When it comes to zoo conservation, no group is more respected than the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. In the past five years, AZA-accredited zoos have enacted over 3,700 conservation projects totaling up to $89 million in over 100 countries. They are continuously working toward protecting endangered species with their Species Survival Plan program and genetically diverse breeding operations. The 110 SSP programs are aimed at saving more than 160 rare species. While saving the animals will undoubtedly take more than breeding, this group understands that preservation is also about habitat restoration and education too.

There are many zoo conservation success stories associated with AZA-accredited animal parks. In 1982, only 23 California condors existed in the wild, but through San Diego’s breeding programs, their population increased to 322. The Wyoming toad was actually pronounced “extinct” in 1994 with just one “in situ” population remaining. Thanks to the Species Survival Plan at the Cheyenne Mountain facility, the species was moved from extinction to merely threatened. These toads are far from out of the water, but without these efforts, their species may have been entirely lost. The last 18 black-footed ferrets were carefully supervised in breeding plans at the Cheyenne Mountain and Smithsonian National Zoos, producing more than 700 animals in captivity. Another successful program occurred at the Toledo Zoological facility, where the breathtaking Karner blue butterfly was successfully reintroduced to the wild after completely disappearing.

Anne Warner, zoo conservation manager at the Oregon Zoo, said their $6.8 million “Predators of the Serengeti animal exhibit hopes to draw more attention to the plight of the cheetah, African lion and painted dog. She explains, “Visitors have to understand why it’s important to help — why support conservation?” At the artistic, innovative exhibit, guests will come nose-to-nose with lions, a caracal, African wild dogs and rock pythons that appear as though they’re lounging at a wildlife sanctuary, rather than a zoo. Careful landscaping, heated dens and waterfalls all make the animals’ realm more comfortable, as visitors are invited to imagine a world without these magnificent animals.

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