New lion at London Zoo
New lioness has arrived
London Zoo have a new lion.
Four year old Arya, the lioness has been brought in to make up a new pride at the venue.
She's an Asiatic lion which is an endangered species. In the wild there are only around 500 in India in a forest the size of the Capital.
Zookeeper Tara Humphreys said:
“Arya is a lively young lion who is particularly fond of climbing trees, which she'll find in abundance in her new Land of the Lions home - her favourite scent is peppermint, which she absolutely adores rolling in, so we’ve made sure to stock up on plenty of fresh bunches as a housewarming present.
“At the moment, Arya is sticking to mainly night-time explorations of her new paddock, so we’ve been giving her a bit of privacy while she settles in - but we did spot her peeking at us from behind the bushes when she crept outside today, and she’ll venture out more and more as she grows in confidence.”
To make way for Arya’s arrival, zookeepers waved a fond fur well to London-born lionesses Heidi, Indi and Rubi, who moved to Germany’s Schwerin Zoo on Thursday 8 April.
Big cat team leader Kate Sanders added:
“Arya is also the daughter of one of London Zoo’s former lions, Lucifer, so it feels particularly fitting that she’s here, where her father spent so many happy years: many of our regular visitors will have fond memories of Lucifer and we’re sure they’ll be excited to visit his daughter over the coming months.”
Simon Hildrey, CMO at Liontrust said:
“When we first partnered with ZSL more than eight years ago, Lucifer was the male lion at ZSL London Zoo so it is wonderful to continue the ‘tail’ through Arya’s arrival. We are proud to have been able to support the safe journeys of all the lionesses and through this the conservation work of ZSL. Wildlife conservation is one of three objectives of Liontrust’s community engagement programme and protecting biodiversity is becoming an increasingly important consideration for sustainable investors.”