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The roles of zoos in conservation
The roles of zoos in conservation
Essay on role of zoos in wildlife conservation
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Going to the zoo for the first time is very memorizing for many people, the weird animals , big animals that gather the most attention; all help create a premature interest in the animal kingdom for kids. Recently zoos have been put through more scrutiny for supposedly treating animals like prison mates. Despite the negative psychological effects on animals in zoos, zoos should still exist as they help bolster conservation efforts and educate the public, thus having a net benefit towards the animal kingdom. Zoos have helped restoration efforts of critically endangered species through their sophisticated breeding programs thus producing net good for animals.The Arabian oryx was a species that was
“hunted to extinction in the wild nearly four decades ago, when the last wild Arabian Oryx was shot and killed in 1972. The Phoenix Zoo helped lead the ensuing breeding and reintroduction programs, which ultimately birthed more than 200 calves from just nine individuals. Now between Oman and Jordan, there are about 1,000 Arabian Oryx living in the wild ”().
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Conservation is also a process that takes many generations; simply using a specialized area would most likely be inefficient and costly in the long run, thus zoos provide a decent avenue to enable conservation of species. Zoos also make it possible for scientists to conduct experiments on animals which can lead to medical improvements for treatment of both humans and animals. But these conservational efforts would not be possible if it weren't for the general public viewing
Considering the many challenges animals face in the wild, it is understandable that people may be eager to support zoos and may feel that they are protective facilities necessary for animal life. In the article “ Zoos Are Not Prisons. They Improve the Lives of Animals”, Author Robin Ganzert argues that Zoos are ethical institutions that enrich the lives of animals and ultimately protect them. Statistics have shown that animals held in captivity have limited utilitarian function resulting in cramped quarters, poor diets, depression, and early death for the animals thus, proving that Zoos are not ethical institutions that support and better the lives of animals as author Robin Ganzert stated (Cokal 491). Ganzert exposes the false premise in stating
Have you ever seen an animal sitting in a cage all alone with nothing to do. Well, zoos are trying to change that fact. They will allow the animals to live in an environment that is like their home. Many people don't realize this, but zoo are keeping and breeding these animals because they would not survive in the wild alone. In the three passages, ¨The Stripes Will Survive,¨ ¨The Zood Go Wild from No More Dodos,¨ ¨Our Beautiful Macaws and Why They Need Enrichment.¨ All of these articles present one claim, that is that the role of zoos is no longer to keep animal, but to protect them.
It’s always fun to go with your friends and family to see cute and exotic animals when you go to the zoo, right? You may think that they have the best life having people to give them things that want and to protect them, but some of them are actually suffering just for our amusement from being in that small enclosure all day and all night. Animals should not be put in zoos because they can develop many mental and physical health problems due to the absence of some natural necessities and they are not always treated as nice as you think.
Zoos have been with us throughout our history, and can provide a good barometer of public beliefs and values at any given time. Therefore it seems necessary to explore whether in today’s society contemporary zoos are a means of educating and conserving or still seek to control and exhibit animal others for human benefit. In order to make this assessment there are a number of contributing factors. Firstly it is important to establish context by considering the history of zoos and looking at the changes from the early menageries to contemporary zoos who strive to be institutions of refuge for animals facing twenty-first century global challenges. This links into how the physical space of zoos has changed over time and whether these advancements have made any crucial difference to the welfare of animals. Following this conservation, education and scientific research will be explored in detail in order to assess whether they provide good enough motives for keeping animals in captivity. I will seek to argue that although attempts have been made to point zoos in the direction of conservation and education, in my opinion the concepts of dominance and human superiority are still at the core of modern zoos.
Animal rights have become a very serious issue here in the United States over the last few decades. One issue that has been discussed is whether or not zoos serve a good purpose or are they just a torture chamber for the animals. Locked up in small cages so people can yell at them and stare. Or are zoos the key to save our species in an ever growing human population. Rachel Lu, a philosophy teacher and senior columnist, writes the article, “Let’s Keep Zoos: Learning stewardship is a good thing.”, published April 18, 2014, argues that zoos are worth keeping. Rachel Lu uses her personal experiences to appeal to her audience that zoos are valuable to people especially young children because it gives them a perspective on nature.
Since approximately 1250 B.C., ancient Egyptians had created and practiced the capture and display of animals in what are now known as zoos (Fravel). Records describe such exotic animals as birds, lions, giraffes, and tigers in captivity (Fravel). Since then, zoos have continued to entertain millions with the exciting chance to view exotic animals up close and personal. Even in ancient Greece, exotic animals were on display in fighting arenas, and in enclosed viewing areas. Originally in America, zoos were just created so that royalty and the wealthy could flaunt their exotic animals to the public (Leolupus). Today, with species threatened and habitats disappearing worldwide, zoos are serving a new purpose other than the mere exhibition of animals – conservation. (Fravel). When you think of a zoo, you either think of a fun, entertaining place that provides close-up and exciting exhibits of wild animals that you would otherwise never get the chance to see, or a place where people keep suffering, unhappy animals captive just for entertainment and display. However, despite whichever view you hold, and despite the stereotypes, some zoos have evolved to serve alternative and helpful purposes. Although some zoos face controversy due to allegations such as lack of space and quality care, neglect, and cruelty, some zoos have programs specifically designed to help and protect animal species. For example, these zoos have programs that help such conservation efforts as breeding.
Animals were kept in small display areas with as many species as space would allow. Today, however, zoos are meant to entertain and educate people and also have a strong emphasis on scientific research and species conservation. Zoos should be banned for
One reason we should get rid zoos is in the wild there are way more animals than the zoos. In “Life span of elephants in zoos and in the wild,” African elephants live up to 15-20 years in zoos and in the wild they live up to 50-55. That is way different. There are some endangered species in the zoos and they are dying way earlier than in the wild. Also Asian elephants are living up to 15-20 years in zoos and 40-45 years in the wild.
People come to see the cute baby animals, and most zoos have a fee to get in, so, more babies more money. However, the more zoos breed the better chance we have to save the endangered animals, and to repopulate decreases populations. For example, according to Scientific America.com, the text states, “To wit, dozens of zoos across North America participate in the Association of Zoos and Aquarium’s (AZA’s) Species Survival Plan (SSP) Program, which aims to manage the breeding of specific endangered species in order to help maintain healthy and self-sustaining populations that are both genetically diverse and demographically stable.”
The final reason is these zoos allow us to study animals. Firstly, breeding programs help endangered species live on. This is essential because it makes life more compelling; it benefits humankind as well. Endangered species have important health benefits for us.
There have been arguments on whether there should be zoo or not. I think that we should have zoos because it’s educational for all ages, also people can see all the different types of animals up close in person that they might not get to ever see in real life. Zoos are even helpful for some of the animals. The endangered animals like the golden frog is endangered in 2007 there was an fungal outbreak that spreaded throughout their habitat which made them extinct in the wild. But, the Zoos in the United States have been breeding them for years hoping that by maintaining genetic diversity in the species, they might eventually be able to reintroduce golden frogs to their native cloud forests in western Panama.
Don’t you just love to go to zoos and see your favorite rare animal, which you couldn’t see in your home town? Well I sure do! So does the 150 million people who visit 500 zoos in a year. I think I know why people like zoos so much… because they offer and provide protection for wild animals, it breeds endangered animals so there will be more if them, it also provides education for young children who don’t know much about nature. Zoos have the right kind of animals and material to help them understand zoos.
In conclusion zoos in America are making attempts to accommodate elephants better, the local Sedgwick county zoo is planning to increase to size of the elephants enclosure. All zoos with elephants should either move them to large sanctuaries or release them back into the wild or even increase the enclosure, but no enclosure will be big enough. The cost to increase the size of orca pools would be too costly. Orcas need to be released back into the wild; the risks of keeping them captive outweigh everything else. Instead of using valuable resources on keeping elephants and orcas captive they should be focused on using the resources on protecting the wild ones and their environments.
Science has shown that some mammals are far more intelligent than society initially thought; there is evidence that primates are making their way into their own stone age (Westergaard), and certain countries in Asia have started granting rights to species that are self-aware. Society, however, still keeps many of these mammals in zoos. Some believe zoos will never be able to give the proper care to the animals while others say zoos should not exist at all. Zoos have become progressively more humane over the years by moving away from the age of small, tile boxes, but no one is sure how much change is enough. Organizations like the AZA, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, have helped progress by setting standards for treatment, but many of
Zoos bring human kind closer to wild life. Though, sometimes that means taking the animal out of its natural habitat. Some animals have lost most of their habitat and are on the verge of extinction. In this way, the zoo helps the animals rather than using them as a form of human entertainment. Zoos also allow humans to study different kinds of animals more closely. Some zoos on the other hand manipulate the animals to acquire as much revenue as possible rather than being concerned with the welfare of each animal.