London Zoo
London Zoo, previously known as ZSL London Zoo or London Zoological Gardens and sometimes called Regent's Park Zoo, is the world's oldest scientific zoo. It was opened in London on 27 April 1828 and was originally intended to be used as a collection for scientific study. In 1831 or 1832, the Tower of London menagerie animals were transferred to the zoo's collection. It was opened to the public in 1847. As of December 2022, it houses a collection of 14,926 individuals, making it one of the largest collections in the United Kingdom.
It is managed under the aegis of the Zoological Society of London and is situated at the northern edge of Regent's Park, on the boundary line between the City of Westminster and the borough of Camden. The Society also has a more spacious site at Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire where larger animals, such as elephants and rhinos, have been moved. As well as being the first scientific zoo, London Zoo also opened the first reptile house, the first public aquarium, the first insect house and the first children's zoo.
ZSL receives no state funding and relies on 'Fellows' and 'Friends' memberships, entrance fees, venue hire, and sponsorship to generate revenue.
History
1828–1938
The Zoological Society of London was established by Sir Stamford Raffles and Sir Humphry Davy in 1826, who obtained the land for the zoo and saw the plans before Raffles died of apoplexy later that year on 5 July, his birthday. After his death, Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 3rd Marquess of Lansdowne took over the project and supervised the building of the first animal houses. The zoo opened in April 1828 to fellows of the Society, providing access to species such as Arabian oryxes, greater kudus, orangutans and the now extinct quaggas and thylacines. The Society was granted a royal charter in 1829 by King George IV, and in 1847 the zoo opened to the public to aid funding.It was believed that tropical animals could not survive outside in London's cold weather, so they were all kept indoors until 1902, when Peter Chalmers Mitchell was appointed secretary of the Society. He set about a major reorganisation of the buildings and enclosures of the zoo, bringing many of the animals out into the open, where many thrived. This was an idea inspired by the Hamburg Zoo, and led to newer designs for many of the buildings. Mitchell also envisaged a new park to the north of London, and in 1926 Hall Farm, near to Whipsnade, was bought. In 1931, Whipsnade Wild Animal Park, the world's first open zoological park, opened. The first woman to be a curator at London Zoo was Evelyn Cheesman, in 1920.
Second World War 1939–1945
After the start of the Second World War, the London Zoo was closed multiple times for over a week, the first time being at 11:00 am on 3 September 1939, when all zoological places were closed by government order. Valuable animals were transferred to Whipsnade Zoo during the war for safety. On 27 September 1940, high explosive bombs damaged the Rodent house, the Civet house, the gardener's office, the propagating sheds, the North Gate and the Zebra house. In January 1941, the Camel House was also hit, and the aquarium could not open until May 1943 due to extensive bombing. No animals were harmed during the incidents, although a zebra, a female ass, and her foal escaped from the zoo during the bombings. For safety reasons, all venomous animals were killed at London Zoo. Throughout the war, members of the armed forces paid half price for entry, and the wounded entered free of charge.Since 1946
In 1962, 'Caroline', an Arabian oryx, was lent to Phoenix Zoo, Arizona, US, in the world's first international co-operative breeding programme. Today, the zoo participates in breeding programmes for over 130 species.In the 1980s, London Zoo housed 8,000 animals of more than 900 species, and in the 1990s, the zoo possessed 7,000 animals of 850 species; the next biggest collection in Britain was Chester Zoo, with just under 3,500 animals. Many of the species in London Zoo could not be seen anywhere else in the country, such as the wombat, Tasmanian devil or long-nosed potoroo. Although this vast collection was part of the zoo's appeal, it may also have been one of the main causes of its financial problems. This contributed to the zoo being faced with closure in the 1980s. Due to the public change of attitude to animals kept in captivity and unsuitably cramped space, the zoo also suffered dwindling visitor numbers. However, when it was announced that London Zoo would close in 1991, a swell of public support in visitors and donations allowed the zoo to continue its work, attempt to balance its books and take on the huge task of restoring its buildings and creating environments more suitable for animal behaviour in the late 20th century. The BAFTA winning 1993 documentary series The Ark by Molly Dineen chronicled this period of time.
One benefit of the 'swell of public support' was the development of volunteer staff. Volunteers who give one day a week to assist the running of London Zoo, wearing red pullovers, are employed by both Education and Animal care.
During the COVID epidemic, which started in 2020, the zoo was closed from 21 March to 15 June 2020. This closure resulted in a "perilous financial position" for the zoo due to the loss of revenue.
The Snowdon Aviary was redeveloped as Monkey Valley, opening in 2022.
Areas and attractions
The Zoo has many named areas and attractions. Several of them are available for hire outside the zoo's opening hours, including The Terrace, Penguin Beach, Ninos cove, Tiny Giants, Land of the Lions, Tiger Territory, and Attenborough Komodo Dragon House.| Group | Number of species | Number of individuals |
| Mammals | 70 | 561 |
| Birds | 99 | 671 |
| Reptiles | 49 | 167 |
| Amphibians | 20 | 726 |
| Fish | 207 | 5,818 |
| Invertebrates | 228 | 11,346 |
| Total | 673 | 19,289 |
Monkey Valley
The Snowdon Aviary was designed by Cedric Price, Frank Newby and Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, built between 1962 and 1964, and opened in 1965. It was Britain's first public, walk-through aviary, and primarily housed shorebirds such as gulls and ibis. It is constructed with a pyramidal aluminium framework reaching high. In 2021, the aviary was re-developed into a walkthrough primatarium called "Monkey Valley", which opened to the public in August 2022 and houses a troop of eastern black and white colobus monkeys. The structure has been a Grade II* listed building since 1998.Land of the Lions
Land of the Lions is London Zoo's Asiatic lion enclosure, opened in 2016. It covers 2,500 square metres, and is designed to resemble an Indian town on the edge of the Gir National Park, intended to demonstrate how the lion's natural habitat overlaps with local urban environments. Hanuman langurs, small Indian mongooses, black kites, and Rüppell's vultures are also displayed in this area.Tiger Territory
Tiger Territory is London Zoo's Sumatran tiger enclosure, designed by architect Michael Kozdon and officially opened by the Duke of Edinburgh in March 2013. The zoo currently houses four tigers: a male named Asim, which arrived from Denmark, a female named Gaysha, and their two cubs, Zac and Crispin, born in June 2022. The enclosure is in size and features authentic Indonesian plant life, as well as a net canopy of steel cable supported by four metal poles.The Casson Pavilion
The Casson Pavilion is one of the zoo's Grade II listed buildings and was designed by architect Sir Hugh Casson between 1962 and 1965. The building was originally built to house rhinos and elephants. However, after an accident in which a keeper was killed in 2001, the animals were relocated to Whipsnade Zoo, and since then, the building has housed camels and porcupines. At one point, it was also part of Tiger Territory when it housed bearded pigs and Malayan tapirs and Pygmy Hippos. It is now its own exhibit, known as The Cassons, and it houses a family of red river hogs and babirusas.Gorilla Kingdom
Opened by the Duke of Edinburgh in March 2007, Gorilla Kingdom consists of a moated island, home to a group of western lowland gorillas. The zoo currently holds seven gorillas: an adult male named Kiburi, two adult females named Mjukuu and Effie, a juvenile female named Alika born in December 2014, a juvenile male named Gernot born in November 2015, a female infant named Juno born to mother Mjukuu on 17 January 2024 and a second female infant named Venus was born to mother Effie on 8 February 2024, just three and a half weeks after the first. The Gorilla Kingdom area also features smaller enclosures housing white-naped mangabeys, Sulawesi Crested Macaque, Colobus Guereza, and Diana monkeys. The exhibit also features a walk-through aviary housing African birds.Into Africa
Into Africa is an Africa-themed area that opened in April 2006. Animals on display in this area include Chapman's zebras, common warthogs, okapis, common ostriches, giraffes, pygmy hippos, and African wild dogs. The Giraffe House at London Zoo, built in 1837, is the world's oldest zoo building still used for its original purpose. The Giraffe House has been designated as a Grade II listed building because of its historical and architectural significance.Rainforest Life and Night Life
Rainforest Life is a walk-through indoor exhibit that houses many species of South American rainforest animals. Among the species in the main forest walk-through are Linnaeus's two-toed sloths, golden lion tamarins, red titi monkeys, Lac Alaotra bamboo lemurs, big hairy armadillos, Goeldi's marmosets, southern tamanduas, golden-headed lion tamarins, red-footed tortoises, narrow-striped mongooses and Rodrigues flying foxes. The building also has a darkened area called "Nightlife", which houses nocturnal animals, including Mohol bushbabies, Senegal bushbabies, grey slender lorises, West African pottos, Malagasy giant rats, naked mole-rats, pygmy slow lorises, harvest mice, lesser hedgehog tenrecs and northern treeshrews.Night Life is located below Rainforest Life, with the bottom of the latter exhibit being viewable from a point in the former.