Whipsnade - What's happening at Whipsnade Zoo!
Dear Affiliates,
We just wanted to let you know about some great promotions we currently have running with ZSL Whipsnade Zoo.
Online Family Offer
ZSL Whispande Zoo offers additional savings for families with our online family offer (2 adults + 2 children or 1 adult + 3 children).
Enter code SAVER in the promotion code box when purchasing tickets. Only available online and not at the gate.
ZSL Whipsnade Zoo Group booking Discounts
Groups of more than 10 paying people receive a 25% discount on ticket prices purchased online in advance and a 15% reduction if you buy at the gate.
Free Entry
Did you know that children under 3 years go free!
What’s Happening at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo!
Annual animal stocktake takes place at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo
Home to more than 2,500 animals, the Zoo’s keepers dusted off their clipboards to tot up each invertebrate, bird, fish, mammal, reptile, and amphibian.
Everything from tiny insects to huge mammals was lined up to be counted, including sea lions, donkeys, chimps, and otters. Keepers had to be particularly cunning when it comes to counting the Zoo’s multiple deer herds, which graze over a vast drive-through enclosure.
2014 was a bumper year for babies at Whipsnade, including Luna the reticulated giraffe, Larry the hand-reared Thomson’s gazelle and Asian elephant Sam, who was born in September.
The compulsory count is required as part of ZSL Whipsnade Zoo’s zoo license and all of the information is logged into the International Species Information System, where it’s used to manage the international breeding programmes for endangered animals.
Birth of endangered baby pygmy hippo delights keepers at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo
Keepers at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo had a late Christmas present when Flora the pygmy hippo gave birth to a much-needed boy on Boxing Day.
The Zoo’s keepers say they are especially proud of the baby’s mum, 28-year-old Flora, who has been battling cancer. Flora was featured in ITV’s documentary series ‘The Zoo’ last year, and although she is still living with a tumour in her mouth, vets say she has responded fantastically well to the treatment and the cancer did not affect her pregnancy at all.
The tiny hippo calf is a particularly welcome addition to the Zoo because there is a shortage of male pygmy hippos within the European Endangered Species Breeding Programme.
Senior Keeper Steve White said: “Flora’s calf was due on Christmas Day, but the little one kept us waiting until the evening of Boxing Day. We knew Flora must be going into labour because she went off her food – which never happens! After a six hour labour, the calf was born, a 7 kilo, perfect miniature of his mum. Since then, the baby hippo has been happily waddling around and seems to love spending time in water. On his first weigh-in, he was so slippery it was like picking up a big bar of soap!
“We’re delighted for Flora, who has come through a difficult year and is now proving once again to be an attentive, experienced mum. She’s contributed three calves to the European Endangered Species Breeding Programme and she’ll now retire from breeding.”
Pygmy hippos (Choeropsis liberiensis) are classified as Endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and teams at international conservation charity ZSL are working in Liberia and Sierra Leone to research and protect the species.
ZSL Whipsnade Zoo promotional video
We have a brand new Whipsnade promotional video to show. Please host the below video on you websites.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWBk3U8g-Xw
Best Regards,
ZSL Affiliate Team