With the arrival of giraffes in a magnificent new habitat, adorable baby animals, and beautiful new works of art, it is an exciting time to visit Edinburgh Zoo! Join us for our latest explore and discover mission as we introduce you to the newest residents and additions at the Zoo.
As we enter summer, now is a wonderful time to visit Edinburgh Zoo as there are wonderful baby animal additions throughout. The Wee Walking Tours family has had our hands full with our own baby animal arrival- our new Golden Retriever puppy, Stirling. However, this past week we decided to get a puppy sitter so we could both get out of the house and take a wee break from non-stop puppy duty.
Our first baby animal is a special one as we all had to wait several months after his birth before we could meet him. To not spook him, we must be very quiet as we head ‘down under’ for a glimpse of the koala joey, Dameeli. Well, in truth, we are still in Scotland, but we are journeying into Edinburgh Zoo’s Koala Territory. What is amazing about this sweet little one is that he was born last June 2020. But, as koala joeys do, he immediately went into his mother’s pouch for several months to continue to grow. Dameeli finally made an appearance for keepers in March of this year. We were pleased to see him for the first time ourselves in April when he was peacefully sleeping with his mama, Kalari.
Now, this next group of wee ones have proven quite elusive for us since the Zoo reopened this past March, but I’m happy to share that we finally were able to spot the otter pups! A litter of two boys and a girl were born in January to Luna and Barry (who arrived just last summer). Our first sighting was fleeting as we happened to see them coming out of their den, where they quickly made their way up the hill of their enclosure, crossed a nice stream that runs through it, and proceeded to go back into their den.
Fortunately, I saw them on another day, and I was thrilled that they weren’t in as much of a hurry as before. Instead, they were taking the time to sun on the rocks, while they took turns playing in the water (which looked like a hilarious game of who could dunk the other under the most).
One particularly cute baby not to miss is, Amara, the baby pygmy hippo born in April. Pygmy hippos’ status is endangered; therefore, it is wonderful to see that her mom, Gloria, and dad, Otto, were able to reproduce and help with the animal conservation and population of these adorable animals. Our first spotting of Amara was when she was resting with Gloria. Doesn’t she look like a little sausage roll?! 😂
However, Amara has been moving about more, and Gloria has undoubtedly been teaching her important skills. One of them is swimming because, much to my utter delight, I recently spotted her splashing about next to her mama, wiggling her ears- she is clearly a happy little lady.
As we continue our baby animal exploration, we will make a stop at Penguin Rocks because there are penguin chicks everywhere. How can you resist all that cute fluff?!
Our last set of baby animals is an ‘honourable mention’ because they were a fun surprise tucked in a corner of the Pelicans’ Walkthrough. Just as we were getting ready to exit, Sami spotted an adorable mama duck and her ducklings. It was a nice finish to our exploration and celebration of baby animals.
Giraffes Arrival
We are thrilled to also share Nubian Giraffes have arrived at Edinburgh Zoo! There are five males- Arrow, Gilbert, Ronnie, Fennessy, and Gerald- that arrived earlier this month. Situated at the top of the hill at the Zoo, this bachelor herd gets to enjoy spectacular views, and a brand-new enclosure with magnificent outdoor and indoor facilities. As members who like to visit Edinburgh Zoo as much as we can in our free time, we were especially excited to visit our new giraffe pals this past week when their enclosure opened to the public. The Zoo has done a fantastic job at constructing a beautiful habitat for the giraffes, and the theming is well done.
Giraffes are the tallest animals in the world, and Edinburgh Zoo has created fun places- high and low- to observe their daily lives. For example, in the Giraffe House, you can go to either the ground level viewing area or up to the upper-level platforms that bring you at head level with these fascinating creatures.
As you can see from the photo below, the tallest giraffe, Arrow, was quite fascinated to people-watch the new visitors entering his house.
The outdoors viewing platforms offer wonderful views of the giraffes, city, and surrounding areas.
New Murals
The baby animals and giraffes aren’t the only new residents at Edinburgh Zoo, they also have a collection of exquisite murals peppered throughout the grounds. If you follow us on our social media channels (Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook), you know that we are fans of public murals. Therefore, we were quite thrilled a couple of months ago when we noticed beautiful murals popping up on buildings. Each time we visit we have our very own ‘scavenger hunt’ to see if we can spot any new murals. Navigate the slideshow below to see the murals we have found so far:
Visiting Edinburgh Zoo
We hope you have enjoyed this wee visit to Edinburgh Zoo and your introduction to their newest residents. If you visit Edinburgh, we highly recommend that you make a trip to the Zoo to meet all the animals and see the sites in-person. Head over to their website for the most up-to-date information on how to plan your visit. After that, be sure to book a walking tour with us. Our Golden Retriever tour guide, Sawyer, would love to show you around Edinburgh’s city centre.
Until next time- Explore & Discover!
