Go on safari in Cambridge’s urban jungle and search for animals of land and sea in the buildings.
Follow the map and clues below to discover animals in the architecture of the city’s buildings. Our Urban Safari Trail can be followed on a smartphone here, downloaded to your own device, or printed at home before your expedition:
Use the Cambridge Safari map and the clues below to find animals all around the city:
1. Golden Spiral
Not golden in colour as it is made from slate, but this artwork by Ackroyd and Harvey is inspired by the Golden Spiral of geometry. Find the nautilus shells in the Museum for an example of this in nature.
2. Camel
Can you spy the camel in Market Square? It has just one hump – one-humped camels are called dromedaries. Find the dromedary in the Museum and you will see the hump has no bone inside.
3. Hippocampi
These mighty seahorses on the Guildhall may be mythical creatures, but look like the beautiful seahorses we see in the wild. Find some in the upper gallery of the Museum – how are they different?
4. Chronophage or time-eater
One of the newest animal additions to Cambridge is an imaginary creature atop the Corpus Christi clock. What does it remind you of?
5. Scallops
A trickier one to spot are the scallops in the coat of arms of Gonville and Cauis College. Find the scallops in the Museum – how many colours can you find?
6. Snake
Look carefully you’ll find a brightly coloured snake high on the gates to Magdalene College.
7. Beehive
There are lots of animals on the Lloyds Bank building here, from squirrels to bees in a beehive. How many animals can you spot?
8. Owl
Can you see the owl with a pestle and mortar? this was once the shopfront of Peck’s Chemists. Visit the Discovery Space of the Museum and you can see several species such as barn owls and a tawny owl.
9. Woolly mammoth
Find this woolly mammoth beneath the windows of the Sedgwick Museum. A bit smaller than it would have been in real life – check out our mammoth tusk in the lower gallery of the Museum for scale.
10. Fish
How many fish can you count in the centre of Parker’s Piece? Have you seen any other fish on the buildings around Cambridge?
11. Polar animals
Polar bears from the Arctic and penguins from the Antarctic are brought together on the Polar Museum. Can you find any polar animals in the Museum of Zoology?
12. Lions
Lions feature on the coat of arms for Cambridge University, and can be seen all over the city. Spot the four proud lions outside of the Fitzwilliam Museum.
13. Fin Whale
Whalecome to the Museum of Zoology! Here you’ll be greeted by Cambridge’s largest resident, our magnificent fin whale.
Drawings and design (c) University of Cambridge / Fanny Bara Moreau
Discover the real wildlife around Cambridge city with our Cambridge Wildlife Safari Trail
Find more activities to do from home in Crafty Creatures
Explore learning activities for ages 5-11 in our Nature Classroom
Discover wildlife conservation and research stories from current scientists here: Research Stories
Explore more work from artist Fanny Bara Moreau: https://fannybara.wixsite.com/fannybara/education-material
Museum of Zoology Blog 
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