ZOO UNDER FIRE

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXIX, Issue 13325, 30 April 1941, Page 2

ZOO UNDER FIRE

What has the war done to London's Zoo?

I have just made a tour of the London Zoo and can tell you what is happening there, writes a Daily Mail correspondent. In the first place ,the Zoo is on iron rations "for the duration." The Zoo colony are co-operating with Lord Woolton, and every scrap of food is rationed out. Some old favourites are more streamlined, but they are getting fitter on the hard tack.

No sun-ray lamps—no ultra-violet rays. Central heating is now provided by lots of straw and by the animals themselves going into a huddle.

Long black-out hours only mean more sleep for birds, beasts, and reptiles. The owls, of course, are all for a longer black-out. No. 1 war-time problem at the Zoo to-day is the sea lion family. Only three of them —Gus, Joe and Sue —but they eat 501 b. of fish every day. Whiting was the fare when I saw them lunching the other day. Swallowed whole, heads and tails. 'They won't touch it if it isn't fresh," their keeper told me. The children will miss friendlyf Gus, Joe and Sue if they have, to go because of war-time rationing. There are no food problems in the reptile house. George, the crocodile, 130 years old, does not eat in autumn and winter. Just lies in his pond and dozes for six months. Head Keeper Budd showed me two giant pythons, each 25ft. long. From October to March these, too, fast and hardly move. The poisonous snakes, scorpions, and spiders were destroyed a few hours after the declaration of war. Since the blitz started a host of incendiaries and several heavy bombs have been dropped on the Zoo. A corner of Monkey Hill was sliced off by a bomb, but the- monkeys, wiser than many humans, had taken shelter in the tunnels under the hill. About 3 0 of them enjoyed two days' freedom in Regent's Park, but hunger soon rounded them up. All are now safe in Whipsnade. The Zoo now ignores air-raid warnings. Most of the inmates take shelter if bombs fall. There is the wisdom of nature in that. An armed guard patrols at nights, ready to shoot.

Most dangerous inmates are the Polar bears. They never become tame. Every night the bears, lions, . tigers, leopards, pumas, and large cats are locked in their inner dens. Let's take a look inside the monkey house in war-time. These valuable chimpanzees and gorillas used to eat bananas ,eggs, choice fruits, milk, and orange juice. They now get cabbage, carrots .turnips, beetroot, bread and water. "We used to feed them twice a day, but it is one meal every morning, now until the war is over," said Keeper Sherry.