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What’s new at the zoo for Easter

7 April 2009

As well as face painting and traditional Cave Hill egg rolling, this Easter at the zoo you can see a giant anteater and a capybara.

The giant anteater is native to South and Central America, and came from Edinburgh Zoo early this year. They have a very long snout, no teeth and eat by using their long tongues to lap up 35,000 ants and termites each day. It can flick its tongue up to 160 times per minute when tackling a termite mound. You won’t see this unusual creature elsewhere in Ireland, as Belfast Zoo is the only zoo in Ireland to care for giant anteaters.

The capybara is native to South America and has been likened to a pig, but is the largest member of the rodent family. They grow up to 1.3 metres long and can weigh up to 65 kilograms. At present, the capybara is not at risk of extinction but the main threats they face are being hunted for their meat or skin.

Zoo manager Mark Challis said: “We are delighted about our new arrivals to the zoo and hope the anteater and capybara will be very popular with our visitors this Easter”.

The zoo opens at 10am. Last admission is 5pm.