London zoo wildlife experience - blue orca digital - london zoo | Alan Taylor

A fun day trip to London Zoo featuring the sights of Gentoo Penguins, Camels, Lamas, Fish, Tortoises, Meerkats, Birds, Lizards, Kangaroos and Bugs! London 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. It was eventually opened to the public in 1847. Today it houses a collection of 758 species of animals, with 16,802 individuals, making it one of the largest collections in the United Kingdom. London Zoo is sometimes called Regent's Zoo. It is managed under the aegis of the Zoological Society of London (established in 1826), and is situated at the northern edge of Regent's Park, on the boundary line between City of Westminster and Camden (theRegent's Canal runs through it). The Society also has a more spacious site at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire to which the larger animals such as elephants and rhinos have been moved. As well as being the first scientific zoo, ZSL London Zoo also opened the first Reptile house (1849), first public Aquarium (1853), first insect house (1881) and the first children's zoo (1938). London Zoo receives no state funding and relies on 'Fellows', 'Friends', 'Members', entrance fees and sponsorship to generate income. Opened by HRH Duke of Edinburgh in March 2007, Gorilla Kingdom is home to a group of western lowland gorillas, and consists of a large, moated island with an indoor gym for the gorillas to use. Currently, London Zoo owns four gorillas, a silver-back male named Kumbuka and three females named Zaire, Mjukku and Effie. The Gorilla Kingdom area also features smaller enclosures housing Diana monkeys, black and white colobus, Sooty mangabey, red-faced spider monkeys and Congo peafowl. The Outback is an Australia-themed exhibit housing groups of emus, Bennett's Wallabies and red kangaroos. The enclosure, which was originally called "The Mappin Terraces", was originally opened in 1913 and features an artificial rocky cliff made of concrete blocks for animal enrichment. There has been an aquarium at London Zoo since 1853, the Zoo's first aquarium was also the world's first public aquarium. The word "aquarium" also originates at London Zoo, beforehand the term for a fish enclosure was "Aquatic Vivarium". The current aquarium was built in 1921 next to the Mappin Terraces, and was officially opened by King George V and his wife Queen Mary in April 1924. Giants of the Galápagos was opened in 2009 to coincide with the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin, and is home to five Galápagos giant tortoises, a male named Dirk and four females named Dolly, Dolores, Polly and Priscilla. The exhibit features a large indoor area, with a heated pond and underfloor heating, while the outdoor paddock has been designed to mimic the tortoise's natural environment and features two heated pools, one of which is a naturalistic clay wallow. London Zoo's Komodo dragon enclosure was opened by Sir David Attenborough in July 2004. Currently, the zoo houses two Komodo dragons, a female named Rinka and a male named Raja. Their enclosure is designed to resemble a dry river bed, the dragon's natural habitat, and sounds of Indonesian birds are regularly played into the enclosure. Tiger Territory is London Zoo's Sumatran tiger enclosure, designed by architect Michael Kozdon and officially opened by HRH Duke of Edinburgh in March 2013. The zoo currently owns two tigers, a male named Jae Jae and a female named Melati. The enclosure is 2,500 square metres (27,000 square feet) in size, and features authentic Indonesian plant life, as well as a net canopy of 3mm steel cable supported by four metal poles. In February 2014 triplet tiger cubs were born to Melati and can now be seen at the Zoo. Penguin Beach opened in 2011 and houses around sixty penguins of three different species; African penguins, Humboldt penguins, and a single male rockhopper penguin named Ricky.