London Zoo’s Lucifer and Abi have had another pair of cubs! The Asian lion cubs are important to their conservation with only around 350 animals left in the wild. Although they are yet to be sexed, they have been given the Halloween-inspired names Pumpkin and Spook.
If you’re lucky you might be able to see them with their mum in their den…before they’re let out into the rest of the enclosure in November.
No lilos to be found here, it’s London Zoo’s new enclosure for their penguin Humboldt and Macaroni colonies! The zoo’s original penguin pool, a 1934 Grade I listed building, can no longer be used due to the concrete floor being very bad for the penguin’s health. Instead, their new pool includes a special breeding area and small pool for chicks to learn how to swim.
Sad news…Mjukuu’s baby mountain gorilla has died. The little infant had been introduced to the male silverback Kesho and the rest of the group successfully. But during the second time, a scuffle broke out and the young gorilla was injured and could not be saved. Gorillas, like most primates, have complex social structures and as Kesho was not related to the young gorilla, it was particularly difficult.
Three-month old Tiny has been filmed taking his first tentative steps around his home at London Zoo. Mum, Mjukuu, gently encouraged him to leave her side and explore the area while the rest of the troop watched his progress.
Considering Tiny could grow to over 6ft and weigh 200kg, keepers are considering thinking of a more suitable permanent name!
The Guardian have a brilliant interview with one of my childhood heroes, the conservationist Terry Nutkins, where he talks about his first ever job. I’m incredibly jealous of how at only 9 years old, he was helping the keepers at London Zoo put their elephants to bed.
Definitely beats my childhood Saturday job!
The beginning of the year brings in the chance to do the annual stock take…but for London Zoo that means counting their thousands of animals including these curious spider monkeys. There’s 700 different species and over 16,000 animals in Regent’s Park (with my favourites, the bunch of cheeky otters – see photos!)
Photo : AP
This article describes them as ‘the ugly ducklings’ (although I’m rather fond of this bushbaby!) These are the unusual mammals facing extinction…But with the fewest living relatives they are vitally important to maintain biodiversity.
The ZSL has compiled this list of 100 endangered species to highlight it’s not just the ‘pretty poster boys’ of conservation that need our help. Sadly, when the list was compiled two years ago the Yangtze river dolphin headed the list but is now thought to be extinct.
Brilliant news for the gorillas at London Zoo. First-time Mum, Mjukuu, gave birth to a healthy boy on October 26th. The keepers will now start the sensitive process of introducing the youngster to his step-father Kesho.
The ZSL have the incredible first sightings of the rare and endangered Slender Loris in Sri Lanka. Nocturnal and small (only an 8 inch body – about the same size as a chipmunk), they’ve managed to avoid detection for over 65 years. Mainly insectivores they particularly like acacia ants whose bite is toxic enough to numb an entire human arm!
Sticking with the London Zoo…be a zookeeper for the day!
Muck out, feed giraffes (who love bread apparently!) and then become dinner for certain inquisitive penguins. Get up close to some of the zoo’s animals…plus a chance to see behind the scenes. When I was there, we were the first to see two baby meerkats that had been rejected and were being handreared.
Photos by Suzie Pipes ©
