Marwell Bites animal news October 2025

Pumpkin season has arrived! This week, our residents have been tucking into some seasonal treats (keep an eye on our socials to see more), and there’s plenty of other exciting news to share from around the zoo this month…

Our potoroo joey is a pocketful of confidence

October is always full of animal celebrations, and this year we celebrated World Animal Day with an exciting update about one of Marwell’s newest and cutest residents. At around three months old, our potoroo joey is growing fast. They’re already hopping around but still love diving back into mum’s pouch! Head over to our Facebook to watch the update from Primates and Small Mammals Keeper, Arun and vote in our poll to help name the adorable youngster.

The third oldest African wild ass in the world turns 28

Happy 28th Birthday to Tiki – the third oldest African wild ass in the world! Over the years, Tiki has been an important part of the breeding programme for wild ass, raising seven foals whose descendants now live across Europe. African wild ass are listed as Critically Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, with fewer than 200 mature individuals in the wild.

Back Garden Aviary to get new residents

Our blue-crowned laughingthrush have now moved from the Back Garden Aviary to Energy for Life: Tropical House (EFL), where they are settling in well to their new environment.

Their move makes way for our Mount Omei liocichla juveniles, who will take up residence in the aviary in early December.

New roul roul chick

There’s a tiny new addition in The Tropical House! A roul roul chick has hatched, and keepers report that both chick and parents are doing really well.

Tiger pool gets a refresh

Pasha’s pool has recently been thoroughly cleaned, re-sealed, and given a fresh coat of paint – ready for him to enjoy an autumnal dip.

Ostrich on the move

Our ostriches have relocated from opposite the okapi playground to the former blesbok habitat, giving them a new area to enjoy and explore.

Red panda habitat

Exciting changes are taking place in the old clouded leopard habitat, which has been transformed into a brand-new home for Cherry, our female red panda. Cherry moved to her new home on 22 October, and can already be seen exploring her new environment.

Another okapi calf

We’re delighted to share that we’ve welcomed another okapi calf – the third in just three years! This is an incredible success story for a rare and beautiful species and highlights the fantastic work of our Animal Care team. Head over to our social media channels to watch Hoofstock Keepers, Zoe and Katie, introduce our okapi herd.

Stay up to date with news about your favourite animals over on our social media channels! You can find us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube and TikTok.