THE hugely popular TV series that goes behind-the-scenes at Chester Zoo will return this week.

The Secret Life of the Zoo will return to Channel 4 for a fifth series on Wednesday, April 18 from 8pm.

Special filming techniques will make sure that this series will reveal even more about what goes on in the private lives of the zoo's 21,000 animals.

From towering giraffes to tiny vampire crabs, cameras will take us inside the world of all creatures great and small.

Keepers will also share secrets about what's involved in caring for some of the world's most endangered species.

In episode one sumatran orangutans Emma and Subis are due to give birth at the same time but one is taken to the Animal Health Centre for a possible caesarean.

Two horned chameleon Ruby who arrived at the zoo after being seized from the illegal wildlife trade will be made part of the zoo's co-ordinated breeding programmes.

Meerkats Beagle and Huskie have moved to the zoo as a new breeding pair but the aardvarks, who share their habitat, are causing them some anxiety.

Elsewhere, the zoo’s pair of vampire crabs have been in the same habitat for nearly six months but have not bred successfully so the keepers introduce a larger male Claude to their habitat to increase the odds of a successful mating.

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