London Zoo in the black

London Zoo yesterday announced it had staved off extinction and clocked up a pounds 1m surplus.

Just six years after it faced closure, with annual losses of pounds 4.5m, the zoo has never looked healthier. Bears will return at Easter for the first time in 10 years, and a pounds 4.4m millennium project, showing how animals fit into their environment, is under way. Other improvements include pounds 1m for breeding facilities for hippos and elephants at London Zoo's sister, Whipsnade Zoo.