Orana Wildlife Park is New Zealand's only open-range zoo, sitting on 80 hectares of land, located on the outskirts of Christchurch. It opened in 1976, and is owned and operated by the Orana Wildlife Trust, a registered charity. The aims of the Trust are to provide quality recreational opportunities for local people and visitors to Christchurch; conserve endangered native and exotic wildlife; educate visitors about environmental and conservation issues; and support research relating to endangered animals.
Orana generates over 95% of its income through gate takings and other trading activities. Fundraising is an essential focus; Orana must separately raise 100% of funds for all capital projects, improvements and animal transfers. Funds have been donated from a variety of sources, including philanthropic trusts, private donors and bequests. As at 2017, over $15M has been raised to develop the Park. All buildings and enclosures have been built in-house (except the Great Ape Centre). Many local businesses have assisted in the Park's construction by donating materials, consultancy and equipment.
It has more than 400 animals across 70 species.
The park offers close encounters with some of its animals, including hand-feeding the giraffes, and a lion encounter where you can ride through the lion reserve in a truck-mounted cage during feeding time. The keeper feeds the cats from within the vehicle, and they often jump on top of the cage, giving you a unique view of these magnificent animals. A minimum visitor height of 1.4 meters is required.
In 2013 the park suffered a number of setbacks, including an ape escape, snowstorms and wind damage, and was forced to close its doors for 10 days.
In 2015 Orana became home to New Zealand’s only gorillas, with three males, including a silverback arriving at the park.