ZOOS & AQUARIUMS
Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium is a 130-acre attraction in Omaha, Nebraska. The zoo is famous for its animal conservation efforts and research and was TripAdvisor’s best zoo in 2014
are regarding their sustainability. Currently, more biologists are being hired to zoom in on that. Then, once we understand what the barriers to sustainability are, we can direct more resources towards resolving them. We want to pick 25 species to focus our efforts. Focusing on species where we can make the biggest difference has been successful for zoos, with black-footed ferrets and California condors, for example. We have to consider the degree of endangerment and the animal’s status in the wild, as well as the expertise we have and whether we can impact their situation. With species that are predominantly
wild, SAFE’s aims will be more legislative. With sharks, for example, it’s about how we curtail shark fi nning, how we mitigate bycatch. There are millions and millions of sharks being killed in these ways. These are legislative and political issues and we need to direct resources towards solving them, maybe in different ways than we’re used to. As an association we want to put every effort into these fi rst 25 species.
So it’s a collaborative approach by diff erent zoos and aquariums? Exactly. So rather than a one-by-one approach with different zoos, we focus
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all our efforts. Right now, the 229 North American zoos and aquariums spend $160m (£109m, €151m) on fi eld conservation – it’s a major commitment. SAFE will bring a more organised approach to this. We’re formulating the processes of how we’re going to do this and we’re in high gear on fundraising mode – it’s being paid for just not by the members but also by independent fundraising. We’ve hired fundraising consultants Schultz & Williams to help us.
What’s your role as AZA chair? My role is to follow through on our strategic plan – to shepherd in the next steps under the plan and to keep things moving in a positive direction. It involves working with the executive committee, the entire board, committee chairs, and the AZA staff who really work to implement the plan.
What’s happening at the leading edge of zoos?
Zoos are being more transparent about what they do and how they do it. I visited Busch Gardens in Tampa, one of the leaders in our industry, and I was especially impressed with their veterinary hospital. At their Animal Care Centre, people learn about veterinary medicine,
observation, diagnostic techniques and treatment in innovative ways. The centre is behind glass and there are scheduled procedures that visitors can watch. It shows the care that goes into maintaining the health of animals in zoos and aquariums, rather than that being a back-of-house function. We need to understand that our guests are interested in how we care for animals and the science behind it. At San Diego Zoo there’s an elephant programme that’s all carried out in full view of the public. The foot care, the trunk washes, examining their mouths, looking in their ears, drawing blood – it’s all on view. Many zoos are bringing the training
they do to facilitate veterinary care and husbandry up-front, so people can observe it – whether its collecting blood or working on training behaviours. In Omaha, we can collect blood from the tail of a lion with the lion’s full cooperation. We can collect semen from a gorilla with his full cooperation. We’ve trained a Philippine crocodile, which are very endangered, to donate semen with its full cooperation. We can do heart echoes on a gorilla with its full cooperation without any anaesthesia whatsoever – just through operant conditioning and the use of reward.
AM 2 2015 ©CYBERTREK 2015
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