On May 27, 1841, a young male giraffe was born, the first ever reared in captivity.
In 1843 a new carnivora terrace was completed. Jenny, the orang, died.
In 1844 a polar-bears’ den and bath were erected.
In 1846 the largest of the giraffes died, having been upwards of eleven years in confinement.
In 1850 a young hippopotamus was presented to the Society by Abbas Pasha.
In 1851, by bequest from the late President, the Earl of Derby, the Society acquired the herd of elands (two males and three females) which was the origin of the Society’s stock of this important animal.
In 1852 His Royal Highness Prince Albert was President. The drainage of the Gardens, begun in 1851, was completed. A python house, a chimpanzee house, and an aquatic vivarium were made. A Red River hog was obtained.
In 1854 the hippopotamus house, with a large bath and massive iron railings, was completed. The most important addition was the female hippopotamus, Adhela, presented by the Pasha of Egypt. The Society now possessed a pair of these huge pachyderms. These animals bred in 1872, and the female is still living (1902) in the Gardens.
In 1857 a collection of Himalayan pheasants arrived.
In 1859 Mr. (now Dr.) Philip Lutley Sclater, M.A., was elected secretary of the Society, and he still fills that onerous post with distinction to-day.