Wiltshire in pictures: animals enjoying the snow

Bea Swallow - BBC News, West of England
·2 min read
Two Amur tigers lying in the snow in their enclosure at Longleat. One is lying in front with its arms outstretched while another one lies behind it, resting its head on the other's back.
Longleat's tigers ventured out to lounge in the fresh snow [Longleat/ Ian Turner]

Temperatures across the county have continued to plummet this week, as weather warnings and flurries of snow brought with them a combined sense of chaos and calm.

Gritters have been working late into the night to keep roads safe, while exotic animals frolicked through the freshly-fallen powdered snow.

Meanwhile, photographers captured the county's landmarks in a state of quiet tranquillity, surrounded by twinkling frost and pastel skies.

A herd of zebras walking through the snow in their enclosure at Longleat. They are all heading towards the left of the image, where a wooden fence blocks off an area of woodland. There is a large tree in the middle of the field and the skies are a light blue with wispy clouds.
[Longleat Safari Park]

Some of Longleat Safari Park's residents enjoyed the cold snap this week.

Zebras were spotted playing in the snow, while the rare Amur tigers cozied up together as temperatures across the county plunged into minus figures.

A picture of Stonehenge taken from afar. The top of the sky is blue and fades into an orange at the horizon. The grass surrounding the monument is covered in frost.
[Stonehenge]

Frosty scenes were captured as the sun rose above Stonehenge on Thursday.

The monolithic monument, built to align with the sun on the solstices, providing a spellbinding spectacle.

Two large yellow gritter trucks with red and yellow hi-vis panelling at the back. They are reversing out of a large industrial warehouse, which is lit up with white lights. Outside it's dark and there are some road workers walking in the warehouse.
[Wiltshire Council]

Wiltshire Council was forced to deploy gritters as temperatures dipped to -3C overnight this week, leading to challenging driving conditions.

It was also quick to activate its Severe Weather Emergency Provision (SWEP) which ensures that anyone sleeping on the streets is offered a room when temperatures dip below zero.

A calming scene overlooking the River Avon towards Salisbury Cathedral in the distance. The sky is pink, light blue and purple, and the surrounding grass is covered with sparkling frost. In the middle of the river there is a long brick building with several tunnels running underneath it.
[Mike Boss]

Frigid temperatures cast Salisbury Cathedral, the icy waters of the River Avon, and the surrounding meadows as the idyllic muse for this photographer.

A scene overlooking trees, a field and a public footpath. The sun is shining and it appears to be around mid morning based on it's position in the sky, which is bright and blue. The whole scene is covered in snow and frost, and all the leaves have fallen off the trees.
[Visit Pewsey Vale]

The green pastures of Wexcombe Down in Wiltshire were buried under a thick blanket of snow on Wednesday.

They were pictured thawing out the following morning, after a break in the clouds brought with it stunning blue skies and milder temperatures.

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