Wildlife & Animal Attractions in Cornwall

Cornwall’s wildlife offer is anchored in its geography - a peninsula with substantial coast, a marine zone, and enough undeveloped inland habitat to support species that have retreated from much of England.

Newquay Zoo holds several hundred animals from well over 100 species in Trenance Gardens, including red pandas, Californian sea lions, and a colony of Humboldt penguins. At 13 acres it is one of the larger attractions in the county, with keeper talks and animal encounter sessions running throughout the day.

The Cornish Seal Sanctuary at Gweek on the Helford River rescues and rehabilitates grey seals. The site takes in pups found stranded on Cornish beaches each winter, cares for them through the nursery and rehabilitation pools, and returns them to the sea when recovered. Resident sea lions, otters and penguins live here permanently. Dogs on leads are welcome everywhere except the seal hospital and the cafe.

Screech Owl Sanctuary and Animal Park near Indian Queens holds dozens of owls from more than 30 species, with twice-daily flying demonstrations. The site also keeps lemurs, meerkats and alpacas, and it opens seasonally, from late March to early November, so check before an out-of-season visit.

Paradise Park in Hayle combines a bird and wildlife sanctuary with JungleBarn, an indoor play centre ticketed separately. The wildlife side holds more than 130 species of birds, plus red pandas, otters and rare red squirrels. The indoor barn makes it a reasonable wet-weather option for younger children.

Blue Reef Aquarium in Newquay centres on a walk-through underwater tunnel with reef sharks, a rescued loggerhead turtle, and over 40 marine displays covering tropical and Atlantic species. It runs daily feeding demonstrations and handles any weather.