Founded in 1826, the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is an international scientific, conservation and educational charity whose mission is to promote and achieve the worldwide conservation of animals and their habitats. It runs the Institute of Zoology, conservation projects in more than 50 countries, and two Zoos, ZSL London Zoo and ZSL Whipsnade Zoo

The Institute of Zoology is the scientific research division of ZSL. It is a government-funded research institute, which specialises in scientific issues relevant to the conservation of species and their habitats. The Institute of Zoology focuses its research on five areas: evolutionary biology, genetics, ecology, reproductive biology and wildlife epidemiology. The Institute was graded 4 in the 1997-2001 UK Research Assessment Exercise, and publishes reports annually. From the late 1980s the Institute of Zoology had been affiliated to the University of London. However, in 2000 this was replaced with a partnership with the University of Cambridge In 1976 the Nuffield Institute of Comparative Medicine, the Animal Hospital, and the Pathology Laboratory were integrated to form the Institute of Zoology.