Visit to Bristol Zoo!

During the study week I had the luxury of being able to visit Bristol Zoo. I hadn’t been to both Bristol or Bristol Zoo before, so I was very excited about it! The zoo opened in 1836 and is the fifth oldest in the world (Bristol Zoo, 2019). They are a conservation and educational charity who have helped to save 175 species from extinction through conservation science research, protecting species and their habitats overseas, and educating the public about sustainable behaviours and perceptions that can protect the lives of the species that are endangered (Bristol Zoo, 2019). Below are images of some of the animals I saw at the zoo.

In Plate 4 is a California sea lion. Their scientific name is Zalophus californianus (Marine Animals of the World, 2018). They are found along Pacific coastlines from Mexico and the United States to Canada. California sea lions feed mostly on squid, octopus, herring, rockfish, anchovies and krill. They’re predated upon by whales and sharks. They’re intelligent social animals who form large aggregations on land with one another (Sea World, 2019). They possess large muscular fore flippers which they use to propel themselves through the water and hind flippers which act as a ‘rudder’, allowing them to change direction in the water (Marine Animals of the World, 2018).

In Plate 5. are the owl butterflies I saw at the Bristol zoo butterfly forest. In the forest live both one species of moth and seven species of butterflies (Bristol Zoo, 2019). The enclosure is themed and designed to mimic the tropical rainforests that these species would naturally be found in (Bristol Zoo, 2019). Bristol Zoo (2019) stated there are 18,000 known butterfly species in the world, however the numbers of these species are falling due to human activity