A WILDLIFE park near Keswick have pledged to help save the rainforest by raising funds through their Meet the Tapir event.

The two Meet the Tapir events at the Lake District Wildlife Park have been raising money to save the rainforest where these creatures live in the wild.

Recognised for their unusual looking snouts and friendly nature, tapir are endangered species due to habitat loss and poaching in their native South America.

Two recent events at the park has seen visitors raising enough money to buy around one and a half acres of rainforest to turn into a reserve.Visitors were given the chance of personal ‘meet the tapir’ experiences to interact with the Wildlife Park’s resident tapirs, Muffin and Zico.

Education and marketing co-ordinator, Lucy Dunn, said: “Our visitors have taken direct action and helped to raise money which can make a positive impact on animals in the wild.

“We will definitely be holding more ‘meet the tapir’ one-to-one experiences with Muffin and Zico and doing all we can to raise awareness of tapirs and the issues they are facing in the wild.”