Zoos are vital, as they help prevent extinction by keeping animals safe and well cared for, while also educating people about conservation and endangered species. Plus, they’re a lot of fun to visit too! Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has put many zoos and safari parks at risk of shutting down since they have so many animals to feed- a costly task when no one is paying to see them.
Among them, Chester zoo who has prided itself on being one of the most visited and largest zoos in the UK since 1931, is now struggling to make ends meet. The charity zoo even started the #SaveOurZoo campaign to help raise the £1.6 million (about $2 million) per month it needs to survive. Thankfully, Iceland Foods supermarket has adopted all of the zoo’s penguins in efforts to help alleviate the zoo’s costs.
The frozen foods chain appropriately took on the zoo’s newest batch of Humboldt penguins, who were all named after NHS hospitals in tribute to healthcare workers on the frontlines.
Iceland Managing Director, Richard Walker, said:
We were all saddened to hear of Chester Zoo’s recent struggles; it’s the heart of the local community in Chester and a much-loved family favorite—I remember visiting the zoo as a child, and my own kids love going there. We’re proud to be able to lend them our support both through the adoption of the Humboldt penguins on behalf of our colleagues and by lobbying in support of zoos being allowed to re-open soon. The conservation work undertaken by the zoo is vital, and along with the park itself re-opening, it is incredibly important that this amazing work is able to continue.
The Chester Zoos conservationists have worked hard on preventing extinction, cheering up residents, and their learning resources have helped educate home-schooling students. Since the zoo doesn’t receive any government funds, it relies heavily on ticket sales, with 97% of its income coming only from visitors.
Finally, after long-intensive public pressure, Chester Zoo re-opened on June 15. However, there are social distancing rules, including visitors must book their visit online and select a specific time slot. These rules are applied for safety measures so that the zoo can keep track of each visitor and sanitize each visit.
The re-opening is excellent news for Chester Zoo, but it doesn’t mean they are free from struggles, there are still limitations on the number of visitors. The zoo is accepting donations at the #SaveOurZoo campaign to help fill in the gap on the number of visitors they are losing due to the social distancing rules.
