the trust

Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust is an organisation born out of the passion and desire of one remarkable individual determined to do his bit to help endangered species worldwide. Gerry’s devotion to conservation was evident from an early age and he continued his work right up until his death in 1995.

In 1979, Gerry married Lee McGeorge and Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust gained a spirit and enthusiasm for conservation that matched Gerry's.

The international headquarters of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, officially opened at Les Augres Manor, Jersey, on 26th March 1959. Visitors flocked to see a variety of animals brought back from countries as far away as the Cameroons in West Africa and Argentina in South America by the Trust's founder, the renowned naturalist, author and conservationist, Gerald Durrell.

It was chance that took Gerry to Jersey, where he met the owner of Les Augrès Manor, Major Hugh Fraser. As the two men walked around the manor grounds, Gerry explained the difficulties he had encountered while trying to set up a zoo in the UK - he had largely been shunned by the zoological community there, who thought him something of a maverick. Major Fraser, however, liked his spirit and wishing to return to England, wanted to lease out the manor and its grounds.

The lease was therefore signed on 7th November 1958 and, with a £25,000 loan secured from Gerry's then publisher, Rupert Hart Davies, and the backing of the States of Jersey government, the 16th century manor house and its 32 acres of park and farmland began its transformation into the now world-famous headquarters of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust.

• Governance
• Reports and Financial Statements
• Board of Trustees
• Board of Directors
• Our Sister Trusts