Old Christmas trees enrich lives of zoo's animals

Riki, the lesser spot-nosed Guenon at the zoo has been foraging for nuts sprinkled on the spruce

A zoo has received nearly 50 donated Christmas trees as part of an annual appeal to help enrich the lives of its animals.

Hamerton Zoo Park in Cambridgeshire put out a request to the public for used trees which the animals enjoy in a variety of ways.

Bears and tigers like to rip them up, while small primates and possums love to hunt for food that staff hide amongst the tree's branches.

Cathy Evans, 26, the head of small mammals at the zoo, said: "Every day we try and find ways to make our animals work a bit differently, it can bring out natural behaviours that they perhaps wouldn't get in captivity."

Franco the Gibbon enjoys feeding on the peppers and apple baubles on a donated Christmas tree

Cathy Evans said she has been "blown away" with the amount of trees donated by the public

Hamerton Zoo Park sits in 25 acres of Cambridgeshire countryside south of Peterborough.

The zoo started appealing for used Christmas trees in 2021, after keepers came up with a plan to help improve and stimulate the lives of their animals.

"The trees are brilliant for us, the hyenas, tigers and bears love to jump into them and literally tear them up," said keeper Ms Evans.

Laika the brown Syrian bear enjoys wrestling with an old spruce to find hidden bits of fish

Ms Evans said she has been blown away with the amount of tree donations that the zoo gets.

"This is our third year of doing it and it makes so much sense as the trees don't end up in landfill which is a complete waste," she said.

"We do rigorously comb through the branches of the trees before distributing them to make sure no baubles, tinsel or fairies have been accidently left behind, but it is such a joy to see the difference a simple Christmas tree can make to our animals," she added.

Cathy Evans says donating the trees also keeps them out landfill, which helps the environment

The zoo had more than 100 trees donated to it last year, and so far it has received nearly 50 this year and more keep arriving every day.

Ms Evans, who has been a keeper at the zoo since 2020, said staff also spray perfumes on the trees to give the animals "another level of interest".

She said: "Some like musky fragrances others prefer floral or fruity scents, we have a whole range of eau de toilette products, so the keepers go home smelling a million dollars too."