How Do Zoos Help Endangered Animals?
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=how-do-zoos-help-endangered-animals
By: Scientific American
April 15, 2009
Environmental Science: Endangered Animals
By: Scientific American
April 15, 2009
Environmental Science: Endangered Animals
Summary: This article is about how zoos don't just use animals for display, but they do their part in trying to save endangered species also. The zoos in North America are apart of the Association of Zoos and Aquarium’s (AZA’s) Species Survival Plan (SSP) Program. There goal is to take animals that are endangered or threaten in the wild and save them from extinction. By saving them they do all that they can to breed specific endangered species in order to help maintain healthy and self-sustaining populations. Animals that the SSP have helped bring back from extinction were the black-footed ferrets, California condors, red wolves, etc. Zoos also use SSP to research tools to better understand wildlife biology and population dynamics. Also to raise awareness and funds to support field projects and habitat protection for specific species. AZA zoos have established a stable population of bongos, a threatened antelope in Africa, through captive breeding programs under the SSP program. The end goal of many SSPs is the reintroduction of captive-raised endangered species into their native wild habitats.
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Reflection: I chose this article because over the years I've heard many argument on whether animals are better off free in the wild or better left in captivity (zoos). As years have gone by more and more animals are starting to decrease in population and starting to go extinct. This is caused from the actions we humans do, such as cutting down trees, over using natural resources, and building things over the areas where animals live. The question everyone always wonders is whether if zoos are a good place for animals to be in. Some people think that zoos only use animals for display and other people think that zoos not only help animals, but save them from extinction. Turns out that zoos do help save endangered species, and are also apart of programs like the Species Survival Plan (SSP) to not only save them from extinction, but also to bring them back from extinction by breeding them. I think that zoos are a great way to save endangered species out in the wild and they should be known for what they do. The world would be nothing if we didn't have any animals, and the fact that zoos do whatever they can to breed species that are the most threatened and endangered in the wild is amazing.
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