London Zoo hid food in pumpkins so animals could forage
Keepers laid scent trails to pumpkins stuffed with the foods each animal already eats. The Halloween scatter is a yearly enrichment, and it landed in the zoo's 200th year.
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Keepers at ZSL London Zoo spent October 29 hiding pumpkins in enclosures and stuffing them with food the animals already eat. BBC News reported the scatter the same day. Penguins had to find fish inside a pumpkin. Sulawesi crested macaques, including a baby, were among the animals meeting the seasonal setup. Daniel Simmonds, the zoo's animal operations manager, said Halloween gives keepers a reason to build a new version of a familiar job: encouraging natural skills. They lay scent trails that lead to the pumpkins, and sometimes they hide the meal inside so an animal has to work it out.
Simmonds called it part of an annual tradition. This year's version falls in the 200th anniversary of the Zoological Society of London. BBC's report is about that one day of enrichment. It does not claim a change in the animals' health, and it does not list every species that got a pumpkin.
For the classroom
On October 29, 2026, keepers at London Zoo hid pumpkins around animal homes and put food inside some of them. BBC News reported that the food was each animal's usual favorite, not a new treat. Penguins had to find fish tucked into a pumpkin. Keepers also laid scent trails so the animals could follow their noses. Daniel Simmonds, who manages animal operations, said Halloween is a chance to invent a seasonal way for animals to use the skills they would use in the wild, such as searching for food. The zoo does this every year. This year is also the 200th anniversary of the Zoological Society of London, the charity that runs the zoo.
- Why would a keeper hide food instead of putting it in a bowl?
- What skill is a penguin practicing when it searches a pumpkin?
- What is one way people can make a pet's day more interesting without a new toy from a shop?
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London, United KingdomZoosWildlife conservationGood news on October 29
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