Good Zoos and Aquariums

A Guide to BIAZA Zoos and Aquariums Two Schoolgirls at The Deep Aquarium 2 Good zoos do far more than simply display animals to visitors. By encouraging an interest in wildlife, good zoos increase people’s awareness of the threats facing the world’s animals and how we can all take action to conserve them.

Zoos also play a vital role in conservation work, including breeding and managing species that are in danger of extinction in the wild, and conducting field projects to study and protect these animals.

Yellow Tang The aims of a modern zoo are: (Zebrasoma flavescens) World Museum Liverpool

• To inspire visitors to make lifestyle changes that help protect the natural world

• To support the conservation of species and their habitats in the wild

• To maintain excellent standards of animal welfare Regent’s Park London NW1 4RY Telephone: 020 7449 6351 • To do research which supports conservation of e-mail: [email protected] threatened animals www.biaza.org.uk

BIAZA is a charitable company limited by guarantee • To cooperate in managed breeding programmes and registered in England and Wales, number 6789783 Registered Office Regent’s Park, London, NW1 4RY with other zoos Registered Charity number 1128168

Cover: Infant orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) Photo: Christoph Matzke 3 Caring for animals in zoos Animal husbandry in zoos must be carefully considered in order to ensure the welfare of an animal is not adversely affected. For example, it is very important to give zoo animals a well-balanced diet - as close as possible to what they’d eat in the wild. That's one of the reasons why good zoos ask visitors not to feed the animals. Good zoos also present food in ways that keep the animals active and interested for as long as possible.

For marmoset monkeys, for example, live crickets and mealworms are hidden inside logs as an enrichment technique to promote natural feeding behaviour. Similarly, eggs keep mongooses busy for hours as they try to break them, just as they would in the wild. Feeding activities are all designed to encourage animals to forage and fend for themselves - and promote similar behaviour to that in the wild.

Zoo keepers spend a lot of time each day cleaning enclosures and preparing food, but they also keep a close eye on the animals and maintain daily records - noting when an animal is ready to mate, for example, or is showing signs of being unwell. These observations are essential towards ensuring animals are looked after to the highest standards.

Animal enclosures are designed to encourage natural behaviour. Space, and how it is used, is important in recreating an animal’s natural habitat. For example, red pandas (Ailurus fulgens) need branches to climb on, while hippopotami must have a pool. Gorillas prefer to be in groups, while solitary animals like leopards are kept on their own, or in breeding pairs.

An animal’s enclosure may not look like a desert or rainforest, but to that animal it doesn't matter. As long as they can act as they would in their natural habitat - whether they are foraging for food, leaping from rope 'branches' or sleeping in a secluded spot - then they are much more likely to stay active and healthy.

4 Red panda (Ailurus fulgens) Galloway Wildlife Conservation Park Photo: Bob Fitzsimmons 5 Zoos in Britain and Ireland... Over 100 zoos in Britain and Ireland belong to the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA). This is an organization which helps zoos and aquariums coordinate breeding, share information and skills, and promote education, conservation and research. BIAZA and its members also raise funds for projects to support conservation projects in the wild. ...and around the world

Many British and Irish zoos also belong to the European Eagle Owl (Bubo bubo) European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) and Scottish Deer Centre to the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA). Together they are shaping the future of conservation and education in zoos across Europe and around the world.

6 Red-ruffed lemur (Varecia rubra) Bristol Zoo Gardens 7 Good zoos work together A single zoo cannot save a threatened species on its own. Each BIAZA zoo is likely to have strong links with several others across Europe and, possibly, throughout the world. Working together has enabled zoos to establish a network of animal and breeding programmes.

Each programme is run by a species coordinator from one of the zoos and is supported by experts at other zoos. For example, ZSL London Zoo coordinates some of our current tiger breeding programmes. Good zoos share information Breeding some species, such as Asiatic lions (Panthera leo persica) or Chinese alligators (Alligator sinensis), may be relatively straightforward - at least with any babies produced, keepers know who the father and the mother are.

With other species however - such as groups of frogs or snails - this is much more difficult to work out. Computer software has been developed specifically to figure out who the parents are of certain offspring.

Lynx (Lynx lynx) kittens ZSL Whipsnade Zoo 8 Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) Woburn Safari Park 9 How do animals become endangered? Some animals become endangered due to natural reasons, while other populations are damaged due to human activity. Rising human populations and the reckless exploitation of the Earth's resources are having enormous negative impacts on wildlife.

Humans have been burning forests, draining wetlands and uprooting hedgerows to make more space to live and farm. We are also guilty of dumping chemicals into our water bodies - polluting our seas and rivers. Certain native species have been driven to extinction when we introduce new animals to habitats where they are not normally found. On top of this, humans also overfish the seas and hunt animals for pets, souvenirs and traditional medicines

All of these human activities, and others, have led to many species facing extinction today. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species highlights animals and plants that face particular risks of global extinction. To find out more, visit: ‘Friday’ the green turtle (Chelonia mydas) www.iucnredlist.org/amazing-species Oceanarium: The Bournemouth Aquarium

10 Baby chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) Chester Zoo

11 How can zoos help? All over the world, organizations are coming together to save animals at risk, and zoos have a vital role to play in conservation work. For example species such as the California condor (Gymnogyps californianus) and the Przewalski’s horse (Equus ferus przewalskii), which had become extinct in the wild, owe their survival to zoo breeding programmes.

You can find out more about species reliant on zoos here:

www.biaza.org.uk/news/662/98/Top-Ten-Species---Full-Report

Zoos also engage with all kinds of visitors to educate them about animals and the natural world. Part of this work involves showing visitors how they can help, by adopting more sustainable lifestyles. You can find out more about the education work BIAZA zoos do here:

www.biaza.org.uk/education

‘Tamu’ and her mother, the Rothschild giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis rothschildi) Dublin Zoo 12 Photo: Patrick Bolger A schoolgirl observes an Emerald tree boa (Corallus caninus) The Deep Aquarium

13 Release into the wild Before zoo-bred animals can be released, it is essential to ensure that there are no longer any external threats, such as from hunting or invasive species, and that their habitat can be effectively protected. There are very strict guidelines, produced by the IUCN, to make sure that any releases are successful.

Where we have been able to guarantee protection, endangered species, such as the red wolf (Canis lupus rufus), have been successfully reintroduced. The Arabian oryx (Oryx leucoryx), once hunted to extinction in the wild, was bred in zoos and is now protected on reserves in Jordan, Oman and Saudi Arabia.

Here in Britain, native species of zoo-bred hazel dormice (Muscardinus avellanarius), field crickets and fen raft spiders (Dolomedes plantarius) have been released into places where their habitat can be safeguarded.

However, reintroduction may not always be the right way to save a species. It is not an easy process, and takes time, money and scientific understanding to ensure that the animals adapt well to life in the wild.

Harvest mouse (Micromys minutus), Chester Zoo

14 Golden lion tamarin (Leontopithecus rosalia) ZSL London Zoo

15 How zoos contribute to conservation projects in the field BIAZA believes field conservation is the most important way to save the planet’s biodiversity. BIAZA zoos help with field conservation activities in a number of ways, including:

• Developing, managing and supporting field conservation projects

• Raising and donating funds to field conservation projects

• Supplying experienced staff and essential equipment for species and habitat conservation

• Putting into action local education and conservation awareness programmes across the world

You can find out more about BIAZA members’ field conservation work here:

www.biaza.org.uk/conservation/in-situ-conservation

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) Photo: Robert Allen

16 Przewalski’s horses (Equus ferus przewalskii) Eelmoor Marsh

17 Design-Your-Zoo Activity Enclosure Design

1. Use reference books or the internet to research the Oriental short-clawed otter (Amblonyx cinerea). Make notes on its natural behaviour in the wild.

2. Design an enclosure for these otters using the guidelines below. Remember to consider the number of otters you will keep.

Design an enclosure for these otters using the guidelines below.

a: Otters are part of a conservation breeding programme.

b: Otters need a land area three or four times larger than the water area.

c: They need a water area that they can enter and leave with ease.

d: Otters need somewhere which will provide shelter, warmth and a place for giving birth.

e: Otters like to scent-mark their territory. What can you provide for them to do this?

f: How can you encourage the otters to forage for insects in their enclosure?

g: What barrier will you use? Remember, otters can climb and dig burrows.

h: How will you make the enclosure accessible for keepers?

18 Oriental short-clawed otters (Amblonyx cinrea) WWT Washington Wetland Centre Photo: Ron Bell

19 Animal Fun Facts quiz Animals come in all shapes and sizes - from tiny coral polyps to whales, the largest animals that have ever lived. Some live a few hours, others over a hundred years. Some produce millions of young, others produce just one at a time. See if you can answer the following questions on the amazing animals that share our earth.

1: Which animal lives the longest? 3: Which lays the largest number of eggs? ABC ABC

Tortoise Chimpanzee Elephant Python Sturgeon Swan

2: Which is the smallest mammal? 4: Which has the largest wingspan? ABC ABC

Weasel Bat Mouse Golden eagle Mute swan Albatross

20 5: Which is the rarest in the wild? 8: Which is the largest group of species? ABC ABC

Bali starling Giant panda Asian lion Beetles Birds Fish

6: Which is the most destructive? 9: How many snake species in Britain? ABC A B C

Cockroach Elephant Human Three Nineteen Fifty-four

7: Which animal is the fastest? 10: Which has the most widespread distribution? ABC ABC

Cheetah Swift Spider Mallard House mouse Mosquito

Find more fun zoo-related activities here: www.biaza.org.uk/education/schools-downloads

:Wneigabtos(.3metres) (3.63 albatross Wandering 4:

:Sietie wf (106mph) swift Spine-tailed 7: 0 h os mouse house The 10: :Alni tren(vr3million) 3 (over sturgeon Atlantic 3:

:Human 6: :Tre(de,gassaeadsot snake) smooth and snake grass (adder, Three 9:

:Ktishgnsdbt(2g) bat hog-nosed Kitti’s 2: 21 Answers :Bl trig(ny1 left) 10 (only starling Bali 5: :Bels(vr3000species) 300,000 (over Beetles 8: :Agattros 12years) (152 tortoise giant A 1: Use the web to find out more If you’re interested in zoos, conservation and the natural world, take a look at some of the following websites: European Association of Zoos and World Association of Zoos and International Union for the Aquaria Aquariums Conservation of Nature EAZA WAZA I United for conservation IUCN www.eaza.net www.waza.org www.iucnredlist.org Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust Marine Stewardship Council CITES WWT MSC www.cites.org www.wwt.org.uk www.msc.org The World Wide Fund for Nature WWF www.wwf-uk.org National Trust Buglife www.nationaltrust.org.uk www.buglife.org.uk The Wildlife Trusts www.wildlifetrusts.org www.wildlifewatch.org.uk BBC Nature Natural History Museum Royal Society for Protection of Birds www.bbc.co.uk/nature www.nhm.ac.uk RSPB www.rspb.org.uk

Do you have any questions about the work we do? Visit our website: www.biaza.org.uk

N. B. The term zoos is used throughout this report as a general term that includes the wide variety of our licensed collections including aquariums, farm parks, bird gardens and safari parks - as well as traditional zoos. 22 Red-eyed tree frog (Agalychnis callidryas) Chester Zoo Photo: Douglas Sherriff

23 Amur Tiger (Panthera tigris altaica)

Photo: Stephen Meese

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