Collared Yuhina from China and Fairy Bluebird from South East Asia.

Why not see how many of our native birds you can spot, 70 species have been recorded and 39 of these are known to have bred on site!