2025 Year In Review
We've achieved a lot this year!
2025 was a busy year for everyone here at Hamerton Zoo Park, from our maintenance team to our keeper team, to our shop and admin staff! Below is a breakdown of some of our highlights:
Spring Animals
Several babies were born here in the spring, including a Dik-Dik, three Brown Hyena cubs (Medusa, Loki & Bellatrix), two Tasmanian Golden Possums (Pretzel & Pandora), a Camel (Tammy), a Binturong, White Storks, a Brown Wood Owl and Corsac Foxes!
As well as these births, two members of our fantastic keeper team delivered our first talks of the year at professional species-specific conferences. Charlie, one of our large carnivore keepers, provided a talk on our Syrian Brown Bears, and Cathy, who has extensive knowledge of Civet husbandry, delivered a talk on Viverrids. This, alongside our first ever Civet Day (which was held on 5th April) meant that we were able to place additional focus this year on a lesser-known species, that we’ve had considerable success with. From this event alone, we managed to raise £589.14 for The Civet Project.
With regards to external animal arrivals, we were finally able to find a mate for our male Lilac-Breasted Roller, hoping that one day a family may start here for this vibrant bird species.
Spring Events
A new role was created in the zoo for the first time in our history this Spring; Megan, our Education Officer joined us! In addition to School Visits, this meant we now had a dedicated member of staff to deliver fun and informative keeper talks, outreach days, and internal displays. We can’t wait to continue this into the new year.
As well as Civet Day, we held a special one-off event for those who benefit from the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) Tiger Bus Pass, as they celebrated a landmark 1 million journeys! This included discounted entry, a raffle, and a visit from the Mayor – he even braved feeding Mohan, our White Tiger.
Summer Animals
This summer saw the much-anticipated birth of Southern Aardwolf pups, as well as new chicks in our Flamingo flamboyance. Penelope, our youngest Poitou Donkey, was also born, accompanied soon after by two Meerkat births in our ‘Chocolate’ mob (Kit & Kat).
Animal movements picked up: Zig-Zag the Zebra went on a romantic temporary excursion to Longleat, in the hopes that he would sire some foals; two Brown Hyaenas moved to Newquay Zoo; some Corsac Foxes moved to Hoo Zoo, switching with Tommy the Ring-Tailed Lemur; and Storks ‘migrated’ to Lowther. In amongst these moves, one of our Keeper Team attended a Reptile Course at Crocs of the World, allowing us to maintain an up-to-date understanding of husbandry needs and best practice.
Summer Events
Our Endangered Species Day kicked off events for the start of the Summer with a bang, seeking to raise funds for all our chosen charities through a Tombola, Raffle, Face Painting and Cake Sale, while also hosting extended keeper talks and an IUCN Classification classroom session. Through these efforts we raised £672!
Following this was our Big Birthday Celebration, which also combined with Father’s Day. Hamerton Zoo Park turned 35, and our celebratory event day raised a further £521.
We also held Dino Day, with a life-size Raptor stalking the Park and sometimes (when safe and controlled by a Keeper) posing for photos with particularly brave visitors. There were also one-off Dinosaur Talks, as well as games and cake.
Tiger Day was a huge success; discounted Tiger feeds, cakes, snacks, games, raffles and gifts raised a fantastic £1338.90 for the Wildcats Conservation Alliance. Hot on its heels was Cheetah Day, where a whopping £1634.40 was collected for the Cheetah Conservation Fund, and our Cheetah Triplets (born in Winter 2024) had their first experience of public feeds.
Our Maintenance and Development team worked extremely hard to ensure that our new Gift Shop and Entrance building opened its doors for the first time in the Summer, followed swiftly by the long-awaited opening of our Tree-Tops Adventure Play area. These additions could all be appreciated year-round, which was of particular importance in our Play Area, which historically has had to shut in the Winter.
To make sure that the new Gift Shop and Entrance kept up with demand (and making sure we always have the best cuddly toys available!), a second new role was introduced – Ed our Commercial Manager joined the team. Alongside the Office Manager, Ed was able to attend local events and festivals such as Sawtry on Safari, Wild About Huntingdonshire, Paxfest and Peterborough Pride, to help spread some joy and information about what we do and raise some money for the continued upkeep and care of our animals. As well as this, Megan was able to attend schools to deliver talks on various subjects, including a Careers Fair at St Andrew’s and several talks at Sawtry Academy and Brooksby College.
For our final pieces of summer news, both the RSPB and the CPCA Fostering Team had stalls at the Zoo, enabling us to support and promote their work. We also were able to host our local MP, Ben Obese-Jecty, who thoroughly enjoyed his visit and wrote a lovely piece about the Zoo on his social media platforms.
Autumn Animals
Autumn was a busy period for animal movements and new arrivals. We welcomed new goats to the Park, while several animals moved on as part of wider breeding and management programmes. Our Civet triplets headed to Drayton Manor, our Brown Hyaena family moved into their brand-new enclosure, and Sloths relocated to Beale Wildlife Park and Northumberland Zoo. Some of our Bush Squirrels also transferred to Chester Zoo, supporting collaborative population management across UK collections.
We were also delighted to welcome some more Indian Star Tortoises to the Zoo; another fascinating species for visitors to learn about. Autumn also saw the return of our much-loved Bear Day as part of Fat Bear Week, allowing us to celebrate our bears while raising awareness of their conservation and care.
Autumn Events
Ed and Ayesha (Office Manager) began attending the newly established Huntingdonshire Visitor Economy Forum, helping Hamerton Zoo Park strengthen local partnerships and play an active role in regional tourism discussions. Ed also gave a talk at Thrapston Ladies Club, which proved to be a wonderful evening.
Our events and outreach presence continued to grow, with the team attending Whittlesey Festival with an event stall, as well as a Wild About Huntingdonshire mini event at The Chase Care Home, bringing wildlife engagement to new audiences.
One of the highlights of the season was the launch of our Photography Experiences, supported by Megan and Helen Black, a talented wildlife photographer. These experiences proved incredibly popular, selling out quickly — with only a few spaces remaining for sessions in Q1 2026.
Birthday Parties and Team-Building days were also introduced; we look forward to these taking off in 2026!
Winter Animals
Winter brought further professional development and exciting animal news. Cathy attended a Nocturnal Mammal Conference at ZSL, continuing our commitment to evidence-based husbandry and learning from wider zoo and conservation communities.
There were several wonderful births across the Park, including a Sloth, a Civet, and Marmosets, alongside the arrival of Hyrax from the Czech Republic. Some more Poitou Donkeys also arrived from France, just in time for the winter months, and a selection of reptiles moved into the Coffee Shop area, offering visitors a chance to enjoy them up close during the colder season.
Winter Events
Our outreach efforts continued through the winter, with Megan giving a guest talk at Nottingham Trent University, as well as attending careers days at St William’s School and Refocus School. An event stall was also taken to a family event day at Huntingdon Racecourse, helping us reach new audiences and share our conservation message.
The festive season was a huge success, with Santa’s Grotto proving wildly popular once again. The Christmas Train added a little extra magic to the experience, delighting visitors of all ages and rounding off the year on a high note.
Looking Ahead
We can’t wait to see what 2026 has in store for us — with some major plans already in motion.
Stay tuned…