David J.
Yelp
I really struggle with London Zoo.
On the one hand, the Zoological Society of London do a fantastic job of education and of supporting conservation. And it has a huge history: styled as the world's oldest scientific zoo, its collections, formed in 1827, were intended to enable scientific study and weren't opened to the public until 1847. The site has grown and developed over the years, and TV programmes like 'Animal Magic' and 'Blue Peter' made regular visits there, which I still recall fondly from my childhood.
But there's no doubt that the current site means that the enclosures for larger mammals are small - sometimes very small - by the best international standards. Although the larger mammals, like elephants and rhinos, have now been moved to the spacious sister site at Whipsnade, there are still over 750 species here and an astounding 15,000 individual animals, although the majority of these are fish and invertebrates.
The real downside for me is the size of the enclosures for lions and tigers. Big cats work for me only in big spaces - like Longleat. On our last visit, one of the tigers was exhibiting repetitive pacing behaviour that could only have been a sign of stress.
Fortunately, since its funding crisis in the 1990s, the zoo is now beginning to address this problem: as well as moving some animals to Whipsnade, other enclosures are being rebuilt, and the new Gorilla Kingdom (which I've not yet seen) is a good example of this. (Though I still think the remaining large mammals should follow their cousins to Whipsnade.)
At over £15 for adult entry, (£17 with donation), it's also an expensive day out. That said, families with small children will have a great time. Whether you go will depend on your own sensitivities: an alternative is Whipsnade Zoo itself which, at 600 acres, is much more spacious and attractive. It's located in Dunstable, between Luton and Tring.