Our River’s Edge habitat is home to many different species with indoor and outdoor viewing available across a range of different animals, from red panda to green anaconda.
Outdoor habitats include red panda, Asian short-clawed otter, binturong, giant anteater, pileated gibbon and wreathed hornbill.
Our indoor River’s Edge building is home to a variety of species, including emerald tree monitor, green anaconda, lion-tailed macaque, and fish species.
In the year
2021
this habitat was redeveloped
In the late
1990s
first red panda cubs were born
A green anaconda can weigh
250kg
on average
A lion-tailed macaque can weigh
10kg
on average
Animals in River’s Edge
Asian Short-clawed Otter
Aonyx cinereus
From: Asia
Status: Vulnerable
Quick Fact: This otter is the smallest out of all 13 species of otter. Unlike other otter species that catch their food with their mouths, the Asian short-clawed otter uses its front paws instead.
Find me in: River’s Edge
Mammals
Binturong
Arctictis binturong
From: South and Southeast Asia
Status: Vulnerable
Quick Fact: Binturongs mark their territory by leaving a musky substance that smells like popcorn!
Find me in: River’s Edge
Mammals
Emerald Tree Monitor
Varanus prasinus
From: New Guinea
Status: Least Concern
Quick Fact: Emerald tree monitors do not lose their tail when threatened as their prehensile tail is vital for their lifestyle.
Find me in: River’s Edge
Reptiles
Giant Anteater
Mymecophaga tridactyla
From: South America
Status: Vulnerable
Quick Fact: Males and females look so alike that females can only be recognised when they are carrying their babies on their backs.
Find me in: River’s Edge
Mammals
Green Anaconda
Eunectes murinus
From: South America and island of Trinidad
Status: Least Concern
Quick Fact: Green anacondas are the largest snake in the world and are members of the boa family.
Find me in: River’s Edge
Reptiles
Lion-tailed Macaque
Macaca silenus
From: India
Status: Endangered
Quick Fact: Their name is derived from the fluffy end of their tail which is similar to a lion’s tail.
Find me in: River’s Edge
Mammals
Pileated Gibbon
Hylobates pileatus
From: Cambodia, Laos and south-east Thailand
Status: Endangered
Quick Fact: These gibbons have very long arms with hook-like fingers for swinging through the forest. Thick skin pads are found on their bottoms for prolonged sitting when they are not on the move.
Find me in: River’s Edge
Mammals
Red Panda
Ailurus fulgens
From: Bhutan, China, India Myanmar and Nepal
Status: Endangered
Quick Fact: Red pandas have flexible ankles which can rotate so they can climb down a tree head-first.
Find me in: River’s Edge
Mammals
Wreathed Hornbill
Rhyticeros undulates
From: Asia
Status: Vulnerable
Quick Fact: The male of this species has a yellow pouch under its beak and is larger than the female. A female’s pouch is blue, and they have a short beak.
Find me in: River’s Edge
Birds
Adopt an animal at Colchester Zoological Society
You will be helping to fund our work which assists conservation projects all over the world!
