Throughout its history, the zoo has had many well-known residents.
These may have been scientifically important individuals or simply beloved by the public.

Old Martin was a large grizzly bear, the first in Britain, moved to the zoo with many other animals from the Royal Menagerie, Tower of London when it was closed in 1832.

The zoo was home to the only living quagga ever to be photographed, before the species became extinct in the wild due to hunting in southern Africa in about 1870.
Another now extinct species the zoo held was a number of thylacines, or "Tasmanian tigers".

Obaysch was the first hippopotamus to be seen in Europe since the Roman Empire, and the first in England since prehistoric times.
The hippo arrived at London Zoo in May 1850 as a gift from the Ottoman Viceroy of Egypt in exchange for some greyhounds and deerhounds.
Obaysch led to a doubling of the zoo's visitors that year.

In 1865, Jumbo, the largest elephant known at the time, was transferred to the zoo from Jardin des Plantes in Paris.
His name, possibly from Jambo, Swahili for hello, became an epithet for anything of large size, such as Boeing's 747 [[Wide-body aircraft|Jumbo jet].
He was sold to Phineas Barnum's circus, the Barnum & Bailey Circus, in 1882, where he was later crushed by a locomotive and killed.

Winnipeg the Bear (or Winnie) was an American black bear given to the zoo in 1914 by a Canadian lieutenant, Harry Colebourn.
A. A. Milne visited with his son Christopher Robin, and the boy was so enamoured with the bear Milne wrote the famous series of books for him entitled Winnie-the-Pooh.
A 2004 film A Bear Named Winnie is based on the story of Winnie the bear, with Michael Fassbender playing Harry Colebourn.

Guy, a western lowland gorilla, arrived at the zoo on Guy Fawkes Night (hence the name) 1947 from Paris Zoo, and lived at the zoo until his death in 1978.
Over his 32-year life, he became one of the zoo's best-loved residents.
After years of trying to find a mate, in 1969 five-year-old Lomie arrived from Chessington Zoo.
They were kept separated for a year to adjust to each other, until they were finally united.
Although they got on well together they never produced any offspring.
In 1982 Guy was commemorated by a bronze statue in Barclay Court, sculpted by William Timym.

Dumbo (born 1948) was a female Indian elephant who lived at London Zoo during the 1950s and was well known for her fondness for sweets.
Her parents were killed by hunters, and she was transported from India to England by air, where she spent her adult life giving rides to the children.
Dumbo was named after the eponymous Disney character because she was the first elephant to travel by airplane.
In 1958 she was transferred to Moscow Zoo in return for four endangered snow leopards.
At some point between 1962 and 1971, Dumbo was acquired by circus performer Dolly Jacobs, but by 1978 she had been sold to Paul Kaye and was living in California with three other elephants.

On 27 November 1949, Brumas became the first polar bear to be successfully bred at the zoo, and immediately became a major attraction with the public.
This led to the zoo's annual attendance to rise to over 3 million in 1950 - a figure that has yet to be topped.
Although a female, the press reported that she was a 'he' and this was not corrected at the time, leading the public to believe the bear was a male.
Eighteen years later, on 1 December 1967 the second polar bear bred at the zoo, this time a male, was born.
He was named Pipaluk (a Greenlandic Inuit feminine given name meaning little one or sweet little thing) but, in 1985, had to leave the zoo when the Mappin Terraces closed.

One of the zoo's most famous giant pandas, Chi Chi, arrived in 1958.
Although originally destined for an American zoo, Washington, D.C. had ceased all trade with communist China and so Chi Chi was refused entry to the United States.
In the interests of conservation, ZSL had stated they would not encourage the collection of wild pandas.
However, when it was pointed out that Chi Chi had already been collected, her purchase was
Throughout its history, the zoo has had many well-known residents. These may have been scientifically important individuals or simply beloved by the public.
Old Martin was a large grizzly bear, the first in Britain, moved to the zoo with many other animals from the Royal Menagerie, Tower of London when it was closed in 1832.
The zoo was home to the only living quagga ever to be photographed, before the species became extinct in the wild due to hunting in southern Africa in about 1870. Another now extinct species the zoo held was a number of thylacines, or "Tasmanian tigers".
Obaysch was the first hippopotamus to be seen in Europe since the Roman Empire, and the first in England since prehistoric times. The hippo arrived at London Zoo in May 1850 as a gift from the Ottoman Viceroy of Egypt in exchange for some greyhounds and deerhounds. Obaysch led to a doubling of the zoo's visitors that year.
In 1865, Jumbo, the largest elephant known at the time, was transferred to the zoo from Jardin des Plantes in Paris. His name, possibly from Jambo, Swahili for hello, became an epithet for anything of large size, such as Boeing's 747 [[Wide-body aircraft|Jumbo jet]. He was sold to Phineas Barnum's circus, the Barnum & Bailey Circus, in 1882, where he was later crushed by a locomotive and killed.
Winnipeg the Bear (or Winnie) was an American black bear given to the zoo in 1914 by a Canadian lieutenant, Harry Colebourn. A. A. Milne visited with his son Christopher Robin, and the boy was so enamoured with the bear Milne wrote the famous series of books for him entitled Winnie-the-Pooh. A 2004 film A Bear Named Winnie is based on the story of Winnie the bear, with Michael Fassbender playing Harry Colebourn.
Guy, a western lowland gorilla, arrived at the zoo on Guy Fawkes Night (hence the name) 1947 from Paris Zoo, and lived at the zoo until his death in 1978. Over his 32-year life, he became one of the zoo's best-loved residents. After years of trying to find a mate, in 1969 five-year-old Lomie arrived from Chessington Zoo. They were kept separated for a year to adjust to each other, until they were finally united. Although they got on well together they never produced any offspring. In 1982 Guy was commemorated by a bronze statue in Barclay Court, sculpted by William Timym.
Dumbo (born 1948) was a female Indian elephant who lived at London Zoo during the 1950s and was well known for her fondness for sweets. Her parents were killed by hunters, and she was transported from India to England by air, where she spent her adult life giving rides to the children. Dumbo was named after the eponymous Disney character because she was the first elephant to travel by airplane. In 1958 she was transferred to Moscow Zoo in return for four endangered snow leopards. At some point between 1962 and 1971, Dumbo was acquired by circus performer Dolly Jacobs, but by 1978 she had been sold to Paul Kaye and was living in California with three other elephants.
On 27 November 1949, Brumas became the first polar bear to be successfully bred at the zoo, and immediately became a major attraction with the public. This led to the zoo's annual attendance to rise to over 3 million in 1950 - a figure that has yet to be topped. Although a female, the press reported that she was a 'he' and this was not corrected at the time, leading the public to believe the bear was a male. Eighteen years later, on 1 December 1967 the second polar bear bred at the zoo, this time a male, was born. He was named Pipaluk (a Greenlandic Inuit feminine given name meaning little one or sweet little thing) but, in 1985, had to leave the zoo when the Mappin Terraces closed.
One of the zoo's most famous giant pandas, Chi Chi, arrived in 1958. Although originally destined for an American zoo, Washington, D.C. had ceased all trade with communist China and so Chi Chi was refused entry to the United States. In the interests of conservation, ZSL had stated they would not encourage the collection of wild pandas. However, when it was pointed out that Chi Chi had already been collected, her purchase was
London Zoo