The Highland Wildlife Park was opened in 1972 and has been run by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (which also operates the Edinburgh Zoo) since 1986.

[1][5] In 1980 the park was made famous by obtaining "Felicity", a puma that was reputedly captured nearby by a farmer.

This move is an attempt to bring the park closer to the working practices of the RZSS's main site, Edinburgh Zoo as well as to increase visitor numbers which had been virtually static for some years.

In 2008, Bactrian deer, Chinese gorals, Mishmi takins, red pandas, Himalayan tahr, northern lynxes, Afghan urial and European elks arrived, some coming from Edinburgh Zoo.

[citation needed] Births in 2009 also include first breedings at the park for European elk and Himalayan tahr.

Five wolves, a Japanese serow and two lynxes were born in 2012 a male muskox arrived from Sweden, two red pandas also joined the collection.

Wolverine have arrived and recent births (June 2013) include the park's first great grey owl, white-lipped deer, red panda and muskoxen along with Turkmenian markhors, northern lynx, Amur tiger, Bactrian deer, and Mishmi takin.

Summer 2014 saw the start of construction of a new enclosure for a sourced female polar bear that will be arriving at the park in spring 2015.

The park's first snow leopards have arrived from Marwell and Krefeld zoos and have been released into a cliff face enclosure, next to the markhor.

The first polar bear to be born in the UK for 25 years arrived at the end of 2017 The week before Christmas, the female polar bear, Victoria gave birth to a male to be called Hamish The park also had their first common crane and snow leopards born in 2019.