Giant Anteaters have a smashing good time this Halloween

Every Halloween, animals at Drusillas Park in East Sussex prepare themselves for some tasty pumpkin treats, and this year giant anteaters Oliva and Diego got in on the action!

As one of the zoo’s newest residents, keepers at Drusillas were not sure of what anteaters Oliva and Diego would make of the bright orange fruit that was placed in their enclosure.

The inquisitive giants didn’t take long to use their colossal claws and strength to rip open the pumpkin to see what might be hiding inside!

Section Leader, Gemma Romanis said: “I wasn’t entirely sure what the pair would make of the pumpkin. They don’t have teeth and use their long sticky tongue to feed so they couldn’t take a bite out of the pumpkin like some of the other animals would. Instead, they used their claws to rip open the pumpkin, and rolled it around like a football, before sticking their noses in to see what was inside! It was great fun to watch and really added to their enrichment that day.”

As Halloween approaches, the animals throughout the zoo prepare themselves for some tasty pumpkin treats.

The beavers, capybaras and squirrel monkeys are some of the lucky ones who get to explore and taste this festive fruit.

Head Keeper, Mark Kenward said: “Pumpkin is a great source of vitamins and antioxidants and has great nutritional value. At this time of year, it is added to some of the animal’s diets to replace root based food items. Pumpkins also create great enrichment - whether they eat it, smash it or play with it, its good fun for the animals and for our visitors to see!”