31 July 2024
When a heatwave is forecast in London, there’s no better place to be than London Zoo.
The capital’s wildest venue is home to the planet’s most fascinating creatures, who can teach you a thing or two about staying cool in the city
Pop by Penguin Beach
A visit to the beach is a must on a hot day, and London Zoo’s Penguin Beach offers an experience like no other.
The seaside-habitat inspired by the Peruvian coastline is home to a colony of Humboldt penguins. Named for the ocean current off the coast of Peru and Chile, Humboldt penguins are epic swimmers – and London Zoo’s waddle love showing off their Olympian skills. Leaping, diving and soaring through the water, visitors to the conservation zoo will be able to go to the beach, without even leaving London.
Chill out with the big cats
Home to the coolest of the big cats, London Zoo’s Endangered Asiatic lions know exactly what to do when it’s hot. Absolutely nothing.
These chilled cats can sleep for up to 18 hours a day – they’ll pick a shady spot under a tree and wait for dusk to go out hunting. This summer however, London Zoo’s new parents Arya and Bhanu may find themselves resting less and playing more as their three cubs are getting bolder by the day.
Unlike most water-shy cats, London Zoo’s Critically Endangered Sumatran tigers know the pool is the place to be when it’s hot. Their open-air pool is nestled in their Indonesian habitat, providing the perfect spot for a cooling dip.
Staying hydrated
It’s important to stay hydrated when the sun is shining, and no one understands that more than a Bactrian camel.
Noemie and Genghis, London Zoo’s pair of camels, are perfectly adapted for life in a hot environment – but contrary to popular belief, their humps are filled with fat, not water. This helps nourish them when food is scarce, and their bodies are designed to lose as little water as possible; camel urine is thick and syrupy, and their poo is very dry.
Keeping cool in the shade
While we may try to avoid it, sweating is our body’s way of coping in a heatwave – but some animals have evolved to sweat less, and preserve precious water, including colobus monkeys.
The stunning primates, with their iconic black and white ‘capes’ not only look cool, but stay cool in the shade provided by the tree canopy in Monkey Valley, and they also have special sweat glands on their palms and soles which produce a fast-evaporating liquid to cool them quickly.
Escape the heat
Seeking shade is a must when it’s hot in London, and the Zoo’s brand-new Secret Life of Reptiles and Amphibians is the perfect place to escape the heat.
Head indoors and explore the weird and wonderful world of frogs, snakes, turtles, salamanders and more. These creatures can often only cope with very small temperature ranges – making them particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change – but the Zoo’s new conservation hub for these animals has individual heating and cooling systems to provide every species with the ideal habitat.
London Zoo is the coolest place to be when the sun is shining!