Zsl London Zoo Animals
As we only visit London once a year or so we like to try new places each time. ZSL London Zoo is always somewhere I’ve fancied going so we made a plan to head there on Easter Sunday. I really didn’t have a clue what to expect or how large it was. Arriving around 12 noon we stayed until closing time at 6pm and still hadn’t seen everything. The place is vast and we were keen to catch a glimpse of our favourite animals, giraffes (me), tigers (Alan) Abigail (penguins) and Imogen (sloths!)
The zoo has been open since 1828 making it the world’s largest scientific zoo established by the Zoological Society of London (LSZ). Today the zoo hosts over 650 species of animals of which 112 are threatened species. Despite facing financial dire straits and threatened with closure in the 1980’s the zoo survived with the help of a fundraising campaign. Many of the buildings within in the zoo are listed and they are continuously making improvements to the enclosures.
London Zoo is located in a corner of Regents Park not far from Camden. We took a tube to Baker Street station and jumped in a London cab. The walk would have only been 20 minutes or so but in the theme of the trip, it was yet again raining! More of a continuous drizzle than our torrential London Docklands day though!
Earth Day: A Visit To Conservation Charity Zsl's London Zoo
The Terrace Restaurant is huge with a mezzanine floor and loads of choice, more of a canteen than a restaurant though with a grill bar, fish & chip counter and clay oven pizza bar. Following another theme of the weekend, the cafe was pretty busy but the staff managed to cope well with queues and quickly cleaning tables. We grabbed some sandwiches (£5) and chicken nugget kids meals (£5.50) and found a seat in the upstairs area. The outdoor veranda seating area would have been lovely on a hot summers day (if we ever get a Summer!). Fully refreshed we were ready to tackle the rest of the attractions.
This is the newest section of the zoo opening in 2016 at a cost of 5.2 million pounds to build and five times the size of the previous lion enclosure. This area reminded us a lot of the Harambe village in Disney’s Animal Kingdom park setting the scene for the Indian village where the tigers originated from.
In the Land of the Lions, there were lots of cool touches like a flip-flop shop, a bike repair shop, street food snack bar and a railway station. Two walkways allowed you to view the 4 Asiatic lions from above or on the ground. They are joined by a troop of Hanuman langur monkeys, who live alongside but separated from the lions. As we were strolling along we heard some audio ‘move out the way injured lion coming through’…..as we looked three of the zoo staff were carrying a very realistic looking lion complete with a war wound.
Animals At London Zoo Get Their Annual Weigh In
They needed a couple of young volunteers to help them tend to the wound and Abigail was picked! She had great fun taking the lions temperature and treating the wound with gauze.
Next up was the Penguin Beach exhibit, which is England’s biggest penguin pool recreating a South American beach landscape in the heart of London, with a stunning colony of Humboldt penguins. We watched these guys for ages and they swam in and out of the pool. They were too canny and there were lots of viewing areas to see them up close.
The older penguin enclosure (grade 1 listed) sits alongside this and although it’s now been upgraded it was nice to see a bit of history still in the zoo. Imogen commented that it looked more fun due to the slides!
Meet The Penguins At London Zoo
This section is home to a colony of western lowland gorilla’s led by the male silverback Kumbuka. Making up the family are his children Alika and Gernot, was born. The group is completed by females Effie and Zaire.
To get to this section you needed to go through a tunnel to underpass a road. This is when you remember you are in the centre of London. Alongside the path is a canal and we saw lots of barges coming past. Very cool.
For the first time in weeks, I actually felt warm in this area, due to its high heat and steamy atmosphere. In the rainforest section, we saw a sloth sleeping in the tree (impressive!) lots of monkeys, bats, and tamandua. In the downstairs of there was a nocturnal section which included loads of bats who were loving their watermelon!
Mud Wallows And Ice Pops: How London Zoo Animals Stay Cool
Into Africa offers the opportunity to come eye to eye with some of Africa’s most unusual animals. Giraffes, zebras, okapis, warthogs and African hunting dogs all featured in this exhibit. Giraffes could be viewed from the platforms above which made you feel close to nature. I loved the historic giraffe houses which opened in 1836 and is the oldest building at the zoo which still houses the species for which it was designed.
We had a brilliant afternoon at ZSL London Zoo and would recommend to anyone visiting the capital. Even on a drizzly day there is lots of the zoo indoors to save you from the elements. There are so many other areas I haven’t mentioned in detail like the huge aquarium, reptile house and walk through butterfly enclosure. If you lived close by the yearly pass would be a great investment. The zoo has a variety of talks throughout the day and we managed to catch one in the Rainforest which gave a great insight into a day in the life of the rainforest.
London zoo is pretty flat and well accessible to bring babies in buggies in. Although there are lots to see it was compact enough for the girls to walk without moaning too much. Some of the directions could be a little clearer as we found ourselves lost a few times but this is a small criticism. Like most attractions in London, the zoo is steeped in history and it was lovely to see all types of architecture from the Victorian age to the 1960’s modernist styles to the new enclosures. Whatever your stance is on zoo’s it is clear that London Zoo has a bit commitment to conservation and working on the ground in other countries to save endangered species.
Zoobilee Festival To Be Held At London Zoo In Honour Of The Queen
Adult tickets range from £24.30 – £29.75, depending on whether you buy in advance and include a donation. For children over 3 years tickets are £18 to £22, with under 3’s going free. Family tickets (2 adults, 2 children) are available at £75.80 when bought in advance online.
Disclosure: We were guests of YSL, but we did pay for our own food in The Terrace Restaurant. All opinions are our own.For many animals the night time is the right time — they come to life when the sun's gone down. But as diurnal creatures (well, most of us), our lifestyle doesn't necessarily make for the best time to see ZSL London Zoo at its most animated.
The brand new Sunset Safari series will give visitors a rare chance to see the zoo's inhabitants as only the keepers do — as they settle down (or ramp up) for the night. Whether you want to see a tiger prowling at twilight, a graceful giraffe enjoying its last feed of the day, or a monkey family having a pre-bedtime natter, Sunset Safari gives city-dwellers the chance to understand the 750 species from around the world from a new perspective.
In Pictures: Count Us In… Animals Look To Help As Zoo Launches Annual Audit
There's a packed programme of animal feeding sessions and expert talks for everyone, but for those who want to indulge their inner Attenborough, a Premium Guided Safari Tour will take groups of up to 40 people on an exploration of the zoo. On the tour you'll uncover facts about individual animals and be taught how to spot more elusive species (such as the lovely Slender Loris, pictured).
The Sunset Safari Conservation Station will give people chance to speak directly to ZSL’s conservationists, scientists and keepers, who will share their tales from the field and fascinating facts from the world of wildlife. So, if you've always wanted to know if a giraffe lays down to sleep, why bats roost upside down, or what the heck is an Aye-aye and what does it eat, they'll be able to help.
Once you've filled your brain with animal facts, be entertained at Theatre of Life, where you can see live performances and expert demonstrations. And if the animal feeding has left you feeling peckish, hunt down your own preferred diet from over 25 hand-picked street food stalls at the World Food Market.
From Tallest Giraffe To Tiniest Tadpole: London Zoo Conducts Annual Weigh In
Round off the night at the Safari Base Camp where visitors can relax to an acoustic guitar performance as the sun sets. Not a bad way to kick off your weekend.
ZSL London Zoo’s Sunset Safari series takes places every Friday 6-10pm from 5 June-17 July 2015. Tickets cost £20.80 for adults and £14.56 for children, and group discounts are also available. Book online via the ZSL London Zoo website.London Zoo, previously
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