London Zoo description and photos - Great Britain: London (Topic)

London Zoo description and photos - United Kingdom: London. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photographs and a map showing the nearest significant objects. The name in English is London Zoo.

Photo and description

London Zoo is the world's oldest scientific zoo. About 17 thousand animals of 755 species make it the owner of one of the largest British zoological collections.

Among those to whom the zoo owes its establishment in 1826 is the statesman Stamford Raffles, the founder of the city of Singapore (in Great Britain it is called “ father of Singapore and London Zoo "), and the famous chemist, inventor of the safe mining lamp Humphrey Davy. They were among the organizers of the Zoological Society of London (and Raffles was its first president), which received from the Crown a piece of land in Regent's Park to house and study animals.

The zoo opened in 1828 - at first only for members of society. Among the first animals there were already rare ones, and now completely exterminated quagga and marsupial wolf. In 1847, the general public had to be allowed in - money was required. The first hippopotamus in Europe and the first African elephant in England appeared here. For the first time in the world, a reptile house, an insect house, and a public aquarium were opened here. Actually, even the word "aquarium" appeared in the London Zoo - they used to say "water vivarium".

Many animals were real stars. That same hippopotamus (named Obaysh) drove Londoners crazy - up to 10 thousand people a day went to watch him. Queen Victoria brought her children to see the hippopotamus and made an entry in her diary, the press told about all the details of his life, and "The Hippopotamus Polka" became an instant hit. Even the term "hippomania" arose.

The audience's favorite was the elephant Jumbo, just like as later - gorilla Guy, polar bear Brumas, giant panda Chi-Chi. And the black bear Winnipeg, who lived in the zoo from 1915 to 1934, gave the name to the toy of Christopher Robin, the son of the writer Alan Milne - the teddy bear was named Winnie the Pooh, and he became the hero of a great book.

Now local visitors also have favorites. People enjoy watching the harsh Kumbuka, the leader of the gorilla pack. The smiling and very predatory Komodos monitor lizards are always popular. Tag and Nicky, a pair of pygmy hippos, are fascinated. In the African section, visitors are given the opportunity to look into the eyes of a giraffe by climbing on a special platform.

Rare Sumatran tigers adorn the tiger territory. The species is on the verge of extinction, in the world of these animals there are only about 300 specimens, and at the London Zoo in February 2014, Je-Je and Melati gave birth to three cubs at once.

The zoo is small, it occupies 15 hectares, and it takes a few hours to get around it. At the entrance, it is better to take a map with the schedule of events so as not to miss the hours of feedings and performances. People especially love the show on Penguin Beach - the Humboldt penguin colony sunbathes, eats and dives (it's interesting to watch their snorkeling through the windows). A local celebrity is the macaroni penguin Ricky.

A hungry tourist can easily find food for himself - there are several cafes in the zoo. Connoisseurs recommend the classic takeaway fish and chips near the insect pavilion.

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Topic: London Zoo description and photos - Great Britain: London.