There are just a few weeks left to see some mind-bogglingly big bugs in a stunning exhibition at Chester Zoo.
The 13 giant animatronic insects at the BUGS! Event – which will be on throughout half term – include the Bombadier Beetle, sponsored by local business Wrexham Volkswagen.
But visitors need to be quick – the enormous beetle is just one of the super-size bugs ready to fly away on November 3 when the ‘world first’ exhibition draws to a close. Other large-scale robotic replicas include a scorpion, a ladybird and a 33ft-wide tarantula.
The huge creations were custom built for the zoo by a top animation studio in the USA and this is the first time they have ever been seen together, anywhere in the world.
Conservationists from the zoo said the exhibition aimed to provide a showcase for invertebrates and highlight the need to conserve threatened species.
Chester Zoo’s director general, Mark Pilgrim, said: “Chester Zoo is heavily involved in vital world-wide conservation work aimed at saving species from extinction.
“We wanted BUGS! to put invertebrates in the spotlight, showing how fantastic they are and really raising awareness of the need to conserve them. Engaging people, particularly youngsters, with conservation sometimes takes some drastic ideas and new ways of thinking and that’s precisely what we hoped these 13 giant, robotic bugs will do.
“It’s fantastic that businesses in the local area supported the project and it’s very apt that Wrexham Volkswagen is sponsoring the beetle given the success of its version of the invertebrate.”
Jane Hargreaves, brand manager at Wrexham Volkswagen, said: “We are delighted that the BUGS! exhibition has proved so popular with visitors to Chester Zoo and hope the support from our business has gone some way to helping the excellent conservation work carried out by the zoo.
“It was an obvious synergy linking together the businesses and I hope the robot beetle at the zoo proved to be equally as popular as the Volkswagen Beetle.”