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Lollies for all as temperatures soar at Longleat

Longleat LemurLongleat
For the park's resident group of ring-tailed lemurs, keepers have devised a watermelon-based treat

Animals at Longleat have been keeping cool with some home-made ice lollies on one of the hottest days of the year.

Keepers have created a unique selection of flavour combinations to keep their exotic animals chilled out this summer.

The giraffes enjoy theirs served from a chain hanging about four metres off the ground.

Longleat Rothschild's giraffeLongleat
A particular favourite among the herd of Rothschild's giraffe is frozen carrot and willow leaf balls

Temperatures are predicted to reach 36C on Friday. So far 31 July was the hottest day of the year when the top temperature was 37.8C at Heathrow.

The team at Longleat Safari and Adventure Park also devised a watermelon treat for the resident ring-tailed lemurs and a pear and apple concoction complete with their own stick for the red pandas.

Longleat Longleat red pandaLongleat
Keeper Samantha Allworthy helps one of Longleat's resident red pandas to enjoy a cooling treat

Like their namesakes, the giant panda, the number of red pandas in the wild is dwindling.

The species was officially designated as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2008 when the global population was estimated at about 10,000.

Longleat Longleat red pandaLongleat
Found in Nepal, Bhutan and China, red pandas live among bamboo forests and spend much of their time in trees

Warm weather will continue over the weekend for much of the UK, according to the Met Office.

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