In the early hours of May 2, 1924 all three of Edinburgh Zoo’s Californian sea lions escaped their enclosure and made a dash for the exit.
At 9pm the previous night, the animals had been present in their usual quarters, but at 8am the following morning, they were gone.
Incredibly, two of the marine creatures were spotted by a member of the public taking a dip more than a mile away in the Water of Leith near Roseburn Bridge. The third was found in a pool further up the zoological gardens on Corstorphine Hill.
