Zoos in the 21st Century: Catalysts for Conservation?

by Edited by Alexandra Zimmermann , Matthew Hatchwell , Lesley A. Dickie , Chris West

• ISBN13: 9780521618588
• ISBN10: 0521618584
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-09-03
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

Modern zoos and aquaria are playing an increasingly active and important role in protecting and managing global biodiversity. Many zoos include wildlife conservation in their mission and have started changing the focus of their institutions in order to increase even further the benefits of their activities for in situ wildlife conservation. With these developments, the following searching questions are now being asked: What is the true role of zoos in conservation? How can they contribute more significantly to global conservation efforts? What are the unique attributes of zoos that can be applied in the conservation landscape? And should zoos be doing more? In parallel with this voluntary movement, legal requirements for zoos to support conservation in the wild are also becoming more stringent. This book defines a new conservation vision for zoos and aquaria that will be of interest to those working in zoos, alongside practitioners and researchers in conservation.

Table of Contents

List of contributors	p. ix
Foreword	p. xi
Acknowledgements	p. xiii
Zoos entering the 21st century
Introduction: is there a conservation role for zoos in a natural world under fire?	p. 3
Entering the 21st century	p. 12
How do national and international regulations and policies influence the role of zoos and aquariums in conservation?	p. 22
The challenge of changing behavior
Conservation education in zoos: an emphasis on behavioral change	p. 37
Inspiration for conservation: moving audiences to care	p. 51
Attitudes and attitude change among zoo visitors	p. 63
The animal rights-conservation debate: can zoos and aquariums play a role?	p. 92
Creating a culture of conservation: a case study of a backyard approach	p. 110
Message received? Quantifying the impact of informal conservation education on adults visiting UK zoos	p. 120
Establishing connections between zoos and the wild
Animal ambassadors: an analysis of the effectiveness and conservation impact of ex situ breeding efforts	p. 139
Reintroductions from zoos: a conservation guiding light or a shooting star?	p. 155
Research by zoos	p. 178
Conservation medicine	p. 192
The Masoala rainforest: a model partnership in support of in situ conservation in Madagascar	p. 205
In situ and ex situ conservation: blurring the boundaries between zoos and the wild	p. 220
Beyond the ark: conservation biologists' views of the achievements of zoos in conservation	p. 236
Direct involvement of zoos in in situ conservation
Zoo-based fundraising for in situ wildlife conservation	p. 257
The Madagascar Fauna Group: what zoo cooperation can do for conservation	p. 275
Zoo coalitions for conservation	p. 287
The conservation mission in the wild: zoos as conservation NGOs?	p. 303
Measuring conservation success: assessing zoos' contribution	p. 322
Conclusion: the future of zoos	p. 343
Bibliographic resource: zoos and conservation	p. 361
Index	p. 362
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