Are zoos really necessary? What is their primary purpose? I for one have not visited a zoo or acquarium for decades. The London Zoo has 10,000 non-human animals. How well-cared are they?
Hi Perry great question I’ve wondered this myself as well. While A LOT of zoos are definitely not necessary and purely for human entertainment with poor living conditions, some zoos (like London Zoo) focus on conservation and breeding programs to maintain genetic diversity of endangered species while their numbers dwindle in the wild and there isn’t a suitable wild habitat for them. Having said that I do have an internal conflict even when visiting London Zoo because no matter how much enrichment they have their natural environment cannot be replicated. I know London zoo has successfully released some species back eg. ibis but I’m sure less ethical zoos have no intention of releasing animals back to the wild.
I think zoos are a good temporary solution to maintain species that would otherwise be extinct but they aren’t a long term solution. We need to focus on conservation so that zoos aren’t necessary.
I agree zoos are like prisons, they really need to freedom to move and develop their natural instincts. It’s unfortunate that climate change doesn’t respect the boundaries of protected areas and as I touched on in this article biodiversity is declining faster in protected areas :( we humans really need to do better for our wildlife 🌎
Thank you in particular for the Lundy news. When I lived in North Devon, the island was a constant companion on the horizon (although some days it would seem to have moved closer). It’s a beautiful place to visit - as long as you get lucky/can cope with the crossing! 🤢
Are zoos really necessary? What is their primary purpose? I for one have not visited a zoo or acquarium for decades. The London Zoo has 10,000 non-human animals. How well-cared are they?
Hi Perry great question I’ve wondered this myself as well. While A LOT of zoos are definitely not necessary and purely for human entertainment with poor living conditions, some zoos (like London Zoo) focus on conservation and breeding programs to maintain genetic diversity of endangered species while their numbers dwindle in the wild and there isn’t a suitable wild habitat for them. Having said that I do have an internal conflict even when visiting London Zoo because no matter how much enrichment they have their natural environment cannot be replicated. I know London zoo has successfully released some species back eg. ibis but I’m sure less ethical zoos have no intention of releasing animals back to the wild.
I think zoos are a good temporary solution to maintain species that would otherwise be extinct but they aren’t a long term solution. We need to focus on conservation so that zoos aren’t necessary.
Hope that helped, let me know your thoughts!
Large parks and protected areas for wildlife is a good idea as a replacement for zoos, which are just prisons.🕊🐦🦜
I agree zoos are like prisons, they really need to freedom to move and develop their natural instincts. It’s unfortunate that climate change doesn’t respect the boundaries of protected areas and as I touched on in this article biodiversity is declining faster in protected areas :( we humans really need to do better for our wildlife 🌎
Thank you in particular for the Lundy news. When I lived in North Devon, the island was a constant companion on the horizon (although some days it would seem to have moved closer). It’s a beautiful place to visit - as long as you get lucky/can cope with the crossing! 🤢
Thanks for your comment Andrew :) haha I’ll definitely have to visit it one day!
Keep going with this, Amaranta - great article as always
Thank you Hil❤️
Yes I found it informative and I encourage you to keep doing it
Thanks Kollibri!
You're very welcome! And now that we will be facing Project 2025, your summaries will be even more important.