New animal enclosures are being built as part of a major expansion of Fife Zoo.
The attraction, near Ladybank, hopes to add tamarins, fossa and wallabies to its collection as it doubles in size.
A pair of critically endangered Alaotran gentle lemurs will be the first new arrival this summer – after living in Bristol Zoo.
It is hoped the lemurs will be visible to the public in early June, with plans to have the wallaby enclosure ready by July.
The zoo is already home to the likes of meerkats, porcupines, armadillos, marmosets and zebras.
The expansion is part of the zoo’s 10-year masterplan – which began in 2019 but has faced delays due to a string of setbacks including coronavirus and two fires.
As part of the development, Fife Zoo is working with Dr Matt Hartley – who has previously helped to construct the panda enclosure at Edinburgh Zoo.
Expansion ‘incredibly exciting’ says zoo boss
Michael Knight, director of Fife Zoo, said: “The project we have here at Fife Zoo is incredibly exciting and after appointing a contractor to complete the works, it’s been really rewarding to see our long-awaited expansion get under way.
“We spent some time breaking ground at the zoo in late March and have already mapped out the foundations for the expansion project.
“At Fife Zoo we are committed to the conservation of threatened wildlife species and our expansion will allow us to increase the size of the role we play in European breeding programmes for endangered animals.
“Each of the animals that will be accommodated as part of our expansion have a significant conservation value and we look forward to educating guests about the actions they can take to help safeguard wildlife from extinction.”
Fife Zoo recently treated one of its coatimundi to acupuncture in what was thought to be a world first.
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