Meet our animals

African Lion

A lion’s roar can be heard from five miles away! You can often hear our male Jasiri and female Kimya roaring when you visit.

Experiences

African Pygmy Goat

Our small herd of goats are friendly and cheeky. You can meet Toffee, Cinnamon and Maple in our walk-through enclosure.

Amur Tiger

Amur tigers are the largest big cat species. They are sadly classed as endangered with only 500-600 left in the wild. Come and see Dragan, our very lively ambassador.

Experiences

Azaras Agouti

Can you spot our allusive agouti females Kinder, Munchie and Chomp? They share their enclosure with our red-handed tamarins and saki monkeys.

Bennett’s Wallaby

Wallabies are only pregnant for one month. When their babies are first born they are smaller than your little finger. This is then followed by nine months in the pouch. Meet our family in the Walk Through enclosure.

Brazilian Tapir

Fortuana (Chana for short) loves tummy tickles and is a great mum to Rofilho. They love to roam across our South American paddock.

Capybara

Capybara are the biggest rodents in the world. Hamish and Hoodoo can be seen strutting their stuff in our South American paddock, with their gorgeous babies.

Carpathian Lynx

Female Willow and male Flaviu – Flaviu caught the headlines in 2016 when he escaped for three weeks until recaptured! 

Cheetah

Tibo and Baro are ambassadors for the fastest land mammal in the world. You can often see the brothers sat at the top of their mound admiring their kingdom.

Fallow Deer

Mr Pickles, our very friendly fallow deer, shares his space with many other species in our Walk Through enclosure. 

Gelada

Geladas are the last surviving species of grazing primate. Come and meet our bachelor group, Bruno, Kwame and Soloman.

Hedgehogs

In 2021, Dartmoor Zoo opened a Hedgehog Rescue, also known as ‘Prickly Hedge Lodge’. The rehabilitation facility can care for up to 20 sick or injured hedgehogs at a time before their release back into the wild. Find out more.

Iberian Wolf

Our endangered Portuguese brothers rarely howl but are always on the prowl.

Jaguar

Despite being the third largest big cat in the world. Solitary male Chincha has the strongest bite of any cat in the world. 

Kirk’s Dik-dik

Ravioli and Macaroni are Kirk’s dik-dik, a small antelope. They are in our African Aviary enclosure with the East African Grey Crowned Cranes and Lilac Breasted Rollers.

Mara

Jeronimo, Alejandro, Javier and Pedro love exploring, following their keepers with the feed bucket and munching on grass and veggies.

Northern Luzon Cloud Rats

Cloud rats, or cloud runners, are endemic to the island of Luzon in the Philippines, where they spend most of their time high up in the branches. These animals are nocturnal, but will you be lucky enough to spot our breeding pair during your visit? 

Parma Wallaby

Believed extinct for most of the 20th century, until they were rediscovered on mainland Australia in 1967. Here at Dartmoor Zoo, we have a father and daughter pair.

Potoroo

These animals are classed as near threatened in the wild. Here at Dartmoor Zoo, we’re lucky enough to have a small family made up of parents Sydney and Adelaide and their young joey, Bendigo.

Raccoon Dog

Our males Kato and Simon are brothers who were reunited in 2020 having moved to separate zoos as youngsters.

Red Handed Tamarin

Females Pumpkin and Ember live in the mixed monkey enclosure by the Zoo lawn. Look out for their amazing coloured feet.

Scottish Wildcats

We’re home to two female Scottish wildcats, Morag and Moraig.

Listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List, these mammals form one of the most endangered cat populations in the world.

Short Clawed Otter

Matty and Jasmine are proud parents of three juveniles; Tarka, Peanut and Darcy. You will often hear them before you see them, especially around feeding times.

Slender-Tailed Meerkat

Our meerkat brothers Twix and Twirl are curious about everything. 

White-faced saki monkey

We’re home to two white-faced saki monkeys – Splodge (male) is 11 years old and Filis (female) is 7 years old.  Contrary to what their name might suggest, only the males possess the signature white face.

Zebra

We’re lucky to have three male zebra; Forest, our extremely friendly Chapman’s stallion, Hugh, our cheeky Grant’s zebra and Parsley, our other Chapman’s zebra.

Blue and Gold Macaw

You will often catch Buzz and Loulou saying ‘hello’ or having a giggle when you pass their enclosure.

Burrowing owl

Often nicknamed ‘howdy owls’ due to the way they stick their heads out from their burrows and nod up and down. Will Walter and Dora say howdy to you?

Common Peafowl

Our male and female peafowl are able to free roam around the Zoo, but are usually found in the Walk Through enclosure or in the picnic areas.

Ducks

Our family of six runner cross ducks live in the South American paddock and enjoy eating the other animals’ food as well as their own! 

East African Grey Crowned Crane

Derek and Marge are quite the show with their beautiful feathers and enchanting calls. During the breeding season you can even see this species dancing. 

Great Grey Owl

Great grey owls, Milly and Peter the Great, are one of the tallest species of owl in the world.

Great Horned Owl

Totem is one of our oldest animals at the Zoo and is very vocal about it. He has been wooing female Royal since she arrived at the Zoo.

Greater Rhea

The greater rhea is the largest of all South American birds. Our group of rhea live in the South American paddock alongside our Patagonian mara and Brazilian tapir.

Helmeted Guinea Fowl

Our helmeted guinea fowl can often be seen causing chaos, drama and noise in the Walk Through enclosure.

Himalayan Monal Pheasant

The Himalayan monal is the national bird of Nepal, where it is known as the danphe or danfe. At the Zoo you can see Mr Monal often enjoying his lettuces and mealworms.

Java Sparrows

Listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List, the Java sparrow, also known as Java finch, Java rice sparrow or Java rice bird, is a species of finch native to Java and Bali in Indonesia.

Our flock can be found in our Bird Aviary.

Lilac Breasted Rollers

Our beautiful female loves showing off the eight different colours found within her feathers.

Luzon bleeding-heart doves

Listed as near threatened on the IUCN Red List, this bird got its unusual name from the splash of vivid red on their white breasts.

You can spot our Luzon bleeding heart doves foraging along the floor in our Bird Aviary.

Ostrich

Dorothy is a crosspatch while Pete is a co-operative gentleman. You can see these two strutting their stuff around the African paddock alongside our zebra.

Scarlet Macaws

Doc and Chico live with our blue-and-gold macaws and potoroos.

Widely regarded as the most beautiful parrot, Scarlet macaws are among the most colourful with large solid swatches of red, blue, and yellow feathers.

White Cheeked Turaco

Turacos are the only birds to possess true red and green pigments. Female Roxy and male Tobias have truly amazing colouring.

Axanthic Blue Iguana

These colourful individuals are green iguanas who lack the yellow pigmentation in their skin making them appear blue in colour. 

Maui our Axanthic Blue Iguana can be found in our Reptile and Bug House.

Bearded Dragon

Elliott is a rescue and an ambassador for his species and meets school children on a regular basis. 

You can get the chance to meet Elliott through our outreach and education sessions.

Black and White Tegu

Male Yana is nearly four foot long and as clever as some dogs! Tegus in the wild can hold their breather under water for up to 22 minutes! 

Yana can be found in our Reptile and Bug House.

Blue Tongued Skink

Male Mango is named after his second favourite food (boiled egg is his favourite). 

You can get the chance to meet Mango through our outreach and education sessions.

Corn Snake

Sir Allan Hiss is an ambassador for his species and meets school children on a regular basis.  

You can get the chance to meet Allan through our outreach and education sessions.

Crested Gecko

These geckos native to New Caledonia were thought to be extinct until the mid 1990s but a population was rediscovered. 

Kali our female Crested Gecko can be found in our Reptile and Bug House.

Geyr’s Spiny-Tailed Uromastyx

Our male Winston will go bright yellow when he has been basking in the heat for long periods. 

Winston can be found in our Reptile and Bug House.

Giant Day Gecko

This Madagascan gecko species can grow up to 10-12 inches long! 

These individuals are currently in our off show breeding room.

Lau Banded Iguana

Found on the Lau Islands of the eastern part of the Fijian archipelago, this Endangered species is considered a national treasure by the government of Fiji.

Come and meet our ambassador Tonga for yourself! You can spot him in our Reptile and Bug House.

Leaf Tail Gecko

Henkel’s leaf tail gecko is endemic to Madagascar. Their flat leaf-like tail and mottled skin colour makes them great at blending in with their surroundings. 

These individuals can be found in our Reptile and Bug House.

Milk Snake

Milk snakes mimic the venomous coral snake as a defensive mechanism. 

You can get the chance to meet Ronnie through our outreach and education sessions.

Nosy Be Panther Chameleon

This chameleon species is endemic to the forests of Madagascar and possess a tongue that is a third of their entire body length.  

You can see Rocket our Nosey Be Panther Chameleon in our Reptile and Bug House.

Royal Python

Female Khaleesi is often basking inside her enclosure. 

You can get the chance to meet Khaleesi through our outreach and education sessions.

Tanzanian Electric Blue Day Gecko

A critically endangered gecko species found in a small area in Tanzania whose main threat is deforestation. 

We currently have some individuals in our off show breeding room.

Western Hognose Snake

Male Django is our smallest snake and can let off a foul smell as a defence mechanism. 

You can get the chance to meet Django through our outreach and education sessions.

Yellow-headed Day Gecko

This stunning animal is an endangered gecko species from Madagascar that like to hide on and inside bamboo.  

They can be found in our Reptile and Bug House. We also have some individuals in our off show breeding room.

Achrioptera Manga

When the males of this stick insect species mature, they will turn bright blue. 

We currently have some individuals in our off show breeding room.

Black Beauty Stick Insects

These critically endangered species are native to a small area in Northern Peru that is threatened by wildfires and conversion of the land for agricultural purposes.

We currently have a group of Black Beauty stick insects in our Reptile and Bug House.

Chilean Rose Tarantula

Chilean rose tarantulas are calm, docile spiders native to desert scrub habitats in South America. If they feel threatened this species of tarantula has urticating hairs, which can be thrown from their bodies irritating the threat. 

You could get the chance to see Cruella, our Chilean rose tarantula by booking a Reptile and Bug experience.

Leaf Insects

This species looks almost identical to leaves. 

We currently have a group of leaf insects in our Reptile and Bug House.

Macleay Stick Insect

Endemic to Australia, this species has incredible camouflage.   

We currently have some in our off show breeding room.

Orange Headed Cockroaches

We have a colony of cockroaches from adults to juveniles. 

You can get the chance to meet these individuals through our outreach and education sessions.

Purple Clawed Hermit Crab

This species swap shells on a regular basis as they grow. 

You can get a chance to meet Dave our Purple Clawed Hermit Crab by booking a Reptile and Bug experience.

Salmon Pink Bird Eating Tarantula

This species can reach a leg span of up to 25cm.

You can see Biggie our Salmon Pink Bird Eating Tarantula in our Reptile and Bug House.

Tanzanian Giant Tailless Whip Scorpion

This species is not actually a scorpion but an arachnid which were famously portrayed in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

You can meet ours by booking a Reptile and Bug experience.

Tiger Land Snails

This African species are hermaphrodites hence they possess both male and female reproductive organs. 

You can meet these individuals through our outreach and education sessions.

Axolotl

Axolotls possess incredible regeneration abilities. These animals are sadly classed as critically endangered, with less than 100 found in the wild.

You can see Midnight our female in our vivarium in the Jaguar restaurant.

Chinese Emperor Newt

These newts are brightly coloured to warn predators that they are poisonous, which is known as aposematism.  

You can meet these amazing newts by booking a Reptile and Bug experience.

Golden Mantella

These amphibians are critically endangered due to deforestation and they are poisonous in the wild. 

These individuals can be found in our Reptile and Bug House. We also have some tadpoles in our off show breeding room.