London Zoo is one of the city’s most famous attractions, packed with history and stories (and of course animals). I grew up in London and can clearly remember visiting and being entranced by all the animals – especially trying to spot all the weird and wonderful snakes and lizards hiding in the Reptile House. So I was really excited to return to see what’s changed...
From why penguins often look their worst in summer, to which perfume is a tiger’s favourite, and why animals being out of sight can actually be a very good thing – this is London Zoo through an expert’s eyes.
What we'll cover:
- Meet Carrie, our ZSL insider
- First stop: Penguin Beach
- More than just a zoo
- Animal welfare
- Carrie’s favourite zoo residents
- Feeding time: otters and dwarf mongooses
- The best animal facts of the day
- Expert tips for your visit
Meet Carrie, our ZSL insider
Carrie initially joined London Zoo in a temporary role while her acting career was on hold during the pandemic. Almost five years later, she’s still here. “I’ve always loved animals, and I’m not someone who enjoys sitting still,” Carrie tells us. “Zoo life turned out to be the perfect fit for me.”
Carrie with Molly the giraffe
As part of the Engagement Team, Carrie gives talks to visitors and leads tours everyday (her storytelling and acting skills coming in very handy here). Her infectious energy and huge repertoire of animal facts make her an ideal tour guide:
“There’s a cultural shift happening,” she explains as we head off. “Some visitors arrive expecting tricks or performances from the animals. London Zoo doesn’t work like that. Everything we do is about conservation and educating visitors about the challenges animals worldwide are facing today...”
First stop: Penguin Beach
There’s no set route around London Zoo – you’re encouraged to wander freely and explore at your own pace – but Carrie’s favourite place to start is one of the most popular spots: Penguin Beach.
Penguin Beach is home to England’s largest penguin pool. (It used to be the largest in the UK until Edinburgh Zoo deliberately built theirs just a little bit bigger). All the residents here are Humboldt penguins, who are much better suited to London’s climate than the King penguins previously kept at the zoo. However, even the Humboldts can struggle in the heat:
“Peak summer,” Carrie tells us, “is generally when the penguins look their worst.” They undergo a ‘catastrophic moult’ where they lose lots of feathers at once, they pant to regulate their temperature with mouths open wide and generally don’t move around a lot. “Lots of visitors think they’re ill!” But it’s all totally normal, Carrie assures us.
We actually got here before the zoo was open to the public, and it was really special watching the penguins start their day with nobody else around
Penguin couples have their own little houses dotted around the pool that they return to each night and defend against other penguins who try to nab it! Lots of couples mate for life, but this isn’t always the case. They also pair up based on their personality rather than gender, meaning same-sex couples aren’t unusual. One pair of male penguins, Ronnie and Reggie, were together for years and became a much-loved couple until... Ronnie left Reggie for a female penguin – huge drama on Penguin Beach!
Some of Carrie’s best penguin facts:
- Each penguin has a unique spot pattern on their chest, their equivalent of a fingerprint, which keepers use to tell them apart.
- You can spot younger penguins (who quickly reach the same size as the adults) because they don’t yet have their chest bands, and their feathers are often slightly lighter.
- The Humboldts eat 30.5kg of fish per day collectively, but this more than doubles during breeding season (March – April).
- The penguins waterproof themselves by secreting an oil and using their beaks to spread it through their feathers.
- Look out for ‘porpoising’ – when the penguins dive in and out of the water – which they do when they’re extra happy, or to gain speed when hunting.
Measuring up to the extinct Colossus Penguin, which could grow up to 2 metres tall!
More than just a zoo
While many people visit London Zoo to see animals up close, Carrie is keen to stress that the zoo’s mission goes far beyond what’s on display.
“London Zoo is part of ZSL, and conservation underpins everything we do,” she explains.
ZSL works in around 80 countries worldwide, partnering with local communities to help protect habitats and rebuild populations of endangered species – although a few residents, like the capybaras, have been introduced simply because they are incredibly popular with visitors!
Carrie takes us to see the family of western lowland gorillas who live at the zoo. Kiburi, the silverback and leader of the group, weighs in at a whopping 180kg. Western lowland gorillas are critically endangered in the wild – largely due to the illegal bushmeat trade and coltan mining which is wiping out huge areas of their natural habitat. Carrie explains that ZSL are running several community projects in countries like Gabon, DRC and Cameroon to train conservationists, raise awareness and help protect the dwindling numbers of gorillas in the wild.
Western lowland gorillas are facing extinction in the wild
Animal welfare
It's incredibly interesting to hear how much control the animals have over their own comings and goings. “All the animals here have access to private indoor spaces at all times,” Carrie tells us, “So if you can see them, it’s because they’ve chosen to be on display.”
Feeding schedules vary from day to day, mirroring life in the wild where there are no set mealtimes. Diets are also very carefully considered – fruit grown for humans is often too sweet for animals, so it’s not as simple as popping to the local supermarket. The gorillas, for example, love eating vegetables like kale, peppers and parsnips. Carrie also let us in on a little secret:
“It’s all organic and of the highest quality – we even use the same vegetable supplier as The Dorchester!”
A key part of animal care is enrichment – activities designed to encourage natural behaviours and mental stimulation. This can involve everything from laying scent trails to hiding food inside toys to make it harder to reach.
Smaller mammals, like the otters, are given food hidden inside dog toys so that they have to reach inside and earn their meal – just as they would in the wild. Bigger mammals are given boomer balls – virtually indestructible balls that are used both as toys and as part of feeding time. “The lions’ balls need to be the strength of ten human skulls to withstand their bite,” Carrie explains. The penguins, meanwhile, like chasing bubbles and disco ball reflections.
Giraffes are given puzzle balls to encourage them to use their super-long tongues to retrieve their food
Scent trails are also often used to spark interest in new objects and toys, or to encourage animals to explore new areas. Typically, the zoo uses blood, fish juice or a mix of herbs and spices for this, although the big cats, Carrie says, have developed a liking for perfume! “The tigers love a bit of Chanel No. 5, while Bhanu the lion is more of an Old Spice kind of guy.”
Carrie’s favourite zoo residents
With more than 10,000 animals to choose from, picking a favourite isn’t easy. But there are a couple of residents Carrie is especially fond of:
Lannister the penguin: with a name inspired by Game of Thrones, you might expect Lannister to be a touch menacing. In fact, she’s so friendly and fond of human interaction that zookeepers sometimes have to ignore her to prevent her becoming too accustomed to people!
Jimmy the northern white-cheeked gibbon: a long-time zoo favourite and famously cheeky character, Jimmy loves posing and showing off for his visitors (he has a particular fondness for brunettes). He also enjoys people-watching from the Regent’s Park side of his enclosure. He’s so popular he even has his own online fan club, whose members visit every year on his birthday wearing matching Jimmy t‑shirts.
Jimmy is famous for his mischievous behaviour
Feeding time: otters and dwarf mongooses
An absolute highlight of our visit came right at the end of our tour, when we stopped to watch Carrie give a keeper talk at feeding time for the otters and dwarf mongooses. (It’s not mongeese – I checked).
The otters at London Zoo are the smallest species in the world – Asian short-clawed otters – and are famously playful. They got very excited when they realised it was feeding time, making an impressive amount of noise for such small animals, squeaking in anticipation. Rather than being handed their food, they have to work for it, using their dextrous paws to search inside a variety of toys.
“It’s all designed to mimic natural foraging behaviour,” Carrie tells us. “Often, the otters float on their backs and use their bellies as makeshift plates while they eat.”
They’ve also been known to collect pebbles, and keepers sometimes discover carefully hidden stashes inside their enclosure.
Carrie leading the keeper talk
When we move onto the dwarf mongoose enclosure, Carrie points out the matriarch who is called Cheddar. She explains that grooming is key in dwarf mongoose society: it builds social bonds and maintains harmony within the group. Leadership disputes are settled via grooming contests that can last days! Individuals who bully others may be temporarily excluded from nightly grooming sessions, a subtle but effective way of discouraging bad behaviour.
The best animal facts of the day
A day with an animal expert means picking up some unforgettable facts:
- Galapagos tortoise hearts beat just six times a minute.
- In the gorillas’ enclosure, most of the toys and ropes are made from old firehoses donated by the London Fire Brigade (it’s one of the only materials strong enough to withstand a 180kg gorilla sitting and pulling on it).
- Tigers have a bite force of around 1,000 PSI (by comparison, the average human bite is about 140 PSI).
- Tigers have nerve endings in their teeth, allowing them to feel the heartbeat of their prey when they bite.
- Lions’ roars can travel up to 5km – which means you can often hear the lions at London Zoo while wandering around Regent’s Park.
- Giraffe tongues are up to 50cm long and darker in colour to prevent them getting sunburnt.
- Giraffes can spend up to 18 hours a day eating, which works out at around 35kg of leaves daily.
- Otters hold hands while they sleep so they don’t drift apart.
- Female komodo dragons can reproduce without the need for males through a process called parthenogenesis.
Tigers have one of the most powerful bites in the animal kingdom
Expert tips for your visit
Plan to spend a few hours there – there’s so much to explore and discover. Our tour with Carrie was only meant to last an hour, but we ended up spending almost that long just at Penguin Beach!
Check the daily keeper talk schedule online before you visit. These talks offer brilliant insight into the animals and life behind the scenes at the zoo. I’d definitely recommend planning to attend at least one and using the talks to help shape your route around the zoo.
London Zoo has changed a lot since I last visited as a child, but it still retains all its old charm alongside some incredible new areas and animals. Getting an insider’s perspective really opens your eyes to how much goes on behind the scenes – and how much thought and care the animals receive. It’s a wonderful day out, especially if you’re an animal lover like me!
Looking for more things to do in London?
Before you head to the zoo, make sure you read our complete guide to visiting London Zoo, or if you're looking for artistic inspiration, check out our behind the scenes guides to Moco and Frameless.
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