A corporal in the Canadian Army and a sailor of the Royal Navy enjoy free admission during war time, sharing a bowl of nuts with a porcupine at London Zoo in 1940. In January 1940, it was decided to admit members of H.M. Forces at half price on weekdays and free on Sundays. Wounded men were always admitted free. In August of the same year, it was decided to open the gardens to the public on a Sunday for the first time to try to attract more visitors. The war brought shortages of many things, chiefly fuel and food. To save on petrol, the camels and llamas were used to carry fodder across the zoo to the animal houses and the Shetland ponies were used for short journeys outside the zoo. Certain types of food became difficult to obtain. The zoo had to breed its own mealworms for the insectivorous birds and mammals instead of importing them from Germany. Fish was very expensive and some animals like pelicans had to be persuaded to eat meat coated in fish liver oil. Positive steps were also made to ensure that there was enough food for the animals. An appeal was broadcast on the radio asking people to gather acorns to supplement the diet of some animals. Acorns poured in at a rate of one ton a week and were fed to the agoutis, squirrels, monkeys and deer. Another success was the Adopt an Animal scheme. Members of the public and organisations were invited to pay for the keep of an animal of their choice. The adoptions were very popular despite the fact that many people had been evacuated, and there were fewer visitors to the gardens. Although animal adoptions were set up as a temporary measure to get the zoo through a lean period, the scheme still exists today. For almost a year after the outbreak of war, things were very quiet. But in August 1940 the air raid warning sounded and this was to happen almost every day for the rest of the year. London Zoo was bombed several times during the war, sometimes suffering no more than shattered panes of glass, while on other occasions whole buildings were blown up. One such day was 27 September 1940 when several high explosive bombs fell, damaging the Rodent House, the Civet House, the gardeners office and all the propagating sheds, the North Gate and the Zebra House. Surprisingly there were no injuries to any animal, although a zebra and a wild ass with her foal managed to escape. The zebra was later found heading for Camden Town, but was rounded up. On the same night, 35 incendiary bombs fell, setting fire to the main restaurant and destroying the Tunnel Bar. Upon the discovery of an unexploded bomb the zoo was closed for over a week. Later in January 1941, the Camel House was hit, but when the keepers arrived to investigate, the camels were sitting placidly chewing the cud.
Posted on: Mon, 17 Nov 2014 06:00:05 +0000
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