Importance of zoos in conservation,

Despite their popularity and place in our recreational history, in recent years zoos
have undergone considerable change in both their structure and function. While
remaining attractive places of entertainment, zoos today also emphasize their
contribution to wildlife conservation. This article reviews the role of zoos in wildlife
conservation and discusses the effectiveness of their present policies and actions. It is
apparent that the major contribution comes through their ex situ actions, including
education programs, and captive breeding and management of wildlife. However,
recently, zoos have also become more involved with in situ conservation,
predominantly through recovery programs for endangered species in cooperation with
government authorities and local communities. However, such activities are
expensive, and a major obstacle for zoos has always been to strike a balance between
commercial success and professional conservation credibility. The opportunities for
zoos lie in transforming themselves from traditional animal displays to interactive,
entertaining conservation centres that bridge the gap between their captive collections
and free-range wildlife.

The Role of Zoos in Conservation

1. There are 39 animal species currently listed by the IUCN as Extinct in the
Wild. These are species that would have vanished totally were it not for captive
populations around the world, many of which reside in zoos. For me, this is the single
most important role zoos can play. Incidentally, it’s the same for botanic gardens too,
but no-one seems to care about those!

2. For species whose survival in the wild looks in doubt, zoos often set up
‘insurance’ populations. These are captive groups of  animals that could in a worst
case scenario assist in reintroduction to the wild, should the original population go
extinct. The Amur leopard, for example: There are perhaps 35-65 left in the wild, a
species teetering right on the brink. But fortunately there is a long running breeding
program with over 200 surviving in captivity. The Zoological Society of London, as
an example, participates in over 160 of these programmes.

3. Reintroduction. It is often argued that zoos are bad because so few reintroduction
actually happen. I would argue that it’s not the zoos at fault, it’s that a reintroduction
can’t occur if the reason they went extinct in the first place hasn’t been resolved.
Amongst the most well known and successful reintroductions are:

 The Scimitar-Horned Oryx, having become extinct in Africa in the 1980s,

zoos around the world maintained a captive population and at last this year, a
reintroduction led by the Sahara Conservation Fund has begun.
 The Californian Condor, only 23 existed in the wild in the early 1980s. The
last of the wild population was taken into captivity in a last ditched attempt to save the
 species, with chicks being reared at San Diego zoo. It worked. There are now more
than 400 in the wild.
 The Golden Lion Tamarin, perhaps the most famous of all reintroductions.
In 2003, the Golden Lion Tamarin was downlisted from Critically Endangered to
Endangered after thirty years of tireless conservation efforts involving
the Smithsonian National Zoological Park and the Associação Mico-Leao-Dourado in
Rio de Janeiro. More than one-third of the wild population are descendants of the
reintroduction program which has contributed significantly not only to the numbers of
living in the wild, but also to the protection 3,100 ha of forests within their range.
Indeed the very idea of reintroducing species is new, and fraught with difficulties. It’s
risky and hard. No-one wants it to go wrong, so give them your support.

4. In 2014, 700 million people visited zoos worldwide. OK, not all zoos are good at
engagement. Indeed not all zoos are good full stop. But, surely that number of visits
had to create some sort of connection with the natural world that might not have
occurred otherwise.

5. Zoos are a living museum. What we learn about wild animals in captivity can help
us manage and conserve them in the wild. From animal behaviour, to reproductive
rates to dietary requirements.

6. Zoos raise money for conservation efforts. It’s difficult to engage people with
conservation efforts taking place half a world away, believe me, I know. But by
enabling people to experience wildlife first hand, and using that as a vessel in which
to tell a story, we can I hope increase participation in international conservation
efforts.

7. Helping respond to emergencies. In the last 20 years, an estimated 168 amphibian

species have gone extinct. In addition to habitat loss, chytrid fungus has emerged as a
deadly threat to worldwide amphibian populations. Responding to threats such as this,
especially in small or medium sized vertebrates is surely one of the greatest uses of
zoos around the world. In fact, many zoos have set up specialist amphibian centers
and are pioneering treatment and breeding programmes.

8. They remind us that we can succeed. Conservation is full of bad news stories, yet
on many occasions I have stood peering through glass at a species that shouldn’t exist.
At WWT Barnes on the outskirts of London I have stood on a wet Winter day
watching Nene, which was once the world’s rarest goose (now, incidentally,
successfully reintroduced). In Antsohihy, Madagascar I have peered through the mesh
fence at the world’s only population of Malagasy pochard, a duck thought to be
extinct for years and then rediscovered. In the UK I’ve stood while a Bali Myna flew
over my head, a bird numbering less than 100 in the wild (but thankfully more than
1000 in captivity). For me at least, zoos remind us that conservation does work, we
just need more of it.