Highland Wildlife Park Highland Wildlife Park News 2025

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We are sad to share the loss of Victoria, the UK’s oldest polar bear, who was experiencing age related health problems and had been receiving geriatric care.

Taking into account her quality of life and wellbeing, our charity’s vets advised that Victoria should be put to sleep.

Born in 1996 at Rostock Zoo, she first gave birth in 2008 at Aalborg Zoo in Denmark to a girl named Malik.

Victoria moved to the park in 2015 and gave birth to two boys, with Hamish being the first polar bear to be born in the UK for 25 years in 2017, followed by Brodie in 2021.

Victoria leaves an incredible legacy through her cubs who play an essential role in the European breeding programme, which ensures a healthy and genetically diverse population of these bears living in human care.

She will be greatly missed by all of us here at the park
 
A few updates from tonight's AGM:

  • David Field paid tribute to female Polar Bear, Victoria, who was recently put to sleep. He also advised it's now possible that young male Polar Bear, Brodie, could stay at HWP and become the future breeding male, which in turn insinuates they will, in time, look for a new female bear.
  • Visitor numbers in 2024 were 124,000.
  • RZSS membership is now 50,000
  • Some of the Przewalski's horses are in foal.
  • They need a new male Bison, they had one agreed to come from Ireland however this has been delayed due to the issues with Bluetongue disease.
  • They are going to build a new Red Panda enclosure so that this species can return the park. There are looking at the collection plan to see what other species can be added but no decisions have been made yet.
  • The café redevelopment is almost complete and they expect it to be opening in the next few weeks.
  • They are going to undertake the replacement and repair of pretty much every piece of fencing in the park, this will give them the opportunity to also create new and improved viewing experiences.
 
Prochilodus246 said:
Please correct me if I am wrong but as far as I am aware the invertebrates they do hold such as the Pine Hoverfly & Leeches are part of reintroduction programs. They are not the most exciting species to display as the hoverflies will be in their larval stage feeding on rotting tree stumps and the leeches won't be massively active.
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I am really glad they do devote and allocate space at the facility and zoo for these local native species conservation programs. They are invaluable and integral to any ex situ conservation zoo facility dedicated to species and habitat conservation both overseas, internationally, nationally and locally at home.
 
British explorer said:
Visited the park for the first time today and all I have is that it looks like they’re extending the male polar bear enclosure and I think they are also building a new enclosure in the drive through.
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I assume the polar bear extension is to accommodate the young male Brodie longer term now his mother is no longer with us (as mentioned in the AGM notes above) while making it possible to accommodate a new breeding female if one is recommended.
 
Quincey said:
The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) and its partners have launched the first-ever Pine Hoverfly Conservation Strategy, a landmark plan designed to safeguard one of Britain’s most endangered native species and restore the health of the native woodland ecosystems it calls home:

New pine hoverfly Conservation Strategy leads the way in protecting one of Britain’s most endangered insects
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A great project, I really hope they find larvae in their next survey
 
A new visitor centre has opened its doors to the public at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s (RZSS) Highland Wildlife Park.

The £1.6 million redevelopment includes a shop, café and accessible facilities, which the wildlife conservation charity says will help more people engage with nature.

It is the final phase of an £7.6 million investment in the park, with an interactive exhibition centre, a hilltop den and an events space for schools and communities having opened last year:

Final phase of Scotland’s Wildlife Discovery Centre opens at Highland Wildlife Park
 
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