ANIMAL rights protestors demonstrated outside a North Yorkshire zoo as bank holiday crowds flocked to the attraction.

Armed with a banner reading: "Born to be wild not in a cage", a group of six activists targeted Flamingo Land theme park and zoo, at Kirby Misperton, near Pickering, and tried to persuade visitors that wild animals would be better off dead than in captivity.

The demonstration was part of a national campaign against zoos over Easter by the Captive Animals' Protection Society.

Protest group leader Sarah Brown said it was the first time the group had targeted Flamingo Land zoo.

She claimed a polar bear kept by the zoo was clearly unhappy.

"They have painted an arctic scene as a background for its enclosure which is absolutely grotesque," she said.

The protesters want people to stop visiting zoos and safari parks. They dispute the value of captive breeding programmes, saying very few animals are returned to the wild.

"What to do with animals is a tricky one but I would hope there would be a sanctuary for the polar bear somewhere, but this is not life for a wild animal. It's better dead than in there," Sarah Brown added.

She added Flamingo Land did not need the zoo in order to be a popular attraction. Visitor Jeff Higgins, from London, said: "Their protest wouldn't stop me from visiting the zoo, but they would make me feel guilty."

Flamingo Land spokeswoman Melanie Wood said Mandy the polar bear had produced four healthy cubs during her "long, happy and healthy life" at Flamingo Land and at the age of 30 was too old to move.

The zoo's vet has stated that Mandy's only problem is old age.

Ms Wood said: "If our zoo did not come up to the standards required by the Government then we would very quickly be closed down.

"In our latest Government inspection, the zoo was not only given a clean bill of health but also several commendations, and the welfare of all animals and the general house-keeping were highly praised."

She added: "Instead of being offered any help and support in our efforts, we constantly have to cope with destructive and emotive, politically-motivated attacks from anti-zoo pressure groups.

"Our only hope is that reasonable-minded people appreciate our efforts and that our goal is to constantly improve and update our animals' living conditions.

"Fortunately, our ever-increasing annual admission figures suggest that this is in fact what is happening."