Zoo news – August 2025

August has been a busy month for the zoo with lots of work going on behind the scenes. Read below to find out more!

Big Bug Bonanza

July saw our Big Bug Bonanza, a day when we celebrate all things invertebrate! Not only did we showcase the weird and wonderful species you can find in Ireland, but also our live invertebrate breeding for our insectivorous animals, as well as a special guest appearance from Chantell of the National Biodiversity Data Centre, she brought some examples of the Asian hornet (Vespa velutina) which are invasive in much of Europe and recently announced an arrival in Ireland. Educating the general public on how to identify them as well as many other invasive species. Guests also got to meet the noble false widow (Steatoda nobilis) in our Education Centre, meet locusts, sun beetles, and morio beetles. Kids got to colour in invertebrate themed colouring sheets, and play games at our activity table as well as learn how they can help out our native invertebrates through bug hotels and making pollinator patches.

Heritage Week

Right after our Big Bug Bonanza we celebrated Heritage Week, a time to highlight Irish heritage and we did it by highlighting the animals that have shaped Ireland. We had talks and tours of native species like the Eurasian lynx, red kites, white-tailed sea eagle & barn owl, as well as domestic species like sheep, goats, & donkeys. Our activity table ran games such as native or not, highlighting that many of the animals we associate with the Irish countryside have been introduced to Ireland, and even highlighting that some animals live in Ireland without many people knowing about them such as our viviparous lizard!

Guests also picked up informative pamphlets on how to help Irish Wildlife such as diagrams for building barn owl boxes, insect hotels, and even how to begin birdwatching! We had a wonderful time celebrating Irish nature and heritage with our guests, we already can’t wait for the next Heritage Week!

Murals

If you’ve been around our Zoo this summer you may have noticed a pop of colour in some areas, this is thanks to our wonderful artist and education officer Shona creating some stunning artwork through the zoo!
Shona’s work depicts a variety of scenes such as a native species woodland, meerkats in the wild with animals that share their range, and the iconic patterns of tigers and leopards.

Shona’s beautiful style brings out the beauty of nature and fits in perfectly in our zoo, her other works can be seen on her Instagram portfolio, @artbyshonaaa

Discovery Centre Accreditation

We’re delighted to announce that we have received the Discover Centre accreditation form the Taighde Éireann Research Ireland! This programme set up by Research Ireland (formally Science Foundation Ireland) to promote and support awareness and understanding of the value of research. It also facilitates engagement of members of public with organisations  involved with research and innovation activities.

Education is something we take pride in here at Emerald Park, not only through engagement with our guests at various talks, engagement in our Education Centre with our biofacts and signage through our Zoo. We also run educational packages for schools and groups on everything from ecology, the importance of zoos, and business! If you’re a school looking to add something different to the class, why not drop us an enquiry at our education portal!

We’re looking forward to having you here!

Thanks for reading. Check back next month for more zoo updates!

The Emerald Park Zoo Team