Whipsnade Zoo
ZSL Whipsnade Zoo is a zoo at Whipsnade near Dunstable in Bedfordshire , England . The zoo was originally called Whipsnade Park Zoo , from 1988 Whipsnade Wild Animal Park and was renamed ZSL Whipsnade Zoo in March 2007 . It is owned by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of animals and their habitats.
The zoo is 2.4 square kilometers, making it one of the largest European zoos. Due to its size, it is allowed to drive between the individual animal enclosures with cars. The zoo also offers a bus service and a narrow-gauge railway. More than 6000 animals are kept in the zoo, several of which are endangered in the wild. The majority of the animals are kept in large enclosures. Some like peacocks , wallabies and maras are allowed to roam freely in the park.
The zoological society that owns the zoo was founded in 1826 by Stamford Raffles . 100 years later, the then Chairman of the Society, Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell , was inspired by a visit to the Bronx Zoological Park to set up something similar in Great Britain. To this end, Hall Farm, an abandoned farm 30 miles north of London, was bought by the Zoological Society. The zoo has been open to visitors since 1931.
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Coordinates: 51 ° 50 ′ 59 ″ N , 0 ° 32 ′ 39 ″ W.