Sofia Zoo marmoset, and macaques. The predator sector houses big cats, bears and small predators, including lions, tigers, leopards, pumas and brown bears. In January 2011 the zoo received eight Humboldt penguins on loan from Germany. The penguins are on loan for about 18 months, after which they will be returned, with any offspring to stay at the zoo. The zoo has some 1,400 individual birds representing 192 species. Waterbirds are housed in a lake, and Imperial eagles, Griffon vultures, Egyptian vultures and buzzards in a large walk-through aviary. Other species of birds at the zoo include ostriches, Silver pheasants, peacocks, flamingos,
History of Edinburgh Zoo chimpanzees at Edinburgh were found to use word-like vocal labels for food. In late 2005 the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) threatened action over the holding in captivity of Mercedes, then Britain's only polar bear. The zoo had initially planned to retire their polar bear exhibit after Mercedes died. When zoo officials announced plans to create a new attraction, citing their responsibility to ensure the survival of the species, the ALF threatened damage to zoo workers' property and other scare-tactics. Edinburgh's treatment of polar bears had often been subject to criticism, punctuated by incidents like the death in 1997 of Mercedes'