WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW!
- Zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, and seedbanks have a 50/50 record at bringing extinct species back into the wild.
- The Zoological Society of London studied 95 animals and plants that have been extinct in the wild since 1950, and found that collaborative breeding programs, fieldwork, and research have already helped return a number of extinct species to the wild.
- Experts at ZSL’s conservation Zoos in London and Whipsnade have more specialty programs for animals extinct in the wild than any others in the UK.
According to a new study by the Zoological Society of London, zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, and seedbanks have a “powerful potential” to reverse extinctions. The study found that these institutions have a 50/50 record at bringing extinct species back into the wild.
Among the 95 animals and plants studied that have been extinct in the wild since 1950, collaborative breeding programs, fieldwork, and research have already helped return a number of extinct species to the wild.
For instance, ZSL has successfully returned Partula tree snails to the islands of French Polynesia, the scimitar-horned oryx to Chad, and plans to return the colorful sihek to the wild later this year.
The European bison, once restricted to a small population under human care, is now thriving in the wild thanks to pioneering conservation work.
Source: godnewsnetwork.org