The Zoo Is Back! Season 13 Returns to RTÉ One

Across the new season, viewers will get an insight into the breadth of work carried out by the team at Dublin Zoo, a conservation charity caring for more than 400 animals and supporting over 30 conservation partners in Ireland and around the world.

From ground-breaking veterinary care and new births to the conservation of threatened species here in Ireland and overseas, Season 13 captures the variety, challenges and unforgettable moments that are all in a day’s work at Dublin Zoo.

Among the season’s most remarkable stories is that of Imani, Dublin Zoo’s 18-year-old common hippopotamus, who undergoes the world’s first recorded cataract surgery on a hippopotamus.

Imani had a long-standing visual impairment which meant she had difficulty reacting to obstacles and moved slowly and cautiously through her environment. Following months of careful planning and preparation by Dublin Zoo’s animal care and veterinary teams alongside specialist surgeons, the pioneering procedure successfully gave Imani vision in her left eye and significantly improved her lived experience.

Season 13 takes viewers behind the scenes of this extraordinary veterinary first, from the preparations for the complex procedure through to Imani’s recovery. Since the operation, the team has seen a marked improvement in her eyesight and behaviour. She responds to visual stimuli, navigates obstacles with greater ease and has become much more confident and active in her movements.

Closer to home, the series follows Dublin Zoo’s work to help conserve one of Ireland’s most threatened bird species, the curlew.

Dublin Zoo is a proud headstarting partner in the Breeding Waders EIP, supporting efforts to give vulnerable curlew chicks the best possible chance of survival. As part of the project, Dublin Zoo supports the incubation, hatching and rearing of eggs from vulnerable nest sites, with the young birds ultimately released back into the wild once they are strong enough.

There are new beginnings across Dublin Zoo too, including the birth of a siamang gibbon baby and the arrival of a new okapi calf to Lumara, her third calf.

Meanwhile, Dublin Zoo’s historic South American House, originally built in the 1860s, undergoes a major transformation ahead of welcoming a host of new arrivals, including Tony the lowland paca. In the revamped Rainforest House, a unique pipe system is installed to allow a new colony of leafcutter ants to travel the length of the building.

The work of Dublin Zoo’s veterinary team also extends beyond the Zoo’s gates. In one of the season’s most challenging stories, Dublin Zoo vets attend a dolphin stranding on a Dublin beach. It becomes a race against time to assess the animal and determine whether it can be successfully refloated.

From births and new arrivals to pioneering veterinary conservation medicine and hands-on conservation, Season 13 offers viewers an intimate look at the expertise, dedication and care behind Dublin Zoo’s work for wildlife.

Season 13 of Zoo begins on Monday, 12th October at 8pm on RTÉ One and will be available afterwards on RTÉ Player.