Nordens Ark • Annual Report 2014 Annual Report 2014 Contents Comments by the Managing Director ............................................ 2 Administration report 2014 ............................................................27 Nordens Ark .............................................................................................. 3 Income statement ............................................................................... 34 Nordens Ark's partners and memberships ................................. 4 Balance sheet ........................................................................................35 The Animal Collection .......................................................................... 5 Cash flow analysis .............................................................................. 36 Ecopark and farm .................................................................................17 Accounting and valuation principles and notes ......................37 Wolverine EEP expands to North America ................................19 Audit report ........................................................................................... 42 Nordens Ark celebrates 25 years ..................................................23 Board of directors, auditors and staff ........................................ 44 H.R.H. CROWN PRINCESS VICTORIA Nordens Ark's Patron Photo: T. Svensson SINCERE THANKS to our sponsors Elanders Sverige AB and Arctic Paper AB In collaboration with Chalmers University of Technology Elanders has developed a cli- who have paid for the printing and paper of this year’s annual report. Layout: mate calculator that takes into account the entire life cycle of printed matter when cal- Anders Rådén/ARDI. English translation: Christopher Godfrey (www.ani- culating greenhouse gas emissions (Carbon Footprint). Using these climate calculations malimagery.co.uk). Cover image: Pallas' cat (Felis manul). Photo: T. Svensson. Elanders can now offer to climate neutralise your printed matter by investing in certi- Paper: Cover Arctic Silk + (250 g/m2 ), insert Arctic Volume White (130 g/m2). fied emission reductions in UN approved CDM (Clean Development Mechanism) projects. Comments by the Managing Director It was back in 1988, but I remember it as if it were yesterday. welcome surplus. In line with our statutes, this will be reinvested How I sat at the water’s edge and fretted over what we had set in the business. in motion, those of us who had begun a project to transform The idea of the 25th anniversary celebrations was to make the beautiful old manor into a breeding centre for endangered Nordens Ark better known, but also to tell people about what we animals. The diggers were filling trucks with load after load of have achieved for endangered species. Thousands of animals have rich topsoil, and the surface was turning into a car park. Are been raised here and released into their natural environments. we doing the right thing, I wondered? A once-fertile area would There are storks and green toads in Skåne, wildcats in Germany, soon be packed with the cars of people visiting what would lynx in Poland. In the Russian Far East, we are working in the become an ark – Nordens Ark. That the manor’s orchard was field to secure the survival of the Amur tiger, and in the Gobi going to house an infiltration bed for waste water did nothing to Desert to ensure a future for the snow leopard. The anniversary allay my worries. And this was before I started thinking about festivities gave us an opportunity to tell people about all of this, the enclosures and aviaries that would be home to the animals and to thank all our friends and benefactors who have made under Nordens Ark’s protection. these and other initiatives possible. A year later, on June 14, when the gates opened to the first Our ‘thank you’ took the form of a three-day celebration. visitors, there were some 20 species in the park – or rather, We were hugely grateful that Crown Princess Victoria honoured hiding in the park’s foliage. Our fervent hope was that people us with her presence. Gothenburg Opera and other well- would understand that this was a park for animals, not an animal known performers attended, and guests from all over the world park . but that was to take many years. celebrated with us. It was quite a party. I have had the privilege of serving as captain of the Ark since Now I pass the helm confidently to my successor, Mats the very start, 27 years ago. I retire in the summer of 2015, and Höggren, and his deputy, Linnéa Johansson. Mats and Linnéa as the time approaches for me to relinquish command, there will steer the Ark as it continues its mission to preserve species are many memories to look back on. One of the most striking and give them a future in their natural habitats. is the way in which biodiversity, the threat to wildlife and the Today, that anguish I felt in the early years is quite gone. value of ecosystem services have increasingly become matters for I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to the Board and staff, public debate. When the park was built and we tried to explain and I’m immensely proud of what we have achieved together. that species were vanishing at a terrifying rate, there was little Every time I see a peregrine falcon in the sky, my heart will beat understanding of the need for action. In fact it was only with faster and I’ll look for a ring round its leg to see if it was born at the Rio Convention in 1992 that authorities and the business Nordens Ark! community really sat up and took notice of Nordens Ark and its objectives. From a financial viewpoint, our anniversary year, 2014, was the best ever. Turnover increased from 50 million to 60 million Åby Manor, May 2015 kronor and costs remained within budget, which resulted in a Lena M Lindén A sincere thank you to everyone who made it possible for Nordens Ark to make a valuable contribution for endangered species. Photo: Eva Stööp 2 Nordens Ark Nordens Ark lies on Åby manor beside the Åby fjord, 20 km from Smögen and Kungshamn on route 171, about 120 km north of Gothenburg. The manor was mentioned as early as the 1300s, but rock carvings and ancient remains show that the farm has roots much further back. The present buildings date mainly from the 1700s and 1800s. Nordens Ark Foundation is a non-profit founda- tion which is responsible for Nordens Ark. Nordens Ark Foundation owns Åby manor, which covers 400 hectares. Through its activities, Nordens Ark Founda- tion seeks to promote biological diversity principally by: ● Contributing to the conservation of endangered species by controlled breeding, and supporting wild animal populations in their natural habitats through various support measures. ● Conducting research and studies of the animals at the park, contributing to an increased understanding of animals and promoting animal survival in the wild. ● Acting as an educational resource at all levels from pre-school to colleges and universities. ● Being accessible to the public, thereby increasing public interest in and knowledge of conservation work. 3 The Animal Collection Emma Nygren1) , Karin Larsson, Leif Blomqvist & Ewa Wikberg [email protected] Amphibians and birds Among the birds, it’s worth noting that both of Nordens Ark’s crane species – the white-naped crane Grus vipio and Japanese During 2014, Nordens Ark joined yet another conservation crane Grus japonensis – hatched, and that last year’s offspring project for an endangered amphibian species. The project aims from the former went to Blijdorp Zoo in Rotterdam. After a to protect and re-establish a population of the arboreal lemur leaf two-year break, we were also able to record an increase in the frog Agalychnis lemur of Costa Rica. The frog is found in only one bald ibis colony Geronticus eremita, with the birth of two new place in Costa Rica and is Critically endangered. Two small back- birds. Alpenzoo at Innsbruck supplied us with a new hoopoe up populations have been maintained since 2001 at Manchester Upupa epops to replace the individual that died during the year. Museum and Bristol Zoo. Now, Nordens Ark has become Another death worth mentioning was the facility’s last example involved in an international network which is collaborating to of red-breasted goose Branta ruficollis, which sadly had to be put to build a genetically sound base so that their offspring can later, sleep because of failing health due to old age. The red-breasted through releases, create a viable population in the species’ natural goose was the facility’s oldest animal and had been at the park habitat. During the year, 15 individuals were brought in from for nearly a quarter of a century. Manchester Museum, while construction got under way on a bio- Two young Ural owls Strix uralensis that had hatched the safe facility for more frogs that will arrive once it is completed. previous year were sent to Brno Zoo in exchange for two It was generally a busy year in the amphibian department, northern pintails Anas acuta that arrived at the close of the year. and a number of individuals reared there were sent on to other institutions. In total, 60 amphibians were exported to other parks in Europe. Mammals Turning to the birds, the most successful breeding results came among the native species that form the backbone of the bird Perhaps the most thrilling news during the year was that all five collection, and with which Nordens Ark has for many years been Pallas' kittens Felis m. manul survived. Over the two previous involved in