London Zoo’s latest inhabitants are enjoying a new lease of life. A shark made from discarded hubcaps and a polar bear cub made of plastic bags have appeared in the zoo as part of the Recycled Sculpture Show.

The display, which is the curtainraiser for the Love London Festival of eco-events, has also invaded the Berthold Lubetkin Penguin Pool, the zoo’s landmark symbol of modernist architecture, which is now infested with a plague of bugs made from salvaged car parts.

Other events during the Love London festival, which organisers say is designed to promote green initiatives, include the Camden Green Fair and the Revolve Brighton to London Eco-Rally.

The festival was first held in 2003, when it was known as London Sustainability Weeks. Its organisers said they hoped that more than 500,000 people would attend the 350 events during the three-week festival.

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